Mossberg vs. Remington

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Thats my major question as well. Will the longer barrel made a difference?
 
Love em both. Reliable as gravity, tough as a WWII Marine as simple to operate as a hammer.

Own an 870 Marine Magnum and it is not for sale. Still if I had it to do over again I would get the Mossy.

One reason and one reason only...the postion of the safety.

BTW, the only way that you can hang them up is to short stroke it. Practice slamming the pump to the stop. Don't worry, you won't hurt it.
 
BTW, the only way that you can hang them up is to short stroke it. Practice slamming the pump to the stop. Don't worry, you won't hurt it.

Not true, based on what I've seen. I've stood next to experienced shooters that have locked them up.
Never seen a Mossberg 590A1 do that.
 
I've stood next to experienced shooters that have locked them up.

Even experienced shooters can short stroke and the 870 is more prone to it than the Mossy.

There is a reason for this. The Mossy has more resistance than the 870 at the start of the stroke. You have to push forward hard so it is very difficult not to slam the slide all the way against the stop.

The 870's slide moves more easily so short stroking is more likely to occur.
 
I don't know if your "birds" are clay or feathered, but I'd offer an opinion that I would not be satisfied with a 24" barrel. I'd think 26 is the minimum for this purpose, and I might prefer 28.

Total and unequivocal BS. My 20" 20 gauge Spartan coach gun is absolutely deadly on dove and teal out to 35-40 yards properly choked. My 24" 10 gauge is absolutely deadly with T steel on geese. They kill things just as dead as my 28" 12 gauges.

In some guns I like the shorter barrel as it quickens the gun. I could have gotten that 10 gauge with a 32" barrel, but why? It handles better with the "turkey" barrel. It's a heavy gun, anyway.

I hunt with and will continue to hunt with shorter barrels.

BTW, after 20 years, my Mossberg is as slick as any pump I've ever owned or fired. They start out stiff, but they wear well.
 
I vote for the Remington 870. Classic proven design, kind of like a 1911.

As far as trap shooting goes, I personally have noticed a big difference with a 26" barrel and proper choke, compared to a 20" barrel.
 
870s the classic, eh? The 500 has been around as long. Haven't found any dates, but found this diddy concerning "classic, proven" designs.
The Mossberg shotguns are some of the toughest, most reliable, and affordable shotguns on the market. The Mossberg shotgun has been around for almost a century; it is a shotgun that simply works, no matter what conditions it is put through. Mossberg shotguns are accredited with being the only shotgun to pass the military’s three-thousand slug test, which had proven devastating to all competitors’ submissions. The Mossberg quickly gained credit among the troops in Iraq, proving to be effective with all types of ammunitions, including less than lethal rounds.
 
friggin' rust magnets.

+1. My father's 870 has acquired some slight surface rust on the barrel. he however, is not exactly meticulous in maintaining it, but it still shows that the finish isn't top-notch, if it'll rust from just sitting in the safe.

i have no experience with mossberg 500's buy i plan on buying one soon
 
Who's better Remington or Mossberg?

I happen to own both. I have a Mossberg 835 and 500 and a Remington 870. Mossberg and Remington both make fine weapons for utility type purposes. Neither will win awards for ultra fine craftsmanship, but both make well functioning weapons. The Remington 870 is on a number of lists as one of the top ten weapons ever made. Further down that list, in a number of sources, you will usually find the Mossberg 500. As an owner of both types, I would have to say that the edge would go to the Remington, just from the stand point that there are more of them produced, so parts would be more readily available should something go wrong. However the Mossberg is the only one to pass the stringent Military specifications testing for shotguns. These tests are very tough, which is why Mossberg is to my knowledge the only one to pass them up to this point. I know the Mossberg tends to hold tighter slug patterns when shooting from the bench, but the Remington seems to be better balanced and handles a little bit better than the Mossberg on quick shots. As far as durability it's a toss up, in my opinion. I don't think you could go wrong with either selection.
 
