Hello from Ohio

[IllinoisSlim]

Hello from Ohio! I grew up in Illinois. I have a Savage Model 220B in 16 gauge. It is stamped "Chicopee Falls, Mass". It also has a stamp on the receiver above the trigger "20M".

I'm interested in using it for squirrels, rabbits (If I ever saw one in season while I'm hunting) and maybe turkeys. I plan to use some calipers to measure the muzzle to see what if any kind of choke is has.

I'm excited to be here!

[Garnett]

Welcome to the forum!  The “20M” is the inspector number (20) with the letter “M” for made in 1961. I have found no factory listing advising of any size choke other than “Full”.  I see from time to time, guns advertised for sale with various chokes.  My thoughts on that are that maybe sometime in the past an owner had the “full” choke opened up or, in the “old” days, many gun companies would fill special orders on their guns.  As proof of this, I have examined guns that I believe to be factory original, but have not been listed in any Savage catalog.  Again, welcome as our newest member!

[IllinoisSlim]

Thanks Garnett! And thanks very much for this forum and your work on documenting these guns.

Another question, can you shoot slugs out of a 220 if it has a Full choke?

[Garnett]

I really don’t know the answer to your question, as I am not a hunter/shooter.  I would think if you can shoot slugs out of other full choke guns, there would be no reason the 220 would not handle a slug shell.  I am not very well educated on shooting, as my main interest has always been collecting.  With this said, I would think the slug shells would have more recoil than a shot shell.  Other shooters, am I correct on this?  Anyway, a main factory defect in these guns is the weak thin wood where the stock meets the action.  I have seen .22 Hornets with cracked stocks.  So, it is a good idea for anyone to glass bed their stock before shooting the shotgun/rifle. 

[MikeLeong]

I have shot slugs in my shotguns, and found the following advice on full chokes;
Slugs and full choke on old guns
IFish Fishing Forum
https://www.ifish.net › ... › Ifish Hunting
Sep 25, 2020 — Take one of the slug shells, Cut the slug out of it. Drop it down the barrel. If it slides right on down. You are perfectly safe shooting them.

That makes sense to me, if indeed the 220's are full choke models. I see shotguns as being mainly used for bird hunting, and I have only bought slugs for mine in case I need to shoot a bear on our acreage that will not go away, without worrying about something like a rifle round that can travel hundreds of yards to nearby roads or our neighbours place. I also carry a folding shotgun in a small backpack when we go berry picking now, and a slug in my shirt pocket. I never had a bear go after us in the berry patches, but they can be unpredictable. Would I have time to get the shotgun out and load it if a bear came after us? Maybe not, but I do feel like more relaxed knowing I could try and shoot an angry bear, before becoming the subject of one of those Far Side cartoons about hunters!

By the way, slugs do have more recoil. I noticed it when shooting grouse with my 20 gauge and loading in a slug by mistake instead of the #6 birdshot I normally use. Target loads usually also have less recoil than game loads.

[Garnett]

Mike, thanks for this information.  It is interesting.