Home Forums Birds & Dogs Shotguns Mossberg 500 or 870 Express

Turkey? I would get the Mossy 835 with a 3.5" chamber.

I own both and prefer the Mossy to the 870.

Just remove the forend/action bar assembly, loosen and remove the spanner cap that holds the forend to the tube and slide the forend off the tube. You'll see a series of indents around the circumference of the tube at the front and rear. The forend tube rides along the magazine tube on those indents. Take a 1/8" steel punch and grind it so it's round on the end. Use the punch to progressively deepen the forend tube dents evenly around the circumference of the tube until they fit tight to the magazine tube but still allow it to move easily fore and aft. Reassemble and you have a Mossberg with a tight, rattle free forend. The Ithaca is done the same way but since the forend tube "dents" are long and flat use a flat blade screwdriver instead of the punch to deepen them.

Shortactionsmoker has been using a 20ga for a few years (along with many others) so I tried it this year. I'll not hump a 12 gauge around again for turkey hunting.

i have several of both. not a lot of difference in quality between them so its a matter of preference. i kind of like the tang safety on the 500. i'd say an 870 would hold or increase in value slightly whereas the 500 probably wouldn't.

for a 3" turkey gun though i'd highly recommend the laminated stock 870 youth 20 gauge with the 18" barrel and a jellyhead choke. you can find the adult sized butt stock on ebay. it makes for a nice convertible and the 3" 20 is no slouch on turkey heads.

I know the 3" 20 gauge gets it done.

I've had both and truthfully both will serve you well for the purpose you have in mind. My 870 express is also an early model and I've never experienced any rust issue its been a champ . Over the years I have also owned a couple of Mossberg 500s. One was a 20 ga regency? model which had a walnut shock and was a pretty cool little gun. I also had an older 12 with a corncob style walnut forend also a nice old gun. The only thing that got tiring about it was people constantly asking about my model 12.

I've owned, used and been issued a passel of both. Today, I'd buy a 500.

I have owned both, and been issued both at work. Never again will a dime of my money or a minute of my time be spent on a Mossberg.

Yes - get the 870.

Tons (and I MEAN tons) more ammo will go down the bore before you'll need to have it worked on.. And it's got a better trigger right out of the box.. An even BETTER trigger can be had by obtaining the Timney kit and installing that..

Thanks much. I've now got a lot of work to do this summer!

Other than broken safety buttons on the Mossbergs, {which I recommend anyone replace immediately with a steel safety from Brownells} I can't say I've had or seen more problems with Mossbergs than Remingtons and I've put one helluvalot of rounds through both. I also worked on plenty of both back when I did general gunsmithing. Most problems with either were due to manufacturing defects {and Remington sure as hell has it's share of those} neglect or bubba gunsmithing. The Mossbergs will hold up a long time. Maybe not as long as an 870 but certainly through more rounds than even an active hunter will shoot in a lifetime.

Old LE armorer-level gun mechanic here and I agree 100%. The 500's are so easy to rebuild, there's no need to send them anywhere. Need to replace an ejector on a 500? Order from Brownells and DIY in 5 minutes with a screwdriver. Need to replace one on a Remington? Find a shipping box...

The main issues I run into with the Mossberg are, with a lot of use, the action bars will need to be replaced. The bevels begin to round off and then it won't feed. If caught early, they can be repaired/filed to function again but once gone too far the entire unit needs to be round-filed and replaced due to timing problems.

Their triggers are positively HORRIBLE and many times the gauge pegs before the hammer trips.

Then the plactic trigger housing assembly can, with improper reinsertion, will break off the little tabs that fit on the receiver and it's a trip to the gunsmith to repair or replace..

As to the 870 ejector - as long as the owner is a bit careful when installing the barrel after cleaning it will last decades. I replace a few every year, but considering the staggering number of 870s out there it's pretty obvious that it's a somewhat rare occurrence...

I do agree that the Express models have a crappy finish - and the Wingmaster's the way to go - but (haven't checked recently) they're higher-priced than the 500..

FWIW.

I've seen used older very clean Wingmaster's sell for $350 - $400. That is getting pretty close to the new price of the Mossberg or Express guns. Personally I'd rather have that older Wingmaster than a new Express or M500. That's just me, everybody has their own ideas.

I've refiled a few of the action bars myself. It's my opinion that premature wear here is caused mainly by improper adjustment of the shell stop from the factory. The few I've refiled were really beat up right on the end where the angled part of the bar is supposed to ride over the angle of the shell stop and depress it. Refile the action bar angle and bend the shell stop a little so it rides the angle as it should rather than catching it right at the tip and all is usually well. If the action bar assembly should need to be replaced, it's an easy job and a new one was pretty inexpensive last time I checked. What I like about the Mossbergs is that EVERYTHING is quite easy and inexpensive for the home gunsmith/ mechanically inclined owner to replace should the need be.. Not so much with the 870, what with all it's staked in/ riveted in parts.

Seems like this thread has turned into "how to fix a mossberg" thread. I have thousands, probly 10's of thousands, of rounds through my 870TC and have had zero issues. Same goes for my hunting gun and .410.

NOT bashing the Mossberg but it really sounds like they see more shop time and are engineered for shop time than the 870.

Truth be told unless its a dedicated clay gun of some kind or sees zero maintenance I doubt either will let ya down.

I can say the same about my Mossberg and all the parts are original except for the Brownell's steel safety button. My action bars show very little wear and I'd bet they'll be fine for another 10,000 rounds. All guns break parts occasionally, even 870's.

870 of any flavor over a Mossberg. The ejectors are now available to convert the 2 3/4" to 3" and if not they can easily be moved .25" to the rear and reinstalled.

Top tang safeties are easy to build and give you everything the Mossberg claims...

If knocking apart an 870 and putting it back together is too much than all the exercise one gets from dealing with Mossbergs should make for rapid muscle-memory enhancement.