I need help choosing a shotgun.

[96XJclassic]

The title says it all. It will be for home defense and zombie slaughtering. I would like to see what you have and some recommendations. Any help would be great. Also prices would be nice. Thanks in advance. Mark

[Muppet Master]

You could probably find all the info you need in the "Firearms" section. This section is for weapons that are not guns.

[Kutter_0311]

Look in "Firearms" then "Longarms - Shotguns and Rifles" as a shotgun is both a firearm and a longarm.

[Jeriah]

Start by reading this: viewtopic.php?f=109&t=75701

If you still need a shotgun, and haven't been won over to a carbine (a better weapon, in most ways, if you can afford one and they are legal where you live), consider a Mossberg 500 or 590 series, or a Remington 870, as your starting point for consideration. They're the baseline. I own both and have no preference. Mossberg safety position is a little more convenient for quick access, and the 590 can take a bayonet. But any one of the three would be a solid start.

If you want a semi-auto instead, I'd look at the Saiga-12. Tube-fed guns like Benellis made sense until this economical, magazine-fed option came on the market. Can take some work to get it working how you want it ("vodka special" gas port issues), and you need to convert it from sporting to grown-up configuration, but once this is done, I frankly don't see any other shotgun as a viable competition for the S12 in terms of firepower. (You can't just go buy an AAI-12 or H&K CAWS, so they don't count.)

[We'reWolf]

Winchester > Mossberg> Remington in terms of pump action shot gun, imo. People who have Remington shotguns should look into http://rockcenter.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2 ... discharges

Do I think Remington is responsible for their weapon going off with safety? No it took someone to chamber a round and leave a loaded gun some where. Will I buy a R700 or shotgun idk

[Winston Smith]

Do I think Remington is responsible for their weapon going off with safety? No it took someone to chamber a round and leave a loaded gun some where. Will I buy a R700 or shotgun idk

I have an 870 and an 870 clone, and looking at it that is definitely a design flaw, and if not forced, they aren't going to address it because that would require a recall on 50 some odd years of their guns. Still, if you're not storing loaded, keeping the gun pointed in a safe direction until you're ready to shoot, and generally treating your weapon with the respect it deserves(i.e. not leaving it somewhere it can fall over) these should be embarrassing and not deadly incidents. Despite this and the Mossberg having a tang safety, the 870 has some good features. You can pop a slug in an 870 quickly with the tube loaded without losing a shell. Not so much with the 500.

[Jeriah]

Do I think Remington is responsible for their weapon going off with safety? No it took someone to chamber a round and leave a loaded gun some where. Will I buy a R700 or shotgun idk

I have an 870 and an 870 clone, and looking at it that is definitely a design flaw, and if not forced, they aren't going to address it because that would require a recall on 50 some odd years of their guns. Still, if you're not storing loaded, keeping the gun pointed in a safe direction until you're ready to shoot, and generally treating your weapon with the respect it deserves(i.e. not leaving it somewhere it can fall over) these should be embarrassing and not deadly incidents. Despite this and the Mossberg having a tang safety, the 870 has some good features. You can pop a slug in an 870 quickly with the tube loaded without losing a shell. Not so much with the 500.

I just watched that documentary, on Netflix, I think it was Frontline, about the safety problems with the Remington 700. I had no idea there were similar issues with the 870. Franky gives me some serious misgivings about running something like a tactical shotgun course (or using it for serious use), since a lot of those roles involve leaving a loaded weapon hanging on safe and doing things that could cause them to get bumped.

[bluedog2]

Model 1897 Winchester or one of the Chinese clones. Solid, fast and proven as a trench broom in WWI

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winchester_Model_1897

(And the happy ability to put on a 17 inch long bayonet so you can find things in the dark.)

[Turtlewolf]

Winchester > Mossberg> Remington in terms of pump action shot gun, imo. People who have Remington shotguns should look into http://rockcenter.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2 ... discharges

Do I think Remington is responsible for their weapon going off with safety? No it took someone to chamber a round and leave a loaded gun some where. Will I buy a R700 or shotgun idk

I honestly thought this BS was delt with long ago?
I've used Remington 870's most of my life and not once ever had an issue with this supposed design flaw.
I know more than a few gunsmiths who are very competant who have no idea what these idiots are talking about as they can't or haven't seen any issues with the design.
I know a lot of people who own 700's both old and new who have not ever had any issues and who can not replicate this supposed flaw without dammaging thier trigger mechanism intentionaly to cause it to happen.
This only happens when someone has messed around with the trigger/safety mechanism and have no idea what they are doing.
As far as shotguns go Remington then Mossberg, Winchester hasn't realy made a good shotgun since the Model 12 but I think thats personal bias speaking.
Oh and I also recall back in the 80's some idiot claimed his 870 went off when he dropped it on the floor butt first with one in the chamber so two seperate organizations (RCMP and another can't recall who) took that specific shotgun and attempted to recreate the "accident" only to discover that the fellow was full of crap and the firearm would not discharge even with the safety off and hammered butt first on cement.

