any 20gauge slug shooters?
 

ive been reading how great some of the new 20guage slugs perform (actually they perform better than 12g, which really surprised me), so i wanted to know if anyone here is shooting them and what they think. Also, do you have to have a rifled slug barrel to get decent performance, is anybody shooting them with a smoothbore? I want to go with an all in one set up for my encore where our small game/turkey/deer seasons overlap...and im thinking 20g might just be the answer.

can't tell you a lot about them but i carried my kids little 870jr one day this fall shooting cheap wi.sabot slugs and shot this guy at 50 yards he made a small circle and was about to go down but gave him another just to be sure.when i butchered him i could see he did not need the second shot.this little gun has shoot a few turkeys as well
i would not be afraid to part with my 12ga. and use only it

I shoot a New England Firearms Ultra Slug Gun 20 Gauge. I usually use Winchester Gold Sabots and get 3 in. groups at 150 yards. Experimenting this fall with Hornady SST with the super sharp tip and I was getting 4 inch groups at 200 yards.

It doesn't have the knock down power of the 12 gauge but it still kills the deer effectively although a little more tracking may be necessary at times. I have been using the 20 gauge for three years and have taken four deer, two bucks, two does.

Smooth bore 20 gauges have a short range in my experience. Just

I put the 12ga down for the 20ga about 4 years ago, the 20ga will throw a slug better then the 12ga, and it will put a deer down just as quick, go with a rifled barrel

I'm a 12ga guy but totally sold on the 20ga! I'm getting one when I get the chance!

That savage 220...

I agree the ballistics are just as good if not flatter....20ga slug has plenty of power for deer out to 200yds probably, I don't think I've ever shot a deer past 100yds even with a 12ga slug anyway.

less kick, more accurate, what's not to like?

I'm not big on slugs in general, would much rather prefer to be using a rifle, but in a slug only deer state....so gotta make do.

You don't need 1oz or 400+grs bullet or whatever to kill a deer...

When I did shot slug guns it was with a 20ga. My son shoots a 20 Mossberg Trophy Slugster with rifled barrel and a Burris scope and shoots Federal Barnes Expander 3". My wife shoots a Rem. 11-87 Premier with a rifled cantilever barrel and a Nikon scope and shoots Winch. Platnuim Tips, 2-3/4". The 20ga. shoots almost the same as a 50cal in-line muzzleloader with the correct rounds. I took a nice doe at 167yds with the Mossberg when I first got it with the Barnes round. It was DRT!!! Never took a step.

I have the Savage 220 F. Dropped one doe at 220 yards and shot another one at 176 yards that ran a very short way.

you need a rifled barrel to take advantage of the sabots. otherwise just wasting money if you are shooting them out of a smooth barrel. i love the 20 gauge 220f. for your encore you can get a 20 ga barrel with a set of chokes that will take care of your turkey and small game. maybe a rifled choke tube at least that will help impart some sort of spin on the slugs. personally i have never used a rifled choke but thats an option if you only want to buy one barrel. it may shorten your effective range so something to look into. i have a dedicated slug gun and then other guns depending on what im going for. hope some of this helps

My daughter has a mossberg 20ga. youth model with a rifled slug barrel. It shoots better than any of my 12ga slug guns do. I have not played much with the range and bullet drop on it yet though. At 100 yards I can put 4 rounds in a 3 inch line with remington copper solids shooting off my lead sled. I am looking to get a 20ga next year to play with and to try some different slugs.

She shot her first deer last year with the muzzleloader I was carrying since the deer was at 150yards and I was afraid her 20ga bullet might drop too much. She made a nice shoulder shot and the deer went down 10 yards from where it was hit. The deer got up and moved before I could reload the muzzleloader again so I had her aim high with the 20ga and the bullet hit just slightly below her aiming point. Apparently it didn't drop as much as I thought it would, and the damage it did was significant.