greencobra
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another 870 person here. an 870 also happens to be the first firearm i ever shot back in the day and i still own a late 70's vintage one. five stars!
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Pump shotgun: How many stars?
- Thread starter ridleyman
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I've popped many a cottontail and snowshoe hare on the second and even third shot with my mossy 500. It takes practice to shoot pump shoot fast but it's definitely not a one shot deal on rabbits with a pump gun.
Mark from MA
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Im a fan of older Ithacas for hunting. They are bulletproof. They can be found in any shop just about in various conditions. They can be bought new but very expensive.
5 stars and what I would buy if looking for a pump for upland game. If something used and not that much cost. Find a decent off gauge one though, and the prices are rising.
The BPS is an improvement on that 37 design but is tighter and slower. Basically a 37 with double action bars added and you don't have to remove the stock for total breakdown of internals as they have put a pin in for trigger group removal. If buying new I would buy a BPS. I own a 20 english stock short barrel and its a fine gun again, what I would buy if looking for a pump. They are pricy, but you get your moneys worth in fit and finish. And they come in a lot of flavors and gauges. From 12 to .410. I like that, I will hopefully end up with a 16 gauge at some point. 5 stars and I'd say the Caddilac of pump shotguns.
Old wingmasters are great. The new rem pumps are suspect in quality. I wouldnt roll the dice on one. Old 5 stars, New 1 star
Model 12's are good, getting somewhat scarce in anything but 12. They are solid guns, a bit of a PIA to take fully apart and clean. They don't run quite as slick as an
Ithaca 37, but are good solid and reliable old guns. You'll pay more for them than a 37 as well.
Mossys are good and I have a Maverick 88 - 8 shot for HD. But if I could find an Ithaca 8 shot at a reasonable price Id rather have that. 3 stars, they are cheap guns and do have some hit or miss problems. Mines been great but its cheaply made. I do like the safety location on 500's and 590's so maybe 4 stars for those.
Benelli Nova is a great pump. Good quality for the money. Solid design. Easy to clean. Chrome lined barrel, very well coated metal internals. My sons first gun and hes taken a ton of game with it. 5 stars.
If hunting a lot of ducks or saltwater. Benelli would be my go to, as there is a lot of plastic that will not rust, and it breaks down easily to clean, and has few parts. Its kinda glock like in that way.
5 stars and what I would buy if looking for a pump for upland game. If something used and not that much cost. Find a decent off gauge one though, and the prices are rising.
The BPS is an improvement on that 37 design but is tighter and slower. Basically a 37 with double action bars added and you don't have to remove the stock for total breakdown of internals as they have put a pin in for trigger group removal. If buying new I would buy a BPS. I own a 20 english stock short barrel and its a fine gun again, what I would buy if looking for a pump. They are pricy, but you get your moneys worth in fit and finish. And they come in a lot of flavors and gauges. From 12 to .410. I like that, I will hopefully end up with a 16 gauge at some point. 5 stars and I'd say the Caddilac of pump shotguns.
Old wingmasters are great. The new rem pumps are suspect in quality. I wouldnt roll the dice on one. Old 5 stars, New 1 star
Model 12's are good, getting somewhat scarce in anything but 12. They are solid guns, a bit of a PIA to take fully apart and clean. They don't run quite as slick as an
Ithaca 37, but are good solid and reliable old guns. You'll pay more for them than a 37 as well.
Mossys are good and I have a Maverick 88 - 8 shot for HD. But if I could find an Ithaca 8 shot at a reasonable price Id rather have that. 3 stars, they are cheap guns and do have some hit or miss problems. Mines been great but its cheaply made. I do like the safety location on 500's and 590's so maybe 4 stars for those.
Benelli Nova is a great pump. Good quality for the money. Solid design. Easy to clean. Chrome lined barrel, very well coated metal internals. My sons first gun and hes taken a ton of game with it. 5 stars.
If hunting a lot of ducks or saltwater. Benelli would be my go to, as there is a lot of plastic that will not rust, and it breaks down easily to clean, and has few parts. Its kinda glock like in that way.
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Mark from MA
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Not really.
My friend has hunted exclusively with one ithaca 37 for 25 years. He can run that faster than any guy shooting an auto loader.
I can even run a pump fairly fast and accurately. Its all about knowing your gun and practice and experience.
