Shotguns: Trad Stock, Pistol Grip or Combo

[Teppodama]

So, if you were running a shotgun for defense/offense would you prefer a standard style stock, pistol grip or combo?

Would you prefer a pump or semi-auto?

Currently, I've got a Mossberg 500a (pump) with a standard stock that I've been working with. Not a bad little shottie to do some general training with but it got me thinking if anyone else here leans toward shotguns and if so, what their own preferences might be.

 

[RerouteToRemain]

So I have a FN TPS pump

I like it but I'm not sure on the pistol grip being a benefit. Makes it nice to hang on to but in actual use I favor a more standard stock. I don't like the sights

Favorite I've used I believe was a custom Benelli M2, 21".

 

[bushman505]

Standard stock, pump action.

The pump makes it easier to clear if you have a jam, pistol grips with the but stock look cool, they don’t feel great to me, pistol grip with no stock.....no. Especially for self defense, you could easily lose your teeth or break your nose, I’ve actually seen this happen.

For an HD shotgun, I’d get an off the shelf mossy 500 or a remmy 870 and load it to the brim with OO or OOO buckshot and call it a day.

 

[JOE QUEEF]

 

[Teppodama]

So I have a FN TPS pump

I like it but I'm not sure on the pistol grip being a benefit. Makes it nice to hang on to but in actual use I favor a more standard stock. I don't like the sights

Favorite I've used I believe was a custom Benelli M2, 21".

Does that extension give you 9? Not sure about sights either. Personally, I'm thinking about an Red Dot on mine as I've added a rail on the receiver.

 

[Teppodama]

Standard stock, pump action.

The pump makes it easier to clear if you have a jam, pistol grips with the but stock look cool, they don’t feel great to me, pistol grip with no stock.....no. Especially for self defense, you could easily lose your teeth or break your nose, I’ve actually seen this happen.

For an HD shotgun, I’d get an off the shelf mossy 500 or a remmy 870 and load it to the brim with OO or OOO buckshot and call it a day.

Thinking about going to Hogue 12" LOP stock on mine. Haven't added a side saddle yet but considering a velcro setup so I can switch out cards quickly from a pouch carrying extra loaded cards. Also considering a new follower and doing some file and polish work on the ramp to smooth out the loading action. Oh, an a bigger slide safety.

Since it's a Mossberg 500 there'll be no mag extension unless I replaced the whole assembly and barrel which kind of defeats the purpose of going with a cheaper older Mossberg so it's five in the pipe and one in the barrel. I have considered a single shell holder on ejection side behind the ejection port for the purpose of speed loading into the receiver. If you mounted it horizontally, you can just slide it forward along the receiver right into the ejection port and then just rack the slide forward.

Match Saver Shell Holder - This one is on a semi which allows for mounting in front of the ejection port and they just slide the shell back and in. For a pump, it might work behind the port and slide forward and in. Not sure though.


Oh, and check this out. Pretty neat speed loading of a pump without speciality caddies. Dudes calls it tactical twins and he's loading doubles from a side saddle. I considered the magpul stock likes he's got for my Mossberg but have no experience with Magpul stocks so not sure how good they are for a shotgun compared to say the Hogue I mentioned earlier...and they're more expensive than the Hogue. I just need a smaller stock so I can get a better squared up seat behind the shotgun.

 

[JOE QUEEF]

Oh, and check this out. Pretty neat speed loading of a pump without speciality caddies. Dudes calls it tactical twins and he's loading doubles from a side saddle. I considered the magpul stock likes he's got for my Mossberg but have no experience with Magpul stocks so not sure how good they are for a shotgun compared to say the Hogue I mentioned earlier...and they're more expensive than the Hogue. I just need a smaller stock so I can get a better squared up seat behind the shotgun.

Spoiler

 

[bushman505]

Thinking about going to Hogue 12" LOP stock on mine. Haven't added a side saddle yet but considering a velcro setup so I can switch out cards quickly from a pouch carrying extra loaded cards. Also considering a new follower and doing some file and polish work on the ramp to smooth out the loading action. Oh, an a bigger slide safety.

Since it's a Mossberg 500 there'll be no mag extension unless I replaced the whole assembly and barrel which kind of defeats the purpose of going with a cheaper older Mossberg so it's five in the pipe and one in the barrel. I have considered a single shell holder on ejection side behind the ejection port for the purpose of speed loading into the receiver. If you mounted it horizontally, you can just slide it forward along the receiver right into the ejection port and then just rack the slide forward.

Match Saver Shell Holder - This one is on a semi which allows for mounting in front of the ejection port and they just slide the shell back and in. For a pump, it might work behind the port and slide forward and in. Not sure though.


Oh, and check this out. Pretty neat speed loading of a pump without speciality caddies. Dudes calls it tactical twins and he's loading doubles from a side saddle. I considered the magpul stock likes he's got for my Mossberg but have no experience with Magpul stocks so not sure how good they are for a shotgun compared to say the Hogue I mentioned earlier...and they're more expensive than the Hogue. I just need a smaller stock so I can get a better squared up seat behind the shotgun.

