I don't get/have to do slug hunting but a couple of times a year. So far I've tried a Rem 11-87 with cantilever rifled barrel, 1 H&R 20 ga ush, 1 H&R 20 ga ush chambered to 3 1/2" by Hastings, 1 Savage 220, 1 T/C Encore Pro Hunter in 20 ga., Mossberg 500 12 ga cantilever mount and an Ithaca Deerslayer II guide model 12 ga.
I've gotten rid of several of those. And have a couple for sale now...LOL.
My favorites are the Encore, Savage, and Ithaca. But favoritism is a very individual thing. What I like you may not like.
All have been capable of killing deer at 100 yards with slug they like. Triggers, for the most part, suck on slug guns. Exceptions are the Savage and the Encore.
Try as many as you can and buy the one that trips your trigger (pardon the pun).
Slug guns today are leaps and bounds ahead of what was available just a few years ago.
As for choices in slugs, your gun will tell you what it prefers. There are slugs that have gained reputations with me for being accurate in most guns. These include the Remington Buckhammer, Lightfields, Remington Copper Solids, Remington Accutips, and Federal Barnes Tipped Expanders.
My favorites of those are the Buckhammers and the Accutips.
With all that said, shooting a slug gun is different than shooting a deer rifle. Not controlling the jump of the shotgun during the recoil impulse but holding down and back on the forearm will cause you major problems. You can't lay a slug gun on a sandbag and expect the point of impact to be the same as when you are actually holding it correctly (i.e. the forearm).
I know a lot of guys think that last statement is hogwash. To each his own, but I've seen it happen way too many times to discount it. The slug hasn't exited the barrel by the time the recoil impulse acts upon the shotgun, thus, your groups are going to look like patterns.
Sorry for the long response. Have fun in your search.
Ken
