Sabot slug vs Rifled slug?

Question

I will be shooting deer and hogs from 0-85 yards. Which makes a bigger hole (12 gauge)? Are Sabot slugs worth the money? Which has the most energy? Will one dirty the Barrel more than the other? Will a Snake Bore clean the barrel ?

Pump vs Semi-Auto

Answer 1

Yup, as said before, sabot for rifle barrels, rifled slugs or foster slugs for smoothbore barrels. What hasn't been said is that the average price of sabot's is around $12-$15 a box of 5. Rifled slugs/fosters are around $3 a box of 5.

After much research, I kept bumping up on the advice of a 20" barrel using a modified choke for rifled/foster slugs. Some interesting facts and figures were always posted with these numbers. For example the average rifled barrel..$150-$200. The scope? $40-$150 the slugs? $12-$15 dollars a box.

20" rem choke, rifle sighted barrel for 870 $150. Slugs? $3 a box. I tried it and am receiving the same accuracy as the other guys. 2"-3" 100yards off the bench, and I still have the option of tossing in buckshot for deer or 6's for rabbit/squirrel.

The cost is down and I have more money to practice with a very viable system that maximizes what shotguns do best, be versatile.

Now I would not go any lower than modified choke! But some manufacturers do size the lead rifling to safely go through up to full chokes. But then some people have destroyed the ends of their shotgun!

So if you're willing, get the barrel, get several different brands and see what works. Mine loves the silver box winchester slugs.

If you go rifled barrel and sabots, you will have a better engineered bullet, that has a flatter trajectory (as flat as a slug can be...) and will give you some extra range. But you will pay for it as well and will only shoot sabot slugs through that barrel.

Answer 2

In saying a rifled slug you mean a rifled Foster type slug or Brenneke slug which are designed for smoothbore shotgun barrels were as most saboted slugs are meant to be shot from rifled shotgun barrels and usually have a smaller diameter bullet in the sabot. The rifled slug while bigger in diameter and heavier leaves the barrel at a lower velocity then the sabots and will loose velocity faster and about max range with a Foster type slug IMO is about 75yds maybe a bit more with a Brenneke. The saboted shotgun rounds use a lighter bullet with a smaller diameter so they leave the barrel at a higher velocity and retain the velocity more going down range. Plus there are some pretty hard hitting bullet designs in the sabots. The Hornady SST, Winchester Platinum tip and the Barnes Expander are just some of the heavy hitters out there. If you have a rifled slug barrel you can take advantage of them and have better accuracy and range. If you have a smothbore barrel the rifled slugs may do you better but one saboted slug I have shot well from a smoothbore is the BRI type which is packaged by Winchester. As far as fouling you will have powder fouling with both types but with the rifled slugs you may have some lead fouling and with the saboted slugs since they use a sabot you may have more plastic fouling.

Answer 3

Sabots by all means. A special note to slider, I tend to agree that a rifled barel would improve the performance of a sabot however I was testing my 1946 JC Higgins 20 guage bolt action with a box of sabots when they first hit the market in 1992 or 93 and the result was scary! at 70 yards I touched bullet holes of a bench rest with nothing but an open shotgun bead. All I can figure is that the hourglass design helps the flight of the projectile and leads to accuracey. The old Brenikie rifled slug was barley accurate in a 10 inch group at 30 yards.

I agree with the other comment as well about what difference does in make about the size of the hole. Shoot straight not sloppy. I will take a 20 guage ovr a 12 any day because I get more range as 12 guage slugs drop like a rock and deer and pigs do not need alot of knock down power. Americans tend to do everything big, your not in Africa nor shooting Kodiak bears.

Regarding getting the barel dirty...Ha! I swithced to hunting deer with slugs becuase I was tired of scrubing the orriginal Blackpowder (not pyrodex) from my hawkens .50 caliber. Shotguns do not get that dirty, you can clean the bore in about 15 seconds flat.

I sugest you buy a few boxes of sabots and rifled slugs and patern them and see what works for you in your gun. And again you do not have to go overboard with the 3 and 3 1/2 inch magnums as it is my opinion so much power takes away from the acuracy

Answer 4

Sabot Slugs

Answer 5

In a 12 guage the rifled slug will make the larger hole, because it is bore diameter. They are designed to be fired in a smoothbore.
The sabot slug is a smaller diameter slug encased in a plastic sleeve (sabot), designed to be fired in a rifled barrel.
The shape of the slug in the sabot makes it travel straighter and farther than the rifled slug.
Since the lead touches the barrel in a rifled slug there will be more fouling. Because the plastic sabot is almost indestructible, the only fouling will be from the powder.
Good modern ammo has powder that leaves very little residue when fired, so your gun should not be hard to clean.