I forgot about this. Not only did my 870 routinely lock up, but it also developed surface rust each time I took it out.
I never hunted with it, just some range time. About a day later I always had to polish off a few small patches of brown grit. I suspect if I hadn’t been so vigilant it would have gotten pretty bad.
1.5 STARS
Absolutely agree. It's about practice and experience. If your the type of hunter that pulls the shotgun out 2 times a year for a rabbit trip yes you'll be at a disadvantage with a pump over an autoloader. But if you hunt often and shoot some clay sports a few times a month including some doubles a pump is a more reliable and faster option than the autoloader.
Mark from MA
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I've had a newer 2010? 20 Ga Rem pump that routinely locked up. I'd have to pull the pins on the trigger group or take barrel off. It ended up at the KTP trade in graveyard.
Every Remington that I've had with the so called parkerized finish has rusted like a bastard with moderate humidity, in the safe. The other non remington shit finished guns next to it, not a spec or indication of rust.
I still have 1 Remington 11-87 left, and I have to keep it well oiled as it has that shxt finish. Its my deer gun, but I'm constantly thinking of trading it for a Savage 220 bolt gun.
Every old Remington Wingmaster or 870 my father had was a great gun. Old meaning pre year 2000.
My new (back in 2009-10) Remington 870 rusted like crazy, more so than any gun I've ever experienced. Whatever they are doing for the black parkerized finish is terrible. Don't know if the higher end lines (wingmaster, police magnum, whatever) use the same terrible finish, but I would avoid the express line like the plague.
Unless you are shopping for a used gun, don't rely on the old reputation of the 870 line. The quality issues related to the change in ownership are legendary.
knoxy
NES Member
I've only got 1 shotgun, an '80s wingmaster. I'd give it 5 stars. Smooth operation and 100% reliable so far.
I shot my buddy's new mossberg 500 and had it jam up hard feeding the second shell. Could be me. I've also jammed up every glock I've ever shot.
I shot my buddy's new mossberg 500 and had it jam up hard feeding the second shell. Could be me. I've also jammed up every glock I've ever shot.
M60
NES Member
I have a few pump shotguns. I have an older, 870 police, 590A1, etc., but my favorite pump is the Winchester 1897. It went to war many times for America. The 1897 is a keep it forever shotgun.
Mark from MA
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That company is splattered all over the road as far as quality goes.....
I've bought the 1911 R1, and its been OK. Had a few small issues fixed by me and now solid. Most people are OK with them.
870's that were awesome forever are now totally fxcked up.
The parkerized finish was always bad, I owned 4 of them in semi and pump and the older guns might have been OK but the finish never was. Unless it was a blued type Wingmaster.
Semi auto's kinda the same thing as pumps. Hit or miss, new ones I wouldn't touch.
The infamous Model 700 BS....
They bought Marlin and made garbage for a while, now they are generally pretty nice (I bought 2 in the last year, and really happy with them) Not Henry quality but I'm very satisfied for the price I paid.
Well, I personally finally made a decision. It checked all the boxes and had a few I was unaware of. Tried B&K this morning to no avail. Some rough used 500’s/590’s including a left-hander that I would have bought, but the safety was apparently not functioning properly. We both tried it and nothing. Went a little further down the road to MFS and found my Goldilocks. A Mossy 590(as a lefty the 870 and those similar got tossed out due to safety location, thanks for the help though Enbloc)20”, 8+1, ghost ring, nothing too extra or over the top, or so I thought...
Unbeknownst to me, it has a bayonet lug(useless) and the damn barrel is threaded and came with a cylinder choke!? Not something I was interested in, considering my method of use, but I may just plop an improved cylinder in there and see what happens. It also had the tri-rail pump, so throwing a flashlight on there will be easy if I’m so inclined. Ok, so maybe it’s a little more tacti-cool than anticipated, however, less than 500 out the door for this package is hard to argue. I would have paid more for the used lefty 590A1.
I can’t give it any stars as I have yet to shoot it. I will say it feels like a brick shit house and doesn’t rattle at all, though there is definitely play in the forend. Is that the Mossberg rattle they speak of?
Either way, it’s a sexy piece and I’m excited for it to kick my ass, though the rubber butt-pad is very squishy and of the open trellis design.
Here’s a pic of my belated birthday present to myself.
