You can do everything you need with a 243 caliber. It will have a lot less recoil than a 270 even tho a 270 is a nice caliber. I have a 243, 25-06, 270 and 308, the 243 is the smoothest shooting caliber I have. Any of these calibers will do just fine but the 243 just does it with less recoil.

 

My freind said I could buy a shotgun and put a slug barrel on it for deer. I will be hunting some turkey and rarly duck.

 

Is my last post true ?

 

Yes, the Remington 870 pump is a popular shotgun to put an accessory rifled barrel on to shoot slugs. If your shots are 100 yards or less for deer, and want to use it for turkey hunting also, that would be a good choice for you. The 870 Express (matte finish, synthetic stock) will run you about $250 at Wal-Mart and will shoot 3" shells. A rifled slug barrel will run about $175, sometimes you can find used ones for $125 or so. Good hunting and be safe!

 

Sure you can. Not a bad idea if you want a single gun to do double duty or just have a tight budget. In fact for quite some time I never used a high power rifle simply because the state where I was hunting only allowed slug guns. Actually the last doe I took was with my slug gun, a Remington 11-87SP. At one time I did almost all of my hunting with this gun. I had long and short rem-choke vent rib barrels (one for turkey and the other for ducks and upland birds and target shooting), a rifle sight barrel I used for the old for old foster type slugs and a fully rifled cantilevered scope mount barrel for the new sabot type. I did 90% of my hunting with this one gun. Rabbits, squirrels, ducks, geese, pheasants, quail, turkeys, deer, doves and even a few raccoons, foxes and coyotes.

A fully rifled barrel with a sturdy scope, shooting sabot rounds will be pretty effective out to 100 or 125 yards in my experience. Quite accurate too. Mine can print surprisingly tight groups especially when compared to the old foster slugs. The old foster slugs I never could get to hit much out beyond 75 and the groups were erratic and large to put it kindly. Again, this is a case where a trip to the range is in order and in the case of shooting full power knockdown drag out slug loads a rest period or two may also be in order. I’m generally not bothered by recoil but after shooting a couple a boxes of slugs through a friend’s 870 trying to get it to group a week ago my shoulder is still a little sore. The first box or two is fine and kinda fun but that last one was a real chore. That is one reason why I prefer an autoloader like my 11-87. If really softens those heavy slug and turkey loads. I have an 870 too but I find it more enjoyable to shoot with lighter loads that won’t cycle the 11-87.

As for brands of shotguns I like Remingtons for the best money for the dollar. Benellis are wonderful shotguns but pricey. I loved the Benelli black eagle I owned and regret selling it. I like Mossberg pump guns but don’t care for their autoloaders. I had a 9200 that was the worst functioning shotgun I have ever owned. Certifiable junk. On the other hand I trust my life to a Mossberg 590 in military riot gun configuration. I haven’t handled enough new Winchesters or Brownings to make and educated recommendation about them. Old Winchester 12s and 42s were a joy to shoot but I wouldn’t abuse them with slugs and such.

 

Yes you could get by with a Remington 870, of course it's going to kick like a mule with slugs. If you are looking at using a gun as a combo for big game and game birds I would recommend one of the Savage specialty guns in 30-30/ 12 gauge. It's an over/under rifle shotgun firearm. What is really nice about this type of rifle is it will allow the reloader to use a pointed Spitzer bullet in the 30-30 round instead of the enemic flat nose bullet required in the lever action 30-30 rifles. You could always use a slug as a backup round for deer.

Plus it allows the use of 3" magnum 12 gauge loads for the big Tom Turkey that you call in. It would suffice for duck hunting but not nearly as well suited as a Browning Gold. There are many uses for this type of firearm and they are plenty accurate too.

Go to Savage Arms and look in the centerfire section, then scroll down to Specialy Series. You will find it there.

Good luck.

 

A few points....
1. Read Captain Quint's post about 10 times and memorize it.
2. Here in Illinois we are not allowed to use rifles for deer so we use shotguns. I shoot a Remington 870 using a rifled barrel and sabot slugs and it's very efficient for close range shots (up to 125 yards or so). Like the others mentioned, if recoil is an issue with you then buy a semi-automatic but they will run significantly more money than a pump. The Remington 870 Express is probably the best quality pump shotgun that you'll find for the money you'll pay for it. The mossberg 500 is another standby but the 870 has a lot more steel in it and it's more rugged.
3. If you get a shotgun it'll be the most versatile gun you can own. With the appropriate loads, you can hunt anything from squirrels and rabbits to quail, pheasant, turkey, deer and bear. Plus, shooting clay pigeons is an extremely fun way to practice shooting at a moving target and it doesn't cost much, either.
4. Whatever you buy, practice. Learn to judge distance and learn how your gun will act when shooting those different distances.
5. This should have been point #1, but take your gun safety course and take the rules they teach you seriously. You'll have to have it to get a hunting license anyway. Safety is always the first rule.
6. Go out there and have fun. If you have a buddy to hunt with it makes it 3 times as much fun as long as he's responsible as well as you.

JC

 

i have a model 1500 .270 awesome gun.. bolt action. doesnt jam. kills deer up to 500 yards in the right hands. very easy to shoot. not much recoil. cheap in price. fairly light. VERY accurate. I can keep a 3 shot group with in an inch at 100 yards. you cant go wrong.

other wise get a 44 mag. thats a fun gun to shoot deer at short range.

I have to say, the sport of hunting is getting quite pricey... its probly cheaper to go to the store and buy meat. but not nearly as thrilling! JMO

Luke

 

I think that a 243 or 270 would be a great gun for you. I shoot a 30-06 and I am 6'4 , 240. Let me know what you find.

pb. I apologize for the incorrect spelling of plowboy but the correct spelling was taken.

 

If you have to take a 500 yd shot, then I don't want you anywhere near me. At 300 yds there is a 10-13 in drop, I can only imagine what it would be at 500 yds. Also, I had a 243, for deer it did fine. I tried to shoot a wild boar and the bullet bounced off his shoulder. You can buy a Remington .270 or 30-06 synthetic with a 3x9 scope for $319 here in TX. Both are real ggod calibers and will do anything you want.