Reduce recoil on Mossberg 500

I ductaped a piece of pipe insulation to the end of the buttstock. Really made a world of difference.

The duttape was then covered in electrical tape, so it does look good before all the haters start.
 
No offence but buy a Trap Gun before you develop the dreaded "flinch". The 500 is a decent knock around gun but it will beat you to death shooting Trap. No matter what recoil pad you use. It is just to lite for Trap.
 
Another issue that you are facing is adding top the length of the LOP by adding a recoil pad without cutting back the stock. If the LOP is too long, the perceived recoil will be heavier. Whichever gun you use, have it fitted for you.
 
Add weight to the gun. Some guns have a hollow recess under the butt plate which you could fill with lead shot. You could also put weight into the magazine tube (for trap, you're not loading into the magazine, so you could take out the spring and the plug and fill it with pennies or washers or whatever.
 
Grouse Man said:
Add weight to the gun. Some guns have a hollow recess under the butt plate which you could fill with lead shot. You could also put weight into the magazine tube (for trap, you're not loading into the magazine, so you could take out the spring and the plug and fill it with pennies or washers or whatever.
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This!!!!!

You can easily add up to a couple pounds to the gun by filling the stock with lead.

I did it for last years hunting season when I was firing alot of slugs at the range.

That said if you are at the range firing target loads, is the recoil really that bad?

I have put 200 rounds through my Maverick which is lighter than the 500 in a day without any real ill effects.
 
Knoxx Spec Ops Recoil Reduced Stock. Works very well. The length of pull is adjustable. I've had one on an 870 and Mossberg 500. Gunsmithing is not required and can be installed in less than a minute. They run between $120-150.
 
I put a Mesa LEO Enidine Stock (Tactical Ordnance) and a Limbsaver snap on (GP Tactical) on my 590A1. Made a big difference in felt recoil. Not a cheap solution but very effective.
 
In the long term you need a clay target gun to fit you properly. That may include adjusting the butt pad and or comb of the gun, depending on where the gun is hitting you.

In the short term, try a light shot load, IE: 1 oz. or 7/8 oz. loads.
 
I bought a precision fit limbsaver for my mossberg at wholesale sports. It's 10201 I believe. It fits perfectly. Additionally, I found that when I took the factory 'pad' off there are two wells in the stock perfectly suited to adding weight. The limbsaver is great!
 
As usual, it is hard to properly diagnose a problem on the internet. We have to try the "shotgun" approach. (pun intended). The simplest way to reduce recoil is shoot a lighter recoiling shell. A 7/8 oz load in my Remington 3200 makes it recoil like my 1100 and smokes targets. I'm guessing if you are new to the game that you aren't reloading yet, so go look for some lighter shells. Try to find 1 oz TARGET loads. NOT field loads. Field loads will have a higher velocity and will recoil as much as the 1-1/8 loads. If you can find a 1 oz load at 1200 fps or less, jump on it.

Second is to add weight. As suggested add weight to the magazine tube and butt stock. The extra weight will have the added advantage of smoothing out your swing.

Last is your shooting form and gun fit. Are you leaning ahead at the waist? If you are standing too erect or even leaning back like a rifle shooter, the toe of the recoil pad will be the only contact area on your shoulder and all the recoil will be concentrated there. If the toe of the recoil pad hits first it will cause more muzzle flip on recoil and the gun will smack your cheek. Proper stance would be leaning ahead at the waist, left knee bent(for a right handed shooter). The top of the recoil pad should be level with the top of your shoulder and make even contact with your shoulder.

Try all the above and see if you feel less recoil. And don't forget to follow through on the target:D

John
 
I agree with the approach to add weight in the rear stock. I modified my 500 slug gun in the following way. I took off the factory recoil pad and found a hollow circular space that could be filled with lead. If memory serves me correct, the diameter of the "hole" was 1/2" and the length about 2.25". I filled a short piece of copper tubing with melted wheel weights and put in the space (attach a screw eye and a length of string for easy removal). An easier alternative would be lead shot except that I didn't have any. If you take the other suggestion to add weight in the magazine tube, the extra weight should make a real difference in recoil. The next step is a quality recoil pad but I start with the easy/cheap steps first.
 
I have the Knoxx comstock on my 590,..works awesome. I have only shot OO buck and shot with it, but the recoil is a joke.
 
Find someone that reloads and ask if they would mind selling you a box or to of lighter loads. Someguys will some won't. Just say the gun is beatin you up. I've loaded for a few girls (no disrespect) that are like 5' tall 95lbs and they can shoot the 12ga all day. My light load is 7/8oz #8 shot over 15.6gr of 700x in a claybuster wad. Recoil barely moves the muzzle
 
Win/64 said:
No offence but buy a Trap Gun before you develop the dreaded "flinch". The 500 is a decent knock around gun but it will beat you to death shooting Trap. No matter what recoil pad you use. It is just to lite for Trap.
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Funny, I guess someone didn't tell my shoulder this. I've shot many rounds of trap with my Mossberg 500 and I can hit clays (and shoot rifle, etc) just fine.

Shoot what you have to get into the sport. Buy 2 3/4 dram loads instead of 3 dram, and try to find light loads of pellets. Be sure the stock fits you, if its too short, add a pad. If it's too long, have it cut down. The correct fit of a shotgun will determine whether or not the gun will beat you up or not.

Practice your hold before shooting, hold the gun tight to your shoulder so that it doesn't smack up against it. Watch the placement of your shooting hand so you don't hit yourself in the nose with your thumb.

Other than that, don't overdo it! If you feel like you can only shoot one round of trap the first couple of times at the range, watch for the rest! I've put over 100 rounds through my Mossy in the span of about two hours, without a sore shoulder afterwards. My shotgun fits, and I hold it properly with my weight on my forward foot.

Now.. Once you start shooting and realize how much fun the sport is, you'll probably be surfing the EE looking for trap guns, anyway. :p
 
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