The future of slug guns

[Hookeye]

An iron sighted smoothbore pump or semi shotgun ...........lots of deer killed by them.
They make dandy HD rigs too.

Like my deer guns scoped though.

 

[tcecil88]

For the foreseeable future I am sticking with my slug gun and muzzleloader, although I have been trying to get one with my Ruger SBH .44 the last few years. I have a couple of centerfire rifles set up for deer, but where I mostly hunt, it is public ground and the ranges are short so the slug gun w/ Foster slugs does just fine. I have 58 acres of my own, but it is mostly creek bottom and thickets so, again, short ranges.
I don't see slug guns going away anytime soon, especially down around the Hoosier National forest, or out west around Morgan-Monroe and other public sites. Too many people hunt them that don't own their own ground for slug guns not to remain a viable alternative to spending $500 and up on a straight walled lever gun, or a more expensive AR.

 

[two70]

For the foreseeable future I am sticking with my slug gun and muzzleloader, although I have been trying to get one with my Ruger SBH .44 the last few years. I have a couple of centerfire rifles set up for deer, but where I mostly hunt, it is public ground and the ranges are short so the slug gun w/ Foster slugs does just fine. I have 58 acres of my own, but it is mostly creek bottom and thickets so, again, short ranges.
I don't see slug guns going away anytime soon, especially down around the Hoosier National forest, or out west around Morgan-Monroe and other public sites. Too many people hunt them that don't own their own ground for slug guns not to remain a viable alternative to spending $500 and up on a straight walled lever gun, or a more expensive AR.

I don't expect slug guns to go away completely but I doubt it will be too long before the options for new ones are pretty limited. I know there are a couple of east coast states that require slug guns in at least part of the state but the major market for slug guns has primarily been hunters in Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and part of Michigan. Indiana, Michigan and Ohio are in varying stages of moving away from slug guns. I doubt Illinois will make any gun friendly moves any time soon and don't know enough to even speculate about Iowa but the hunters in those two state plus the remaining slug gun hunters in Indiana, Michigan and Ohio is a pretty small chunk of an already small market. I don't see that reduced market supporting the number of slug gun options available now and the currently available slug gun options already seems less than it was 5 years ago.

 

[ghuns]

It's not just rifles, the quality and accuracy of modern muzzle loaders are incredible.

Knocking on wood... I have never missed a deer or needed a second shot to kill one. When I bought my first inline muzzle loader, it was the last time I took a shotgun deer hunting.

Of course when it became legal, I also built an AR in .458SOCOM, cause I neeeeeeeeded one.

 

[Hookeye]

My old side hammer TC muzzleloaders shot very well once they had about 100 shots through em.
Did the in line deal (Knight). They work well.
Out of the BP game............it's recurves or rifles from now on.

Cool factor over all else IMHO.

 

[Hookeye]

Know folks that think driving a 45K truck is fine, but if hunting they need to buy one and done.........a shotgun combo deal.
Same folks eat out and go to movies a lot.
And one even told me paying over $100 for a .22 rifle was nuts.

People justify their expenses however they want.

I say slug guns are still cool. So buy one, buy a rifle too. And a MZ...........and a PCR.
Geeesh, it's all about having fun.

For me..........having one gun...........who the heck wants to live such a crappy life?

 

[two70]

My old side hammer TC muzzleloaders shot very well once they had about 100 shots through em.
Did the in line deal (Knight). They work well.
Out of the BP game............it's recurves or rifles from now on.

Cool factor over all else IMHO.

I've toyed with the idea of taking my 120+ year old Swiss Vetterli centerfire conversion out for a hunt but never have. The Vetterli is a tube magazine fed bolt action with a lever action style loading gate and cartridge lifter. Chambered in .41 Swiss rimfire which meets the original PCR regulations and has ballistics comparable to a .44 Special. I haven't yet figured out a way to mount a workable sight to it though, the original irons are atrocious. It is good to have options.

 

[gatorgrip47331]

https://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/the-gun-nuts/shotguns-for-deer-will-the-sabot-slug-go-extinct

Another interesting article on the subject

Sent from my SM-J727V using Tapatalk

 

[Thor]

I'm assuming everyone's already heard of the XX GA "From Hell" wildcats?
Take a full length brass 3.5" cartridge, load with a slow burning voluminous powder, cap with a slug, treat as a poor man's Nitro Express?
View attachment 68365

I like that idea...but I have a Marlin 1895CB in .45-70 so...Garrett Hammerheads and CorBon hard casts kind of make that just interesting.

 

[kennedy759]

I help a friend process deer,4-500 per season, last year we saw a big increase with cross bows and new or transplanted hunters using a rifle. me, being from Minnesota, I have never warmed up to using a slug gun after growing up with a 30-30 winchester. Our local American Legion post has stopped raffling off shotguns in favor of .308 and 30-06 rifles.

 

[Hookeye]

Indiana born and raised.
Been shooting HP rifles since I was in elementary school.

Talked to several deer hunters at work, 20 plus yrs experience.
They think 100 yards is far, and two of them said they'd never shoot a deer past 50 yards without a rest.

IMHO a lot of deer hunters are just not gun people.
The guys I mentioned..........have dedicated deer rigs, are not the "one gun do it all" type.
They don't need to change, they refuse to change, and ...........they defend their choices with a lot of rationalizations (and ballistic ignorance).

Yee freeekin haw.

 

[Mark 1911]

I have a Remington 870 Wingmaster with a heavy Hastings rifled barrel and a Leupold scope. I've taken deer with it at 125 yds, one was a neck shot. Tackdriver, deadly, knocks em down. Have been hunting public land with it since 1989. This is the first year I plan to hunt public with something different, a Ruger 450 Bushmaster.

 

[BStarkey 46947]

I will hold on to my slug guns (dedicated deer rigs). The rifle rule is nice to get younger hunters started (44 Mag or 243) as opposed to 12-20 gauge slug guns. I jumped on the 450 BM the year it was legalized and will probably stick with it. Slug guns will become relics of the past.

 

[BiscuitsandGravy]

Indiana born and raised.
Been shooting HP rifles since I was in elementary school.

Talked to several deer hunters at work, 20 plus yrs experience.
They think 100 yards is far, and two of them said they'd never shoot a deer past 50 yards without a rest.

IMHO a lot of deer hunters are just not gun people.
The guys I mentioned..........have dedicated deer rigs, are not the "one gun do it all" type.
They don't need to change, they refuse to change, and ...........they defend their choices with a lot of rationalizations (and ballistic ignorance).

Yee freeekin haw.

'Ballistic ignorance' I like that. How about 'willful' ballistic ignorance.