Illinois Shotgun for deer

[Ben_BlueOx]

Totally new hunter...101 responses are still greatly appreciated.

I live in Illinois so thanks to the information provided by this group, I know Illinois is a no rifle state for deer, but a shotgun is allowed.

what are some key specs and advice on looking for a deer focused shotgun?

 

[Sasquatchewan]

Do a quick google research on deer shotguns and you will find a tremendous amount of info and reading material. You'll find info on smooth bore with rifled slugs or buckshot and plenty on rifled barrels with sabot slugs.

 

[Deleted member 38069]

It's the same way here in southern Minnesota. I'd take alook at the Savage bolt-action shotguns. They may kick like a mule but would solve the deer hunting problem.

 

[Pucky Freak]

IMO you’d be better served getting a muzzleloader in IL because you may find more opportunity to hunt than with shotgun.

That aside, I’d recommend a 20 ga. shotgun, rifled barrel, red dot optic, and Lightfield slugs. This gives you advantages in speed, recoil, accuracy, and ease of use.

 

[nontyp]

Really depends on your goals. If money is not a restriction I would go with a benelli Super Black Eagle or M2. The M2 is available in 12 or 20 gauge. I would then top it with a low power scope. If you just want something that works and is versatile, I’d get a Remington 870 with a bird barrel and a slug barrel. For slugs I would use remington accutips. I have shotgun hunted deer for over 20 years. Most of the guys i hunt with, including myself shoot benellis with accutips. slugs can be finicky with different guns so you usually have to test a few brands out, but the accutips shoot great out of benellis. DO NOT buy hornady ssts. I’ll save you the headache right now.

 

[Buckyranger42]

I agree 100%: Rem 870 with slug barrel. Even though I can (and do) rifle hunt in WI I also frequently use my Rem 870 20 gauge with Brenneke slugs, open iron sights, confident and successful out to 100 yds.

 

[Gellar]

if You are new to hunting and firearms I would get a a shotgun that can be used for multiple purposes. A 12 gauge might offer you the most versatility but a 20 gauge would work for many things too. I prefer a 20 gauge for slugs (what you use for deer) but I prefer a 12 gauge for turkey and waterfowl. If I had to choose 1 it would be a 12 gauge. Aftermarket slug barrels can be bought for most pump or semiautomatic shotguns and I would recommend a rifled slug barrel for deer hunting.

 

[Guest member 25165]

Everyone wants to give advice as to what gun to use, but rarely does anyone ask how you will be hunting. I bet I've honestly owned at least 15 different slug guns and I can give you what I think are the pros and cons of the styles of guns that I've owned.

First, decide how you will want to hunt. Tree stand, deer drives, walking, ground blind, etc. That may or may not be a factor in what gun you buy. For example, I would not want a savage 220 on a deer drive. They are accurate but the bolt can be sticky and you have to work the bolt with authority. I've owned two and got rid of both. They are great for long range shots off a rest but for a second follow up shot that is quick and efficient, I would want something else.

If you go with a muzzleloader which is another poor choice in my opinion for walking or stalking, you only have one shot so you need to make it count. Plus, if you don't end up taking a shot at an animal you either have to discharge it and then basically clean it that night (muzzleloader powders can rust your gun if you don't clean it quickly and thoroughly) or figure out a way to make it safe. You will still need to get the powder and projectile out of it when you store it away.

If you decide to go with a inertia based semi auto like the benelli mentioned, you need to be careful of how heavy of a scope you decide to use. For example, I owned an M2 in 20 gauge. The weight of the scope made the gun into a single shot...it wouldn't cycle reliably with 2 3/4" shells. I had to move up to 3" for the gun to cycle reliably which increases felt recoil of the gun. I contacted Benelli about this and they confirmed that scope weight may be a factor in how the semi auto gun cycles reliably or not.

If you go with a gas operated semi auto, weight can be a factor. I've owned a Remington 11-87 super mag and a Winchester Sx2, both with rifled slug barrels and they were heavy to lug around. Fine for a seated hunt, but walking with those guns was a pain.

Pump action guns like the 870 can be heavy on the recoil, especially for new shooters who have never shot a slug before. It's not like shooting 7/8 oz trap loads.

There are pros and cons of every type of gun out there. You are smart for asking questions, but take your time on your purchase. Shotgunworld.com has a section for slug gun shooting that has a lot of answers.

 

[Pucky Freak]

Everyone wants to give advice as to what gun to use, but rarely does anyone ask how you will be hunting. I bet I've honestly owned at least 15 different slug guns and I can give you what I think are the pros and cons of the styles of guns that I've owned.

First, decide how you will want to hunt. Tree stand, deer drives, walking, ground blind, etc. That may or may not be a factor in what gun you buy. For example, I would not want a savage 220 on a deer drive. They are accurate but the bolt can be sticky and you have to work the bolt with authority. I've owned two and got rid of both. They are great for long range shots off a rest but for a second follow up shot that is quick and efficient, I would want something else.

