The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post

Dfariswheel · April 30, 2007, 02:58 PM

Any modern double barrel shotgun will be perfectly safe, and appropriate to shoot with slugs.
There are no legal issues, since it's still a shotgun, no matter whether you shoot birdshot, buckshot, or slugs.

The problem is going to be regulating the barrels. Shotgun gunsmiths who are capable of doing this are RARE, and horrendously expensive.
Since any bear that's a real threat is going to be at closer ranges, you don't need pinpoint accuracy at 50 yards or more, so you likely won't need to worry about regulating the barrels at all.
At under 50 yards most shotguns will shoot close enough together you probably won't need any adjustment.

A good experiment would be to borrow a good double and attach some temporary rifle sights.
Do some shooting with various brands of slugs to find one that works well in THAT particular gun.
This will give you at least an idea of what to expect.
Again, since demanding great regulation at anything over 50 yards is not necessary, I'm sure you won't need to spend the huge amount of money to regulate the barrels.

Once you know what's what, I'd buy a good double and send it out to someone like Hans Vang to have the barrels cut down to a handier length, the chokes opened up to probably Improved Cylinder, and get some rifle sights permanently mounted.

The choice between a double and and over-and-under is a matter of personal preference.
These days, there's a much wider selection of over-and-under guns, and at a wider price range than doubles.
Due to the nature of the target, simplicity in the guns action is key.
I'd probably look for a gun with double triggers and few, if any options like automatic ejection.

The old African hunters used simple double rifles because they are basically TWO guns joined together. If one failed, the other side would still save their life.
Single triggers can fail to operate, and other feature complicate the design, and compromise the reliability.

April 30, 2007, 02:58 PM	#3
Dfariswheel Senior Member Join Date: May 4, 2001 Posts: 7,478	Any modern double barrel shotgun will be perfectly safe, and appropriate to shoot with slugs. There are no legal issues, since it's still a shotgun, no matter whether you shoot birdshot, buckshot, or slugs. The problem is going to be regulating the barrels. Shotgun gunsmiths who are capable of doing this are RARE, and horrendously expensive. Since any bear that's a real threat is going to be at closer ranges, you don't need pinpoint accuracy at 50 yards or more, so you likely won't need to worry about regulating the barrels at all. At under 50 yards most shotguns will shoot close enough together you probably won't need any adjustment. A good experiment would be to borrow a good double and attach some temporary rifle sights. Do some shooting with various brands of slugs to find one that works well in THAT particular gun. This will give you at least an idea of what to expect. Again, since demanding great regulation at anything over 50 yards is not necessary, I'm sure you won't need to spend the huge amount of money to regulate the barrels. Once you know what's what, I'd buy a good double and send it out to someone like Hans Vang to have the barrels cut down to a handier length, the chokes opened up to probably Improved Cylinder, and get some rifle sights permanently mounted. The choice between a double and and over-and-under is a matter of personal preference. These days, there's a much wider selection of over-and-under guns, and at a wider price range than doubles. Due to the nature of the target, simplicity in the guns action is key. I'd probably look for a gun with double triggers and few, if any options like automatic ejection. The old African hunters used simple double rifles because they are basically TWO guns joined together. If one failed, the other side would still save their life. Single triggers can fail to operate, and other feature complicate the design, and compromise the reliability.