Sabot slugs

B

Backwoodsboy

New member
Hi yall, been looking around since last hunting season for a sabot-slug with good power. I live and hunt in western ny. for the last 5 years or so I have been using winchester Bri sabots and although I have gotten my share of whitetail I have found more than once that they simply dont have "KNOCKDOWN" power. In fact at least twice I have hit a deer and they have taken off as if not hit at all, they both fell within 100 yds but not before I have thrown another round there way. (I know I hit them with the first shot due to blood). With the price of sabots does anybody have recomendations for a sabot that drops a deer in its tracks with a lung shot. Any help is appreciated
 
1) You won't find a slug that reliably knocks deer down. "Knockdown Power" is a myth. I have shot and seen shot dozens of deer with over a dozen different sabot and conventional slugs. NONE reliably " knock down" deer.

2) I found the Hornady SSTs to be most accurate.

3)Accuracy is what matters. Shot placement kills. All the power in the world doesn't do you a bit of good in a tree or, worse, in the deers leg or guts.
 
Just yesterday I went out and tried several different brands and to be honest the winchester bri sabots were what grouped best for me. About 2-3 inch group off of a bench with my mossberg 930 and a 24" rifled barrel. The hornady sst came in a close second and copper solids coming in a distant third. I beleive I am going to stay with the bri and maybe just give it a second or two after the first shot to see what happens. Thanks again to those who replied.
 
Brian has it right. There really isn't a projectile that will guarantee a knockdown with a lung shot. An instant knockdown requires a shock to the central nervous system (i.e. neck, high-shoulder, spine, etc.). While the occasional lung/heart shot will cause a deer to drop pretty quickly, I think it is much more of a random thing.

Stick with slugs that give you good accuracy. Chances are that it will give you plenty of blood to trail (and that the trail will also be pretty short).
 
Typically, IME, deer struck with slugs, do that jump up in the air with the back arched thing and then take off running for 25-75 yards. Same with muzzleloaders.Exception, spine shots.

Medium caliber rifles do drop 'em rat thar, but that's not what we're discussing.
 
Just yesterday I went out and tried several different brands and to be honest the winchester bri sabots were what grouped best for me.
Click to expand...

Brian Pfleugers spot on analyses of shooting deer with a slug, along with your above statement, makes me think you've got your answer.

It's all about shot placement.
 
The BRI is a very accurate sabot, it is also very hard. Many times the round will punch straight thru with very little expansion. This is not always a bad thing as you now have a deer with a hole on either side if its lungs and it will quickly bleed out and die. Yes, a deer can get 100+ yards away in that time.

Moving the shot placement forward busts the shoulder and can some times "knock down" a deer, it can also cause the aforementioned mule kick. But it wastes a lot of meat and if it goes to far forward the round can graze the brisket resulting in a wounded, potentially no recoverable animal.

The Federal Barnes expander is also very accurate.

Again, the earlier posts are the best advice. Proper shot placement.

Worry less about marketing, sales tactics, and numbers and shoot what is most accurate in YOUR gun.

Slugs and sabots need to be able to safely shoot thru a wide variety of barrels, so they are designed with a bit more leeway than a rife bullet. This can cause accuracy issues.

You may want to read "Shotgunning for Deer" by Dave Henderson. It is a great publication for those of us in the shotgun only areas
 
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