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Mossberg’s sole hunting shotgun introduction at 2025 SHOT Shot was a bit of a surprise in this age of straightwall deer rifles. The company announced a trio of Model 500 Slugsters, including a smoothbore .410 and rifled 12- and 20-gauges. Slug guns haven’t gone away. Even with the changing regulations, plenty of people still shoot their whitetails with shotguns and slugs every year, forgoing the trendy straightwall cartridges and rifles.
I understand. Growing up in shotgun-only deer-hunting country, I never felt sorry for myself because I had to shoot slugs at deer. Accurate to 150 yards with the advent of rifled barrels and sabot ammunition, slug guns were all I ever needed to fill tags every year. Even the full-bore slugs and smoothbore shotguns that we used when I first started out were fine at regular whitetail ranges of under 100 yards. Sure, they kicked, but you should have seen the other guy. Slugs made big holes on both sides of a deer, resulting in short, easy-to-follow blood trails.
The guns people can use in traditional slug-only states might have changed, but the deer haven’t. They still have vitals the size of a volleyball , and they are still shot primarily at ranges under 100 yards. A gun that can put slugs into 3 inches or so at a 100 yards is more than accurate enough for most slug-country whitetail hunting, and many shotguns can do much better than that. The best rifled guns will shoot under an inch at 100 yards and can be deadly accurate to almost 200. Many hunters prefer 20-gauge guns, which offer ballistics as good or better than 12-gauges, but in lower-recoiling, more compact guns.
While there hasn’t been much slug development of late, there are plenty of good slugs on the market. Federal Tru-Ball and Winchester Deer Season are affordable slugs made to shoot in smoothbores. Sabot slugs like Hornady SST are—by slug gun standards—fast and flat-shooting. Regardless of the slug you choose, the right gun will make the most of its potential. All the guns here, save one .410, are fully rifled and best with sabot slugs. Slug guns are harder to find than they used to be before straight-wall cartridges, but they are out there if you look. Here are eight great picks you can find on gun-store shelves.
- Browning Silver Rifled Deer
- Henry Single Shot Slug Barrel Shotgun
- Mossberg 500 Slugster
- Ithaca Deerslayer III
- Retay Gordion Slug
- Savage 212/220
- Tar Hunt RSG
- Winchester SXP Extreme Deer
Browning Silver Rifled Deer
Browning Silver Rifled Deer
Pros
- Gas system reduces felt recoil
- Solid cantilever mount
- 20-gauge available
Cons
- Iron sights not available
Specs
Gauge: 3-inch 12-gauge and 3-inch 20-gauge
Action: Gas semi-auto
Barrel: 22-inch rifled barrel with cantilever scope mount
Price: Starts at $1,419
The Silver semiauto shoots slugs accurately through its fully rifled 22-inch barrel, while its gas operation reduces felt recoil. A cantilever scope mount attached to the barrel allows you to mount optics without being concerned about play between the barrel and receiver. The guns come in 3-inch 12- and 20-gauges in Browning’s own Ovix camo for $1519 in 12-gauge and $1619 in 20, as well as walnut and matte metal at $1,419/$1,519.
Henry Single Shot Slug Barrel Shotgun
Henry Single Shot Slug Barrel Shotgun
Pros
- Compact
- Solid lockup for good accuracy
- Affordable
Cons
- Light weight equals heavy kick
Specs
Gauge: 3-inch 12-gauge
Action: Break-action single-shot
Barrel: Rifled, iron sights, drilled and tapped
Price: $636
Henry’s well-made break-action single-shot slug gun lends itself very well to deer hunting duty. Fitted with a 24-inch, fully-rifled barrel equipped with iron sights, the gun is made to perform with sabot and attached-wad slugs. The gun is also drilled and tapped for a scope mounting, and the break-action keeps the overall length of the gun about 3 inches shorter than a repeater of the same barrel length. The gun has blued steel metal and a handsome walnut stock. And at just a little over $600, it’s a solid value too.
Mossberg 500 Slugster
Mossberg 500 Slugster
Pros
- Affordable
- Versatile with optional extra barrels
- Top safety is ambidextrous
Cons
- Stock low for scope use (receivers are drilled and tapped)
Specs
Gauge: 3-inch 12 and 20-gauge and .410 bore
Action: Pump
Barrel: 24-inch, rifled (12 and 20) or smoothbore (.410), iron sights
Price: $538
Mossberg, which pioneered rifled slug barrels in production guns, offers rifled 12- and 20-gauge Model 500 pumps and a smoothbore .410 slug gun. The 12 and 20 have 1-in-36-inch-twist barrels, which tend to work best with slower, fullbore slugs. The .410 is a cylinder bore. All three guns have drilled and tapped receivers, 24-inch barrels with iron sights, and synthetic stocks. They’re a bargain, too, at just over $500 each.
