*What is the best combat shotgun on the market?

I love the new rock island tactical shotgun

Bama,

They say that everything old is new again. I haven't had a chance to get hands on one of the Rock Island guns yet, but from looking at the pictures it sure seems familiar. I wouldn't be at all surprised to discover that it was essentially a High Standard Flite King, redesigned slightly. I can see it has two action bars, but I can't tell for sure if it's still a tilting bolt design a la the Model 12, or if they've done the locking block in a barrel extension thing with it.

Either way it sure looks familiar. I'm looking forward to handling one. The additional action bar can only help, and if it IS still a tilting bolt design in a well manufactured all steel gun- look out world.

lpl
 
Tactical is a verb... It is a mindset not a firearm. If your mindset requires a sparkling flashlight... than add it.
Brent
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Actually, it's an adjective; but that's a quibble. I agree with yer idear. Almost any solid and reliable repeater shotgun in capable hands should work well in a tactical situation. That means lots of shells and time shooting, not dohickies. YMMV with the dohickies, but not with the lots of shells and time shooting.

If tactical means long use with little time fer cleaning and maintenance I'd want the marine version. Marine, as in adjective; not the noun usage. Not that a Marine wouldn't be useful in a tactical situation. Quite to the contrary.
 
The favorite of my father and grandfather was the Win. '97 so I was comfortable with a short barrel '97 in Vietnam and I still have grandpa's with a 30" barrel. But I favor the 870 - I have had several and still have five of them. :) The action is all-purpose and probably as reliable as any shotgun ever made (excluding single shots). Barrels, stocks, magazine tubes and accessories are available for virtually any purpose. On the market today? Maybe a Tac Desert Recon?
 
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The AA12 exsists so you have to acknowledge what it has been tested and confirmed reliable to do. An awsome gun to go house to house , room to room. Carrying ammo for it can take points away due to the origin of the thread which says"combat sg". Now you have to look at whats gettable for us in the real world . Home protection or combat use the benelli m4 is another super fast way to use up 10 or 20 shells in a few seconds. I have had no trouble with my m411707 for 2 years now . Not a bit.
IMO ,the best combat / home sd semi within reach of the common man. (as opposed to the AA12).
Due to the problems i've had with 870's ,I put the super smooth operating Mossy 500 above it for o o t box reliabilty. My 500's cycle like a sg should. It's like the shell is being moved along by magnets. The 500 is lighter which is good.
Along with the m4, mossy is another 12 gauge i "never" had any dissapointing problems with ,unlike the 870 which i also know are owned by many satisfied ,serious gunners. It's just the experience i had with two which actually turned out great because i'm very into them now. I own a marine mag and a regular 870 and i had to polish and work the actions for hours and hours to get smooth ,reliable cycling finally. I also feel the magazine tube clamp can be a b**** to remove and return. An 1100 i had was a nightmare to breakdown without scratching it up. I would definately not part with them now but i'm getting kinda sick of the marine mags silver finish. Might sell it. The MM is actually unpolished in it's original condition and just naturally worked itself in nicely. The action that is.
So the 500 / 870 argument goes on but there are too many other brands that are great but less popular off the store shelves. Can't blog about them all...
BTW ,make no mistake ,the nelli m4 is a serious muscle gun. Reliable as all hell. If and when the shtf i will use it with slugs for 100 yard 4" breneke groups or 10 yard 00 terror. My m4 and my glocks keep reliability issues out of the equation. Although i got a great deal at a local show for a nib m4 with military stock and a factory tube i found later ,the money bought me peace of mind reliability wise. After hundreds of rds without a hint of issue it was the best $1300. plus $200. factory tube i ever spent. Whatever sinical theories people have as to why Uncle Sam went benelli for the joint service sg don't interest me because they picked a reliable sg imo. I"m not sure what the people using them over there think about them in the mud and gutts they contact everyday. I've read some good and bad opinions. Here I know the sg works however i truly hope the m4 is helping thier butts and not causing problems in those extreme conditions overseas. God Bless our Military.
 
