Whats better a Mossberg 500 or a Remington 870?

May 13th, 2011 by eranio

I am looking for a good all around shotgun last will last a long time with regular maintenance.

One Response

Master T
May 13th, 2011 at 12:29 am

They are both very well made shotguns. However, I have to side with the Remington 870. Why? Because the receivers on the Remingtons are made form steel. The receivers on the Mossberg are made from aluminum. Now some might say that it’s the same kind of aluminum that they make engine blocks out of. Fine. But I’ve seen 40 year old Remingtons that looked better than 20 year old Mossbergs that were kept and used under the same conditions. That anodized black finish on the aluminum Mossbergs will start to flake off and reveal the white metal beneath. The steel on a Remington will wear at the edges and show a nice patina over time.

I just don’t trust a "soft metal" such as aluminum for extreme use. Need more proof? Ask any cap and ball revolver shooter – they will tell you that steel receivered replica revolvers last much much longer than guns made from brass receivers (another soft metal).