# Slug barrel vs. Field barrel



## nicholasburnsworth (Oct 23, 2007)

Slug barrel vs. Field barrel 

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I have a question you may be able to answer. 
I have a Mossberg 500 12ga. and plan to go deer hunting in December. I only have the field barrel and a friend of mine told me I can remove the choke tube and use slugs through the field barrel. I always thought the field barrels were for shot only. 
Can I use the field barrel for slugs, and if so what type of accuracy can I expect?
Thanks


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## jeffmo (Apr 7, 2004)

i wouldn't try it on a dare.why chance your safety?
i won't even use a rifled choke tube again.had one blow out the end of a barrel on an 870 about 10 years ago.it split the barrel out about 1" wider at the muzzle and about 4" back.scared me bad!!!
do yourself a favor and buy a slug barrel and you'll never have to worry about it again.


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## icefisherman4life (Aug 5, 2007)

i would think if you unscrew the choke that the slug if you shoot many would mess up the threads for the choke tube. the 500 is a common gun you could prolly pick up a slug barrel cheap for it. my cousin shoots a rifled choke tube out of his 870 and it shoots great.


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## ezbite (May 25, 2006)

getting a slug barrel is the way to go. if thats not an option, screw in your cylinder(no restriction)choke and shoot remington green box rifled lead slugs from it. i would NOT shoot a rifled choke. ive heard horror stories about them blowing out the end of the barrel or being near impossible to remove. never happened to me but ive seen on at the range and it looked bad. cylinder bore...rifled lead slugs....you will be OK.


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## BigV (Nov 11, 2004)

nicholasburnsworth said:


> Slug barrel vs. Field barrel
> 
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> 
> ...


Yes, you can shoot slugs out of your field barrel, but DO NOT SHOOT IT WITHOUT CHOKE TUBES IN THE BARREL, if you do, you will destroy the threads in the barrel that hold the tubes.
Use MOD, or IC tube, they should work fine with slugs.

Back in the day; say 20-25 years ago gun manufacturers did not make slug barrels for their guns. Field barrels did it all from upland game to ducks, geese and deer. I personally used a 12 ga Mossberg 500 with a 30 barrel and a full choke for deer back in the late 70s early 80s. I cant remember how many deer I killed with the field barrel, but it was quite a few. Just use a modified choke tube and you will not have any problems. *You will not blow up your gun using Modified or Improved Cylinder choke tubes while shooting slugs!!!*


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## ontheattack (Aug 27, 2006)

I have a mossberg 500 as well, and if I recall in owners manual it recommends using improved cylinder tube with slugs, just not to use the sabots.


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## nicholasburnsworth (Oct 23, 2007)

Thank guys. This gun was bought used and I don't have the owners manual. I have always hunted rabbits, pheasants, and squirel. This will be my first time going after deer, just want to make sure i've got things right.
Thanks again


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## bigeye1 (Nov 13, 2007)

Smooth bore slug barrel is nothing really more than a improved cylinder barrel with rifel sights on it. I had a mossberg with an 18 inch i/c barrel on it, put a red dot on there and it was awesome. It was pretty accurate out to about 75 yards, past that I don't know because I never had to shoot further than that.


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## fishintechnician (Jul 20, 2007)

i also have a mossberg 500 and if you are going to get a slug barrel (which i recomend i would go with the fully rifled barel and sabot slug they shoot excellent with it


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## 5Cent (Jun 4, 2004)

fishintechnician said:


> i also have a mossberg 500 and if you are going to get a slug barrel (which i recomend i would go with the fully rifled barel and sabot slug they shoot excellent with it


Which sabots you recommend? I have shot most, and my 500 w/ rifled barrel has a hard time staying on a 4x8 sheet of plywood!


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## Shortdrift (Apr 5, 2004)

5Cent said:


> Which sabots you recommend? I have shot most, and my 500 w/ rifled barrel has a hard time staying on a 4x8 sheet of plywood!


One of your problems might be trying to use the 2.75" slugs in a barrel with 3" or even 3.5" chambering.. Think about it......you are having that sabot jump .25 to .75" until it hits the end of the chamber for the 3" or 3.5" slugs. During that jump, the sabot is unsupported and each time it enters the barrel it can be off center which screws things up right from the get go. Invest the money in some 3" and 3.5" sabots and I'm sure your accuracy will improve. As far as I'm concerned, a barrel bored for 3" max would be a lot better.

If you are scope sighted, you may have loose cross hairs or a loose mounting.
A friend had a Tasco Scope that came "unglued" internally and he was all over the paper until we tried the gun with iron sights and it was right on.


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## 5Cent (Jun 4, 2004)

Shortdrift said:


> One of your problems might be trying to use the 2.75" slugs in a barrel with 3" or even 3.5" chambering.. Think about it......you are having that sabot jump .25 to .75" until it hits the end of the chamber for the 3" or 3.5" slugs. During that jump, the sabot is unsupported and each time it enters the barrel it can be off center which screws things up right from the get go. Invest the money in some 3" and 3.5" sabots and I'm sure your accuracy will improve. As far as I'm concerned, a barrel bored for 3" max would be a lot better.
> 
> If you are scope sighted, you may have loose cross hairs or a loose mounting.
> A friend had a Tasco Scope that came "unglued" internally and he was all over the paper until we tried the gun with iron sights and it was right on.


Currently shooting 3" and iron sights. I believe most of my problem is the iron sights. They are the type that fold down (almost always down when you pull the gun up), and have the plate that slides up and down in the rear sight to adjust height. They are by far the cheapest, hardest sights to line up that I've ever used. I am leaning towards a 4X scope to help.

In all honesty though, I'm am about to just invest in a nice ML and have the accuracy and distance, along with both seasons covered. Time will tell.

P.S. Shortdrift, sent you a PM on that Loggy Bayou you sold me a few years back.

Adam


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