New gun....just for fun

Dave Church

Dave Church

Well-known member
I fell into a pretty good deal this week. A coworker was looking for a pump shotgun for his son and I mentioned that I had a Mossberg 500 pump that had been put away about 5 years ago. He was very interested and when I showed him pics, he said he would like to trade for it. He offered a Mossberg International Silver Reserve over and under as an even swap. His gun was in pristine shape, is a 12 ga. and came with 5 chokes, a gun case and he was more than happy to make the trade. I've never owned an O/U but it is a great looking gun with a nice feel so I added it to the collection. I will hopefully go break some clays in the next week or two so that I can be tuned up for BOTH of the doves that seem to come thru my neck of the woods around here. Anyone have any info on this gun...good or bad?


Dave
 
Dave, good luck. I had purchased the same gun some years back and had issues with the safety. It was sent back to moss erg numerous times. They then sent me another gun and I had the same issue again. Ultimately I got my money back from mossberg. I hope you have better luck than I did.
 
Thanks for the info. This gun looks as if it hasn't had a box of shells through it. The safety feels good and moves side to side to select the upper or lower barrel. What were the exact problems you had with yours?


Dave
 
The safety tang fell off the gun twice. The first time as I was shooting the gun, it flew off and landed in the pocket of my shirt. The second time while goose hunting it flew off and landed in the field. Spent an hour looking for it. The gun was replaced and then I traded it in. That was enough for me.
 
I handled one and was not impressed at all. To me the Mossberg double guns are very heavy, poorly balanced, and feel "clunky". I was not impressed.
 
Well, even with a couple of negatives.....this gun shoots very nicely. I have only "played" with it with a few rounds but will put it thru the paces at the skeet range in the next few days. I have an older brother who is in the top 10 or so trap shooters in Illinois and he shoots a several thousand dollar Browning Citori 725 competitively. I asked him his thoughts and he said that he sees the guns around quite a bit in the younger shooters and they seem to hold up pretty well. He said many of the guns that come out of Turkey seem to have problems .....and when they do.....getting them fixed ends up being a bigger problem. He convinced me that the gun should be fine for my purposes and if it breaks.......I have a spare boat paddle!





Dave
 
If you're happy with the trade, and can hit birds with it, that's all that counts. Have fun!
 
Thanks Carl. Yes, I think the trade went my way and I am pleased with it thus far. The gun is heavier than many of the O/Us that I have recently handled but I'm hoping that will be helpful if I decide to use this on ducks this fall.


Dave
 
I've been tempted for while to get an inexpensive Stoeger or similar O/U t take in the duck boat myself. Maybe a 3" 20.
 
Carl and Dave,
I bought a Stoeger Longfowler last year to take in the duck marsh. I wasn't really expecting much out of it and I much prefer my Browning Gold, but it worked great. It's a heavy gun and keep in mind it is not a high end gun, but it worked well.

My son shoots a Mossberg Sliver Reserve II 20gauge for upland hunting and like most Mossbergs it is a solid shooter,handles well and overall a pretty good gun for the price.

Zane
 
Weight is not a bad thing in a gun to be fired with magnums. 'Specially if you are hunting out of a boat or blind and not carrying it over hill and dale....


John
 
Zane - I had been looking at a Longfowler and then this gun kind of fell in my lap. These guns appear to be designed for general use....and priced accordingly.


Dave
 
I got a chance this past Sunday to take my youngest to the skeet range and shoot two boxes thru the gun. I have to say I was very happy with it. It feels a little "front" heavy when you shoulder it and I found that my electronic ear muffs would hit the stock when shouldered so I put them away and went with "foamies" for the rest of the day. The gun swings nice and feels comfortable when the trigger is pulled. I choked the bottom barrel with Cylinder and the top with Modified and "addressed the low house." I smoked the first bird coming from over my head and repeated this on the bird coming out of the low house. On the double, I smoked them both with one shot. I would double like this again two more times on the first round. I finished with 20 for 25 on the first round and 18 out of 25 on the second round. With dove season starting next week, I am ready to puff some feathers. In addition, I am planning on packing this as my only shotgun as I head to northern Maine in October for use on grouse and ducks. The gun still isn't as familiar in my hands as my Benelli.........but it still feels pretty good.


Dave
 
Dave,it sounds like the gun fits you will. One suggestion: wear the upland coat you intend to hunt with and practice your gun mount, "shooting" at a white 4"x4" square (I use a paper plate cut-out) taped to a distant wall. After 15 to twenty gun mount sequences, do the last two or three with your eyes closed at the end of the drill. When you open your eyes, gauge how close your bead is pointing at the target square. Essentially, you are inducing muscle memory, improving the consistency of your gun mount; the same thing you would be doing running yourself through skating technique drills on roller skis.
 
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