Lately there’s been a few discussions regarding issues with Remington’s venerable 870 design, specifically the 870 Express. A comment was made that nobody was sticking up for Mossbergs, so here I go.
I’ve got 2 Remington 870's, a 20 gauge for the wife and a 12 for me. I had some minor issues with loading 3" shells into mine which I have since corrected. Over all I got no whines on the 870 Express.
I’ve also got 2 Mossbergs, an 835 (used) and a 500 (new). I like both of ‘em. Here’s why.
Field stripping a Mossy is a breeze. I do like the single take-down pin vs. the double on the Remmy. Reassembly I also find a bit easier on the Mossbergs. Yeah, the interruptor and shell stop have to be held in place while reinserting the trigger group. However, I have less hassle with that than holding the bolt and carrier on the action bars of the Remmy, sliding that whole mess in, then pushing in on the interruptor and stop to get the bolt to slide home. Is that a personal preference? Yes it is.
Where I think the Mossies really shine is the receiver itself. I like the larger loading port on the bottom, as well as the ability to unload the magazine, one shell at a time, just by pushing in on the shell stop. I’m also a fan of the larger ejection port of the Mossbergs. If I want to do the shell swap drill (dump whatever came out of the mag and sub in a slug round) the unwanted shell falls right out, no muss. On the Remington I do sometimes get hang-ups in the ejection port of the round I’m trying to get rid of. It’s also easier to drop the slug round into the Mossy.
The locking action of the Mossberg is rock solid. It’s either locked or it ain’t. I’ve found that on the Remingtons the slide will come back a hair once the hammer is down, and that partially blocks the lifter so you can’t get a shell in the mag tube. Yeah, I know, training and familiarization will get around that but in a high-stress encounter sometimes t&f goes out the window. Been there.
Some complain that the Mossy actions are stiff. Yes they are. I personally find that reassuring. I haven’t yet short-shucked a pump, but if it ever happens to me I’d be willing to bet it does so with one of the Remingtons. The Mossberg action can be slicked up a bit to make it smoother, but it’ll always take more effort than the Remington and I don’t mind that. It makes me slow down. Instead of shickshick bang, it’s shick(pause)shick bang. If I need real volume of fire then a pump shotty is the wrong gun to start with.
Some have complained about the safety being on the receiver instead of the trigger guard. I say so what? Training and familiarization are there for a reason. Mostly I run with the mag loaded, chamber empty, safety off, so I don’t really care WHERE it’s located.
If I have any whines on the Mossbergs it’s the stock. That long LOP maybe great for some folks but on me it didn’t fit right at all, and combined with the relatively stiff butt pad it made for painful shooting. Nothing there that some time with a hacksaw and a new LimbSaver pad didn’t fix.
So there ya has it, my take on Mossberg pumps. Inexpensive, easy to maintain, and they won’t rust up like an Express. I’m not bashing the 870 here, but if I had my druthers I’d probably grab one of the Mossbergs if I had to bail out with only one shotgun.
I’ve got 2 Remington 870's, a 20 gauge for the wife and a 12 for me. I had some minor issues with loading 3" shells into mine which I have since corrected. Over all I got no whines on the 870 Express.
I’ve also got 2 Mossbergs, an 835 (used) and a 500 (new). I like both of ‘em. Here’s why.
Field stripping a Mossy is a breeze. I do like the single take-down pin vs. the double on the Remmy. Reassembly I also find a bit easier on the Mossbergs. Yeah, the interruptor and shell stop have to be held in place while reinserting the trigger group. However, I have less hassle with that than holding the bolt and carrier on the action bars of the Remmy, sliding that whole mess in, then pushing in on the interruptor and stop to get the bolt to slide home. Is that a personal preference? Yes it is.
Where I think the Mossies really shine is the receiver itself. I like the larger loading port on the bottom, as well as the ability to unload the magazine, one shell at a time, just by pushing in on the shell stop. I’m also a fan of the larger ejection port of the Mossbergs. If I want to do the shell swap drill (dump whatever came out of the mag and sub in a slug round) the unwanted shell falls right out, no muss. On the Remington I do sometimes get hang-ups in the ejection port of the round I’m trying to get rid of. It’s also easier to drop the slug round into the Mossy.
The locking action of the Mossberg is rock solid. It’s either locked or it ain’t. I’ve found that on the Remingtons the slide will come back a hair once the hammer is down, and that partially blocks the lifter so you can’t get a shell in the mag tube. Yeah, I know, training and familiarization will get around that but in a high-stress encounter sometimes t&f goes out the window. Been there.
Some complain that the Mossy actions are stiff. Yes they are. I personally find that reassuring. I haven’t yet short-shucked a pump, but if it ever happens to me I’d be willing to bet it does so with one of the Remingtons. The Mossberg action can be slicked up a bit to make it smoother, but it’ll always take more effort than the Remington and I don’t mind that. It makes me slow down. Instead of shickshick bang, it’s shick(pause)shick bang. If I need real volume of fire then a pump shotty is the wrong gun to start with.
Some have complained about the safety being on the receiver instead of the trigger guard. I say so what? Training and familiarization are there for a reason. Mostly I run with the mag loaded, chamber empty, safety off, so I don’t really care WHERE it’s located.
If I have any whines on the Mossbergs it’s the stock. That long LOP maybe great for some folks but on me it didn’t fit right at all, and combined with the relatively stiff butt pad it made for painful shooting. Nothing there that some time with a hacksaw and a new LimbSaver pad didn’t fix.
So there ya has it, my take on Mossberg pumps. Inexpensive, easy to maintain, and they won’t rust up like an Express. I’m not bashing the 870 here, but if I had my druthers I’d probably grab one of the Mossbergs if I had to bail out with only one shotgun.
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