mossberg 500 vs. 590(A1) vs. rem 870

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sAdam

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lookin at options for my first tactically shotgun.
want full length 8 or 9 shot capacity. full stock.
90% going for the mossberg 500 - cheep like the budgie
however, i dont like the looks of the plastic trigger group. any issues there?
the 590A1 has all metal construction (and the bayonet is undeniably BA), but is it worth the extra $300 or so?
don't know much about the remmington other than i guess the 870 express is comparable to the moss 500 and the 870 police is comparable to the 590A1.
at least it seems that way in terms of price.

wadda ya think?
 
Welcome to CGN.
Both the Remington 870 and the Mossberg 590 are good choices. Both have a host of after market products to keep you happy.
What it really comes down to is what you want.

Personally, I went with the 590. After my 870 craped out several times, I decided to go with the Mossberg.
I have have zero problems with the 590 over the years. Though, the gun is pretty heavy - when compared to the 870 police. If you're planning to mod these guns out, the 870 wins. Based on the saftey selector. If you're going to keep the "speed feed" stock, the 590 wins. When loading shells into the 870 sometimes it pinches your finger, the 590 does not have that problem.
Overall the fit an finish of the 870 is better then the 590. 870's for me stopped being great after they stopped making the older style Wingmasters.
Many of the newer 870's have trouble with cheap Walmart shells.
 
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Welcome to CGN!!

There are LOTS of opinions on this topic! chances are you will be happy with either an 870 or a 590. Both are solid designs and you likely cant go wrong.

Depends what you are going to do with it, but since this is in the tacticool shotgun forum, i will assume it will be for that purpose...

First of all, (in my very humble opinion) avoid the 870 express shotguns, i have one, i am not terribly impressed with the fit and finish, it seems to be a bit of a rust magnet too... at least far moreso than my other firearms...regardless of all that the 870 express tactical is priced well and they seem to be widely available...

I also must admit i have never laid my hands on an 870police, i definitely wish i had held off buying an 870 until an 870p came along. By all indications they are fantastic...

One thing to bare in mind is that the 590/590A1 are cylinder bore, so you can't put in a choke in it for clays or waterfowl or whatever... but really go get a proper gun for that anyhow...

I personally believe that the slide release is in a better location on the mossberg. The location of the safety is somewhat debated... on the mossberg you can see the safety without turning the gun, but the 870 is accessible without moving your finger away from the trigger guard... i like the mossberg safety better but i'm not sure it would work well with a pistol grip, should you go that route. Metal trigger group... i dunno... its good thing but is it necessary? probably not. I would submit it is certainly preferable to plastic...

Consider the 590 with the ghost ring sights... I am pretty sure that a 590A1 with ghost ring sights is cheaper than a 870Police but someone might be able to contradict that. Personally i am a big fan of the 590A1 SPX and i would encourage you to check it out, the LPA ghost ring sights are seriously amazing!... it is a heavy gun and has a long (for me) length of pull, so keep that in mind. But they are exceptionally overbuilt, like a tank. If you can spend the extra cash... why the hell not, it is the kind of gun you can expect to have for "the duration" ;)

Good luck with your purchase!

PS also, if you can find one, check out the Remington 870XCS
 
Unless you were getting the uncommon 8 shot Mossberg 500, you would be better off with the 590 if you want extended capacity.

The Mossberg 500 uses a bolt to retain the barrel assembly to the shell tube, whereas the 590 uses a nut akin to the 870. That means that the 500 is most likely limited to 5 shells (2-3/4"). Now that being said, I love my Mossberg 500 and use it in multiguns because it was cheap and reliable.

The main flaw in the Mossberg 500 is the plastic trigger housing (Not the trigger as mentioned). The housing has a pair of tabs and a hole for mounting into the reciever. The most common failure is that the tabs shear/break and then the trigger housing is no longer reliable (Say 90%+ failure rate if not higher) as the whole housing can pivot and everything internal becomes mis-aligned.

Normal usage of the firearm will RARELY result in damage to the trigger housing. However, harder impact against the trigger housing (trigger guard) may cause the housing to fail as mentioned. There are some aftermarket fixes, and in gneneral, none of them work for any real length of time (There may be some exceptions).

The 590 has a trigger housing made of metal. However, it is still a cheap casting with the same possible failures, but it is much stronger at the tabs.

The new safety tabs/switches are now plastic compared to the older ones which were metal.

