Please Recommend Better Product (Help a Newbie make a decision)

[Newbie2019]

Hi All,

I will be buying my first firearm soon. I want to buy a shotgun. I have decided to buy one with Combo Barrels 28″ and 18.5″.

Right now I am considering below 2 options.

1. Mossberg Maverick 88 Pump Shotgun Combo 12 Ga 28″/18.5″ (Cost $289.99) Link below
https://www.gotenda.com/shop/firearm...rel-3-chamber/

2. Mossberg 500A Combo 3'' 12-Gauge Pump Shotgun (Cost $431.99) Link below
https://www.cabelas.ca/product/12290...e-pump-shotgun

My knowledge about firearms is very limited. I request all the experienced members of this forum to please recommend the better product of the two.

Thanks

[Rory McCanuck]

A Maverick 88 is basically a Mossberg 500 built with every cost-cutting shortcut they could imagine.
I've used a couple of the Mossbergs and have been very impressed, smooth functioning and about as reliable as a rock.

In fairness, I haven't used a Maverick, but I have held one a couple times and have not been real impressed. It was just rough and felt cheap. The stock was thin, loud, and so light the balance was terrible.

I think it was Flying High that had a Maverick, ran tens of thousands of rounds through it, beat the snot out of it and couldn't get it to stop working.

If the little bit extra money isn't a terrible hardship, I would heartily suggest the Mossberg, although I would prefer a wooden stock. It's better looking, warmer, quieter, and the extra weight will balance better and soak up the recoil better. I've found plastic stocks seem to amplify recoil a bit.

[Dewey Cox]

My maverick is still running strong and I have absolutely nothing bad to say about it.
But I prefer my Remington 870's.

[Justice]

Yep. Those are the same thing. The Maverick is a lower end M500, but only in the fit and finish. Stuff like barrels are exactly the same and interchangeable. The 88 has a 3" chamber too.
Academy Sports wants $219.99 for the Maverick Combo. Gotenda says they don't have any in stock.
https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/mos...action-shotgun

[linung]

I want one of these
BrowningTurkey.jpg

[Codyg14]

Buy an 870 is my opinion, barrels/parts are dirt cheap. They have to be the easiest shotgun to take apart, and they are reliable.

I went through and bought all the major guns when I was looking for what worked. 870 was for me, if you can shoulder one or two.at a friend's or a store I suggest that, otherwise buy used just incase you don't like what you buy

[RangeBob]

I want one of these
BrowningTurkey.jpg

That's a turkey. (here)

[Mark-II]

I have a 590A1, which is in the same family.

It's a bit more fiddly to strip the receiver than an 870 is but, really, how often does that need to be done - between seldom and never, depending how much filth you drag it through.

Out of the box it would not feed from the tube. Google showed me how the shell stop needed to be bent just a touch for the action bar to pass on the correct side of it (only mentioned because google also says this is the most common fault with the guns).

It's quite smooth now, and one thing I really like is the shell lifter stays out of the way, making the tube nicer to load than most other shotguns.

Nothing wrong with the 88 - I've shot a friends. It's very much a budget model, but if you're new to the game it's fine to start with and get an idea of what you want. Maybe it will be all that you want.

The short security barrels are a lot of fun for clays, within the limits of their range. I had my 590 (cylinder bore riot gun) threaded for chokes so that I can shoot it at trap


By the way, if you shop at Cabelas, do their retail survey and save an extra $20. By the trouble that the cashiers always have in applying those coupons I feel like I'm the only one in the city that does this...


One final thing is fit. For a shotgun, ideally, you should be able to close your eyes, mount it, open them, and be looking straight down the receiver at the bead.

For buying your first gun on a budget, close is good enough - you might not find perfect. The point is that if you have to struggle in any way to get your eye lined up on the gun, look at something else.

My dad has had a really hard time with shotgun fit.

For myself, just about any generic field gun works well enough to not be a problem, so long as I line it up.

Other guns to consider, if Mossberg doesn't fit well, is the Remington 870 and Winchester SXP. There are also other myriad imports in the budget range, but I've not laid hands on them

[lone-wolf]

I'm heavily considering a 590 after using a friend's 590 in a little shotgun match we did the other month.

[Mark-II]

I have the military model, I think they call it. Heavy barrel, metal trigger group, bayonet lug. 21 or 22”...

I put on the heat shield and a 1907 pattern sling. Those added noticeably to the weight but it doesn’t hurt my swing.

It’s one of my favourite shotguns.

All I want now is a set of wood from their Retro line.

I’d buy a retro just to get it, but no “retro” shotgun should have a ghost ring sight...