Which is a better shotgun, Mossberg 500, or Remington 870?
July 9th, 2010 by eranio
Despite owning several guns, a shotgun has never been among my arsenal. However, I plan to correct that shortly. The shotgun I purchase will have its primary role as a home defense gun, but I would like the option of changing barrels for hunting or skeet/trap shooting. I would also like some guidance in the 12 gauge versus 20 gauge debate – I would like if my wife and kids could wield this gun as well, so I’m sort of leaning toward 20 gauge, but I understand that 12 gauge is not only more powerful, but there is a greater variety of loads in that caliber.
Posted in mossberg shotguns
July 9th, 2010 at 10:03 am
Id go with the mossberg because i own one and they are great. Pretty much any load you could ever want is supplied in both 20 and 12. YOur wife and kids could shoot a 12 just fine. As long as they have it in their shoulder good, and shoot it enough to the point where they aren’t scared of it, they’ll do fine. I would go towards the 12. A 20 would also work, but for the purposes you need it for i’d go with the 12. Hope this helps.
July 9th, 2010 at 10:03 am
Either shotgun will work. Check them out to see which you prefer in terms of the placement of the safety and the slide release. The 870 is easier to add an extended magazine to. And it has a few more after market goodies available for it. I prefer the layout of the 500, but the extras for the 870.
As for 12 vs. 20, that debate has been raging longer than the 500 vs. 870 debate. My two cents on the whole thing is to go with the 12 gauge. If you use Winchester featherlites, or other light loads, the 12 gauge actually has less recoil than the 20 gauge. And it is a bit more versatile than the 20 gauge is.The 20 gauge has no real advantages today. Not with all of the light and tactical loads out there that let a 12 gauge do the same thing.
July 9th, 2010 at 10:04 am
both are great guns but I see more mossbergs that are set up for home defense than remington. i like mossberg but again either one will do the job . A great thing to do is go to a gun store or wherever you go for your other guns and ask about the guns. As for 20 gauge and 12 gauge i would go with 12 for the fact that i had a 20 gauge double barrel and all i could find was bird shot not ideal for stopping a bad guy. The 12 will always have buckshot , slugs or bird shot available. Also it has a stronger load. If you buy a good recoil pad for it you should be able to get your wife or kids to get used to handling it. I have a 12 gauge double barrel and with a good pad i can fire both barrels with buckshot and the recoil is little worse than my 20 gauge.
July 9th, 2010 at 10:04 am
I have owned both and don’t think that there is dimes worth of difference between them
There certainly is not $100 worth of difference
I would go with the Mossberg, you can get interchangeable chokes as an option on just about any American pump gun
Depending on what you are going to do with the gun a 20 will do almost anything a 12 will do
You can to load down for the wife and kids or up to the gun’s full potential for field work whatever you feel needs more firepower
July 9th, 2010 at 10:04 am
Mossberg 500 hands down. Plenty of aftermarket stuff. Only shotgun to pass military torture test.
July 9th, 2010 at 10:04 am
The 870 is better you can change the chokes in it. Also the 12ga has better range, but it kicks more than a 20ga by a good bit. Dependiing on how big your wife and kids are they MAY not be able to handle it, I don’t know.
July 9th, 2010 at 10:04 am
For home defense only consider the Mossberg 500…..
Here’s why!!!
http://members.tripod.com/~jth8260/870.html
I know budgets can be tight these days but consider 2 shotguns…. A 20 gauge for the Mrs and older kids….. Also a 12 guage for you to use….
Consider this Mossberg 500 combo model — 2 barrels are included…. One for skeet and the other for defense….. Mossberg catalog #54169
http://www.mossberg.com/images/Mossberg_Guns/930/NEW/54169.jpg
Then purchase this 20 gauge defense shotgun…. Its a Mossberg 500 20 gauge Persuader / Cruiser model # 50452…..
http://www.mossberg.com/images/Mossberg_Guns/930/NEW/50452.jpg
Your correct in assuming the 12 guage has more available types of ammo…. My main beef with the 20 gauge is not so much because it has a little less stopping power (which is not a problem) but the fact the ammo is a bit more expensive than the 12 gauge…… Also 20 gauge isn’t offered in bulk as much as 12 gauge is…. Anyways — if the mrs is recoil sensitive then surely consider a 20 gauge for here…..
Buy the combo 12 guage first then shop around for the 20 gauge….
Mossberg defense products……
http://www.mossberg.com/products/default.asp?id=5&display=specs
http://www.mossberg.com/products/default.asp?id=5&display=desc
July 9th, 2010 at 10:04 am
They both are great shotguns…recently, Mossberg 590 has been use by the military as the standard, while police like to use the Remington. Go with the 12ga…it is easy to find ammo rather than the 20 ga.
July 9th, 2010 at 10:04 am
Reminton 870
July 9th, 2010 at 10:04 am
I’ve had both and both worked just fine. The Mossberg patterned a little high, but never suffered a malfunction.
The fit and finish on the 870 was much, much nicer.
As far as I could tell, the extra money that the 870 cost all went to having a nicer looking, nicer feeling gun. But they both killed squirrels, rabbits and deer just fine.