lightfield commander IDS 3.5" slugs?

[coosbaycreep]

Anyone use these?

I just received two boxes of them from midwayusa, but won't be shooting them till we get some decent weather.

I already put them up, but IIRC, the box says they have 4719 ft. lbs of energy with a 600gr slug, and a TKO value of 115. I know a lot of people don't care for kinetic energy figures and that sort of stuff, but I've always been fascinated with elephant guns and big bores, and I don't have enough kidneys and blood to sell to finance a double rifle, so a 3.5" is as close as I'm going to get to something with that kind of power.

For those of you who have used these, what did you shoot with them, and how did they perform?

I know 12ga shotguns are the most popular choice for backup guns in Alaska against bears, but I've never heard of people using them in Africa for dangerous game. Does the 12ga get used for elephants and stuff? If not, why so?

I've only put about 5 rounds of 00 buckshot through my 3.5" so far, and aside from some brutal recoil (the other two people I let shoot it only shot it one time, and said they won't do it ever again), I wasn't that impressed with it. Of course I was just shooting at a cardboard box that was about 40 yards away, but I was still expecting destruction similar to that of an RPG. I'll probably use a few of my slugs against water jugs, pumpkins, and I might shoot a steel plate with it to see how that does.

 

[trnpkroadwarrior]

CBC -

Funny you should ask; I just posted about an experience with them:

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=412812

One quick question - you mentioned shooting #00 buck, and we're talking about sabots. Were you shooting the #00 buck through your rifled barrel? I don't think that's a terrible idea or anything in terms of your barrel life - the shot cup would be must of the contact on the rifling, and the rest is loose lead, so I don't see a problem. But I do know that the spin your rifling imparts on the shot cup will add centrifugal force to the payload, which increases the dispersion to an impractical level. So you would not really see RPG-like destruction in that scenario with a water jug; more likely diffuse points of impact.

IMO, those IDS slugs are awesome to shoot. Great wadcutter form. Kind of a barrel burner; give the barrel time to cool off (I didn't and I regret it!). As far as what sort of game they are appropriate for, I think it's appropriate for vehicles, things standing on the other side of walls/doors, and I suppose large North American game...but I'd recommend you wait for a quartering-away shot .

I don't know anything about hunting Africa but I'll tell you this: the IDS is one of the baddest-ass slugs around, and it only packs half the muzzle KE of a large double rifle. Then, check the ballistic graphs for the slugs - they indicate a rapid decline in power once you get past 50-75 yards. While "Great White Hunter" encounters are often pretty intimate, from what I hear, the capability for 200 yard shots is granted by the double rifle and desirable in that application, I would think.

Maybe there's an Africa hunter here who can say more.

 

[coosbaycreep]

I have a smooth bore barrel. I know I'll get pretty crappy accuracy with these slugs, but it won't mess it up, right?

 

[trnpkroadwarrior]

The answer is everybody's favorite - it depends. As far as I know, you will not damage the smoothbore barrel through use of sabot slugs - as long as you are shooting cylinder choke.

There is little reason to endure the extra expense of sabots if you are shooting a smoothbore gun, however. The sabots make sense for rifled guns because plastic is cheaper to jacket with than brass at that size, they have a shape that works well with lands and grooves, and of course are designed to fly with a spin. Some sabot designs incorporate the centrifugal force of the spin into the sabot detachment process.

Now, slugs designed for smoothbore will give you several advantages when used with a smoothbore barrel:

- Less expensive
- "Rifled" pattern on slug attempts to impart spin (whether this works or not is controversial)
- Grooves in "rifling" permit slug to compress somewhat if it is used with a low-constriction choke (skeet, improved cylinder, etc.).

To elaborate on that last (and the first) point...the recessions in the smoothbore slug from the "rifling" pattern give the lead a place to go if it were to encounter a mildly constrictive choke. A bore-diameter sabot in a constrictive choke does not have this option, so it is going to attempt to rip the choke out. Fortunately, it is still just lead and plastic so that probably won't happen, but that won't be for lack of trying. I have heard that steel shot (used for waterfowl in most jurisdictions now) can cause this problem, since steel doesn't give...but I digress.

If I were you, I would check what kind of choke the barrel has (or is inserted in the barrel, depending on what shotgun you are shooting). It should say on the barrel or on the choke itself if it is screw-in. If the choke is anything but cylinder bore, take the IDS slugs back or sell them to a buddy. Even if the choke is cylinder bore, I'd still take your two boxes back and 4 or more boxes of Brenneke KOs or the Winchester smoothbore slugs for the same money, more or less.

Lastly, if you are feeling spendy (and your shotgun takes a screw-in choke), you could order a rifled choke tube (see: http://www.choketube.com/wbmw.html for an example). This will give you most of the advantages of sabots - not as much as full rifling, but more than you would get with a simple cylinder choke.

-Dom

 

[rcmodel]

I've only put about 5 rounds of 00 buckshot through my 3.5" so far, and aside from some brutal recoil

Brutal?
Boy!
Are you gonna be in for a surprise when you shoot the IDS 3.5" slugs then!

rcmodel

 

[EHCRain10]

call when you get back from the hospital getting your shoulder reattached, slugs are some of the hardest recoiling loads ive shot out of anything, i refuse to shoot anything more the 2.75slugs. If that doesnt work im grabbing my 45-70