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"Combat" Shotgun

"Combat" is the operative word. To me that does NOT mean home defense. It means 1.) Operations over long periods 2.) LOTS of hostiles 3.) SMART opponents This could accur in the oft quoted "SHTF" scenario of near chaos. With that in mind, I have chosen the Mossberg 930 SPX for the following reasons:
1.) Ease of operation - a little practice and quick reaction is possible; the short barrel and light weight are ideal for close combat (MOUT/MOBUA) situations; reloading is quick and easy even during sustained contact
2.) Stealth - the sound of a pump may scare away a burglar, but in "combat" you don't want the bad guys having any idea where you are before trigger pull
3.) Firepower -a semi-auto puts more steel/lead downrange faster than any pump can. In addition, the 7+1 capacity of the 930 SPX is relatively large.
4.) Cost - the relatively cheap cost of the 930 SPX means that you can have more than one for spare parts or to arm a team mate
5.) Versatility - In a SHTF situation, you may be forced to use whatever ammunition is available. The center-bored 930 SPX can accept 2 3/4" or 3" 12 ga rounds as well as magnum rounds and all sizes of buckshot, lead shot, hybrids, rifled/unrifled/sabot slugs, etc.
6.) Sights - an integral Picatinny Rail is standard; Standard sights include a fiber optic front sight which enhances reaction time in day or low light conditions. A reflex sight can be mounted on the rail for even quicker reaction. I would not recommend any lights or lasers as these become "Here I am!" beacons. Similarly, a night sight which includes an illuminator, becomes a beacon revealing your location to any adversary that has passive, image intensifying NVG's (Night Vision Goggles) but, with time, the cost of passive IR night sights will make them practical and the Picatinny Rail will be in place to accept them.
 
With all due repect to all the prior and mostly useful posts, if we are talking about "combat" shotguns in current production the FN SLP is far better than most every gun mentioned - Same gas system as the Winchester SX3 used by Patrick Flanigan the fastest shotgunner. Watching one of his videos is awesome. I heard him state on one video that he had over 200,000 rounds on his SX3 with his 11 shot extension tube. Cleans it every two or three thousand rounds. Aside from the length, the SX3 would be a nice "combat shotgun" with 11 + 1 shots. As for the 870 or die crowd, the SLP is much faster and more reliable. The current production 870s are fast becomming infamous as "Jam-o-Matics" - The old Wingmasters are very fine guns.
 
The current production 870s are fast becomming infamous as "Jam-o-Matics" - The old Wingmasters are very fine guns.
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I agree with this statment...it's a shame that Remington has let its flagship shotgun go the way of the cheap and unreliable.
 
Some input, formed over a long time.....

Combat shotguns need to be.......

Reliable. I suggest the Ayoob Test as a minimum. 200 rounds of DUTY ammo fired glitchless and preferably rapidly. Four range sessions of 50 rounds each will be easier on us than a marathon.

Fit the user. Besides stock length, we want something that is comfortable and ergonomically friendly to operate. We should able to access the controls without juggling things around.

Have a clean, sub 5 lbs, trigger.

Have sights one can use in any light conditions that do not need batteries or delicate handling.

Agile. A 10 lb Rambo Signature Model isn't agile. If you cannot hold your shotgun in firing position AT YOUR SHOULDER for two minutes, start taking stuff off or lifting weights.

And most importantly, the shotgun SHOULD BE WELL KNOWN TO THE USER.

Whether or not your shotgun of choice is a 500,88,12,97,520,31,37,870,A5, 1100,M-4,ad infinitum and is adorned with any or all accessories is less crucial than whether or not we know how to run it.

Sermon concluded....
 
I did not read through the entire 3 pages, so sorry for my ignorance if I am repeating anything.

It all breaks down to if you want a pump or semi. Pumps are simple and very reliable and there is no need to worry about pistons and such breaking down. But semis are amazingly fast and have much less recoil. For a pump the 870 would be my choice as they have a great track record and many available mods. For semis I would go with the 930 spx over the FN SLP simply by price point and ease of use. The SLP has 2 piston to be changed out for light and heavy loads, as the SPX handles both on a single piston. Of course the fit and finish on the FN is to a much higher quality. You really can't go wrong with either though. Thanks
 
can't believe/ why wasn't the SPAS-12 ever mentioned in the last 3 pages... sure it was discontinued from production 10 years ago....but...
 
Has the shotgun changed much in 10 years? :)

Winchester 97, Dad had a few, could hold the trigger and cycle the pump for rapid fire. Model 12 was favored here in Omaha by the LEO force, model 1300 came with a releasing bolt for faster pump action. the newer 870 express are heavy things. My brother hunts with one at times. The Ithica was a light gun, got one for 200.00 from my neighbor as he dont hunt anymore.

Other neighbor has a browning 20 ga rifled barrel, light, fast and accurate way out there and semi auto too.

What about them remington 11s? The barrel moves as the action to cycle rounds :)
 
"Combat" - I carried a Winchester M12 in the Army

about 40 years ago, never had any problems with it. I use a Mossberg 500 for an HD shotgun now and have for many years. I understand the US military used the Mossberg for some time because of its reliable function and ease of takedown for cleaning. I know there are many higher grade shotguns that the 500, but they are very rugged and reliable, which is what I want in a shotgun used for defense purposes.
What ever you choose, keep it very simple and it will work out better for you...there is a lot of unnecessary crap sold for shotguns that does nothing good.


mark
 
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