Ithaca Deerslayer III
Ithaca Deerslayer III
Pros
- Fixed barrel for accuracy
- Good trigger pull
- Monte Carlo stock for scope-and-eye alignment
Cons
- A tad on the heavy side
Specs
Gauge: 3-inch 12-gauge
Action: Bottom-eject pump
Barrel: 26-inch fully rifled, fluted
Price: Starts at $1,399
The Deer Slayer III gets its accuracy from a heavy-contour, 26-inch, fluted barrel fixed to the steel receiver. It’s not a gun you want to carry very far, but it is a gun you want in your blind when the shots are long. Ithaca’s classic bottom-eject pump comes with a 4-6 pound trigger and a Monte Carlo stock designed for a scope that will get the utmost accuracy out of this gun out to 150-plus yards. They are available in 12- and 20-gauge models, with varying grades of walnut to compliment the blued steel barrel and receiver.
Retay Gordion Slug
Retay Gordion Slug
Pros
- Cantilever mount for solid scope attachment
- Backup iron sights
- Clean inertia operation
Cons
- Inertia guns kick harder than gas guns
Specs
Gauge: 3-inch 12 and 3-inch 20-gauge
Action: Inertia semi-auto
Barrel: 22-inch rifled with cantilever scope mount
Price: Starts at $829
Fitted with a 22-inch rifled slug barrel with a cantilever scope mount, Retay’s Gordion is a dedicated deer gun. The barrel also has iron sights, either for primary or backup use. The inertia action shoots cleaner longer, and the gun comes in both 12- and 20-gauges in black or camo.
Savage 212/220
Savage 212
Pros
- Great trigger
- Aluminum bedded barrel
- Excellent value
Cons
- Plastic box magazine doesn’t always feed slugs smoothly
Specs
Gauge: 3-inch 12 and 3-inch 20
Action: Bolt action, with detachable mag
Barrel: 22-inch, fully rifled
Price: $719
The bolt-action 212 (12-gauge) and 220 (20-gauge) Savage slug guns have the advantage of a rigid bolt action and a 22-inch rifled, aluminum-bedded barrel fixed to the receiver. As a result, these guns shoot. The cleverly designed Savage Accu-Trigger provides safe, lightwieght pulls. The synthetic Accu-Stock lets you adjust the fit, and the bolt-action-style receiver makes scope mounting easy. A two shot, detachable box magazine gives the gun a 2+1 capacity, although it shoots so well that follow-ups should rarely be necessary. Left-hand models are also available. If what you’re after is good accuracy at a fair price, this gun delivers.
Tar Hunt RSG
Tar Hunt RSG
Pros
- Custom Jewell trigger
- Muzzle brake to reduce felt recoil
- Custom E.R. Shaw barrel
Cons
- Expensive
Specs
Gauge: 3-inch 12-gauge “Professional” and 3-inch 20-gauge “Mountaineer”
Action: Bolt
Barrel: 22-inch rifled with muzzle brake
Price: $3,886
The ultimate slug gun comes from Tar Hunt in Pennsylvania, which has been building tack-driving slug guns for 35 years. A bolt-action gun with a stainless, glass-bedded E.R. Shaw barrel with a muzzle-brake, the RSG also has a Jewell trigger tuned to 2 ½-pounds. They are drilled and tapped for scope bases and have McMillan black fiberglass stocks. These guns come in 12- or 20-gauge. These guns are made one at a time, and they require a deposit as part of their $3,886 price tag.
Winchester SXP Extreme Deer
Winchester SXP Extreme Deer
Pros
- Good value in dedicated slug gun
- Comb inserts change dimensions for optic use
- Slick action
Cons
- Some dislike safety at front of trigger guard
Specs
Gauge: 3-inch 12-gauge
Action: Pump
Barrel: 22-inch with fixed iron sights
Price: $589
Winchester dresses the SXP in a full pistol-grip stock with high and low interchangeable combs for fit with and without optics. The 22-inch barrel is fully rifled and has adjustable iron sights. The receiver is drilled and tapped for optics. The SXP’s rotary bolt makes the action so slick, it seems to pump itself. The Extreme Deer comes in 3-inch, 12-gauge only, with a black synthetic stock for under $600.
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