[We'reWolf]

I honestly thought this BS was delt with long ago?
I've used Remington 870's most of my life and not once ever had an issue with this supposed design flaw.
I know more than a few gunsmiths who are very competant who have no idea what these idiots are talking about as they can't or haven't seen any issues with the design.
I know a lot of people who own 700's both old and new who have not ever had any issues and who can not replicate this supposed flaw without dammaging thier trigger mechanism intentionaly to cause it to happen.
This only happens when someone has messed around with the trigger/safety mechanism and have no idea what they are doing.
As far as shotguns go Remington then Mossberg, Winchester hasn't realy made a good shotgun since the Model 12 but I think thats personal bias speaking.
Oh and I also recall back in the 80's some idiot claimed his 870 went off when he dropped it on the floor butt first with one in the chamber so two seperate organizations (RCMP and another can't recall who) took that specific shotgun and attempted to recreate the "accident" only to discover that the fellow was full of crap and the firearm would not discharge even with the safety off and hammered butt first on cement.

I am just making sure that the guy who is looking to buy something knows and let him make the choice. Now the R700 and 870 are both good guns and if you look at how many are sold and how many "accidents or malfunctions" that are recorder is not very much. What is discerning is that when someone chambered a round and pulled the trigger it didn't fire until someone touched the bolt( in a r700 instance), to me which unacceptable.
In all honesty my Winchester 1300 defender is not much different than a friends Mossberg Defender. What i like about the Winchester is the tube)where you load shells) has a covering and with the Mossberg it is open ( now i don't know much about shotgun and that could change between options or something) but i think in general if you get any "defender" type shotgun they will be similar. the action in my Winchester vs Mossberg is smoother hands down and the other person agrees with me, but his tube holds one more than mine i think i got 8 and he has 9.
Now if your going to make it tacticool there is a lot of stuff for mossberg and remington, but there is still some for winchester( i can try a take a pic and show you mine )
and now if i was looking to buy a new shotgun a Winchester SXP seems nice but probably pricey.

[Chirpy]

Mossberg 930spx has my attention at the moment.

[Jamie]

Moved to a more appropriate forum...

FWIW, I have an 870 and love it! I also have a Stoegger Coach Gun, a double-barreled, and love it! I also have a single barrel break-action shotgun cheapie from a gunshow, and love it! I also have a springfield M6, which has a 22lr on top, and a .410 shotgun on bottom, and I love it!

My recommendations would be in the order that I mentioned the guns above: 870, Stoegger, gunshow, M6...they're all great guns for different reasons and applications.

Jamie

[Turtlewolf]

I am just making sure that the guy who is looking to buy something knows and let him make the choice. Now the R700 and 870 are both good guns and if you look at how many are sold and how many "accidents or malfunctions" that are recorder is not very much. What is discerning is that when someone chambered a round and pulled the trigger it didn't fire until someone touched the bolt( in a r700 instance), to me which unacceptable.
In all honesty my Winchester 1300 defender is not much different than a friends Mossberg Defender. What i like about the Winchester is the tube)where you load shells) has a covering and with the Mossberg it is open ( now i don't know much about shotgun and that could change between options or something) but i think in general if you get any "defender" type shotgun they will be similar. the action in my Winchester vs Mossberg is smoother hands down and the other person agrees with me, but his tube holds one more than mine i think i got 8 and he has 9.
Now if your going to make it tacticool there is a lot of stuff for mossberg and remington, but there is still some for winchester( i can try a take a pic and show you mine )
and now if i was looking to buy a new shotgun a Winchester SXP seems nice but probably pricey.

