Peyman

hey guys.
I have a 12g. 2-3/4in. Slugster model 500 (Mossberg) and I was wondering if its okay to shoot buckshots....since its rifle-barreled.

I asked the guy at walmart and he told me that I COULD but if would not perform good at all.

Any help would be appreciated,

Peyman

Pro-Line

You're not going to shoot at deer with buckshot are you? If so...just stick with the slugs and double your range.

The buckshot can't be great on the barrell...but I'm no buckshot expert.

BOWHUNTERCOP

THE GUY AT WALMART TOLD YOU THE RIGHT THING. BUT IF YOU HAVE THE MOSSBERG 500 WITH RIFLED BARREL YOU SHOULD USE SLUGS ONLY, PUT A SCOPE ON THAT SHOTGUN

Quilly

NO..

i found out the hard way. shot a buck with a rifled barrel and the next two rounds were 00buckshot. did not even hit him at 20yds. i think it would rattle around the rifle grooves casueing the groups to be erratic.
so i went to do some tests in january 3 years ago and in the snow at the range shooting at 50yds. the shot exited the barrel and you could see the buckshot long all over the place on the ground.
use slugs i the rifle barrel and keep the 00buckshot to the smooth bores.

BTW .. one of my shotgun shoots pie sized plates of buckshot at 60yds or so. so i like to mix mine up so u can utilize both.

Aught Six

You'll get much better performance with slugs than you would with buckshot. I agree, stick to the slugs and shoot further with confidence.

Peyman

ok....so now that I know to only shoot slugs, I will get ready for next hunting season.

Oh yeah, by the way, I have rifle sights on mine (special ordered the gun) and is it still a good idea to put a scope on it?

Thanks guys!

Pro-Line

The scope it totally up to you...but it will make you a better shooter with practice.

mauser06

since the others got you on the right track with the slugs ill input on the scope....they are nice...but not nessesary at all...and for some types of hunting they arent the best idea....like if you hunt and have the deer right upclose and personal.....but if your shooting much past 50yds scopes are pretty nice to have....i mean you can put in a little range time and become deadly with your open sights way out there...but it will take a bit more practice...its all upto you and how you hunt.....good luck......

eldeguello

You CAN, but it will NOT perform good at all!!!

The rifled barrel will spin the shot column, making it spread out a lot faster than it would if fired from a smooth bore. Thus, the very short effective range of the buckshot load would be made even poorer than normal.

Shotgun slugs are not the best loads for killing deer compared to rifles. But, the kind of slugs you can shoot in a rifled barrel are better than the kind of slugs you have to use in a smooth bore!! Buckshot is even worse than slugs, and is illegal for shooting deer in MOST states, as it should be. Never use buckshot if you can use a slug! Never use a slug if you can use a rifle!!

It is true that a scope is not NECESSARY, IF you have good eyesight!! BUT, once you learn how to use a scope properly, it will improve your accuracy and the speed with which you can pick up, aim, and hit a target!! The key is to learn to use it! A tip! KEEP BOTH EYES OPEN WHEN AIMING WITH A SCOPE, AT LEAST UNTIL YOU PICK UP THE TARGET IN THE SCOPE!! Then you can close the off eye, if you have to.

A scope allows you to see all targets better than iron sights do, and to pick out the exact spot you need to hit under all shooting conditions. Iron sights don't permit this. Your scope only needs to be a 2.5X or 4X on a slug shotgun!

Nic Barca

I hunt pigs and sometimes goat with my shotgun. It's a smooth bore tho. I have come to the conclusion that buckshot is only good out to 20 yards but that you shouldn't use it unles you have to because of heavy cover where you will almost certainly hit some branches. The bad thing about it is that you might be tempted to risk longer shots out to thirty yards. I tried to hit some goats one time that were 25 or 30 yards out and even with the long barrel, the first shot while aimed at the head of one with the head and body of the other a couple feet to the side. First shot BOOM! Not a single thing even flinched. Not even did it miss the head, it completely missed both animals bodys. Next shot BOOM! The one I was aiming for dropped and the other ran off. Turned out that out of nine buck shot, only one hit the goat. Barrelly hit just behind the head only half an inch down from the top. Only stunned the animal. I got there and finnished it off. Out of 18 bullets, one hit where I was aiming. All others missed.

I tend to load a slug first and have buck shot for follow up shots but if the animals are far off, then having buck shot is useless and unethical.

I too have heard that in rifled barrel, they can mess up the rifling and do not group well.

And with buck shot, you have to realize that there is a very real danger of hitting the antlers, tusks, or horns. I've heard stories of tusks being shattered by buckshot. I think I'm gonna change my pig gun from a shotgun to a 44 mag semi-auto rifle just for that reason.