[Daverojo77]

Hi,
After doing a little research I found you could use an 870 with a smooth bore using a IC choke and shoot a slug accurately up to 75yds.

I have 2 shotguns, a gold hunter 12/28 and an 870SPS supermag 12/23 I use for turkey.

I wanted to use one of these guns for deer rather than buy a new shotgun. Another option would be to buy a rifled barrel.

What do you guys think?

 

[jlptexashunter]

Buy some Federal Premium Tru-Ball Slugs and use the 28" Browning Gold.

The Browning will soak up some of the recoil of those slugs and Federal has taken smooth bore slug shooting to a new level with those Tru-Ball slugs.

You may want to spring for a Tru-Glo or other B-Square mounted sighting system as those Tru-Balls are capable of 100 yard kill shots.

Good Luck

 

[Daverojo77]

Hey thanks for the tip I will definetley look into this.

 

[fishngun]

Does it have to be an IC choke or will a modified one work?

Jeff

 

[jlptexashunter]

You'll get far better results (generally) with an improved or even more open choke.

Good Luck

 

[fishngun]

Why is that? Do the tighter chokes constrict too much to allow for the slug to turn?

 

[Bonasa]

Daver,

Another option would be to buy an afternarket fully-rifled slug barrel for your 870. Mossberg makes a 24-inch model, nicely blued and with Williams iron sites, for about $100. Accurate as hell with Winchester BRI sabots. I think they also make ones with scope rails, too.

 

[RolexDr.]

I shoot 2 different 1187 12 ga.

both have smooth bore and rifled tubes

i shoot the cheap 2 3/4" rem sluggers and have good accuracy out to 100 good kills shots on a deer target

if i shoot the brennke slugs (like $4.00 a box) i can put all 5 shots back in the box at 75 yards off a bench

the one has a 1.5-5 burris on it it has the old style cantilever scope mounts and i pull the barrel off for duck season and only test fire never resight in

the other gun has the newer style cantliever mount and has the extended tube and has similar accuracy the scope is a cheapo simmons 2-7 that i have blew up 2x in less then 10 shots

the older gun has a trigger that has been smoothed a bit shoots slugs more like a rifle trigger

JD

 

[Kart29]

I found I get best accuracy with the modified tube in my smoothbore 870. Full was second best and IC was the worst. I don't know why, but that's the results I get.

I guess there's no substitute for checking it out yourself and seeing what actual works best for you.

8)

 

[yogi]

Well, I like smooth bore so whatever I say will be prejudiced some, but hey I guess everyone posts from their own degree of prejudice.

I don't know where you will be hunting (woods, open fields, mountains etc). However either of your smoothbores can deliver reliable accuracy probably up to 100 yards. If you will be shooting farther than that, then you probably want to look at scopes and rifled barrels. But if your shots will be less than 110-125 yards, then it seems you could shoot what you have.

My recommendation is:

You need to find out what slugs your guns like...

Both of my slug guns like all the Fiocchi and Brenneke slugs and my hand loads I've tested, and they do not like any of the Federal or Winchester or Remington I've tested. That has been my experience.

I have an 870 smooth bore modified choke 20 inch barrel and a double slug gun with cylinder cylinder chokes 24 inch barrels.

I generally buy TWO boxes (ie 10 slugs) of a certain slug load and test it. Make sure you let the barrels get cold between shots. That is what the gun will do on your first shot hunting and that to me is the way to properly test.

I like the old paper plate targets. They are cheap and you can generally see where you hit it using SLUGS without needing magnification.

 

[Rem760]

with my 870 i sighted it with a ic choke but tried the modified and got tighter groups.

 

[fmjacket]

Although I'm looking to buy a new dedicated slug gun I've been shooting a 2.5x scoped 870 for years with a smooth slug barrel. The only thing it likes is the Brennekes. It will group 3-4" at 75 yards. I just hope the new dedicated gun will shoot well enough to justify buying it. I bought a used trap barrel for the 870 on ebay and going to make it my turkey and spot shoot gun if it shoots tight enough.