A sabot, often referred to as a sabot slug, is a single projectile bullet that is fired from a shotgun. A sabot slug is usually covered in plastic which breaks off upon impact.
no you cannot. sabot slugs are made for rifled barrels. I would buy a rifled slug barrel.
Rottweil Laser Sabot Slug supposedly replaced the old Hastings slug. They are very highly recommended for hastings barrels.
yes.
Yes.
About 100-150 yards. Beyond that, the drop is so rapid as to make accuracy a problem.
You can use a sabot in any shotgun, as long as the barrel is not choked. If you have screw in chokes, you will want to use ONLY the Cylinder or CYL choke. Otherwise, you will need to look on the barrel to see what it is choked in. If you do not have screw chokes, unless it says CYLINDER or SLUG, it is probably choked. (It may say Improved, IM, Modified, Full, etc)
The only way to know which brand/weight your weapon likes is to shoot as many different types as you can afford.
Full choked barrels are not ideal for slugs, but if pressed we would use a sabot-loaded projectile.
Yes. That's the only type of shotgun you should fire a sabot slug from. Rifled shotguns are intended for rifled slugs only. Actually, the opposite is true. Rifled slugs are preferred for smooth barreled shotguns. The 'rifling' on the slug is actually just fins that permit the slug to squeeze through the choke on the shotgun barrel. Sabot slugs are intended for rifled barrels, as they will give better accuracy. Some sabots may be used in smooth barrels, but you are paying more for sabots and not getting the accuracy you would get by using a sabot in a rifled barrel.
Effectively, not much past 100 yards with a sabot slug and a rifled barrel, i'd opt for something with a higher velocity like the Hornady SST, Remington Accutip, or the Brenneke Black Magic. I will actually be testing this in about a week on a northern Maine bull with my H&R Ultra Slug Hunter Deluxe, Redfield Revenge 2x7, and I'm pretty sure i'll be using the SST's since my gun seems to be quite fond of them! Good Luck and safe hunting!
Shooting rifled slugs is the ONLY way to shoot thru a smoothbore for deer. If you shoot sabot slugs thru a smoothbore, it will not spin and therefore not be accurate. For accuracy, the slug must spin out of the barrel. Either shoot a rifled slug thru a smooth barrel, or shoot a saboted slug thru a rifled barrel.