Thinking of making 1st gun purchase.

Meh, get the Remington 870 or the Mossberg 500, take care of them and you'll be passing them along to your kids and grandkids one day. Get some cheap knock off that you can't get parts for in 5 years, good luck... You get what you pay for, the 870 and 500 are good deals for the money, I wouldn't bother with the cheap knock offs.

 

^This. I bought mine at Walmart for 190 out the door. The only Chinese thing I'm proud to own. Alot of parts are interchangeable with the 870 since the NEF is such a good knock off.

I thought the same thing but after I got a look at one, then had the chance to shoot it my opinion changed. Very solid and well built. For home defense it will more than get the done. Remington and H&R are also owned by the same company thus the blatant copying. So really your just buying a spartan 870.

http://www.hr1871.com/Firearms/Shotguns/pardnerpump.asp

 

There is not a difference in the spread of a 12 vs 20, that's dictated by the choke(the end of the barrel that allows the pellets to spread when they leave the barrel).
The difference is the number of pellets in the pattern.
I shoot pheasants wth 20ga 3" magnum loads and they carry 1 1/4 ounces of shot, the same as Remington Express Long Rang 12ga shells, which I thought were heavy when I used them.
No difference, except over a pound of weight of the gun, which makes a big difference in the field.

 

they are a mirror image of the 870....there is only like 1 or 2 parts that dont interchange iirc...and i believe Remington owns H&R now

 

Thanks for all the responses everyone!!!!

Most importantly, I'm not rushing into this one. Take my time, learn, gather info/opinions and make a purchase when the time (and money) is right.

Just BS'd for minute with a co-worker who has 10+ guns and his CCW. His biggest advice was to hold off, save a little more and buy new. Said he had never had a "used" gun that he liked.

I saw some comments on the .12 vs .20 and my co-worker metioned that even a .20 would be good for home type stuff. I'm stout in the shoulder area, so I'm not to concered about kickback. Don't know if I could get the wife to shoot it, I would try like hell to at least get her familiar with it. I think she would warm up over time.

I get the feeling that it's not necessarily what kind of gun of you have (quality product/name helps) but maybe a little more how it's used and ammo type used.

I'm in a major city so there are plenty of retail type stores that were mentioned earlier. There is...Dicks, Sports Authority, Gander Mtn, Cabela's.

Def. going to go to a store, sounds like good gun comfort is important. Gun is not to bulky, or to heavy. Can't do that stuff online.

 

im a tried and true mossberg 500 lover however the remington 870 is equally good gun...
for self defense/home protection you will want 00 buckshot for ammo...any brand will do

 

I'll have to get out and look around some of the SG stores on one of my next days off. There is a range close to the house that I think may be a good spot to hit up too.

Now to see what other tomfoolery TW is up to...

 

these are good guns for the money, they have a protecter model at the bottom of the page.
these are basically remington 870's, the company is owned by remington, and all parts except the barrels are interchangeable between this and the 870.

if you have a academy sports around they have these on sale for 150 (?).

http://www.hr1871.com/Firearms/Shotguns/pardnerpump.asp

EDIT: somebody beat me to it.

 

^ Looks pretty nice. No Academy Sports close to here but I'll take that name down!!!

 

thy sell H&R at walmarts...

 

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I'm surprised it took you this long to show up!

 

I prefer the Mossberg 500 to the Remington 870 because of the Mossberg's safety location. They are both well made & reliable shotguns. Both can be found on sale, most of the time, at larger sporting good stores and both can be had with an extra 18" barrel for home defense use. You won't go wrong with either.

 

I agree with the saftey location on the Mossberg it's very conveinent. I've got the $200 base model wood stock 28" barrel 500. Ducks, geese, doves, deer, skeet, squirrel you name it, never let me down in the 7yrs i've had it. It's kept up with the $1000 benelli's just fine.

 

Great gun and 179.00

 

870 Tactical Express, it was my first shotgun. I quickly moved on though, I would probably grab my Colt LE6920 these days.

Since you live in a Condo, shotguns have a high degree of hitting others. Keep it to defensive rounds and you should be ok. best bang for price though! Excellent home defense weapon if not the best.


Remington 870 and TRP Operator Springfield by Shaun.Images ©, on Flickr

 

i believe people like it until they put a pistol grip/folding stock etc on the 500 then its kind of awkward to use

 

Never thought of it like that.

 

Right. Sorry, got my wording mixed up.
So what's you experience between the two?
Which do you prefer?

 

Not so big on the pistol grip shotguns. Not my style. Looks kinda silly I think, sorry if that offends.

Pro's/Con's of a pistol grip I'll more than listen to though.