12 or 20?

[johnnybravoo77]

I am heading out to purchase a USH tomorrow, so which gauge? I will admit to being a USH virgin, although I have fondled a couple, never really broke one in. I felt up a thumbhole model today, but did not fit my hand very well. I'm going to get the plain jane heavy barrel. I can currently shoot 150yds where I hunt, so is there an advantage to either one? Any input is great because I only have expierence with my smoothbore 870 in the slug department.

[burntmuch]

The 12 is real heavy. I went with the 20 & love it. I liked the way the thumbhole feels. To each is own on the way a gun feels
  Good luck  Jay

[johnnybravoo77]

Ya the thumbhole didnt seem big enough. I just didnt feel like I had a good grip on it. I picked a Remington thumbhole 870, and it felt good, so it just seems the H&R's is a little small for me.

[12ptdroptine]

I wonder about the effective range of a 20 compared to a 12...I went with the 12...Yeah it is heavy though....but it throws a good sized chunk of lead wayyy out there

[d_hiker]

I have a 20ga USH and love it.  Dropped my buck at 110 yards with a Remington BuckHammer last fall.  Nice thing about the 20ga USH is that it will fit on the standard SB1 or SB2 receivers whereas the 12ga USH comes on the 10ga receiver.  The 12ga USH would limit the accessory barrel options if you were thinking along those lines.  If you buy the complete 20 ga USH, it comes on a SB1 receiver and that would limit you to shotgun barrels (except 10ga & 12 ga USH) and muzzle loader barrels, NO rifle barrels.  If you wanted to have both a rifle barrel and 20ga UHS barrel for the same receiver, then buy the rifle and send the receiver in for the 20 ga USH barrel.

[SHOOTALL]

couldn't tell ya bout the gun other than friends have them and like them . as far as 12 vs 20 . Either will kill deer . You need to look at the load you want to shoot as there are different slugs that the weights over lap from GA. to GA. .
I have the savage bolt gun in 12 and a rem 870 in 20 . i carry the 20 when things will be close and fast ( no scope ) and the savage when i sit on a stand . For what it is worth the 20 kicks alot less . But agin compare payload for your needs .
I have found the lightfield 1 1/8 impact disgarding sabot ( red box )the best in my 12 ga. and still wring out the 20 .
the 3.5 20 ga has to be a deer hammer also !

[Busta]

Probably too late, but with todays 1800/1900/2000 FPS slugs, the 20 ga is all you will ever need to kill whitetail. You are basically shooting the same bullets as the modern muzzleloaders do, saboted 45 caliber bullet. The shotgun is shooting them faster than the muzzleloaders do with 100 grain charges, and nearly as fast as 150 grain charges. The bullet don't know what kind of gun it is shot from, as long as it is accurate and you are capable 150 yard shots are not a problem. Most of these bullets have enough energy way beyond the 200 yard mark, so 150 is no problem as long as the shooter is up to it.

If you are going for bigger game than whitetails, you may want to consider the 12ga. The 12 ga is very heavy, but the slugs are bigger and have more thump.

I have shot deer out to 135 with the 20ga, and they drop just like they do with a 12ga.

Most of the new 1800+ FPS slugs use a 150 yard ZERO on their ballistic charts, average about 2"-3" high at 50 and 100. Anything out to about 160 yards is just aim and shoot, takes out a lot of the guesswork.

[Swampman]

I want one of these.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iq3zp-v5gjA

[johnnybravoo77]

Well I didnt make a purchase today. No need to rush things. I thought about the Hastings model, but what if there slug doesnt group well in the gun you get? Nobody else making a 3.5in 20 gauge slug is there? Still cant decide which gauge, so I'd love more input, and I will keep doing my research!

[SHOOTALL]

LOOK AT THE SAVAGE 210 SLUG GUN !
It is a bolt action and very accurate .

[Swampman]

I had the Savage.  It was heavy, and it rarely fed out of the magazine correctly.

[MSP Ret]

I may be mistaken because I do not shoot those hyper expensive sabots but from what I have read in some shells aren't they both (12 and 20) loaded with the same either .45 or .50 caliber pistol bullet and just the size of the plastic sabot is different to fit either the 12 or 20 bore barrel? I personally think for deer the 20 is more than adequate but also agree with a FULL DIAMETER slug the 12 would have more "punch", but the 20 would be enough. The more important thing is to put the slug where it should be and not miss the point of aim....<><....)

[SHOOTALL]

mine works great with 3 in shells but 2 3/4 are hard to feed . But then its a 3 in gun ! and its not as heavy as the single shot 12 ga's . I don't believe i would want it to light . I hope they make one in 20 ga. as that would be a great gun .

[Busta]

I may be mistaken because I do not shoot those hyper expensive sabots but from what I have read in some shells aren't they both (12 and 20) loaded with the same either .45 or .50 caliber pistol bullet and just the size of the plastic sabot is different to fit either the 12 or 20 bore barrel? I personally think for deer the 20 is more than adequate but also agree with a FULL DIAMETER slug the 12 would have more "punch", but the 20 would be enough. The more important thing is to put the slug where it should be and not miss the point of aim....<><....)

MSP Ret,

Most of the 20ga high speed saboted slugs are .45 caliber bullets in the 250-260 grain range. Most of 12 ga high speed slugs are in the .50-.52 caliber, 385-400 grain range. The 12 has much more recoil but the trajectories are nearly the same out past the 150 yard mark. There are a few exceptions, but that is generally the rule.

[burntmuch]

I cut open a 20 guage hornady SST. Its the same slug as my hornady SSts for the muzzleloader .45cal 250 grain

[johnnybravoo77]

So, what frame does the 20 USH come on? Not because I would want to swap barrels, but for different stocks.

[Busta]

So, what frame does the 20 USH come on? Not because I would want to swap barrels, but for different stocks.

Th 20ga USH is a SB1 shotgun frame. You can have any shotgun barrel fitted with the exception of 10ga barrels and the 12ga USH. You can also have the muzzleloader barrel fitted.

All the buttstocks are interchangeable, the 20ga USG has a forend with a wider channel cut into it to accomodate the heavy barrel. The forend will work on regular profile barrels, but it will have some serious space on the sides.

[OHHJIMMY]

I agree with Busta in all respects. I have a 12 ga Tracker II, but that's another story. I have a 20 ga USH, and it is all the gun you need to kill a deer. I tried all the shells I could find, and they all shot good. The last used were Winchester. Very expensive, but you only need a few.

[mogwai]

I cut open a 20 guage hornady SST. Its the same slug as my hornady SSts for the muzzleloader .45cal 250 grain

Yikes!  That was a $3 experiment.

[SHOOTALL]

like they say if ya can't run with the big dogs stay under the porch !

[burntmuch]

I figured about a $2 experment . Cabin fever But I can use it for my ML

[12ptdroptine]

I have the 12ga USh in the Talo special from Lipsey's.... Haven't got it sighted in yet... Dern thing Busted my head open.. made me gun shy... Gonna try it again here when it warms up more. Got some sst lightfields copper solid's and federal expander's to work with. But I am thinking real serious about getting the 20 ga. for myself... if indeed it really does cut paper @100yds. And will properly dispatch deer @ 200 yds.... Plus the fact my wife could use it.. and I have a couple grandchildren up and coming..... What is the average over the counter price on the basic version? Thanks in advance Drop

[12ptdroptine]

bumped