A few comments on other threads have given me pause, so here it is...
I guess it takes less than one minute of talking with me on the average for a shotgunner to find out I like 870s. As you probably know, I've used them since Mastodons went on the Endangered list, and recommend them for everything from arthritis to quitting smoking.
However,I have used other repeaters, including a Rem 11,a pair of High Standards(Misnomer for shotguns,tho they made superlative target pistols) ,a battered old 97, some excellent Ithaca 37s and so on.There was even a 12 I got to shoot some and it was terrific. Most of these I liked.
And,I had a B&O R/R turnin. A Mossie 500 with 18" bbl, brutalized exterior, that shot like a dream and worked like a Swiss Watch (a collective gasp arises from the audience). I even hunted with it,and for that hunting where a Cylinder bore works well,it worked very well.
But I sold it after a few months, albeit at a substantial profit. Why?
Because even after a few months of handling and shooting,I still had to look for the slide release and safety. Training could overcome that, but this was not the shotgun kept loaded in case the Revolution started without me. So, I sold it to a co worker who didn't mind the above and returned to my 870.Only had one back then.
And here comes the point to all this drivel I'm shoveling. I see folks here mention they're using this one and that one. All good shotguns, but with no common controls. One has the safety over here, the slide release there....
Imagine owning a 590,a 1400 AND an 870. Imagine having to operate any one of them in the dark, 10 seconds out of a deep sleep, in an emergency so dire the warm liquid running down your leg is of small consequence and in a time frame measured in increments of a second. We're talking life and death here.....
Do you really want to have to stop and think just where that slide release dooby is? Or whether the safety is on the tang, on the rear or front of the trigger guard? Or would you rather have well built repsonses built in, making the small stuff easier so you can plan, think, act and react? Oft the winner of a confrontation is not the best armed or strongest, it's the best prepared.
I use 870s for everything, and because I dislike swapping bbls and so on, I have several. But, if I had not been exposed to the 870 at a very young age, I could make do nicely with 500s, 1300s, 37s or whatever, as long as all of them had the same controls and "Chops". But I'm not giving up my 870s.
Perhaps some folks here are less cloddish and able to switch gracefully from one pump to another. If there's no big red S on their chests, there should be.
So, what do I recommend? Find a US made, name brand repeater that fits and that you like well enough to stake your life on it. Buy same, add either a long bbl for clays and hunting or a short bbl for crisis resolution and hunting. When money allows, buy another of same. Repeat as much as you want to. After all, 3 or 4 used pump guns will set you back less than a good quality AR, or a Bolt Action centerfire, or a match tuned GM. Using shotguns are quite cost effective, dollar for dollar.
HTH....
I guess it takes less than one minute of talking with me on the average for a shotgunner to find out I like 870s. As you probably know, I've used them since Mastodons went on the Endangered list, and recommend them for everything from arthritis to quitting smoking.
However,I have used other repeaters, including a Rem 11,a pair of High Standards(Misnomer for shotguns,tho they made superlative target pistols) ,a battered old 97, some excellent Ithaca 37s and so on.There was even a 12 I got to shoot some and it was terrific. Most of these I liked.
And,I had a B&O R/R turnin. A Mossie 500 with 18" bbl, brutalized exterior, that shot like a dream and worked like a Swiss Watch (a collective gasp arises from the audience). I even hunted with it,and for that hunting where a Cylinder bore works well,it worked very well.
But I sold it after a few months, albeit at a substantial profit. Why?
Because even after a few months of handling and shooting,I still had to look for the slide release and safety. Training could overcome that, but this was not the shotgun kept loaded in case the Revolution started without me. So, I sold it to a co worker who didn't mind the above and returned to my 870.Only had one back then.
And here comes the point to all this drivel I'm shoveling. I see folks here mention they're using this one and that one. All good shotguns, but with no common controls. One has the safety over here, the slide release there....
Imagine owning a 590,a 1400 AND an 870. Imagine having to operate any one of them in the dark, 10 seconds out of a deep sleep, in an emergency so dire the warm liquid running down your leg is of small consequence and in a time frame measured in increments of a second. We're talking life and death here.....
Do you really want to have to stop and think just where that slide release dooby is? Or whether the safety is on the tang, on the rear or front of the trigger guard? Or would you rather have well built repsonses built in, making the small stuff easier so you can plan, think, act and react? Oft the winner of a confrontation is not the best armed or strongest, it's the best prepared.
I use 870s for everything, and because I dislike swapping bbls and so on, I have several. But, if I had not been exposed to the 870 at a very young age, I could make do nicely with 500s, 1300s, 37s or whatever, as long as all of them had the same controls and "Chops". But I'm not giving up my 870s.
Perhaps some folks here are less cloddish and able to switch gracefully from one pump to another. If there's no big red S on their chests, there should be.
So, what do I recommend? Find a US made, name brand repeater that fits and that you like well enough to stake your life on it. Buy same, add either a long bbl for clays and hunting or a short bbl for crisis resolution and hunting. When money allows, buy another of same. Repeat as much as you want to. After all, 3 or 4 used pump guns will set you back less than a good quality AR, or a Bolt Action centerfire, or a match tuned GM. Using shotguns are quite cost effective, dollar for dollar.
HTH....
