Advice needed! 12Ga. looking for the Right gun?

stoney_695

stoney_695

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hello I'm in some need of some help choosing the right shotgun for me.
I'm looking at a few different models to choose from that wont break the bank.

Okay first off these guns are going up for sale at an auction at the end of the month these are what i came up with. all 12Ga. but i looking for something that will work great with geese, duck, turkey and possibly deer. I need some advise since i am a newbie! I'm wondering which of these guns i can use interchangeable chokes with because I think i will need a modified choke and a full choke with the gun. Any info will be appreciated.

Mossberg L500 12Ga. 3" $175
Remington 870 Wingmaster 12Ga. 2 3/4" $220
Remington 870 Express Magnum 12Ga. 3" $370
Winchester model 12 12Ga. 2 3/4" $375
Winchester model 1200 12Ga. 2 3/4" $400
Winchester model 2200 Magnum 12Ga. 3" $425


Thanks in advanced.
I figured I would get the most responses of CGN.

or a Remington 11-87 if it came up at the auction
 
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Non of the above they are all over priced and do not cover your needs no screw in chokes not compatible with steel shot they are from another time . Browning BPS 12ga. 26'' BBL Excellent quality $600.00 new all machined steel parts the smoothest pump made today .will last a life time. Everyone will-tell you to buy a Remington Express but they seem to have issues poor quality control and ugly .
 
stoney_695 said:
Mossberg L500 12Ga. 3" $175 -depends, some of the budget 500s have fixed chokes. worth about $200 used.
Remington 870 Wingmaster 12Ga. 2 3/4" $220 -most likely fixed choke. if youre planning on waterfowling you would be better off with 3".
Remington 870 Express Magnum 12Ga. 3" $370 -removable choke, but not a good price - you can get brand new ones for this price
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no clue about the Winchesters

if you want the best bang for your buck pick up a new or used Mossberg 500 (~$300 new) or Maverick 88 (~$200 new). make sure its 3" and threaded for chokes (a couple of the older ones on the EE arent).
 
stoney_695 said:
hello I'm in some need of some help choosing the right shotgun for me.
I'm looking at a few different models to choose from that wont break the bank.

Okay first off these guns are going up for sale at an auction at the end of the month these are what i came up with. all 12Ga. but i looking for something that will work great with geese, duck, turkey and possibly deer.
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Check the EE. One of the sellers there (dealer, I think Del Selins or something like that) has camo Mossberg 500 3 barrel sets (28" vent rib, 23" turkey and 24" deer) for $460.00. I may be off on my barrel length measurements by an inch or 2. Pretty hard to beat that deal.
 
woolly said:
Check the EE. One of the sellers there (dealer, I think Del Selins or something like that) has camo Mossberg 500 3 barrel sets (28" vent rib, 23" turkey and 24" deer) for $460.00. I may be off on my barrel length measurements by an inch or 2. Pretty hard to beat that deal.
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theres one of those sets on the EE, USED, for $500.
gotta love the EE :D
 
woolly said:
Check the EE. One of the sellers there (dealer, I think Del Selins or something like that) has camo Mossberg 500 3 barrel sets (28" vent rib, 23" turkey and 24" deer) for $460.00. I may be off on my barrel length measurements by an inch or 2. Pretty hard to beat that deal.
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scotmacdonald (dealer) has that combo for that price. Not sure about Del Selins. I just bought a 500 2 barrel combo for waterfowl and deer from him and picked it up today.
 
so a mossberg or (maverick) but iv herd good things about the BPS . so if i do buy i should be looking more for a 3" pee shooter then a 2 3/4? with able screw in chokes to shoot steel also any one hear anything good about ITHACA's ???
 
Of the guns on your list the rem express may be a good one if it is older. The older ones were mechanicly near as good as the wingmaster. The first run of the express was not near the disaster that that present day express models. Comes with choke tubes Seems over priced. The 1200 and the 2200 may or may not have factory choke tubes. The first win chokes were on these models. Both seem overpriced. Hey this is an auction! If you could get any of the three with tubes for $200.00 it would be a good deal. A Remington 11-87 is tubed and if the price is right will suit your purpose.
 
As far workmanship quality overall finish and smooth functioning nothing comes close to the BPS other than a Remington 870 Wingmaster the catch is the wingmaster is 30%-%40 more $ wise same with the new Ithaca pumps and over all the BPS edges both out for over all finish it will give you a life time of use and who ever ends up with it after will have a reliable gun. If at all possible Don't buy price buy quality .
 
Are you looking at the right type of gun?

You listed 6 pumps and a semi. If you ever want to get into clay target shooting (other than single target trap shooting), you will be much better off with a semi-auto. Personnally, I believe that semi-autos are the most versatile shotguns. Further, they are softer shooting, at least gas action semis are.

Now as to chokes: full chokes are the least useful of all chokes. They were useful way back when you could shoot waterfowl with lead shot. Arguably, you can still shoot tungsten through them, but at over 3$ a shell, you may not be interested.

IMHO, the most useful chokes are IC and LM. A light modified choke can do almost anything well, except for turkey hunting. Therefore, if you must buy a fixed choke gun, get it reamed open to LM, and you will do OK in most hunting situations. You can even shoot slugs through it.

As to chamber size, 3 inches is a definite plus. 3½ in. is overkill.

If I were you, I would look for a used Beretta 303 or 390 or Browning Gold/Silver on the EE. Remington 1100 and 11-87 are more fickle and seem to have a narrower spectrum of loads that they cycle well.

My 2 cents worth.
 
paqcobille,
tungsten is an alternative to steel in that it performs better than steel, but it is very hard on barrels other than the ones designed for steel. It is especialy tough on barrels designed for lead. Kent used to make tunsten matrix which was t coated with polymer. I agree with your opinion of auto loaders and choke choice. I especially like the LM but did not mention it because it is not readily available and I did not want to get into subtle differences with the op who is a newbie. The rest of your post is good advice.
 
I think there is a browning auto 5 in the EE with 2 barrels one of which is a Japanese (good for steel if its Modified or bigger or opened up to modified). I think the guy only wants 500 for it. For what its worth the 2 3/4 mini magnum will put almost as much shot on target as a 3 inch mag.
 
Tungsten

struff55 said:
If you can afford to shoot tungsten then the price of a shotgun should not be an issue. $ 4.00 per shot.
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That was exactly my point. Since he appears to be cost conscious, I was pointing out that a gun with a full fixed choke, or a full choke tube would be of limited use, unless he is willing to tackle the "expensive" tungsten alternative, which makes no sense in that situation.
 
IMHO with something like an older wingmaster it is a waste of money to have a gunsmith ream out (or thread) the old 2 3/4" ~30" smooth, fixed choke barrels that most of them come with.

you can dump the barrel on the EE, someone wanting to make a cheap 18"er will pay around $70 for it. it would cost you ~$50 to ream out (or $100 to thread) the choke at the gunsmith: take that money and put it towards a proper 3" chamber 28" vent-rib barrel with removable remchokes - i see them all the time on the EE for under $150.
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=299730

also, with a 3" barrel youre more than halfway to a 3" conversion (if you decide to do one down the road).
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=404005

that $220 wingmaster is a good deal provided that the gun is in good condition. just what id do, but im pretty wingmaster biased.
 
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