[sstalder5]

So I'm picking up a 12 ga. shotgun as a 20th birthday present to myself. My friends and I have been shooting skeet fairly regularly the past few months and I'd like to invest in my own gun.

I checked out my local gun shop (which is awesome btw) and narrowed it down to three in my price range ($200-$300)

A new Maverick (Mossberg) 88 security


A used but immaculate Winchester 1300


Or a used Remington 1100 that could use a new finish on the wood, but is in otherwise good condition

Edit:the one I'm looking at is the right handed model, not left handed like the picture.

All have similar features with the exception of the Remington being an autoloader. The Maverick has the largest round capacity (I won't be hunting with it and if I do I'll add a plug) but also has the shortest barrel which may not be good for skeet. Could I just use a tighter choke to compensate? This one also felt the best in my hands. I have a lot of experience with a 1300 since that's what we've been shooting, but it's pretty heavy and is kind of uncomfortable to hold, so is the 1100. The 1100 felt very similar to the 1300 in my hands, and I do like the idea of an autoloader but I don't know if it's worth buying the gun since it needs some cosmetic work, the finish is worn off the foregrip and stock.

Here's me shooting my buddy's 1300. The one I'm looking at is pretty much identical. Not as comfortable to hold as the Maverick though..

 

[chillindrdude]

get an used police trade-in remington 870. can be had for $200.

the 870 action is rock solid. and can accomodate different length shells. barrels are fairly simple to swap out. you can get a 18" for home defense, 22-24" for trap/skeet.

if you are using this truly for both home defense AND trap/skeet, i'd stay away from autoloaders at your price range. they can be finicky on ammo and difficult to run reliably.

and a note about technique, alittle wider stance, driving forward, good cheek weld and shoulder pocket will do wonders for accuracy and recoil management.

i also recommend eye protection next time you shoot. (and assuming you have ear plugs in)

 

[sstalder5]

Thanks for the input. My stance is usually a little better, that picture was at the end of the day when we were blowing up pumpkins we collected after halloween. I always wear ear protection, and usually wear eye protection, not sure what happened here...

So where could I come by an 870 for $200? One other gun shop in the area but it's a little sketchy.

And I understand what you're saying about autoloaders. But at this point in my life, this gun will not be used for home defense. I'd probably be endangering myself more by bringing a gun into the equation, until I get some formal training with it. That's the next step though. Right now it's just going to be used for clay shooting, plinking, and maybe hunting eventually. I also just read that the Maverick can accept Mossberg 500 barrels so I could probably find a longer one for trap/hunting pretty easily. +1 for the Maverick.

 

[ultraNoob]

Doesn't the Maverick 88 come with 2 bbls (18 & 24)?

If I were going to hunt/skeet/trap with it only, then I'd go for the Rem 1100. Ribbed and vented bbl with interchangeable chokes. If memory serves, the bbls that come with the maverick aren't threaded to accept chokes tubes.

 

[sstalder5]

Nope just the 20" bbl. And you're right about the choke on the Maverick. But the Maverick felt the best to me so that's what I'm leaning towards, plus it's new and has a warrantee. The only thing I'm worried about is if the 20" barrel would be too short for skeet. I might just end up getting a Maverick and a second barrel.

 

[Pesqueeb]

So where could I come by an 870 for $200? One other gun shop in the area but it's a little sketchy.

Pawn shop. Take someone with you who can check out the working bits. See if you can find one with a beat up stock and/or fore end. Might be able to pick it up for as little as $100. Buy replacements from Remington or your local outdoor place. Brand new in the 60-70 range.

 

[sstalder5]

Pawn shop. Take someone with you who can check out the working bits. See if you can find one with a beat up stock and/or fore end. Might be able to pick it up for as little as $100. Buy replacements from Remington or your local outdoor place. Brand new in the 60-70 range.

I'll look into it, but all of the pawn shops around here are in the ghetto and I doubt any of them have their FFL..

 

[sanjuro]

BTW, a security model typically has a 20 inch barrel. Make sure it has a second barrel 28" long.

 

[gonefirefightin]

buy the 1100, enough said

 

[sstalder5]

It's definitely the nicest gun in my price range. How hard would it be to refinish the wood though? That's my only concern with that one.

 

[psycle-on]

So where could I come by an 870 for $200? One other gun shop in the area but it's a little sketchy.

If you feel like a little drive, there is a Lawmens in Charlotte. They usually have all kinds of LE turn ins. At least that seems to be the case at the Raleigh store. You can always call them to see what they have. Oh, and you don't need to be LE to purchase most stuff from them.

You can also log on to CarolinaShootersForum.com - Powered by vBulletin. You need to register to see the classifieds but they seem to get a good bit of traffic.

 

[Pesqueeb]

I'll look into it, but all of the pawn shops around here are in the ghetto and I doubt any of them have their FFL..

Their Pawn shops, they are supposed to be in the hood. And you might be surprised, almost all the pawn shops around here have FFL.

 

[sstalder5]

psycle I'm actually in High Point for the next 6 weeks for break so Raleigh is closer.

And Pesq I'm going to look around some more today but if I don't find anything I think I'm going to go put the down payment on either the Maverick or the 1100 to hold it til my birthday/paycheck next friday.

I've been doing a lot of research and I'm leaning back towards the 1100. I would be getting a sick deal on it and it's way nicer than the Maverick. Plus, since it's an autoloader it'll cut down on recoil.

 

[sstalder5]

Ended up picking up a perfect looking Remington 11-48. For a 61 year old gun it looks like its only had a few boxes of shells put through it. The wood is perfect, the metal only has a few tiny scratches on it, and after a good cleaning all of the internals probably look just as good as they did when they came from the factory. Should make an excellent trap and bird gun and I got it for a steal!

I've already found an owners manual for it and stripped it all they way down, scrubbed off all the dried oil and gunk and then oiled it up (rem oil) and reassembled it. Surprisingly simple action for an autoloader. I'll put some pictures up later. And I might get a chance to go shoot this afternoon.

 

[gonefirefightin]

It's definitely the nicest gun in my price range. How hard would it be to refinish the wood though? That's my only concern with that one.

you can buy completely new furniture for that gun....dont need to refinish a thing

 

[sstalder5]

you can buy completely new furniture for that gun....dont need to refinish a thing

You must have missed my last post. I bought an 11-48.

 

[gonefirefightin]

yeah I saw it after I clicked reply.

 

[sstalder5]

Another update.. I just dug my dad's old 20 ga out of my grandma's house (she was a hoarder so this is a pretty big deal. Its actually a Sears branded gun from the late 50's

It looks similar to this except it's the model 21 with the adjustable choke

 

[ultraNoob]

Another update.. I just dug my dad's old 20 ga out of my grandma's house (she was a hoarder so this is a pretty big deal. Its actually a Sears branded gun from the late 50's

It looks similar to this except it's the model 21 with the adjustable choke

CHOKE MASTER (top right of pic)

 

[sstalder5]

CHOKE MASTER (top right of pic)

hahaha I didn't catch that! I played with the "choke master" weee yesterday when we were shooting and couldn't really tell the difference in the settings. Although I'm not sure I'd be able to tell the difference between the nicest interchangeable chokes either...

 

[Arkayne]