[Rupe]

Do Any of you guys hunt Big Game (i.e DEER) with your Shotguns and if so what is the ammo of choice.

I'm a bow freak first, a muzzloader second, but when it comes to a shotgun I LOVE the Remington Copper Solids.

They shoot great out of my 870 and my H&R single shot rifled shotgun as well as the Winchester Pump with a rifled barrel I gave to my dad.

[Dave McCracken]

I do, but you know that(G)....

KO Brennekes are my choice at the moment. Since each shotgun "Likes" different loads, teating is needed for best results. There's no ineffective slugs. Use what groups best.

[priv8ter]

Probably won't help much but 8 years ago, I was hunting with a guy that was using 12ga Sabot's to hunt for Elk. My mind is to clouded by the fog of time to remember the brand(probably Remington, he was a remington guy).

Anyway...he got his chance at a 40-50 yard shot, and that sabot punched clear through both shoulders, and pretty much trashed the chest cavity of that poor elk. Dropped her right where she stood.

Me...I'll stick with my 7mm Magnum for Elk, but, those solid's get the job done.

[redneck2]

seem to be kinda "funny" about grouping

mebbe it's just imagination, but they work with Remington guns and not so well with others. Our shop had 3" coppers WAY cheap. I bought a bunch of boxes.

870 12ga 3", with 4x Bushnell scope......hit a running coyote at 130 yards. Best groups are maybe tennis ball at 100 yards.

However, lighting these off gets your attention:what:

I'm gonna try those new Winchesters. Something like 485 grains at 1,900 fps. In the range of elephant rifle as far as power goes. I'm mainly interested in flatter shooting. I've changed to a 2x7 scope due to extended range of the better ammo.

Used to use a Knight .54 cal for gun and muzzle season, but I'm going to the shotgun for easier maintenance and fast 2nd shot.

[rugerfreak]

That's what that make rifles for-----LOL----fortunately I live in a state where you are not subjected such non-sense.

[jmbg29]

What Dave said.

I love Brenekkes, and have used them for 25+ years. I've never had them fail me.

[Blain]

Yup, with buckshot!!!

[ACP230]

I killed one whitetail buck with my 16 gauge Winchester Model 12. It took two buckshots shells and a slug to do the job because, although he went down at the first shot, he kept standing up again.

I haven't been real anxious to repeat the experience.

[jmbg29]

It took two buckshots shells and a slug to do the job because, although he went down at the first shot, he kept standing up again. I only use slugs for deer. They never get back up.

[ACP230]

It was a case of "fighting the last war." The year before I had jumped a couple of deer, including one nice buck, at very short range in the cedars. The buck beat me to a small trail and flashed across it before I could get the sights of the rifle I was carrying on it.
Sez I, "Next year I'm going to hunt these dang grouse bucks in the thick stuff with my Model 12 and buckshot."

I spent a good chunk of the morning in thick cover and saw no deer. In the afternoon I took off on a trail and a hunch and saw the buck farther out than I expected to. I got two steps closer and he put his head up. That's when the first buckshot went into him. The second followed in about five seconds after he stood up again. Because I'd hunted grouse with that 16 gauge for years it was reloaded and ready to go again in a second or two. The slug was a finisher when he was on the ground.

My .250 Savage has been a better "on the spot" killer than anything. I bought it a couple of years after this buck and used almost nothing else for deer since then.

[Blain]

What size buckshot id you use, how many pellets, where was shot placement and how did your gun pattern? What was the max effective range of your gun with that load of buckshot, and what pattern spread does that load and gun give you at that distance?

[jmbg29]

I grew up hunting deer in the occupied western province of the People's Demoratic Republik of MA. Thick woods, dense mountain laurel, deep hemlock/tamarack thickets, beaver swamps, etc.

At the time, there seemed to be two types of hunters.

Type 1) Used woodcraft and stealth to pattern the bucks, stalk or ambush them, and kill them. Some did it with 00 buck, or punkin' balls, but most of us used slugs. We were "Aim small, miss small." before it was cool. "Get close!" was the order of the day.

Type 2) Would move through the woods like they were marching in a parade. They would move at a relentless pace, and constantly swing their bodies around looking left and right. Never behind them by the way. They had no idea that whitetails often circle around behind whatever is chasing them (I've killed two deer that came up to within ten yards of me from behind my back).