If you go with a muzzleloader which is another poor choice in my opinion for walking or stalking, you only have one shot so you need to make it count. Plus, if you don't end up taking a shot at an animal you either have to discharge it and then basically clean it that night (muzzleloader powders can rust your gun if you don't clean it quickly and thoroughly) or figure out a way to make it safe. You will still need to get the powder and projectile out of it when you store it away.

If you decide to go with a inertia based semi auto like the benelli mentioned, you need to be careful of how heavy of a scope you decide to use. For example, I owned an M2 in 20 gauge. The weight of the scope made the gun into a single shot...it wouldn't cycle reliably with 2 3/4" shells. I had to move up to 3" for the gun to cycle reliably which increases felt recoil of the gun. I contacted Benelli about this and they confirmed that scope weight may be a factor in how the semi auto gun cycles reliably or not.

If you go with a gas operated semi auto, weight can be a factor. I've owned a Remington 11-87 super mag and a Winchester Sx2, both with rifled slug barrels and they were heavy to lug around. Fine for a seated hunt, but walking with those guns was a pain.

Pump action guns like the 870 can be heavy on the recoil, especially for new shooters who have never shot a slug before. It's not like shooting 7/8 oz trap loads.

There are pros and cons of every type of gun out there. You are smart for asking questions, but take your time on your purchase. Shotgunworld.com has a section for slug gun shooting that has a lot of answers.

While all very true, to a complete newbie probably most of these questions won’t have answers for a while. A Remington 870 sporting combo in 20 ga. gives you an intro to a huge array of hunting styles and situations for big and small game. Like the above post mentioned, the OP may later discover something slightly different is desired once he gains some field experience.

 

[Clzandstra79]

Totally new hunter...101 responses are still greatly appreciated.

I live in Illinois so thanks to the information provided by this group, I know Illinois is a no rifle state for deer, but a shotgun is allowed.

what are some key specs and advice on looking for a deer focused shotgun?

Savage 220.

 

[DouglasR]

I agree with Gellar and elkfever. A Remington 870 or Mossberg 500 20 gauge combo gives you a lot of bang for your buck.

Ps. There’s great squirrel hunting in Illinois as long as you’re 120 miles away from C-U and a 20 gauge with #6’s doesn’t tear them up to bad.

 

[Dave N]

Yeah, I would have to say that starting out with an inexpensive pump gun with the slug and field barrel combo would be a great choice. Slug barrel for deer, switch out for small game or waterfowl. The hardest part for you would be finding a place to hunt! Illinois is NOT a fun place for access. If you don't own or have a friend or relative that owns property it's not easy finding a decent place for deer. Not when you haven't done it before, anyway! Get your hunter safety card and FOID card, then find a range to practice with your chosen weapon. Wait until next year to try for deer. You've got a lot to learn first, as well as searching for a place to hunt. Good luck!

 

[Curvebow]

Didn’t some of the states around there start allowing straight walled rifle cartridges? Hence the 35 Winchester (or whatever the name is!) was born...

 

[nontyp]

Didn’t some of the states around there start allowing straight walled rifle cartridges? Hence the 35 Winchester (or whatever the name is!) was born...

I don’t think Illinois did but Iowa did. Imagine groups of 20 guys doing deer drives on 20 acre patches of timber carrying.450 bushmaster ARs. Its a mess.

 

[Dave N]

We can use certain handguns but no rifles beyond a muzzleloader in Illinois.

 

[1_pointer]

If you go with a pump/semiauto and want to scope it, I strongly suggest a cantilevered barrel if you plan on swapping barrels.

If the shotgun will be strictly for deer hunting, I'd opt for a Savage bolt action.

 

[buckbull]

For a new guy just starting out I would also recommend a shotgun that comes with a fully rifled barrel and bird shot barrel. If you plan to put a scope on it i would recommend a cantilever style slug barrel. Side mount or drilled and tapped receiver makes it a PITA to switch back and forth from deer gun to bird shot gun. If you only care about deer, then the bolt action savage 220 is a good choice. I personally shoot a browning A-bolt 12ga and would never go back to using a pump gun for deer but it costs significantly more than the savage. You can use the slug gun in Wisconsin's firearm season.

 

[buckbull]

Ha. 1_pointer beat me to the punch.

 

[Gut Shot]

Get a Savage 220 and be done with it.

Pumps are OK if you are just sitting in a blind but the forearms rattle way to much to sneak through the woods after deer.

 

[SFC B]

I have hunted both an 870 with the cantilever rifled barrel and a 3x9 scope and last year (in IL) I used my Benelli Nova with a smooth bore, ghost ring sight and a rifled slug (a rifled barrel for the Nova is as much as the gun FFS). I will say that you definitely want to get a rifled barrel. I got the Benelli to where I am pretty comfortable out to 100yds but you simply can't get the same grouping/accuracy that a rifled barrel gives. For flexibility to expand your hunting opportunity (ie small game, waterfowl and upland birds) I will suggest the Mossberg 500 combo. It is an absolutely bullet proof platform, comes with the field and cantilever barrel (with a lil scope you can use to get started), adjustable comb height and is at a sweet price point. If you look around you can find them even cheaper than this......true "bang for your buck"

https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/mossberg-500-combo-fielddeer-pump-action-shotgun