Answer 6

First things first....

Sabot slugs versus rifled slugs....Which slug to use mainly depends on your equipment.

If you have spent the money on a rifled slug barrel for your shotgun, you want to use dabot slugs, plain and simply. I have never shot a rifled slug down a rifled barrel, so I can not personally comment on accuracy, but when you shoot a rifled slug down a rifled barrel, the rifling of the slug and barrel are working against each other. The result is heavy metal fouling in the shotgun barrel and poor accuracy.

If you have a smoothbore shotgun barrel, used rifled slugs. A sabot slug down a smoothbore barrel is kind of like shooting a paintball gun. You know the general direction that the projectile will fly, but the accuracy just isn't very impressive. A rifled slug in a smoothbore barrel leaves much to be desired for accuracy, but they are deadly at short ranges.

The rifled slugs are bore diameter, so they tend to leave a bigger hole. Sabot slugs are usually rifle or pistol bullets (usually 45 or 50 caliber). They will leave a nice hole still, but not as big as a rifled slug.

Personally, I don't shoot at anything with a rifled slug/smooth barrel at distances greater than 50 yards. The energy is there, but the accuracy usually isn't. With sabot slugs, rifled barrel, and iron sights, I am able to hit a 2 inch bullseye consistantly at 100 yards with a pump action 12 gauge on a calm day. With sabot slugs, I think I am the limitaion rather than the slugs. I am not comfortable shooting more than 100 meters with iron sights.

The arguement of pump versus semi-auto.....

Go with whatever works for you. All else being equal, I think a pump action will produce better accuracy. However, if you are scared of the heavy recoil of a 12 ga, a semi-auto will reduce felt recoil and result in better accuracy as the shooter will be more confident.

Snake Bores do pretty well. I usually run a patch with Hoppes down the barrel first or use an aerosol bore cleaner first. After 10 minutes, I use a bore snake and it usually comes out pretty spotless.

Good Luck to you.

NOTE to JD: Perhaps I am misinformed about rifled slugs in rifled barrels. However, what is the effect of shooting a rifled slug in a rifled barrel where the rifling rates between the two may be different? If the rifling on the slug is trying to turn the slug at one rate and the rifling in the barrel is trying to turn the slug at a different rate, what will happen? I would be interested in clarification from someone with your background. It would be good to know.

Answer 7

I can't help but wonder why you would be concerned with which makes a larger whole. But 12 gauge is a bigger gauge so it makes sense that the 12 gauge would make a bigger whole. The Sabot slugs are just a little more expensive than regular slugs, but WELL worth the extra cost. The Sabots have greater muzzle energy and shoot flatter with less bullet drop than a regular rifled slugs at greater distances. Either one leaves close to the same amount of residue in your barrel that must be cleaned. Last but not least YES, a 12 gauge "bore snake" will easily clean a 12 gauge shotgun or any shotgun of corresponding gauge.

NOTE FOR SLIDER- Rifled Slugs do NOT work against each other you are terribly mis-informed and passing on bad information.

Answer 8

Most hunters I know buy all the different brands of slugs they can find and they test them to find the one their gun shoots the best.

Sabot's usually shoot flatter and yielding tighter groups and make your gun into a 150-175 yard rifle. Using the older rifled slug design you get a 75-100 yards. My Remington 870 shoots about 3 inch groups with these at 50 yards out of a smooth IC bore. Ive never tried sabot's due to not having a rifled barrel. But guys I hunt with get 2-3 inch groups at 100 yards using sabots.

Answer 9

If you have a rifled barrel, use sabot slugs. Smoothbore, go rifled. Nothing else needs to be said. You use what your gun fires, so there's no need to compare "size of the hole" between the two.

To Slider: "Rifled" slugs don't spin themselves. The grooves aren't really rifling. They're only there to allow the slug to compress down as it moves down the barrel through a choke. You're completely right on the fouling, though. The rifling in the barrel acts as a circular file and files lead off as the slug goes by. Heavy leading and fouling has always been a real problem when using soft lead projectiles. After a half dozen rounds of such, accuracy goes way down.

As to bore snakes....they work great on normal dirt and grime etc. They *won't* remove leading from a rifled barrel, though. You'll need a good brass brush and some solvent for that.

Answer 10

they both are good depends on type of gun some you cant shoot sabots Ive used rifled slugs and sabot slugs rifled Remington 3 in maxi mag will take a large deer off its feet up to 50 yards with smooth bore 12 gage and 80 yards with rifled barrel