Editing Slug (projectile) (section)

{{Short description|Ballistic projectile}}
{{other uses|Slug (disambiguation)}}
{{Notability|date=February 2023}} 
{{More citations needed|date=June 2017}}A '''slug''' is a term used for a bulky solid [[Ballistics|ballistic]] [[projectile]].  It is "solid" in the sense of being composed of one piece; the shape can vary widely, including partially hollowed shapes.  The term is occasionally applied to [[bullet]]s (just the projectile, never the [[cartridge (firearms)|cartridge]] as a whole), but is most commonly applied to one-piece [[shotgun slug]]s, to differentiate them from [[shotshell]]s containing numerous [[shot (pellet)|shot]]s.  Slugs are commonly fired from [[choke (firearms)|choked]] [[smoothbore]] barrels, but some specially-designed [[slug barrel]]s have [[rifling]]s that can impart [[gyroscope|gyroscopic]] spin required for in-flight stability.

An '''airgun slug''' is a new{{As of?|date=April 2025}} type of [[pellet (air gun)|pellet]] recently developed for [[pre-charged pneumatic]] airguns.  Unlike the conventional [[diabolo]]-shaped pellet, which is aerodynamically poor and relies heavily on [[drag (physics)|drag]]-stabilisation to maintain accuracy, the slug pellet is [[cylindro-conoidal bullet|cylindro-conoidally shaped]] like a [[Minié ball]] and relies predominantly on [[spin-stabilisation]] from a [[rifling|rifled]] [[gun barrel|barrel]].  Because of the greater contact area with the barrel bore, these pellets require more power from the gun to overcome the frictional resistance, and therefore are mainly used in PCP airguns, which generally have much higher [[muzzle energy]] ratings than other types of airguns such as spring-piston, pump pneumatic or [[compressed air|HPA]]/[[Powerlet|CO<sub>2</sub>]] airguns.

A '''water-slug''' refers to operating a [[submarine]]'s [[torpedo tube]] that has been filled with water rather than a [[torpedo]], thus shooting a "slug of water." In simulated naval battles and exercises this is to represent the dispatch of an actual torpedo as, to [[sonar]] detectors, the sounds are very alike.<ref>{{cite book|title=Pacific Missile Range Facility, Enhanced Capability|date=December 1998|publisher=US Department of the Navy|location=Kekaha, HI|page=126}}</ref>