J.J. Westbrook

I have two questions that maybe someone here can help me with.

First is for me. I just got a short (18" ) barreled shotgun. It' s a Rem 870 that is set up like those that police and other law enforcement groups use for crowd control and the like. The barrel is not rifled. Would it be ok to shoot slugs in this gun? Thus far I have only put 2 3/4" , 7 1/2 shot loads through it. Only shoot it now and then at the range. But I would like to try some slugs in it and though I would ask first.

Second is for a friend. How adequate is a .223 for some up close white tail hunting. I have never even fired a .223, but he owns an AR15 and wants to take it to the field this year. Here in northern AR, we don' t see many shots more than say 50 (and 100 on occasion) yards. I have seen him shoot this at the range. I have no doubt that he will hit what he aims at. Question is, at say 50 yards, does this round have the penetration that it will need for a " bread basket" or a " behind the shoulder" shot?

Thanx for any help you guys can give me.

Vapodog

1. Your 870 with a 18" barrel should be able to shoot rifled slugs.....and I suspect you' d like the groups too.

2. if it' s legal in your state, the .223 will do the job on deer. I' ve used a 16 1/4" .222 on deer with total success. Shots must be well in range and placement must be good...you' ll do fine. I suggest a 55 grain or 60 grain bullet.

JagMagMan

For a " perfect" shot within 100 yards, you could probably get away with using a .22 RF. Shots are seldom " perfect" though, so I would not recommend anything less than a .243, and thats with good 100 grain hunting bullets! Anything less is just not fair to a fine game animal like a Whitetail deer!
In respect to the game we hunt, we owe them enough respect to use a weapon that will make a clean, humane kill, 100% of the time! While I believe that you can never be " over-gunned" , you can be " under-gunned!"

halcon

To answer your first question yes you can shoot slugs in your 870 . How accurate it is remains to be seen .
As to your second question a AR 15 is a semi auto and some states limit them to a five round capacity to hunt deer ,that could be a problem . The 223 Rem is sufficient to kill deer ,but I wouldn' t call it a gun I would reccomend for someone just starting out .

J.J. Westbrook

Thanx all. I will get me a box of slugs today. And We are going out this morning to hang a stand and setup a feeder. I will talk to him about his AR. I don' t know if its legal here or not, so we need to find that out first and foremost. He is no beginner, so I think that if it is legal, thats what he is gonna take this year.

Thanx again.

DANTHEHUNTER

Yes the .223 will kill deer size game animals but it would not be a caliber prefered by very many hunters. I shot a whitetail with mine and it fell in its tracks , that does not mean i think its a good cartridge for them . I only used it because it was the only gun i owned at the time. make sure you use the 60 grain bullets with soft points. no fmj

eldeguello

Yes, you can shoot slugs. The Foster or Brenneke-type will work from a smooth bore. However, if you plan to hit anything with it, you MUST put a set of useable sights on it. I' d recommend a fiber-optic type for a front, and a click-adjustable Lyman or Williams aperture on the rear, and do zero the thing in!! A low-power scope would be even better!!

Just as you cannot shoot a rifle without sights, you cannot shoot single projectyiles from a smoothbore without sights, and expect to hit anything!!

J.J. Westbrook

Well, just as I thought, he has decided (assuming still at this point that it is legal) to take his .223 AR-15 along with his S&W .41 Rem Mag to the field this year. We went out this morning and did some scouting and put out a corn feeder. I got to see the area for myself and at longest " common sense" shot, I have no doubt that he will be accurate enough with either to make an ethical kill. Heck, I might consider gettin one myself . At these ranges, that or a 30-30 would be plenty.

Thanx for your help guys