Rem 870 wingmaster (i.e. older, used, slick, solid). 12ga, 28inch, Modified.
He's 14 and isn't a shotgunner, doesn't live with shotgunner's, etc, and naturally whatever's in add copy today will heavily influence his thinking.
There's nothing any of those other guns offer to a complete beginner, with the stated hunting aspirations, that he would not learn from the above as well or better, given a modicum of tutelage. Think about it. Does a 14yo novice need to be worrying about whether his auto is the fastest? Whether he should've gone with IC rather than mod today? The latest camo? That's he's got 3 1/2" chambers rather than 3"? It's super-light? Of course not. It's vision, timing, and muscle memory. And as for deer, throw a sidemount saddle base on there seasonally and scope it if one must. Or not.
You or somebody take the boy a few times to informal skeet or 5-stand or whatever. Basics are what'll make the difference for him, not the shotgun, and that's what he'll remember and still be benefitting from 40 years from now.
I had a POS Mossberg 500 20ga Mod from boyhood till after college. It was a POS, but it was my POS, shot it respectably, and it did everything until could afford to branch out. Today I own a chit-ton of "nice stuff" - and frankly a decent 870 or two could suffice as well. And when he's 24, or 44, or 64, he can afford better to learn THAT lesson, too :-) But not now.
