Found a minty Mossberg 46M at a local shop. I dont usually frequent this particular establishment, because its out of the way and they have always had a reputation for high prices, but I was in the neighborhood and I said "Why not?" Needed just a little cleanup, but overall amazing condition. The price was so reasonable, even the clerk did a double-take and had to ask his boss if the sticker was correct. I guess they didnt have much into it, or they figured nobody still wanted these guns, but $215 OTD and it was all mine- winning! Aside from the great condition, the really amazing thing about this specimen is its completeness. Ive had many old Mossys over the years, including a few "M" models, but never had one which wasnt missing some of the small bits. Here you see the oft-lost red and green plastic safety indicators. The front sight assembly is complete and undamaged, including the (usually missing) shroud, and (usually broken) flip-up spring-loaded multiple posts. This is the FIRST Mossberg Ive had which included the original- and way overengineered- QD sling swivels. They use a teeny-tiny spring-loaded pin to secure them to the special mounts. Lose them, and you are scroooood! Even the bolt dust cover is still in place! Im pretty stoked to add this classic time-travelling bolt gun to my rimfire battery!
That’s sweet, I would have been so quick getting my wallet out it would have flung out of my hands and hit the employee at that price.
Nice find! That one is in great shape! My LGS has a really nice 44, but while $400 isn't outrageous for it, it's more than I can do right now. OTOH, it hadn't moved all summer. Maybe by spring.....
NIGHTLORD400K Really, you just happened to find it sitting all by it's lonesome in some nearby gun shop. How many times do I have to explain to you "time travelers" that you're not supposed to bring back any souvenirs from your little side trips! Do you have any idea what bringing something back like that, in mint condition no less (like it just left the factory), does to 1) the Time/Space Continuum and 2) how it looks to everyone else who isn't a time traveler? Anyways nice score with the "old" Mossberg...wink, wink!
Oh, I dont know, I watch alot of Star Trek, so time travel for pretty much any menial reason always seems consequence-free, lol.
I figured many of our members might not have, so I tried to highlight some of their neat features. Mossberg made a vast array of variations on this theme from the 1940s through the early '80s. There were single shots, tube and clip-fed repeaters, bolt-actions, semi-autos, full-stocked, heavy-barrelled, etc, etc...... There were even models with a flip-down forend which could be used as a vertical grip or a monopod! I remember when these were everywhere. Back in the '90s, you would see dozens of old Mossberg .22s at a gunshow in the $100-200 price range- though they always seemed to be missing little pieces here and there!
Mine looks like it was tossed into the back of a pickup for 20 years. Yours looks great. I know where there is another at a local gun shop but no way it looks even half as nice as that one. Have a soft spot for old Mossbergs.
Thunderstruck. Congratulations! It makes my week when a fabulous piece of history can be claimed by someone who appreciates it and at a price that traveled a fair number of years to meet up with both of you.
Very fine. I can't remember seeing a Mossberg with the elaborate but cheap sights all present and accounted for. Sidebar, I once saw a gunzine picture of a Henry rifle like that. It had a slip-tube magazine (like a .22 or the modern Henry) with a walnut foreend, slotted at the magazine loading port. Nobody knew where it came from. An undocumented factory prototype obsoleted by King's Improvement was thought unlikely, probably an elaborate gunsmith job.
I think the green position meant "Safe" and the red, "Fire", but I am not sure. I'd have preferred an "S" over the safe position, with a tactile bump instead of the colors.
Yup, red is "Danger" lol. Some Mossbergs substituted a stamped "F" and "S" filled in with paint for the plastic dots. Probably a wise move, beacause the dots usually flee the scene sooner or later.......
When in my teens, I borrowed a 16 gauge Mossberg bolt-action shotgun from a friend. I lost the 2-shot magazine while hunting, but continued to use it as a single-shot. One day, hunting with a couple of buddies who were on the other end of a big beaver pond in a canoe, and I was watching the pond for a while, then sat back against a tree near the water's edge. After a while, I decided to look behind me and there were three teal swimming around about 20 yards away. Knowing that I only had one shot, I figured that I'd wait until two ducks lined up, shoot them, then try to load and shoot to catch the third in the air. After putting a shell between my fingers on my trigger hand, I shot the two on the water, then got the third after it flushed and was about 35 yards away. It took about 3 more shots to finish off the two that were in the water, but the airborne one was dead when it hit the water. The other guys in the canoe came over after a while and retrieved the ducks for me. I ordered a new magazine for the gun and never borrowed it again.
Very nice. I bought a non firing 146B from a friend and restored it. I gave it to my son-in-law and he lost the bolt last I knew. I had peep sights and I wanted to shoot it but he got all "Indian giver" over it. I'd like to find another.
Despite the torrential downpours, got a chance to put a few down the pipe- Turns out I was wrong- red means "stop" and green means "go" lol. Accuracy was good, though not stellar, with cheap WWB. Took awhile to get the complicated and fragile sights dialed in, but not too shabby. I tried a few Aguila Super shorts throuh the tube magazine as well. Feeding was fine with both shorts and LR, but the shorts had a bit of a hard time clearing the port on ejection. Overall, Im pretty happy with the results.
I still have one. It's not pretty but it is in workable condition. I "refinished" the stock when I was in my teens. I probably haven't shot it in 30 years. As I remember a bolt shotgun with no recoil pad kicked like a mule. -Jeff
The safety could sometimes hit the thumb on recoil. I've seen where someone inletted the stock and bent the safety downward to prevent thumb damage.
@NIGHTLORD40K , if you find that you regret your purchase I've got $216 with your name on it! Good find, looks like an excellent and underappreciated rifle.
