Choosing an old style police/riot pump shotgun

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crockett85

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Hey everyone:

I'm looking for some feedback from others about which shotgun to buy used/new. I'm getting the itch to add an old school police/riot style pump shotgun to my collection. I've always loved the wood stock and corncob front grips on these. I don't plan to do much in the way of customizing because I want to keep the shotgun old school looking.

Requirements
1) Reliable
2) Good fit and finish
3) Availability of replacement parts
4) Gunsmiths that can work on it if I can't do something myself. I'm mechanically inclined and can fix a lot of things myself, but there is a point where something is beyond my skill level to fix.

Nice to have things but not required
1) 3-Inch Chamber
2) Low-profile rifle sights (but not a rifled barrel) so I can shoot slugs more accurately.

My thoughts on the different riot guns out there (these are only the ones I'm aware of).

Ithaca 37 --> This is my favorite of the riot guns. I love the extended and standard mag versions equally. My only concern is parts availability and gunsmiths that can work on it if I can't fix something on my own.

Remington 870 --> I know the older ones are the cat's whiskers. How good are the newer HD Hardwood and Police Magnums? I'm not worried about parts availability for these. But I want something that is going to work reliably out of the box if I buy new.

Mossberg 500/590/A1 & Retrogrades --> I know this is the obvious choice, but I hear a lot about them being loose out of the box. I'm not worried about parts availability for these.

Winchester 1897/1200/1300/Model 12 --> Heard lots of great things about these shotguns. However, my concerns for parts/servicing is the same as the Ithaca.

High Standards --> I don't know anything about these, other than the fact that their riot shotguns look really nice. Same concerns as the Ithaca and Winchesters.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

So with these things in mind, which one would you go for?

Thanks!
 
For old school riot guns you can't go wrong with the Ithaca 37, my personal favorite. Winchester 1200's/Remington 870's are a good choice. I'm partial to the Mossberg 590A1 as I prefer tang safety and they are a dream to reload.
 
I have em all except for the High Standard, so can’t speak on that one.

My 870’s and Winchester 1200/1300 Defenders get the most use, by far. You can’t go wrong with either.

If you want something new, it’s obviously gotta be the 870P. Don’t bother with the SXP.

When it comes to fixing on your own gun, if you are talking worst cast scenario, the Winchester 1200/1300s doesn’t require any special tools to replace key components like ejector and shell latches. The 870 requires a special tool for both.

There are still plenty of parts available for the 1200/1300 so don’t shy away from them just because of that. Smoothest action I have is a late 60’s Winchester 1200 Trench Gun. Like glass.

My advice: go out and buy which ever you think looks the coolest. Shoot it, and if you don’t like it, sell it and move on to the next. That’s what the EE is for 😂.

If you ever make your way to Prince George, I’d be happy to let you test drive a few 😎.
 
crockett85 said:
Hey everyone:

I'm looking for some feedback from others about which shotgun to buy used/new. I'm getting the itch to add an old school police/riot style pump shotgun to my collection. I've always loved the wood stock and corncob front grips on these. I don't plan to do much in the way of customizing because I want to keep the shotgun old school looking.

Requirements
1) Reliable
2) Good fit and finish
3) Availability of replacement parts
4) Gunsmiths that can work on it if I can't do something myself. I'm mechanically inclined and can fix a lot of things myself, but there is a point where something is beyond my skill level to fix.

Nice to have things but not required
1) 3-Inch Chamber
2) Low-profile rifle sights (but not a rifled barrel) so I can shoot slugs more accurately.

My thoughts on the different riot guns out there (these are only the ones I'm aware of).

Ithaca 37 --> This is my favorite of the riot guns. I love the extended and standard mag versions equally. My only concern is parts availability and gunsmiths that can work on it if I can't fix something on my own.

Remington 870 --> I know the older ones are the cat's whiskers. How good are the newer HD Hardwood and Police Magnums? I'm not worried about parts availability for these. But I want something that is going to work reliably out of the box if I buy new.

