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Shotgun slugs were introduced by Wilhelm Brenneke in 1898. Most shotgun slugs are designed to be fired through a smoothbore barrel, which means that they must be self-stabilizing and capable of passing through a choked barrel.

Much later shotguns were produced with rifled barrels, and slugs were designed to be fired from them with spin stabilisation. As these specialised "shotguns" were far more accurate than a smoothbore gun, they also usually featured greatly improved sights. Many of these slugs use saboted sub-caliber projectiles, resulting in greatly improved external ballistics performance.

Contents 1 Types 1.1 Brenneke Slugs 1.2 Foster Slugs 2 Guns for use with slugs 3 Legal issues in the USA 4 References 5 External links

The Brenneke(r) slug is a type of shotgun slug designed to be fired from smoothbore barrels. History and design The Brenneke slug is similar in appearance to a rifled Foster slug. The Brenneke slug was developed by the famous German gun and ammunition designer Wilhelm Brenneke (1865–1951) in 1898. The original Brenneke slug is a solid lead slug with fins cast onto the outside, much like a rifled Foster slug. There is a plastic, felt or cellulose fiber wad attached to the base that remains attached after firing. This wad serves both as a gas seal and as a form of drag stabilization, much like the mass-forward design of the Foster slug. It's a myth that the "fins" serve to impart spin to the projectile; their purpose is to decrease the bearing surface of the slug to the barrel and therefore reduce friction and increase velocity.

Rifled slug gun barrels and chokes that provide spin and stability are available, however they require sabot type projectiles in order to achieve longer ranges and accuracy than their smooth bore counterparts. Rifled slug barrels and chokes will not provide longer effective ranges or increased accuracy when used to fire traditional, or non-sabot type slugs.

If one keeps the maximum range to around 75 yards (50 being optimum) then Brenneke and Foster slugs are extremely effective game getters in smooth bore shotguns. A rifled barrel firing a sabot (which is a sub-bore diameter bullet encased in a two piece bore diameter "boot" that is spun by the rifling then separates from the bullet after exiting the barrel) is capable of accuracy approaching that of a rifle out to an effective range of about 125 yards (110 to 115 meters), which was previously unheard of in smooth bore shotguns firing solid projectiles (slugs) or multiple projectiles, i.e. shot pellets.

Use and availability

Since the Brenneke slug is solid, rather than hollow like the Foster slug, the Brenneke will generally deform less on impact and provide deeper penetration (see terminal ballistics). The sharp shoulder and flat front of the Brenneke mean that its external ballistics restrict it to short range use, as it does not hold velocity well. The Brenneke slug in 12 gauge is well suited for large and dangerous game at close ranges, and deer sized game or antipersonnel use out to about 100 yards (90 meters). Brenneke slugs are somewhat more accurate than the Foster slugs, but are usually more expensive.

Brenneke slugs are often used by police equipped with riot shotguns. Even out of a smoothbore barrel, the slugs will provide accuracy sufficient for antipersonnel use out to ranges about 100 yards (90 meters). This allows the officer the ability to use the shotgun as a reasonable substitute for a rifle at medium ranges.

Brenneke slugs are loaded by a number of different makers. Recently the Brenneke company, of Hanover, Germany, started marketing loaded ammunition, with Brenneke type slugs, saboted slugs, and buckshot.

A Foster slug, invented by Karl Foster in 1931, is a type of shotgun slug designed to be fired through a smoothbore shotgun barrel.

The defining characteristic of the Foster slug is the deep hollow in the rear, which places the center of mass very near the tip of the slug, much like a shuttlecock. If the slug begins to tumble in flight, drag will tend to push the slug back into straight flight. This gives the Foster slug stability and allows for accurate shooting out to ranges of about 75 yards (about 70 meters). Most Foster slugs also have "rifling", which consists of thin fins on the outside of the slug. Contrary to popular belief, these fins actually impart no spin onto the slug as it travels through the air. Since the slug is fired at a supersonic velocity, the nose of the slug pushing a shockwave creates a vacuum on the side of the slug, where the fins are located. The actual purpose of the fins is to allow the slug to safely be swaged down when fired through a choke, although accuracy will suffer when such a slug is fired through tighter chokes.

It is also possible to fire Foster slugs through rifled slug barrels, though lead fouling (build-up in the rifle grooves) can be a problem.

Many hunters hunt with shotgun slugs where rifle usage is not allowed, or as a way of saving the cost of a rifle by getting additional use out of their shotgun. A barrel for shooting slugs does require some special considerations. Iron sights or a low magnification telescopic sight are needed for accuracy, rather than the bead sight used with shot, and an open choke is best. Since most current production shotguns come equipped with sighting ribs and interchangeable choke tubes, converting a standard shotgun to a slug gun can be as simple as attaching clamp-on sights to the rib and switching to a skeet or cylinder choke tube.

Many repeating shotguns have barrels that can easily be removed and replaced in under a minute with no tools, so many hunters will choose to purchase an additional barrel for shooting slugs. Slug barrels will generally be somewhat shorter, have rifle type sights or a base for a telescopic sight, and may be rifled or smoothbore. Smoothbore slug barrels are quite a bit less expensive than rifled barrels, though they do limit the ammunition that can be used.

The recent improvements in slug performance have also led to some very specialized slug guns. The H&R Ultra Slug Hunter[1], for example, uses a heavy rifled barrel (see accurize) to obtain the most possible accuracy from slugs.

This article or section deals primarily with the United States and does not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article or discuss the issue on the talk page.

Rifled barrels for shotguns are an unusual legal issue in the United States of America. Firearms with rifled barrels are designed to fire single projectiles, and a firearm that is designed to fire a single projectile with a diameter greater than .50 caliber (0.5 inch, or 12.7 mm) is considered a destructive device and as such is severely restricted. The ATF has ruled that as long as the gun was designed to fire shot, and modified (by the user or the manufacturer) to fire single projectiles with the addition of a rifled barrel, then the firearm is still considered a shotgun and not a destructive device.

In some areas, rifles are prohibited for hunting animals such as deer. This is generally due to range concerns--shotgun slugs have a far shorter maximum range than most rifle cartridges, and are safer for use near populated areas. In other areas, there are special shotgun only seasons for deer. A modern slug shotgun, with rifled barrel and high performance saboted slugs, is the top choice for hunters who must hunt with a shotgun, as it provides rifle-like power and accuracy at ranges up to 125 yards (110 meters). This advantage also provides an interesting challenge for local governments who attempt to limit shooting in densely populated areas as the power and accuracy of shotguns with rifled barrels (or rifled slugs in smoothbore barrels) give slugs the power to cut through brush and tree limbs where smaller caliber rifle ammunition would typically ricochet or stop. Slugs for smoothbores, with their larger diameter and lower accuracy, are still suitable for wooded areas too. Their maximum effective range is about 75 yards (70 m).

This article does not cite any references or sources. (October 2006) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

• Slug Guns for Deer, Game and Fish magazine.
• The Scoop on Slugs, American Hunter.
• Shotgun slugs, Chuck Hawk's.