And there are size/tolerance differences between various generations of Mossy 500 for the trigger group that make swapping out a 590 group into a 500 a hit and miss operation.

Just an FYI.
 
I've had a 500 for years now and I have run easily over a thousand rounds threw it without a single hiccup! I've been pretty hard on it and have never had any problems with the trigger housing. I do have the 8 shot model so I have plenty of ammo on tap. I choose the mossberg over the 870 in part due to the safety location. I'm a lefty and the top tang safety really works for me better than the cross bolt safety. I could see there being a problem reaching the 500/590 safety if you put a pistol grip on it but I have never gone that route with mine.
I found the LOP on the 870 too long for me. I'm 5'9" and the mossberg fits me just right.
On another note I just bought a mossberg 930 and I still refuse to part with my 500! It will be a keeper for ever!
Hope this helps.

Eric

Oh yeah...shameless sales pitch, if you want to go the 870 route I got a older metal trigger guard 870 Wingmaster with a couple different barrels and AR type stock that we could deal on. It is the perfect platform for a tactical build IF you choose to go the 870 route.
 
I had looked at a Mossberg 500 Persuader many, many times and thought I had finally settled on it when I went about planning out my first "tactical" shotgun. I had all the accessories I wanted to throw on it planned out, I had all the dealers webpages bookmarked. I had come to terms with what little bad things I had heard about the 500. I had decided to order the base 500 Persuader form Cabela's as I had a few friends looking at getting some things from there as well, and could therefore arrange a group order. It was all set to be ordered about halfway through the week.

Then I went into my local gun shop the Sunday before. An old 870 Wingmaster leaned in the corner and I didn't pay it much thought. Until the clerk asked me if I was looking for anything in particular. When I asked him what he had that was interesting, he simply said: "Remington 870, it's listed at 89 bucks". I offered him 80 and we did the paperwork. I've never looked back on that.

Keep in mind, I was looking for a shotgun to "build up". So the 28" vent rib barrel got sliced down to a touch > than 20", a set of fiber optic rifle-type sights [for now] got put on it, and ATI forend was installed last night, and I've got a magazine extension and an ATI Pistol-Grip fixed stock on the way for it. I'm still looking at sling and side saddle options, but I'm not sorry at all I went with the 870. According to Remington, by serial number, it's dated at 1970, so I'm pretty sure I got a good, old, reliable workhorse.

A friend of mine got a Mossberg 500 in the 2 barrel combo, with the 18.5" "security" barrel, and I've got to say: It's just not the same as the 870. It's feels hollow, and the action seems sloppy. maybe I'm nitpicking as the 500 isn't a bad gun at all, and now I'm kind of attached to my 870.
 
I had a Mossy 590 Persuader w/8 rd mag many years ago.

Now I have a 18.5 inch Maverick 88 with 5 rd magazine and plastic trigger group. Haven't shot it yet but it doesn't feel like the inexpensive shottie that it is. I hope it lives up to the excellent reviews.

BTW, many thanks to Ed at Moving Target for the outstanding deal and lightning shipping on this Maverick.
 
I have to chime in here, I personally would go with an 870. Way more in after market parts available, extremely reliable unlike the one and last mossberg I have owned. I had my first 870 express for 5 years and it still runs like a top. There where also some complaints about the new 870 express's quality so I decided to buy one myself... started with a 28" barrel field gun and now it has a 12.5" barrel, knoxx stock, messa side saddle, police forend, police trigger group, jumbo saftey and s and j mag follower. I have but this new 870 through absolute hell and have not had a single problem with it.

870 all the way IMO
 
I will go for the 590a1 myself. The thing about the 870 express and 590 special purpose got plastic on it. Why get plastic parts when 590A1 aren't even too expensive? The thicker barrel means that a person can ding it. Also the nine shots capacity aren't something to hate either.

Also the shell lifter on the 870 is of a very bad design to me. The lifter will always be in the way for reloading. The shell "elevator" (Mossberg term) will cam out of the way when the shotgun is in battery. This mean the shell lifter will be out of the way for reloading.

Plus the 870 extractor aren't as good as the Mossberg 500 series(500, 590, 590A1) to me. The double extractors on the 500 series is of a very good design.

Finally the safety and bolt release placement are superior on the 500 series over the 870 series. The Mossberg safety and bolt release location is very practical to me. For example I can assess those 2 functions on the shotgun without moving my trigger finger of the trigger or the trigger guard. With the 870 a person cannot do what the 500 series can do.

