TOPIC:

Hey guys was wondering what kind of slug gun u guys use for deer and y??? I went today and scouted 25 acres my partner found us, and it looks like a nice place for a shotgun, granted I have to get ahold of tags. I’m eye balling a savage 220. Also about 100 yards from where we parked found a lovely set of antlers

Guess it all depends on how deep your pockets are. Buddy bought a savage bolt action and shoots sst with good groups out to 200 yards. Mossberg 500 would be the cheapest out there. Mine groups best with Winchester Bri, 100 yards no problem. Another choice for Distance would be a muzzle loader. Tc Triumph with a 777 120gr charge will make some nice groups at 200. So just depends on the money you want to shell out. A muzzleloader gives you the option to hunt two season instead of one.

A rifle chambered in .44 Rem mag, .460 S and W, or a .450 Bushmaster would be a better choice over a slug gun. Cheaper to shoot and usually more accurate and longer range. Single shots, bolt actions, and AR style rifles work great.
Since you are hunting private ground you can use a good center fire such as a 30-30 or a .308 even.

Also Remington and Mossberg have bolt action rifles chambered in the 450 Bushmaster round that sell for about $375-400 bucks. Ruger versions are about $500 and the Savage version of the rifles are $625-700. The Savage is the best of the lot. It has an 18 inch heavy ported barrel, a stock that is adjustable for comb height and pull length and has an aluminum bedding block for perfect action to stock fit up for best accuracy. Also has an adjustable trigger for that perfect pull weight for accurate shooting. A 450 Bushmaster is a 250gr .45 caliber bullet traveling at 2200 fps and hits like a 12 gauge without beating up the shooter. This round is also legal to use on all State managed hunting areas which is a big plus. It will screw a whitetail right into the ground, promise.

Consider a rifle in .350 Legend, new this year. I just bought a Ruger American Ranch rifle, 16.38" barrel. A tack driver out to 200 yds and the lightest recoil I have ever felt, with 145 grain target loads. I bought it with the idea of passing to my grandson when he is old enough, as it has less recoil than a .243 (he lives in northern MN, where all rifles are legal). He may get the .243. So far, Grandpa loves his .350. Comes in a 20" barrel, also.

Bought it for $429 at Cabelas. All I had to do was take in a printout of the MidwayUSA price from their online site. Little known, Cabelas will price match several online sites. Ask at the gun counter for the list. Midway, Prairie Wings, Sportsmens Warehouse, Gander, Brownell's, are a few of them. The tax dollars are close to a push of avoiding an FFL fee and you will be legal. I was out the door under $460.

Thanks for the input however it has to be a shotgun, I’m in Illinois!!! Lol My cousin n I are avid bow hunters I’ve always wanted a shotgun spot mainly to take my sons with a slug gun, and Incase I see the BIG ONE LOL. Everything’s pointing to the savage 220

I used a Remington 1100 slug gun in 12 gauge for years and was and still is a great thumper. Before we could use rifles in Indiana I got a Remington 1187 in 20 gauge. It is also a very effective deer gun and using 3 inch rounds it is flatter shooting than a 12 without the kick. It sucks though buying sabot slugs for those guns. Three plus dollars per round is pricey shooting IMO. That was my way into using pistol round rifles for deer hunting. I can reload 44 mag rounds for about 40 cents a shot. My Bushmaster rounds take twice the powder charge to make and are less than 70 cents to make.
Good luck on your hunt for the slug gun. If you scope it make sure the scope has a long eye relief so when you have cold weather gear on you can comfortably aim and shoot the gun.It always seems to be a problem if not taken into account. Plus it will save you from a possible black eye or a busted nose bridge.

Nice set of sheds! Gets a guy's blood pumping for sure.

I'll second the idea of a muzzleloader for both firearms and muzzleloader season, although IL has a really short smoke-pole opportunity. I shot a Mossberg 500 in 20GA when IN was still shotgun only and preferred it to 12GA. I then purchased a T/C Contender (pistol) chambered in 7-30 Waters. It's a handgun that shoots a big game rifle cartridge. Taken a lot of deer with that.

Now that we can finally use "real" deer guns, I've moved back to my brush gun I used growing up in northern MN.

I've shot a lot of deer with my venerable 870 Wingmaster. It's probably older than you. I bought a Hastings barrel for it once those became available, slapped on a scope and the deer lived in fear of me. Somewhere along the line I picked up an H&R Ultra Slug single shot. Very nice slug gun, but definitely not a multi-tasker.

Plenty of deer have bought the farm due to smoothbore single shots, high-dollar semi-autos, double barrels and everything in-between. The most important thing is to pick something, shoot it a few times to learn how you shoot it and what the gun's capability is. You don't need to drive tacks at 150 yards. You aren't shooting tacks. You do have to reliably hit the vitals of a deer. Just see (and respect) what range you can do this, whether it's 50 yards or 150 and you'll do just fine. Ninety-nine percent of the time missed or wounded deer is "pilot-error" not equipment failure.

Yep, I've taken most of my deer with an 870, be it 12 or 20 gauge. When you practice shoot at a paper plate, it's about the same size as the vitals on a deer, if you can hit that you can get your deer.