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Mossberg was the only company to submit guns to be tested and won the military trials by default. The military does not necessarily give contracts to the best gun. They set a standard, any gun that meets the standard is allowed to bid. The contract goes to the low bidder.

Why Remington chose not to submit guns is debateable. The most likely reason is that they knew they would not be able to underbid Mossberg without selling guns at a loss.
 
Mossberg was the only company to submit guns to be tested and won the military trials by default. The military does not necessarily give contracts to the best gun. They set a standard, any gun that meets the standard is allowed to bid. The contract goes to the low bidder.

Why Remington chose not to submit guns is debateable. The most likely reason is that they knew they would not be able to underbid Mossberg without selling guns at a loss.


and...............................
 
and..... The military trials prove Mossberg sells a less expensive shotgun that did not fall apart during a test where the bar was not set very high.
 
Partly correct

The military did report that the Mossberg did in fact rattle its self loose, primary the safety, in some cases the gun would put itself into safety while testing. Another problem was the receivers would start to crack under heavy use which would be a major problem in combat. But, the good thing is the these problems were corrected, to what extent I do not know.
I have seen many of the Mossberg's sold in the time I worked in a gun store and never had one return, so that says allot. Personally I think the Rem 870 model it best.
 
In Addition

The military did report that the Mossberg did in fact rattle its self loose, primary the safety, in some cases the gun would put itself into safety while testing. Another problem was the receivers would start to crack under heavy use which would be a major problem in combat. But, the good thing is the these problems were corrected, to what extent I do not know.
I have seen many of the Mossberg's sold in the time I worked in a gun store and never had one return, so that says allot. Personally I think the Rem 870 model it best.
 
A few weeks ago, I bought a Mossberg 500 that came with a 28" barell and a 24" (or is it 26"?) rifled slug barrel that came with a scope for $300 at Wal-Mart. GunLocator and ImpactGuns had been out of stock for months.

So, I want an 18 1/2" barrel to round this shotgun out and I can't find ONE ANYWHERE!

I only registered here as I came across this thread a few times while spending the last 4 hours googling Mossberg 500 90015 - and every single online shop I came across was sold out - and have been the past few weeks I've been searching.

Mossbergs' website states they are also out of stock and this barrel can't be back ordered online and to call their 800 number. I did and the first time I waiting for an hour (on speaker phone) before I finally hung up as I was tired of hearing something like all reps are busy right now, please continue to hold or leave your number for a call back.

I did end up leaving a message and my phone number over a week ago in regards to this barrel and have not heard back.

I was/am stunned when I saw the date of this thread as only one or two days ago!

I've checked gunbroker, ect and everywhere else and can not find ONE IN STOCK to order.

I have called Mossberg a few more times last week and sometimes the phone lines where so jammed up that a recording came on after the first ring saying something like "All lines are currently busy" or something in the same tone/voice as "You've mis-dialed your call, please try again"

No idea how Prescott was able to grab one of these so easily while I am about ready to pull my hair out.
 
Heh, I have the 28" barrel on my Maverick 88... I'd be willing to trade :p The 28" is just a bit too long for me :)

Let me know if you're interested.
 
I want a new shotgun to get more birds than I've been able to get with my Mossberg 500 with 18.5 inch cylinder barrel.

I've been looking at intro shotguns for the field, and have narrowed my choice to 24 inches, and either another Mossberg, or a Remington 870.

What are your thoughts.

I don't know where you live, but here in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, used Mossberg 500 shotguns are common and pretty inexpensive. I haven't looked lately, but $150 is a typical price. Used Remingtons are less common and more expensive.

Personally, I own both and I've always been partial to Remingtons. But this is really a toss-up.
 
