Stretchman
member
Went to the local gun shop where I bought my G19 and wanted to browse the shotguns. Was looking at a couple, and lo and behold, there was a Saiga 12. I was kind of crossed up between the Saiga 12 and the Mossberg 500, since the Mossberg already had the CAR stock, pistol grip, and 5 round carrier.
I have heard that you can't add a pistol grip to a Saiga unless you change out the trigger and get into the internels of the weapon. Anyway, they had a range rental, and I took it out with a box of frangible shotgun ammo. I was warned ahead of time that the Saiga did not like the ammo, and 5 out of 5 failed to extract, and I manually had to extract the spent shells in order to fire the next round. The guy at the range had some standarde 12 guage ammo that he let me load up, and all three fired without a glitch. So, I guess the Saiga can be finicky.
But all in all, it was hard to believe I was even firing a shottie. Hardly any felt recoil on the frangible ammo, but I am guessing reduced recoil rounds would be a problem for the weapon. I also wanted to fire the Mossberg, but the range rental they had did not have a pistol grip, which I would definitely prefer. One thing I did not like about it is that after firing the last round, the bolt shuts, and you find yourself either clicking on an empty chamber or yanking the bolt open. It is my understanding that you have to do that in order to insert another magazine, roll the mag in ( maybe you get used to it ) and then yank the bolt again to close it. A tactical reload of it might be more difficult if you've already fired a magazine dry and need that extra shot.
The Mossy had the car adjustable stock, pistol grip, hand insert for the pump, so you can keep a grip on it, a heatshield, bead sight, and 5 round carrier, all for about 150 dollars less. I am guessing that it was a 6 round tube, but I didn't really check. I know it didn't go all the way to the front of the barrel. I looked for a description of this particular weapon on the Mossberg site, but they didn't list it. It may no longer be in production. Does anyone know what model this is or was, and can I look up the specs on it, and the list? I really liked the Mossy, it was lighter, had all the tacticool crap I would want on it, and would be more than adequate for home defense. On the plus side, loading a shell into the ejection port is way faster if you need to get at least one more off.
But I am intrigued by the Saiga. My thing is that by the time I get other mags for it, have it modded the way I'd like it, and add it all up, I could get at least 2 Mossies already built the way I'd like them. The other thing about it that kind of bothers me is that under stress, there's no telling how many rounds I would let go out of it. With the frangible rounds, I almost had to check that I was even actually firing a shot. Simply put, I couldn't feel it.
That kind of freaked me out. If I was in a self defense situation, would I empty a mag without realizing it? Plus, the finish on the weapon is not as nice as that off the Mossie. The Mossies lines are much smoother, and less prone to snag.
So, about 5 bills for the Saiga, or 350 for the Mossie that has the furniture.
Either one would last a lifetime, I'd imagine. Less to go wrong with the Mossie. No additional parts for the Mossie, except maybe a tac light, and a sling. If I had to stake my life on either, I'd have no problems. The only other question is, if I had to use one in a self defense, HD scenario, which one would win the jury's sympathy? A heavily modded russian semi auto, or a good old american pump action?
Have pump actions had problems with feed and cycling? Are they as picky about ammo? How much is enough? Guess I am thinking out loud. Anyway, I can honestly say that I did enjoy shooting the Saiga, but I don't know if I'd want it as my first, and primary HD/SD shotgun. That's the question. I am pretty certain that right out of the box it would work, but the tacticool set with adjustable butt stock wins out for comfort. Wish I could have fired that as well...
Going to take some time to think about both for a while...
Stretch
Quit cigs 1M 5D 18h 16m ago. So far saved $220.56, 1,470 cigs not smoked and counting ...
I have heard that you can't add a pistol grip to a Saiga unless you change out the trigger and get into the internels of the weapon. Anyway, they had a range rental, and I took it out with a box of frangible shotgun ammo. I was warned ahead of time that the Saiga did not like the ammo, and 5 out of 5 failed to extract, and I manually had to extract the spent shells in order to fire the next round. The guy at the range had some standarde 12 guage ammo that he let me load up, and all three fired without a glitch. So, I guess the Saiga can be finicky.
But all in all, it was hard to believe I was even firing a shottie. Hardly any felt recoil on the frangible ammo, but I am guessing reduced recoil rounds would be a problem for the weapon. I also wanted to fire the Mossberg, but the range rental they had did not have a pistol grip, which I would definitely prefer. One thing I did not like about it is that after firing the last round, the bolt shuts, and you find yourself either clicking on an empty chamber or yanking the bolt open. It is my understanding that you have to do that in order to insert another magazine, roll the mag in ( maybe you get used to it ) and then yank the bolt again to close it. A tactical reload of it might be more difficult if you've already fired a magazine dry and need that extra shot.
The Mossy had the car adjustable stock, pistol grip, hand insert for the pump, so you can keep a grip on it, a heatshield, bead sight, and 5 round carrier, all for about 150 dollars less. I am guessing that it was a 6 round tube, but I didn't really check. I know it didn't go all the way to the front of the barrel. I looked for a description of this particular weapon on the Mossberg site, but they didn't list it. It may no longer be in production. Does anyone know what model this is or was, and can I look up the specs on it, and the list? I really liked the Mossy, it was lighter, had all the tacticool crap I would want on it, and would be more than adequate for home defense. On the plus side, loading a shell into the ejection port is way faster if you need to get at least one more off.
But I am intrigued by the Saiga. My thing is that by the time I get other mags for it, have it modded the way I'd like it, and add it all up, I could get at least 2 Mossies already built the way I'd like them. The other thing about it that kind of bothers me is that under stress, there's no telling how many rounds I would let go out of it. With the frangible rounds, I almost had to check that I was even actually firing a shot. Simply put, I couldn't feel it.
That kind of freaked me out. If I was in a self defense situation, would I empty a mag without realizing it? Plus, the finish on the weapon is not as nice as that off the Mossie. The Mossies lines are much smoother, and less prone to snag.
So, about 5 bills for the Saiga, or 350 for the Mossie that has the furniture.
Either one would last a lifetime, I'd imagine. Less to go wrong with the Mossie. No additional parts for the Mossie, except maybe a tac light, and a sling. If I had to stake my life on either, I'd have no problems. The only other question is, if I had to use one in a self defense, HD scenario, which one would win the jury's sympathy? A heavily modded russian semi auto, or a good old american pump action?
Have pump actions had problems with feed and cycling? Are they as picky about ammo? How much is enough? Guess I am thinking out loud. Anyway, I can honestly say that I did enjoy shooting the Saiga, but I don't know if I'd want it as my first, and primary HD/SD shotgun. That's the question. I am pretty certain that right out of the box it would work, but the tacticool set with adjustable butt stock wins out for comfort. Wish I could have fired that as well...
Going to take some time to think about both for a while...
Stretch
Quit cigs 1M 5D 18h 16m ago. So far saved $220.56, 1,470 cigs not smoked and counting ...