Need sidesaddle advice

[David904]

Hi everybody.... I just bought a fighting/home defense shotgun - a Benelli Supernova (pump). I love it! It has ghost ring sights, a Nordic Components 2 round mag extender, and I am looking to add a Mesa Tactical sidesaddle.

I'm curious as to which one I should go with. I'm leaning toward the 4 round model to keep weight down, but then there is also the 6 round one. ( ruled out the 8 round sidesaddle as once loaded it was going to add almost 2 lbs onto my gun! I watched the Magpul Art of the Tactical Shotgun video and they mounted 4 rounders on their pump guns. But I wanted to see what a lot of others thought about it. Thanks! I really appreciate your input.

 

[dak0ta]

Six is good if you have a short fore-end, 2 slugs up, 4 00 buckshot down. 4 rounds isn't bad either, but if you're going through all that effort to bolt it on anyways, the 2 rounds could be useful and aren't that much more weight, especially if the adrenaline is running.

 

[Fred Fuller]

Use the biggest capacity that your forearm will clear when the bolt is open. I use TacStars on 870s, so the choice is between 4 rounds or 6, and I can't tell any difference in weight between the two when on the gun. The weight is between the hands where it makes little difference in handling, to me.

And I don't mix loads in either the magazine or the SideSaddle - the magazine is all buckshot, the SideSaddle is all slugs. YMMV there too, of course.

 

[chrome_austex]

I love the Esstac shotshell cards (elastic shell holder car, velcro backed).
+ super cheap, so you can buy a few.
+ They hold 7 rounds
+ soft and light when unloaded
+ only require a little velcro on the receiver, which holds pretty well.
+ trivial to add/remove since they're velcro
+ they also fit in many AR mag holders (FWIW)

you can also throw a backup on your buttstock if you like. The only downside is retention is acceptable, but not perfect (they shells can slip a little under recoil, but I've never had one fall out), and if you're receiver is greased or something, the velcro won't stick.

 

[451 Detonics]

None...

Believe it or not the manufacturers of rifles and shotgun work very hard to create the best possibly balanced gun they can, anything you strap onto that gun is going to change the balance and handling, normally not for the good. If you cannot take care of the problem with the rounds loaded into the gun I would transition to a handgun at that point. If the shotgun is your only firearm I would store it with a cross chest bandoleer you can throw on when you grab the shotgun.

 

[David904]

After careful consideration and advice from Mesa Tactical, Ive opted for the 4-round sidesaddle for my bedside bump-in-the-night baddy blaster. Apparently the length of the slide makes the 4 rounder the optimal size. I'll post pics and a review when it arrives! Thanks for your advice guys!