Benelli Nova Pump vs Remington 870

[AFdude]

hey everyone, just introduced myself in the introduction thread.

on to the purpose i joined! i'm gonna be using one of these shotguns for dual purposes..& I plan on buying multiple barrels. I want to hunt, and use them for home protection also. I live in california, just for reference. I was wondering, if the benelli would be better all around because it accepts a 3 1/2 load. i also heard the Nova pump rattles though.. so should I go with the benelli for the bigger load or would the remington be best? I want stopping power as well as durability and ease of use I've shot quite a bit, I just want a quality gun.. i'm very quality driven as an aspiring mechanical engineer. i do want a pump, that I know. I will be going with a synthetic stock, also. I like the fact both these guns are relatively low priced, so I can save my money for other things..like ammo.. and women. damn they can be expensive! haha, but anyway, thanks in advance. steve.

 

[EHCRain10]

welcome to the forum,
as far as stopping power is concerned, 2.75in shells have enough stopping power for most people, the 3.5in shells have such recoil that a follow up shot is slow to follow

 

[627PCFan]

I give the nod to Benelli. Quality control, fit and finish is miles ahead IMO. The 3 1/2 gives you load flexibility. I have shot everything from bean bag rounds to common loads to signal flares out of mine the rattle issue has been fixed. The biggest complaint i hear is it looks like a space gun. Ill keep my duck slaying space gun.

 

[bensdad]

Both are good shotties. Well worth the price, however...

The 870 is the most common shotgun in the world for a reason. It's a design
that has proven itself millions of times over. I have two 870s and one Nova. I prefer the Rems by a long shot.

Availability of aftermarket stuff for the 870 is miles ahead of the Benelli.

3 1/2 in. shells? You're worried about these... on your fist shotgun purchase? First, go look at the pricetag on a box of these. Buy them anyway (choke down the tears, I know - you were saving that money for an engagement ring). Now borrow a gun that shoots them. Go to a range and blast away. Once you've done this, can you honestly say that you give a rat's butt if a gun can shoot them?

One strike against Benelli - magazine bypass. I'm sure someone else will write about how they use it every day and how their life was changed by it. But I consider it to be a gimmick. I don't like gimmicks. A tool should sell itself on quality (which the Benelli does).

 

[nollsp]

I JUST got into skeet and as a result was looking for a 20 that would bloody my girly arm...so I spent allot of time picking up and shouldering about 100 different shotguns.

To be honest, I really think folsk are blinded by the Benelli name here as the BPS did not feel like a quality shotgun. The action felt clunky at best and there way to much twist an lateral play in the gun.

Maybe the 870 quality has slipped, but my old Wingmaster looks like a work of art compared to the BPS...and I am appreciate the simplicity of clean and simple designs...this BPS just isnt it.

Is it a good gun, yeah, I am sure it is ok...but the 870 is legendary and is the benchmark for which all pumps are gaged...and it just falls very short IMO.

 

[SiNNiK]

What JRSpicer426 said. What some people may see as a gimmick, I see as innovative. Where some people may see the ability to shoot 3.5" loads as excessive, I see it as not limiting my ammo choices. If 3.5" is all you have, the Benelli is still in business, whereas the 870 is not.

It just comes down to your perception and what's important to you. Get the one you enjoy the most, then post pics!

 

[Ash]

The 870 would be my choice of the two. I have taken geese with the one I had (before I saw the light and got a Mossy). It fired 3" shells, was 12ga, and had no problem in the world taking down the bigger birds. I don't see where 3 1/2 would have made any difference except to my shoulder.

Ash

 

[Fred Fuller]

The 3.5" 12 gauge shell is "a solution to a problem that doesn't exist" to quote Cooper on another subject. If you NEED to launch that much payload, you're better off doing it out of a 10 gauge bore. If you can do it with a 12 gauge, you can get it done with a 3" chamber. And most of the time a 2.75" 12 gauge is plenty of shell.

Don't let a desire for 3.5" chamber drive you into making a mistake.

Of the two my absolute preference for a good 870 (though I own many other makes/models) has been clearly stated here in the past. The world is fairly bristling with good used 870s. You can get a better shotgun AND save more money all at the same time. In going on 40 years of shotgunning I have yet to buy a NIB 870.

JMHO of course, YMMV.

lpl/nc

 

[jmr40]

If you insist on a 3 1/2" chamber Remington offers the 870 Super magnum with a 3 1/2" chamber.

I have tried the Nova and like a lot about it but hit better with the 870. As others have said I don't have a need for the longer shells even though one of my 870's will chamber them. The only possible use would be with goose loads. 3 1/2" lead is simply not needed.

 

[AFdude]

thanks everyone! i think i'll be going with the 870 for now. I can always buy more guns later down the line. I was just curious about the 3.5" round because I didn't know much about big loads and hunting with them. but seems like i should be fine. I'm going with the synthetic 870.. wish I could do the marine magnum but that will have to wait. thanks for all the good replys! hopefully i'll get to post up some nice pictures from my hunt later down the line. steve

 

[ktd]

If I recall, the 3 1/2 is more of a hunting thing, it exists to solve the problem of not enough steel shot in the standard lengths. Steel has a much lower density than lead, which is not allowed for waterfowl any more. Back at the beginnning of steel shot there were few 10 ga shotguns, and no bismuth loads. The new high density non toxic shot helps to make up for that in the standard size loads these days. 2.75 inch is enough for social use, and the trend is to use the "tactical" loads, which are actually less than full house loads that reduce recoil, and thus make followup shots faster. Try shooting full load 2.75s, 3 inch maggies, or 3 1/2 loads and your shoulder will not like you much.

The bypass is actually a proven thing, having been around for about a hundred-ish years, and is properly called a magazine cutoff. I think it is more of a European thing though, and I have never used it much.

Either gun is fine, but as an engr, I like the Remington, you get a lot more choice of accessories to attach to it. One of my 870's has gone from tactical 10 shot blunderbuss, to wood stocked hunting gun, to misc pieces stored in my safe, and to short folder tactical.

 

[10 Ring Tao]

Anything you need to do, except hunting big fowl at distance as was mentioned, can be done with 2 3/4 in shells.

That said, get the one that fits you the best after at least playing with both, if not shooting both. One will just feel more...natural.

 

[Ethics]

870

 

[SimpleIsGood229]

Okay, I've done that with the Nova and ended up getting TWO Novas since an extra barrel was $240.00. By the time you add two chokes, you're at $280. The whole dang gun only cost $300!

Don't worry about 3.5'' unless you plan on hunting geese, but are too poor to afford the two-buck-a-round Hevi Shot-type rounds.

 

[45crittergitter]

I'm also very familiar with the 870, as well as both Benelli and Remington autoloaders. This month, I picked a SuperNova over the 870, primarily due to Remington's crappy customer service. I have no experience with Benelli's customer service, which is a good thing.

 

[atomemphis]

I have a Nova, and am disappointed by the cost of additional barrels relative to the gun price.

That being said, that's the only thing I am disappointed with. My Nova has been flawless.

And if you ever break or lose something, Mann & Sons is the place to go for Benelli stuff.

I love my Benelli.

That being said, I am not sure you can go wrong either way here.