America's shotgun?

This IS AMERICA ! So, in 2012, that means a cheap pump made in China or Malaysia or Thailand and sold by the discount big box stores.

+1 on Mossberg 500.

This IS AMERICA ! So, in 2012, that means a cheap pump made in China or Malaysia or Thailand and sold by the discount big box stores.

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Hmm, Walmart shoppers.....good point... But, there are AMERICAN made affordable alternatives to Chinese crap (okay, cheap) pumps...called Maverick. I'd own a Maverick, but I prefer the normal Mossberg's safety and it's a little more upscale. And, even I can afford it.

niche

At the risk of derailing the thread....responding thoughtfully to a previous comment:

Clays shooters might argue, but they are vastly outnumbered by hunters and tacticool shooters. Clay shooting is a niche market

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That may be true in terms of the number of individuals involved - maybe - and many of those hunters and tacticoolers may be using 870s. But the sheer number of shotshells being used in the Clay sports take it out of the "niche" category. How long does it take the average hunter to use four boxes of shells? When I shoot Trap, I will shoot 100 in an hour. In addition, many of those 870s are pressed into clay service once or twice a year....for most (maybe all) that limited use will result in more shooting than their whole season.
Maybe for the gun, a niche market. When I shoot at my club in PA, of the twenty guys who show up regularly, I have the only "Trap" gun; the rest use their hunting guns....an assortment of about every shotgun mentioned so far in this thread. I will hazard a guess that most of those guns are not 870s. Most are pumps....some 870s...but the bulk of them are something else.
Pete

My ten year old or there about Texas built Maverick has been superb.
The blueing(yes blueing) has held up and the shotgun has never jammed or missed a beat.
I too echo the sentiment that they should have placed the safety on the tang like my old Mossberg 500,even though at it's price point would not be smart for Mossberg....But I really like that shotgun.
Fwiw I paid $139.00 for my 88 in 2001.

Another fwiw...I recently bought for $100 a Chinese built H&R 870 clone with the 18.5 inch barrel that was covered in three years worth of dust from a woman who booted her drunkard husband as she does not like guns and wanted it out of the house.
May keep and may not.
Personally I would have never bought it new as there are better options from right here.

Edit to add...I cant see anyone going wrong with an 870 or Mossberg 500.
Both very great guns....And they are made here.

ithaca 37 12 gauge

Maybe for the gun, a niche market.

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This OP did say "American shotgun", not "American shotshell", right? Serious clays shooters prefer expensive O/Us, high end autos, single shot trap guns and such, niche guns, hardly the every day 'American shotgun". Not that some folks don't take their 870s to the sporting clays range or something now and again......

How long does it take the average hunter to use four boxes of shells?

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It depends on how avid a dove hunter he or she is and how many of those shells left the factory without shot in them.

The Op's question has been answered repeatedly and yet as has been pointed out already...folks keep showing up posting what they have. The Remington 870 is the best selling shotgun of all time and is used by more hunters than any other shotgun... doesn't matter what you or I own or like as it doesn't change the fact that the 870 is Americas scattergun.

Clays shooters might argue, but they are vastly outnumbered by hunters and tacticool shooters. Clay shooting is a niche market

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I would argue that clay shooters outnumber tacticool shooters by a large margin and are part of the large number of hunters. While the venerable pump is a great "jack of all trades", when it comes to targets, upland or waterfowl hunting, there are various types that are better suited to the specific task. Even in some of the three-gun and similar games, the semi typically is called upon for the serious competitor

There's nothing wrong with the pump, but to me, it is more like a jeep - yes it is versatile and can be used for a lot of things, but it isn't always the best choice for everything

For me I would say generricly a pump action and specifically the 870 Wingmaster. High quality, beautiful, and functional what more could you ask for?

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There's nothing wrong with the pump, but to me, it is more like a jeep - yes it is versatile and can be used for a lot of things, but it isn't always the best choice for everything

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I agree...a pump is almost as frustrating as an O/U in a blind. Autoloaders are better in the blind, but there are still a heck of a lot more 870's in the marshes than anything else though.

Remington 870

I would argue that clay shooters outnumber tacticool shooters by a large margin and are part of the large number of hunters. While the venerable pump is a great "jack of all trades", when it comes to targets, upland or waterfowl hunting, there are various types that are better suited to the specific task. Even in some of the three-gun and similar games, the semi typically is called upon for the serious competitor

There's nothing wrong with the pump, but to me, it is more like a jeep - yes it is versatile and can be used for a lot of things, but it isn't always the best choice for everything

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And, the popularity of clay shooting would explain why the 870 has outsold all other shotguns in America, let alone if you toss in the 500? Between those two, you don't even need to consider the rest of the pump gun world, you're likely looking at more sales than autos and O/Us combined. I'd suspect only single shots might rival the pump in shotgun sales. I base that on nothing other than knowing that pumps are the hottest sellers, though. I'm too lazy to look up sales figures by action type, if I could find something on google. Just tossing this out there for the sake of argument.

And, the popularity of clay shooting would explain why the 870 has outsold all other shotguns in America, let alone if you toss in the 500? Between those two, you don't even need to consider the rest of the pump gun world, you're likely looking at more sales than autos and O/Us combined.