I own two 870 Wingmasters and one Police but I personally would recommend that you get a new barrel......Unless this is an excuse to get a new shotgun. Then you have to decide which you want. Actually IMHO they are both pretty much the same until you get into the Remington Wingmaster or Police grades or the Mossberg 590 grade. Try some out, have a good time and then decide. :D
 
Ford or Chevy? Blondes or brunetts? Either one is going to work and you're not going to go wrong with either one. Owning both makes as well as working on them, here's a few things though I have noticed.
The Remington tends to be smoother out of the box than the Mossberg however, the Mossberg will smooth out over time and use...but both pale in comparison to the Ithaca M-37.
The Remington has a safety that doesn't break like the plastic Mossberg variety (although that is replaceable at a very reasonable cost) although the Mossberg is more ambidextrious in its design.
The Remington's steel receiver in theory is stronger than the alloy receiver of the Mossberg but then I've seen alunimum lower and upper receiver on M-16s on the firing line that have been around since the early 60s and are still in constant use without any problems as well as I've never seen a worn out Mossberg receiver...and alunimum doesn't rust either.
The Mossberg tends to rattle a little more than the Remington but it has a slide release that you can depress without breaking your grip or sprouting an E.T. finger.
The Remington has more accessories available for it although Mossberg isn't too far behind. Yeaahh!!! Mall-ninja guns for everybody!:neener:
The Mossberg has a shell lifter that rides against the bolt so a shell jumping the shell stop simply falls out the gun where a shell on the lifter with a closed bolt of an 870 can tie up the gun. A cure for this though is to either cut a slot in the lifter like I did with mine so when it happens, a knife blade can shove the shell back into the magazine tube. Another cure that is better but more expensive is to replace the lifter and bolt carrier with the flex-tab conversion.
The Remignton can add an extended magazine tube very easily where the Mossberg also requires a barrel change as well. On the other hand, the Mossberg tube is one seamless piece with no butting surface that increase the chance of hanging up a shell or follower.
The Remington is the favorite with law enforcement with a few Mossbergs also serving in the law enforcement field.
The Mossberg is the favorite with the military with a few Remingtons also serving in the military field.
Bottom line is go with the one that is going to fit you, fit your check book, and fills your needs. You aren't going to go wrong with either one but in the event you just can't make up your mind...get both!!!!:D
 
I forgot to mention one other important thing, the Remington's shell latches and ejector are staked into place where the shell latches of the Mossberg fall out when you take the trigger group out and the ejector is held in by a screw. On the one hand, it's easier to loose pieces of the Mossberg. On the other hand, it takes a staking job (and the number of times you can stake a shell catch or ejector in is limited before you run out of receiver metal) to replace these parts in the 870.
 
Net wisdom isn't a good thing. I've seen some of the most ridiculous arguments imaginable go as "net wisdom". Saying the Express is a "rust magnet" doesn't make it true no matter how many times you say it

I'm not sure I believe the QC thing, but I've SEEN the results of just one hunt in the marsh and not cleaning for several days afterward. They are rust magnets, trust me. I've been hunting salt marshes and bays for 20 years with my camo 500 and it's still rust free. I hunted with a blue/wood Revelation 310/Mossberg 500 barrel on it, for 10 years before that without rust problems. I do clean it after a hunt, but an express, you'd better be getting the salt off it at the boat ramp before you stick it in the truck. :rolleyes: The finish on the express sux. Of course, if you're a mall ninja and the only thing you do with it is kill paper targets at 20 feet at the range and you store the gun oiled in a safe in an air conditioned room in Tucson, Aridzona, well, you will probably disagree with me on this.

You ever been to the gulf coast?
 
The 870 was designed to be used by serious hunters and competition shooters. It has a proven track record of holding up for decades and tens of thousands of rounds for hunters and trap shooters.

The Mossberg 500 was designed for the casual hunter to take rabbit hunting a few times a year. It has no real track record in competition.
Puh-lease! What a ridiculous statement! Don't make stuff up and then try to pass it off as factual info, ok buddy?




If treated right, either one will outlast you. Doesn't matter. Pick the one that feels better to you. If you like the 500, stick with it. If you have a few complaints, try the Remington.

I've got 4 mossbergs (2 500's, a 590, and a maverick 88) and a remington. I prefer the Mossbergs.
 
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