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Smoothbore 20 gauge as a good all-around gun?


Swamp_Yankee

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Looking to pick up a new shotgun and thinking about a 20 gauge.  Hear me out on the reasoning:  Now that we're settled into the new place I'm only hunting my own property-at least for deer, 60 yards would be my longest shot by far.  Also, that 60 yards would likely have some thicket along the way.  From what I've read, shooting rifled slugs out of a smoothbore barrel is plenty accurate out to at least 100 yards.  The motivation for retaining the smoothbore barrel rather than going with a dedicated slug barrel would be so that when not deer hunting I could put any old shell through it from turkey loads (plenty of them around here) to buckshot for dispatching chicken coop invaders.  A 20 gauge shooting 2-3/4" 000 buck should even be manageable for the wife to handle should the need arise.  Thoughts?

I live back in the woods you see

My woman and the kids and the dogs and me

I got a shotgun a rifle and a four wheel drive and a country boy can survive

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By a combo 20 guage.  I know mossberg and remington both have combos that come with a cantilever rifled barrel and 26 or 28 inch field barrel.   Put the scope on cantilever sight in and you can swap barrels at any time..  i've just found that a riffled barrel is more consistent than non.

Edited by vdep217
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Swapping out barrels is a cinch. Given modern shotgun sabot slugs, I would never use a Foster type slug out of a smoothbore again. Get something like an 870 pump or 1100 semi with two barrels and you’re all set. Just my two cents.


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If/when you swap out barrels and put the scope back on, recheck the sighting. It will definitely be knocked off zero and need a slight adjustment

There is nothing more intolerant than a liberal preaching tolerance 

God gives the toughest battles to his strongest soldiers

"Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without the strategy."

 

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If/when you swap out barrels and put the scope back on, recheck the sighting. It will definitely be knocked off zero and need a slight adjustment


While I always sight in, I have never once had an issue with my 870 in 12 ga with the cantilever scope mount. Pop off the bird barrel and pop on the slug barrel and put one round through it before 6 Day and it’s always true. If you remove the scope for some reason, that would likely change.


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13 minutes ago, Bucksnbows said:

 


While I always sight in, I have never once had an issue with my 870 in 12 ga with the cantilever scope mount. Pop off the bird barrel and pop on the slug barrel and put one round through it before 6 Day and it’s always true. If you remove the scope for some reason, that would likely change.


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My point is to check it. Going to shoot a deer with a scope possibly off kilter is irresponsible. The time to find out your scope is off is not when you pull the trigger on an animal

There is nothing more intolerant than a liberal preaching tolerance 

God gives the toughest battles to his strongest soldiers

"Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without the strategy."

 

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10 hours ago, Swamprat said:

Birdshot or buckshot out of a smoothbore will be all over the place. 

I'm confused.  I've shot birdshot and buckshot out of a 12 gauge smoothbore (full choke) 1100 for years with nice tight patterns?

I live back in the woods you see

My woman and the kids and the dogs and me

I got a shotgun a rifle and a four wheel drive and a country boy can survive

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9 minutes ago, BHC said:

Smoothbore is made for birdshot and buckshot 

Right-I'm thinking maybe he meant to say that slugs would be all over the place with a smoothbore.  However, I have found a fair amount of evidence that a smoothbore shoots just fine under 100 yards: 

 

I live back in the woods you see

My woman and the kids and the dogs and me

I got a shotgun a rifle and a four wheel drive and a country boy can survive

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Most smooth bore slug guns that I have shot over the years have been fine up to 75 yards and some over 100 yards.   I have an Ithaca Deerslayer 12 gauge smooth bore that shoots 3 inch groups at 100 yards with Remington Sluggers. 

 Now if you are talking shooting way over 100, like out to 125, 150 or 200, then you need a rifled barrel and sabots.

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2 hours ago, BHC said:

Smoothbore is made for birdshot and buckshot 

A smoothbore with a designated choke constriction is a fixed choke barrel not a smoothbore barrel. An example is some of the tactical guns or law enforcement guns they have smoothbore barrels... those barrels have no constriction in the barrel unless noted. 

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