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It's a bit of a stretch to declare there are more hunters and tacticool shooters simply because the 870 has outsold other shotguns. It has been on the market longer, is less expensive and for the first half of its life was well represented in target shooting.

I would consider myself primarily a clay shooter but hunt and have an HD gun. I've also owned more 870s than any other gun. Many of us don't fit into the neat little categories and don't participate in one element of shotgunning to the exclusion of all others. Therefore it will likely be impossible to prove definitely which group is larger and little point in doing so.

I would consider myself primarily a clay shooter but hunt and have an HD gun. I've also owned more 870s than any other gun. Many of us don't fit into the neat little categories and don't participate in one element of shotgunning to the exclusion of all others.

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True enough. Heck, I shoot informal clays at the range (or did, dropping out of the club, moving) occasionally, but I'm primarily a hunter, not a target shooter. I was offered a Kieghoff single shot trap gun with 3 barrels in a leather case once, $4500, sure it was a bargain if I was a trap shooter. I told the ol' fellow I had more of a "Mossberg budget".

I live in the sticks, not in a city. That, alone, is different. All my buddies and acquaintances that shoot are primarily hunters, not clays shooters. That skews my perspective and is not necessarily representative of the rest of the world, I guess. I don't run with the Rockefellers or have a house in the Hamptons, so I don't buy 4500 dollar single shots, nor does most of America. I can say THAT with certainty!

Parker. Even 70 years since the last one, they're still the standard.

56hawk said:

Can't think of anything other than the Remington 870.

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what he said. it the true jack of all trades as far as shotguns go.

11 million

870s....eleven million of them. A substantial figure. I wonder, though, how many other shotguns there are in the good old' USA. Probably be hard to tell.
How many shooters who own 870s also own other brands and types of shotguns?
I'd be willing to buy the America's shotgun is the 870 if there were more of them than any other but I don't believe that is so.
If I were to buy an 870, it'd be my fourth pump gun and my 14th shotgun....I am pretty sure that I am not alone in that type of inventory.
Pete

How many shooters who own 870s also own other brands and types of shotguns?

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I have several and would be willing to bet that most hunters have several types or at least a couple different gauge guns of the same type. I have single shots, pumps, O/U, SXS, autoloaders and used to have several single and double muzzleloading shotguns. The only shotguns i have ever owned that i didn't like were mossberg pumps (500 and 835) but i think i may give one another go and see if they offer anything at all in the smoothness department nowadays as one can never have too many shotguns.

My 500 is smooth as silk, but it's been worked every duck season for 20 years. The 535 was used, but they haven't been making 'em all that long and it's got little wear. Seems pretty smooth to me. I prefer 'em for the ergos. 870s just are not lefty friendly and I really like the tang safety even if I were a righty. I also like the shell elevator design, out of the way on loading.

So, um, maybe the "America's shotgun" should be a pump? I mean, I own SxSs, single shots, an autoloader, and pumps. But, seems like more pumps have been sold over MY lifetime. However, I'm a waterfowler mostly, and dove hunter. Uplanders are less into pumps, I'm thinkin'. Sales figures should tell the tale, but pumps are cheaper than other action types, so that skews the sales numbers a lot. Of course, single shots are cheaper. I wonder how a single shot vs pump sales battle would go?

I don't know, you tell me. I give up.

870 Patent

When the 870 patent runs out -soon I'd guess- I wonder if another mfg. will make a quality copy?

When the 870 patent runs out -soon I'd guess- I wonder if another mfg. will make a quality copy?

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Aren't patents good for 25 years? the 870 has been around for at least 50, little longer I think. The chinese built H&R pump is an 870 knock off. I don't know how much "quality" it has, don't own one, don't care for 870 ergos, am a Mossberg guy (another original). But, why would you want a knock off? the 870 is not an expensive shotgun, especially the express. It competes with the Mossberg in the moderate (if not low) priced pump market.

My 500 is smooth as silk, but it's been worked every duck season for 20 years.

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The 500 i had was just o.k., but just thinking about the 835 still has me gritting my teeth. I special ordered the 835 when it came out and got it with walnut stocks and high polish blue. The gun would cycle roman candles pretty decently, but was a nightmare with 2.75" shells.

I prefer 'em for the ergos. 870s just are not lefty friendly and I really like the tang safety even if I were a righty.

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For right handers nothing beats the Winchesters. The safety is on the front of the trigger guard right where your finger should be resting and the release is not only behind the trigger group, but is also very small and rounded. My cousin shot left handed and he liked the safety on the 500 too, but he never cared too much for the gun.

I'm surprised that some of the shotguns John Moses Browning designed are not getting more credit as "America's Shotgun". The A5 was in production for nearly 100 years and couple that to the Rem model 11 you have a substantial quantity in the hands of Americans.

Let's not forget that there was fear the turn of the century market hunters would cause regulation prohibiting semi-autos and pumps from being used for hunting.....hence JBM's creation of the Superposed, a hedge in case laws were enacted that would restrict number of rounds a hunting shotgun could have.

Europe's shotgun would most likely be the side-by-side.....but America is the true home of the semi-auto, and over-under.