TarHunt is a gun company located in Bloomsburg, PA. They specialize in making rifled slug guns. They also make a very interesting 20 gauge slug load called Schrifle. So basically it is a non-sabot projectile loaded into a 20 gauge plastic hull with the bullet sticking out of the hull (just like rifle cartridges are loaded). Obviously, these rounds are intended to be shot from a rifled 20 gauge barrels.

The name “Schrifle” is made of merging words Shotgun and Rifle … not sure why “Sch” is used, though. As the TarHunt puts it:

No longer just a slug gun, but not quite a rifle, it’s a Schrifle.

The projectile itself is a hollow point lead-free slug called Raptor. The manufacturer has been experimenting with different weights, but right now only 239 grain projectiles are available with a muzzle velocity of 2150 fps. The pack of ten rounds has a price of $45.

Are you still reading after you learned about the price? I should’ve told about it at the very end. So yes, it is expensive. I understand that these are custom stuff, but it costs at least 1.5 times more than normal 20ga sabot slugs.

The company does not recommend using guns with pre-2000 made barrels, which can be less accurate than the newer ones. The reason is that 20ga rifled barrels were not SAAMI standardized before 2000, so there is a chance to run into barrels with different twist rates. After 2000, most 20ga rifled barrels are made according to SAAMI specs, which set the 1 in 24″ twist rate. The Schrifle rounds are designed for that twist rate, thus will better perform in post-2000 barrels. Some older guns also have bigger bores to shoot conventional rifled/Foster slugs, which also won’t work properly with Schrifle rounds. TarHunt also specifies the models of currently available rifled barrel shotguns, which they recommend to use with their ammunition:

Current Guns with proper twist rate are:

The TarHunt 20ga Mountaineer, Current production Rem 11- 87, Rem 870 20ga , Savage 220 bolt action, Ithaca 20ga DeerSlayer II & III, T/C Encore-20ga barrel, Winchester 20ga SX-3, Browning 20ga Silver- Model. All 20ga Hasting replacement barrels are listed as a 1-24 twist? It your not sure about your barrels twist rate, have a gunsmith check the rate of  twist for you.

In the video below you can see how the slug performs in a ballistic gel test.

I think the concept is interesting. It further blends the line between the rifles and shotguns. So, if they manage to offer it cheaper, they can become more popular.

Contacts

Website:  www.tarhunt.com
E-mail:     info@tarhunt.com
Address: 101 Dogtown Road, Bloomsburg, PA 17815-7544
Phone:    (570) 784-6368