Mossberg 500/590/A1 & Retrogrades --> I know this is the obvious choice, but I hear a lot about them being loose out of the box. I'm not worried about parts availability for these.

Winchester 1897/1200/1300/Model 12 --> Heard lots of great things about these shotguns. However, my concerns for parts/servicing is the same as the Ithaca.

High Standards --> I don't know anything about these, other than the fact that their riot shotguns look really nice. Same concerns as the Ithaca and Winchesters.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

So with these things in mind, which one would you go for?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
The 590A1 is a trench gun. Kinda like a Police/Riot gun...but different.
 
I have multiple 1897s and so does my cousin, in all versions. Super cheap for parts still, even from trade shows or even buying a full gun from an auction. You can order pretty well any part from Numrich gunparts, and all pretty well ship to canada, atleast i havent had any issues yet.
 
Personally I wouldn’t be too hung up on getting a 3” chambered gun. The vast majority of loads run through them are going to be 2 3/4” anyway. Yes the versatility is nice but it’s not a deal breaker. ymmv

I am a die hard 870 user myself. I would lean toward the Ithaca as a second choice.
 
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I have several 1300s that are as old as 35 years and they all work well and have great finishes. All have good actions but one is the smoothest shotgun I have ever used. Solid build, thick barrels, some are threaded, you can't go wrong with these. Some came with some half decent wood as well, may have been the Ranger?

One caveat is their used price has gone up but I suppose so has everything.
 
I'm a Mossberg/Ithaca 37 guy .
But for classic looks , Remington 870.

For the smoothest action, Ithaca 37 , it's like glass .
The Ithaca will also cycle mini shells.
And there's a trick were you can load a round stright into the chamber with practice ,be careful, especially if it can slam fire , you don't want a ND.

The Winchester 1200/1300 has a recoil assisted slide , which is cool , speeds thing up a little.

And my personal favorite, the Mossberg 590 14inch barrel with wood.

20250609_124322.jpg
 
Out of the pumps listed I would take em in this order.
1 the 1897
2 model 12
3 Remington 870

I don't get the whole trench gun,riot home defense idea of shotguns. In cowboy action even a cheap double barrel will hold up better than pump. Some cowboy action guys think the song called the wreck of the old 97 was about Winchester shotguns.
Up close a shotgun is just a rifle but no faster than a 73 Winchester. A shotgun has no range either or the magazine capacity of a 73 Winchester. Shotgun has to be in the sweet zone but I still would take a 73 Winchester over a shotgun.
The 1897 is a really nice shotgun and the 12 is top gun but no hammer. I like hammers. 870 is a cheaper to make than Winchester. Mossberg 500 has aluminum receiver. I never had a m37.
The troubles with 97 Winchester and cowboy action is just the high volume of shots a cowboy action guy is shooting in a season. Doubles just hold up better.
I hunted with a 97 for years and loved it. But I was only shooting game with it instead of targets. So just shooting small game I never wore it out.
 
My vote would go to the Remington 870 as well. You have more options …. 14” barrel, 18”, 20” … rifle sights, ghost rings, bead sight … parkerized, polished blued, matt blued or nickel plated … laminated wood stock, plain police walnut stock or bowling pin finish walnut stocks with nice checkering …. Etc.

Not sure if these two from my safe qualify as a riot pumps … but they definitely have a “classic" look …. Both have smoothbore barrels with screw in Remchokes ....


Rem870_Police_GhostRing_MonteCarlo_2021_lowres.jpg




Rem870_Wingmaster_RifleSights_MonteCarlo_2024_lowres.jpg
 
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21” is a little longer barrel on this one than is typical for the current subject but it’s still pretty handy. It normally wears a +3 tube extension that I took off for the hunt. 8+1 rounds is potent.

Ps: forgive the mismatched stocks, the original got broken so I just bolted on a spare I had.
 
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