Mossberg 500 Trophy Combo (story/review)

[8milimeter]

About 5 years ago I purchased a Win 1300 12 ga combo slug gun. Trying to sight it in, I loosened several teeth and screwed up my back. For 3 years after that every time I shot a large caliber gun my right arm would go numb and my three smallest fingers would loose all feeling for several hours. The point is I never ever wanted to shoot that 12 ga slug gun again. This year I finally decided to try a different approach and bought a 20 ga combo with the rifled barrel. I did not want to invest a lot in case I encountered my previous recoil induced back problems. The Mossberg seemed the right choice, especially for $250.00. I picked up the gun and 3 different types of Sabots (ouch !!! $2.25 a shot). Well I am very happy with my purchase. The combo was much nicer then I expected. The shotgun functions very smoothly and included three choke inserts for the regular barrel. The rifled barrel has the scope cantilever and a cheap but acceptable chinese 2x20 scope. All for $250 on sale. I went to my local range and tryed it out. The scope adjustments took quite a lot of tweeking to get it sighted in. After $50.00 worth of sabots I was satisfied with my POI and that the scope would hold zero. It performs very well for a cheap gun. I get consistant 1.5" 50 yard groups. The 100 yard groups very between 3 and 4 inches with a 4 inch drop. Out of the three sabots I tried the Remington copper solids and the cheaper winchester sabots grouped well. The Hornady SST's did not work well in my gun. I decided to use the remington only because the recoil was less (lighter projectile). The 20 ga Mossberg with the ported barrel, factory recoil pad and the remington 260g copper solid sabots shoots like a 30-30. I would recommend this gun to anyone who is heavy recoil sensitive or junior hunters.

PS: I am not a wimp, I own over 30 rifles (8mm & 30.06) and shoot over 100 rounds a week. The 12ga high velocity slugs are just unpleasant.

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[jhgreasemonkey]

Thanks for the review. I like mossberg. They are a great bang for buck shotgun. I know what you mean about shooting 12guage slugs from the bench. It gets old after a couple boxes. I had a confrontation with a scope on one of my 12 guages I was sighting in with slugs. After about 20 shots the scope came off the rail from the recoil and blasted me in the eye! After being deemed "Shooter McGavin" by my kind friends I now insist on using locktight when mounting scopes.

 

[bclark1]

+1 for mossberg being great guns at a great value. i just wish they'd broaden their offerings - it's cool that they're "the magnum company," but as noted, big 12ga shells can do a number on you regardless of how well you handle recoil. with the rifled barrel, my 835 gets great offhand groups at 50 yards. it remains my turkey gun with the smoothbore barrel, even though i've picked up nicer 3 1/2" chambered guns since. actually haven't cleaned it since april either, when i got to the back of the safe recently i saw there was still a bit of blood and feathers on the stock

 

[UniversalFrost]

As far as the recoil induced physical problems I would suggest 2 things.

1. Go to a gym on a regular basis and work out your upper body (back, etc..).

2. Check how you are holding the shotgun. Make sure it is not too high and that you have it snuggly against your shoulder (not the chest or the arm).

Also you amy want to look into KNOXX stocks for your gun if recoil is a problem. They really work and for a shotgun like the 1100 or 835 they are they same price as normal aftermarket stocks.

 

[tork]

i bought the same combo a week ago, finally took it out tonight and shot it.
i have an 1187, but it was cheaper to buy the mossberg with a scope, two barrels, and an interchangeable cheek piece than to buy a cantilevered barrel for a remington.

i was impressed, but at 25 yards, i couldnt tell wich holes were from the slugs and wich were from the wadding.... hehe