They also had no idea that prey animals abhor a steady sound coming toward them, but that those same prey animals can be walked right up to +/- an easy 20-30 yds. using a step that has no rythym, i.e. step...pause of random length...step..step, step...step...pause of random length...lather, rinse, repeat.

They had no clue that deer believe what they smell before they believe what they hear, or that deer believe what they hear before they believe what they see.

A deer's sense of smell is phenomenal, and it will end a stalk in the time that it takes to blink. Nothing that I am aware of can really fool their noses, the wind is your only hope, but you can fool their ears (no rythym, or repetition in any sounds that you make), and fooling their eyes is a simple as moving very, very, very slowly when in visual range. But I digress.

Type 2 almost always used buckshot. They often talked about its "brush-busting" qualities.

Whenever that happened, all of the Type 1 hunters in the room would say a silent prayer of thanks that we could (almost literally) sense the Type 2 hunters coming a mile away.

[ARGarrison]

Started deer hunting with a smooth bore shotgun useing Brenekke slugs.

Later I got a Mossberg 695 with rifled barrel and switched to Remington sabots. Think they were the Copper Solids, but the older style. Got them cheap and bought a bunch. Done my scope work up with them. They were great. Longest shot I ever made with a shotgun was with the Remington ammo.

Went to buy more when my supply ran low. I found Remington had changed the design, but what got me was price. Talked over with some freinds and bought some Lightfield sabot slug to test, nearly two dollars a box cheaper than most. My shotgun liked them, re zeroed for the lightfields and have hunted with them since.

[frank c]

I use a 12 ga. browning A-bolt shotgun.Ammo is winchester or lightfields sabots.Very accurate shotgun.I wish they still made them.

[Rupestris]

Southern lower Michigan is Shotgun only so I'll be using my 870 this year for my first deer season. My son will be toting his classic 870 20 ga as well. Mine is a 870 12 ga with a smooth bore 26" bb. I'll be adding TruGlo adjustable sights instead of the scope I had planed on getting.
As for ammo, I'm not sure yet. I'll be spending some time at the range to see what it likes best between now and November. I also have an old Mossberg 395 that is like new that I'll be trying out. Who knows. If it groups better than the 870 I'll turn it into a dedicated smooth bore slug gun and do a couple mods as well.
By the way Rupe, Cool name. :cool: :D

Rupe

[Rupe]

I rarely tote the shotgun for deer except for herd control and have had great success with Brennekes out of the 870, but when I switched to the coper solids I was amzed as how accurate they were even out of the 870, let alone any of the rifled slug guns I used.

They do a quick humane job too. I have some farms rarely gun hunted, some have had less than 4 shots fired in the last decade. Dave hunted on one of these last year so maybe that helps I don't know.

These deer aren't that spooky or hunted hard.

Rupestris, Yeah I agree REAL cool name.:)

How did you come about it???

[Rupestris]

Rupe,
Here goes...
The name comes from my original vice. Fishing. The scientific name for the Rock Bass is "Ambloplites Rupestris". It translates roughly to "fish that lives among rocks". Most of my fishing was done along the shore of lake Erie and a the Huron river in southeast Michigan. Both of these locations can be miserable to shore fish because of the rocks so "lives among the rocks" sounded like the perfect name. It's a bit much but I usually don't have to worry about a screen name being taken on any of the boards I might want to use.
..and yours?
Rupestris

[JeFF D]

I hunt deer in the same area as Rupestris where it is shotgun only so I use a 20 gauge Mossberg 500 with fully rifled bbl, iron sights and 3" Federal Barnes Expanders. Or sometimes I use 26" smoothbore bbl with Brenneke's 20 gauge 3" loading with 1oz slug.
Both loads are plenty accurate for deer out to 100 yds.

[Poodleshooter]

I haven't hunted deer since I moved to VA. In Virginia, anywhere that slugs are legal, rifles are legal. In essence, it's buckshot only in many counties. Though many use buckshot, I trust a minie ball, when I hunt in the "buckshot only" counties.
When I did hunt, I used Remington slugs. Were I to do it now, I'd use my reloaded 1oz foster slugs.

[Dave McCracken]

How are those slugs working out, PS?

Rupestris, it's his old high school nickname. FYI, he's my best buddy and mentioned in quite a few threads.

For Daughter's first deer hunt, he strapped 100 lbs of corn to his back and carried it a half mile across muddy plowed fields to set up a bait pile for her.

In the ten years we've hunted together, he's taken maybe 50 whitetail(Some on crop permits) some feral and wild pork, a turkey or two and some of Md's near mythiucal Sikas. Most of these were with a bow.