Unbeknownst to me, it has a bayonet lug(useless) and the damn barrel is threaded and came with a cylinder choke!? Not something I was interested in, considering my method of use, but I may just plop an improved cylinder in there and see what happens. It also had the tri-rail pump, so throwing a flashlight on there will be easy if I’m so inclined. Ok, so maybe it’s a little more tacti-cool than anticipated, however, less than 500 out the door for this package is hard to argue. I would have paid more for the used lefty 590A1.
I can’t give it any stars as I have yet to shoot it. I will say it feels like a brick shit house and doesn’t rattle at all, though there is definitely play in the forend. Is that the Mossberg rattle they speak of?
Either way, it’s a sexy piece and I’m excited for it to kick my ass, though the rubber butt-pad is very squishy and of the open trellis design.
Here’s a pic of my belated birthday present to myself.
D
Deleted member 67409
If the barrel is cut for choke tubes, you'd be at an advantage if you ever ran that in 3-Gun.
If the barrel is threaded and it has a tube in it I doubt it's a cylinder bore choke. Its probably an improved cylinder choke.
Why are you upset about having a shotgun that has changeable chokes? That's an advantage.
Edit....just checked mossy website on that model and it states it comes with threads and a cylinder bore choke. That is odd.
But nonetheless your at an advantage with Being able to change chokes.
It is definitely cut and threaded from the factory for chokes. Baby steps though. The thought hadn't crossed my mind as this is my first shotgun and I merely wanted something more of an all-around model. With that said, the ability to grow into and possibly use it for any number of specific purposes, is something that shouldn't be understated. I hadn't heard of the accu-choke system from Mossberg until I saw the choke tool in the box while the salesman was wrapping up the transaction. I bought the floor model so it was assembled and right there for us to look at. The MFS employee and I were both a little taken aback, again, I had no idea this option existed. Also, I can't give the guys over there enough praise. Approachable, professional, never condescending(I showed up in flip-flops), very knowledgeable, and funny to boot. I've shot there a few times and purchased multiple firearms from them. Selection is a little thin and spread out, but I still highly recommend if you're looking for a new gun. They don't have a used selection, though it would probably be a great idea for them.
Not upset at all, uninformed and pleasantly surprised more like it.
In my opinion they didn't sell you an all around model. It has ghost ring sights......that's specific to tactical. If you plan to shoot clay sports or hunt with it the ghost ring is a disadvantage. You have yourself a nice home defense / 3 gun shotgun there though.
eboos
NES Member
The only Remington shotguns that I've used were military and police models. You can buy them and they are built a bit more ruggedly, but they cost a bit more. I currently own a 11-87P, and I carried a 14" 870 for 3 years while on embassy duty. Never had a problem with them.
D
Deleted member 67409
Your OP states that you're looking for a shotgun for hunting and target shooting and while an 18" 12-gauge can be used for the traditional shotgun sports and shotgun deer season, this shotgun is better off in a 3-gun match than in a treestand or at the skeet fields. The ghost ring is fine for fixed or perhaps slow-moving targets but won't be good for upland game. The 8+1 tube is not helpful for hunting or "traditional" shotgun sports because those involve one or two shells for say trap and skeet or no more than three or five shells for hunting.
That gun seems... painful... for turkey hunting.
If you want to try the gun out in competition shooting, come down to Bradford Sportsmen's in RI on 6/2. There's going to be a shotgun + pistol 2-gun match. You just have to pre-register on Practiscore. Bring 100 rounds of 7.5 shot or bigger (7.5, 8, or 9).
Bradford Sportsman's Multi gun debut (shotgun/handgun)
Very true. I don't anticipate doing any skeet or trap with this, I wanted ghost rings because with my limited experience with shotguns, I could focus better with them versus a bead. Also for slugs, to see what I can do at distance. They just seem more intuitive to me.
eboos
NES Member
Oddly enough, my 11-87P converted nicely into a trap gun when my shoulder couldn't handle a BT99 anymore. I was building it up for my son to use, now I use it.
Not my OP, I don't hunt I'm just encroaching on the thread, but I appreciate the sentiment! The more I read up on 3 gun( or 2 gun I suppose) the more intriguing it becomes. Thanks for the info, I've got no problem finishing last, someone has to, right? Just need a holster for the VP9 and I'm in.
D
Deleted member 67409
Remington isn't what it used to be.... I would go with the Mossberg.
