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Trent Flesher

Trent Flesher

New Member
I bought a new Franchi 20 ga. It is a really smooth shooting gun. The only problem is when I shoot slugs through it it shoots about 10in high. I am shooting a smooth barrel with an improved modified choke. I have tried all kinds of slugs but they all shoot the same. I don't really want to put a scope on it and it is not tapped. I was just wondering if there was anything else I could try.
 
You can try the tru-glow sights that fit on the rib of the gun. Fairly inexpensive and easy to install and remove. Worth a shot.
 
Might be how your shouldering the gun. If it doesn't fit you right it won't "hit" where you think you are aiming. Possibly try a cheek pad to bring your line of sight up. Lots of info on the web regarding shotgun fit.

Have you shot bird shot thru it? Does it pattern high?

Last resort a red dot scope works well. Easy to use and can make wind-age/elevation adjustments.
 
At what range is it 10" high? Are you shooting from a good rest? What kind of grouping do you get? Are you using a "6 o'clock" hold, or putting the bead on the target? Maybe you can just adjust your sight picture? What are your expectations from a smooth bore with beads for sights? You may want to consider if this is really the best gun to use for deer hunting, unless your shots will limited to pretty close range.
 
Highmark said:
Might be how your shouldering the gun. If it doesn't fit you right it won't "hit" where you think you are aiming. Possibly try a cheek pad to bring your line of sight up. Lots of info on the web regarding shotgun fit.

Have you shot bird shot thru it? Does it pattern high?

Last resort a red dot scope works well. Easy to use and can make wind-age/elevation adjustments.
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It isnt how he's shouldering it. I shot it too. I tried moving it around too.
 
Could just be a nuance of the brand or gun in particular. Several years ago my Father had a Franchi; never shot slugs through it but it was the most finicky gun I have ever seen as far as cycling different loads of shotshells. It was also a very beautiful gun.
 
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, I'm not that into guns anymore, but aren't most wing shooting shotguns set up to put the center of the pattern above what would be the aim point if you truly are aiming instead of pointing? The purpose being that you want to see your flying target above your sight plain.
Are you 10" high at all ranges? I would think that the height would increase at longer ranges at least until the slug lost enough velocity. I don't know if that setup is accurate enough to really test that theory?
Your not shooting sabots are you?
 
I am shootingv that high at about 60 yards it groups them very well some of the holes are touching. I have had four or five people shot it and it's shoots the same. What choke would I change it to?
 
I don't understand why anyone would want to hunt deer with a bird gun! It's unethical. You can get a rifled barrel slug gun used for $300 or new for $400. Just sayin...
 
Diggdug said:
I don't understand why anyone would want to hunt deer with a bird gun! It's unethical. You can get a rifled barrel slug gun used for $300 or new for $400. Just sayin...
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Yes you should buy a rifled barrel for it. It's very difficult to achieve any consistency with a smooth bore gun over 50 yards.
 
My dad has a Mossberg 20ga with a smooth barrel and it shoots great. I can shoot better with that gun than I can with one of my friends gun with a slug barrel. It's not like it throws slugs everywhere it shoots great patterns but just high. I guess I just don't understand how it's unethical?
 
Trent Flesher said:
My dad has a Mossberg 20ga with a smooth barrel and it shoots great. I can shoot better with that gun than I can with one of my friends gun with a slug barrel. It's not like it throws slugs everywhere it shoots great patterns but just high. I guess I just don't understand how it's unethical?
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99.9% of the time a rifled barrel gun will shoot circles around any smooth bore at any distance!
 
You know, there is this debate every year... I for one can out shoot most of the guys I hunt with, and I use a smoothbore. Its all about the gun, the slug, the SHOOTERS ability. However, back to the original question, the first thing I would be trying now is to shoot bird shot and see if you have a consistent problem with it patterning high, if the case, it would be going to a gun shop. You might need a shim in the stock too, but I would be testing bird shot and going from there.
 
flugge said:
You know, there is this debate every year... I for one can out shoot most of the guys I hunt with, and I use a smoothbore. Its all about the gun, the slug, the SHOOTERS ability.
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Amen. I HATED the rifle sights on my IC choked slug barrel, spent more time trying to find them than throwing the vent rib to the shoulder and instinctively pointing it like I had on a thousand pheasants.
 
So much of this debate revolves around how you will use this gun and how you hunt. If you are pushing deer as a driver or a sitter almost all of your shots will be 50 yards or less. If you can hit a paper plate 5 shots out of 5 off hand then does it really matter if the 5 shots are touching each other in the exact middle of the plate? If the 5 shots are spread over the whole plate then all would be kill shots if you are aiming at the right spot on the deer. If on the other hand you are hunting from a stand where true 100 plus yard shots are common, then probably don't use this shotgun. There are very few people who are able to put 5 shots out of 5 on the paper plate off hand at 100 plus yards and not even many who could put 2 out of 5 on the plate. Part of the problem is that most front beads on a bird barrel will completely block out the plate so you can't even see it much less aim at the center of it. A very accurate gun is certainly worthwhile, but shooting off hand while excited and short of wind is so far removed from shooting from a bench with a led sled that actual hunting accuracy is almost unmeasurable. Most people, myself included, have shot lots of deer with a smooth barrel so I disagree with the unethical comment about buying a rifled barrel. To me the ethical issue is one of being confident and ABLE to make an ethical shot rather than the difference of a smooth or rifled barrel. There are lots of once a year hunters or shooters with rifled barrels who take very unethical shots just because they think it is ok because they have a very expensive accurate gun that they can't shoot for CRAP.
 
If it really does group well at 60 yards then it's even more important to know what sight picture you are using. Are you putting the bead ON the target or putting the target on top of the bead (aka 6:00 hold). It may just be a matter of adjusting your sight picture. Or you may need to go with an adjustable sight of some sort.
 
Diggdug said:
I don't understand why anyone would want to hunt deer with a bird gun! It's unethical. You can get a rifled barrel slug gun used for $300 or new for $400. Just sayin...
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I agree about buyin a slug gun... and thats all I use unless weather says otherwise, or in thick thick cover.

But to say using a bird gun shooting rifled slugs- which is what those slugs are designed for(smoothbores)- is unethical? That, my friend, is way out of line.
 
I have a rifled barrel and some slug brands are all over the map. I stuck lock solid with Gold Partitions and I can shoot a softball well into 150 yards. Can be a 200 yard gun if a guy knows what they are doing.
My 2 cents..... When I started hunting at 14, I hunted with bird barrel and running deer.... I personally think shooting at running deer with ANY gun is a recipe for disaster and constant wounding. I've personally seen countless deer get wounded and shot all over the body to prove that. I personally won't shoot a running deer period and the majority who do engage in deer drives, I guess I will forever disagree with that type of hunting BUT I'm in the minority and you have the right to shoot however you want, I simply disagree with it and won't allow it on my land.
 
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