Fair enough, but I made sure to point out that it was just personal preference for me about not wanting a modern Winchester right? As for the M700 going off like that it is not a design flaw, it is a tampering flaw where someone attempts to modify the seer engagement on a factory M700 (older style, not new adjustable) beyond the acceptable factory parameters.
The trigger was designed to be a sealed, non adjustable unit and all of the malfunctions I've seen or heard of so far were because of idiot tampering or willfull dammage either from ignorance or greed for lawsuit money.
cheers

[We'reWolf]

I am just making sure that the guy who is looking to buy something knows and let him make the choice. Now the R700 and 870 are both good guns and if you look at how many are sold and how many "accidents or malfunctions" that are recorder is not very much. What is discerning is that when someone chambered a round and pulled the trigger it didn't fire until someone touched the bolt( in a r700 instance), to me which unacceptable.
In all honesty my Winchester 1300 defender is not much different than a friends Mossberg Defender. What i like about the Winchester is the tube)where you load shells) has a covering and with the Mossberg it is open ( now i don't know much about shotgun and that could change between options or something) but i think in general if you get any "defender" type shotgun they will be similar. the action in my Winchester vs Mossberg is smoother hands down and the other person agrees with me, but his tube holds one more than mine i think i got 8 and he has 9.
Now if your going to make it tacticool there is a lot of stuff for mossberg and remington, but there is still some for winchester( i can try a take a pic and show you mine )
and now if i was looking to buy a new shotgun a Winchester SXP seems nice but probably pricey.

Fair enough, but I made sure to point out that it was just personal preference for me about not wanting a modern Winchester right? As for the M700 going off like that it is not a design flaw, it is a tampering flaw where someone attempts to modify the seer engagement on a factory M700 (older style, not new adjustable) beyond the acceptable factory parameters.
The trigger was designed to be a sealed, non adjustable unit and all of the malfunctions I've seen or heard of so far were because of idiot tampering or willfull dammage either from ignorance or greed for lawsuit money.
cheers

in the link i posted there is a video by either military or police group that document the r700 discharge issue, and i am assuming they are not modifying the rifle and assuming the rifle is clean in working order. ( again assumptions) . oh yah i understand its your preference lol a lot of people over look the winchester 1300 defender from some reason, just from what i noticed.
but im glad you like your remington's i have nothing against them lol

[Turtlewolf]

The people in that link have zero credibility, there is no proof that they or someone else did not tamper with said firearm simply to get the results they wanted to get.
In todays sue society I'm not surprised every parasite around is trying to get thier hand in the free money cooky jar.
Remington's QC has suffered badly recently but it seems to be recovering but the truth of the matter is there is no design flaw in the M700 or 870 and no discharges that are not directly linked to neglect or idiocy.

[dukman]

If you are on a budget and trying to get in cheap, you can get a brand new Mossberg "Maverick" 88 for under $200 new. A step up would be the Mossberg 500 or the base model Remington 870. Any of these are good all around sub $300 shotties, a basic Home Defense "HD" version (18.5"-20" barrel) isn't too much more, unless you get the higher capacity 870 (around $450). The base model 590 runs about $400 depending on where you buy it.
(these prices will vary depending on where you buy them)

Are you only planning on self defense? If so, I would just get a HD version. I personally went with the base 590 because of the higher capacity (8+1 vs 5+1 of base 500s and 870s) and lower price than a comparable 870. If you plan on using it for game, I would stay away from the 590 tho as there are no long barrels for it. With the 500 and 870 series you can get long barrels, smooth bore or rifled, and different chokes - making it better for getting the game you are after. Some people really diss on the Maverick 88, but I have heard from other people that really like theirs. I guess it all depends on how much action it is going to see.

If you wanted to try hunting with them before it became a necessity, check with your local & state laws. Some don't allow hunting at all with shotguns, others might only allow a chamber that holds 5 rounds, others may even then require you to have a plug limiting capacity to 3 rounds.

[Identity Thief]

The Saiga 12 Gauge Shotgun is an excellent weapon, with a good price an unlimited potential for customization.

HOWEVER - if you want to increase reliability - Always get a pump.

[Winston Smith]

In some AWB states like mine, pumps have less restrictions than semi autos too. Something to think about.


Misspellings courtesy of iPhone, so sue me. Go ahead, take away my birthday!

[96XJclassic]

Wow, holy crap guys. First thanks for all the awesome info and links. Second, sorry for posting in the wrong area. It looks like I've got some homework to do. When I finally buy I will keep you guys posted. Of course I will also post pics.