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Shotguns are one of the most fun tools around. Why state it like that? Yes, a rifle or handgun is also a tool but they are more akin to torque wrench or caliper, finely tuned and requiring a softer touch. Shotguns are more like…a hammer. And buck shot is one of the biggest nails in your tool belt for this hammer.

You can look at a 3” rifled slug something like a 60d nail. Huge, imposing, and driving a massive hole where it is driven in. Slugs leave huge holes, regardless of what they strike. A typical slug weighs in at a whopping ounce and hums along at around 1,500fps. Talk about a punch.

If a 1oz rifled slug is a 60d nail, #4 buck shot is somewhere around a 20d or 30d. Not soft, certainly not intended for tacking up fascia, it is a heavy product for a heavy job. But you don’t always need a rail spike. The massive slug has a bad habit of destroying everything good and even a well-placed shot can ruin for more meat than necessary. If you are hunting with the purpose of eating meat and saving hides, slug can cause problems.

#4 buck shot has a nominal diameter of .240”, or 6.10mm. This is quite a lot smaller than the leading favorite #00, which is nearly the size of a 9mm projectile. The #4 also provides many more projectiles, with Rio’s #4 2 ¾” shot shell containing 21 balls compared to 9 balls of #00. Smaller pellets leave smaller holes in hides and tarnish meat a little less. They also absolutely shred vital organs.

If you have taken the plunge of the 5-packs of Rio #4 buck shot and found you like it, maybe you should take the plunge on a case. The cost per round only goes down and we can’t think of a single reason why less ammunition is better than more!