To me the Mossberg pump is a more well thought out shotgun then the 870 shotgun.

I hope that you will be able to find your perfect shotgun. :)
 
There's no getting around it, a fully loaded 20" 590 is heavy, and the more stuff you hang on it (sling, side saddle, flashlight, ventilated hand guard, etc) the heavier it gets. If I were to do it again I would opt for the 18" version with a shorter magazine. The advantages of long magazines are overstated in my opinion, and since the gun will eventually need to be reloaded anyway, you might as well concentrate on reloading drills that make the process as seamless as possible, rather than pinning your hopes on a long magazine tube that makes the gun slower to bring into action.

Of the 3 guns; the 870, the 500, and the 590, the 500 would be my last choice due to the closed magazine which is difficult to clean. Some 500s have a tube that easily unscrews from the receiver, others will dent or bend before they move. If there are more after market goodies for the 870, the gap is closing, and while mostly anything that can be had for an 870 can also be had for a 500/590, the 870 has a real advantage when it comes to after market barrels.
 
I'm sure the others are good, but I will say my 500 Persuader with a hogue rubberized pump just keeps going and going and going. Has the 8-shot mag, I like the safety position better than 870 (safety off and dead bunnys in mid sprint no prob), prints at point of aim, cycles everything, etc. I trust it.
 
Jarlath said:
The main flaw in the Mossberg 500 is the plastic trigger housing (Not the trigger as mentioned). The housing has a pair of tabs and a hole for mounting into the reciever. The most common failure is that the tabs shear/break and then the trigger housing is no longer reliable (Say 90%+ failure rate if not higher) as the whole housing can pivot and everything internal becomes mis-aligned.
Click to expand...
That's what happened to mine. Aggressive racking puts pressure on the tabs, which eventually shear. Should be fine in "normal" use, but not for multi-gun.
 
This topic has been beaten to death several times.

Both are great shotguns and will serve you well. the only factor is which one you prefer.
 
It is important to compare apples to apples - a Remington 870P can be fairly compared to a Mossberg 590A1. IMO the Mossberg comes out the winner by a hair if you can tolerate the downside of it being a tad heavier ( I have carried my 590A1 a lot and trust me the heavier barrell is something you wish you didn't have as the miles pile up ! ) than the 870P. Both are excellent shotguns and should serve you well.
 
I had a 590A1 SPX that I sold because the porting puts you in Open for multigun matches. There is a definite advantage to having 8+1 for many stages. Ended up buying a 590 and replacing the trigger group and safety with metal ones. Balances much better without the heavy barrel. The LOP on the factory stock is ridiculously long and I'm 6'2", but it's a pretty heavy duty plastic, so I had my gunsmith shorten it to 13.5" overall, including a 1" Decelerator. I use an 870 with a ShurShot stock and a 20" rifle sighted RemChoke barrel for turkey. Scattergun Tech ghostring rear, factory rear barrel sight removed, and a fibre-optic front sight. I mount a Burris Fastfire if I want to use it for deer, since my turkey loads don't shoot to the same POI as the slugs. As a hunting shotgun, I think either the 590 or 870 would work fine. As a multigun shotgun, I would have to give the nod to the 590.
 
someuser said:
I will go for the 590a1 myself. T
Finally the safety and bolt release placement are superior on the 500 series over the 870 series. The Mossberg safety and bolt release location is very practical to me. For example I can assess those 2 functions on the shotgun without moving my trigger finger of the trigger or the trigger guard. With the 870 a person cannot do what the 500 series can do.

To me the Mossberg pump is a more well thought out shotgun then the 870 shotgun.

I hope that you will be able to find your perfect shotgun. :)
Click to expand...

I agree completely. I have the 590A1 SPX and love it!

My only issue with the gun was the factory stock. It was a tad too long for me. though im 5'8" so im sure that has something to do with it.

To fix this, i bought a speedfeed stock and ive never looked back (since i planned on adding one anyway, this was just an added bonus for me).

the weight thing is a non-issue. if you cant handle the weight, dont buy it. simple as that. if you want it, but dont like the weight, adapt to it.

Its like people buying a desert eagle and saying its too big.

If you get a 590 series gun, get the A1 version as it has a metal trigger guard.

if its between the SPX or the non-SPX, i prefer the SPX. Fiber optic front sight and ghost-ring rear. The only time the gun gets to "heavy" in my books is when i add the bayonet to it. Than it becomes too front heavy. My solution? Dont put it on.
 
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