Great hunter, great friend, great family man.

[DFBonnett]

I've had excellent results on whitetails with Federal Rifled slugs out of a 12 Ga. smoothe bore with an IC choke. Longest shot I ever took paced out to 65 yards so drop was not a big issue. I zero at 50 yards.

[JeepDriver]

I hunt white tale with a Mossy 500 Trophy. It's a fully rifle bore. I use Remington Copper solids.

http://www.fototime.com/CD6CEFAC801F4D2/standard.jpg

And a fake pic of the same deer with a rack I had from the previous year taken with the same gun

http://www.fototime.com/AD420F9ECD1D2E4/standard.jpg

[HS/LD]

I hunted a guy that was trying to break into my neighbour's property last night.

Grabbed the Winchester Defender and a cell phone.

Luckily I used the cell and not the 12 gauge.

That begs the question are humans "big game."

Regards,
HS/LD

Edit: Funny thing to add. I actually grabbed my handgun first, then my SG, then the Handgun then finally the SG before I ran out the door.
I was like my wife trying to decide which shoes to wear. :)

[Rupe]

Rupestris, My last name is Rupert, shortened to Rupe by friends.

Dave. Within the last 10 yeras that number is well over 100. but no big deal.:p

To those on the board Dave McCracken is what you would find in Websters under the definition of friend. To be honest I can't even remember us even having any arguements or serious disagreements

He is like my older brother to me. I call him when I need advice, a question anwered, or to unload some stress. He is that rare friend that God gives you and I don't take it lightly.

He is always willling to hep me. He always listens, gives me sound advice and has beeen a member of the Rupert family for over a decade.

I love the man and his family and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I consider his friendship a blessing.

If only there were more Dave McCrackens in the world. Of course I hope he tells the story about how I kicked butt on the range after not firing at a moving target in 18 plus years.
:D :D

[Dave McCracken]

Aw, sniff....

Yup, prior to our Pheasant shoot posted on TFL,we shot a round of 5 stand. He beat me. The fact that he was just a few days away from back surgery makes it even more humbling.

[scotjute]

Hunted in north Louisiana when growing up with a 12 gage, full choke, auto, 2 3/4" shells. Prefer # 1 Bucks or # 0's. Longest kill about 55 yds. Believe # 4B's to be too small, and # 00B's to have too few pellets for deer. Range should be out to about 60 yds. Past that I have not patterned the shot.

[TNT]

I live in a shotgun only area so that is all I have ever used for deer. Started out with a Remington model 17 at the age of 12 then stepped up to a Remington 1100 20ga light model and when I was old enouph I bought my first Winchester 1300 with fully rifled barrel, now I use a Remington 11/87 with rifled barrel.:D I try to use different slugs every year. Last season I used the Hornady sabots and I think I'll be sticking to the Winchester sabots. The Hornady shot good but just didn't perform as good as I hoped on the deer.

[Rupe]

Have you tried the Lightfields?

[TNT]

I have not tried the lightfields, never seen any on the local shelves.

[Al Thompson]

TNT, if you have a Dick's near you, they seem to keep some on hand.

[Poodleshooter]

How are those slugs working out, PS?
I've done limited testing due to the foul weather, but preliminary testing gave 25yd impact identical to Remington 1oz slugs at 25yds (the holes actually overlapped).
The load was Federal Hi-Power hulls (paper basewad), Lee 1oz cast Drive Key slug, Fed 12S3 wad, Winchester 209 primer, and 28grs of Universal Clays (USE AT YOUR OWN RISK-THIS LOAD WAS WORKED UP FROM A LIGHTER LOAD AND USES SUBSTITUTED COMPONENTS). I'll get velocity data later. Remington factory 2-3/4" slugs show about 1560fps @80degrees out of my 24" rifled Mossberg. Due to the trajectory, I'm guessing that these reloads will show similar speeds.
I'm contemplating some hunting with the inlaws in upstate NY, so that's why I'm developing the slug load. These things are so darn cheap, I can actually afford to shoot them!

[Dave McCracken]

Thanks. I confess to being leary of substituting components, but I'm no expert on this.

As cheap as the 5 packs run, I'm surprised these run less.

[TNT]

I've never seen a Dick's in MN. I am planning on using the new Remington Buckhammer round if I can find any this fall. It's got 1.25 ounces of lead:) Should be interesting.:D