If you’re itching to customize your gun that’s cool, nothing wrong with it. For me though, my HD shotgun is just that, an HD gun, it dosent go anywhere, it sits behind the bedroom door, it’s cruiser safe (the tube is full, chamber empty).

My take is that the gun will smooth itself out if you break it in, and also you aren’t going to be reloading a 12g pump gun in a home invasion situation, you won’t have time so you’ll just switch to your pistol.

Anyways, if it was me, and I was buying a 500,590 or 870 tonuse as an HD gun here’s what I’d do: go to wall mart and buy 3 or 4 of those 100rd boxes of cheap bird shot, take the gun out and just blast the shot out of everything at a dump or gravel pit with all that cheap bird shot, clean the gun, lid it with 00 or 000 buckshot and put it behind my door, no tactical shit hanging off of it, just a bunch of rounds through it to smooth off the edges and get springs settled in and that’s that.

 

[Thai Domi]

This is what I have.

I do have a stock I can put on it though.

 

[Protectandserve]

I prefer standard on the mossy due to position of the safety. Pistol grip and functioning the safety on the Mossberg is awkward.

 

[RerouteToRemain]

Does that extension give you 9? Not sure about sights either. Personally, I'm thinking about an Red Dot on mine as I've added a rail on the receiver.

I believe it is 8+1. I have a night stand pistol and an AR set up for hd. I don't keep that shotgun ready anymore. Just range fun now.

I've wanted to change it up. I want to put a ubr gen 2, ergo grip and maybe a "cheap" eotech on it or Leupold delta point pro. See if I can get a magpul shotgun forend to fit on it. Also see if I can get a different sight/rail set up. Something similar to benelli m4 sights that have a much lower profile.

 

[jlagman]

I prefer standard on the mossy due to position of the safety. Pistol grip and functioning the safety on the Mossberg is awkward.

Shotguns just don't seem to mix with pistol grips; it's almost like they were designed to be used with a field stock, lol.

I had a pistol gripped stock on my 870, even that got in the way of the safety. When I had a straight stock on the gun, I became accustomed to using my right (shooting) index finger to bump off the safety and then curling around the trigger guard with my right middle finger to re-engage the safety. When I had a pistol gripped stock, my thumb was too short to re-engage the safety from the left side without breaking my grip.

Not to mention the recoil characteristics, with a straight stock, it all gets directed towards the shoulder. When I had a pistol gripped stock, a bunch of recoil would bleed off and be directed into the web of my hand; not comfortable at all. Needless to say, I switched back to a straight stock long ago.

 

[Patrick Carey]

I have this for my couch gun. It's nice enough to shoot/deploy. Pistol grip only is rough to shoot but I can if I have to

 

[JOE QUEEF]

couch gun

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

Would you prefer a pump or semi-auto?

 

[IndyCovaHart]

Whatever that fat hillbilly was using in the shooting video.

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

Finally switched out the pistol grip on the Mossberg 500 for one of these Hogue jobs.

From this.

To this.

But I kept the original foreend since it has the strap that says Mossberg. Feels like a real gun now and not some toy.

 

[jericksen5]

Traditional stock all the way. I don’t like the way pistol grip stocks handle recoil and I don’t totally see the point.

I also have a 500 persuader. I put the “bantam” length (shorter LOP) from hogue on it and I like it a lot. It makes it more compact and allows you to square up your stance which is better for home defense in a tighter indoor environment. I’ll post a pic if you want when I get home.

 

[jericksen5]

Thinking about going to Hogue 12" LOP stock on mine. Haven't added a side saddle yet but considering a velcro setup so I can switch out cards quickly from a pouch carrying extra loaded cards. Also considering a new follower and doing some file and polish work on the ramp to smooth out the loading action. Oh, an a bigger slide safety.

Since it's a Mossberg 500 there'll be no mag extension unless I replaced the whole assembly and barrel which kind of defeats the purpose of going with a cheaper older Mossberg so it's five in the pipe and one in the barrel. I have considered a single shell holder on ejection side behind the ejection port for the purpose of speed loading into the receiver. If you mounted it horizontally, you can just slide it forward along the receiver right into the ejection port and then just rack the slide forward.

Match Saver Shell Holder - This one is on a semi which allows for mounting in front of the ejection port and they just slide the shell back and in. For a pump, it might work behind the port and slide forward and in. Not sure though.


Oh, and check this out. Pretty neat speed loading of a pump without speciality caddies. Dudes calls it tactical twins and he's loading doubles from a side saddle. I considered the magpul stock likes he's got for my Mossberg but have no experience with Magpul stocks so not sure how good they are for a shotgun compared to say the Hogue I mentioned earlier...and they're more expensive than the Hogue. I just need a smaller stock so I can get a better squared up seat behind the shotgun.

I didn’t see this post before posting my first reply. The hogue 12” LOP is the one I have, and I’m happy with it years later. I’ve run it it a 3 gun, and although I was the only guy running a pump action, I still did pretty well.
I have the Mesa tactical side saddle and it’s ok. It looks cool but i found it cumbersome to reload quickly from.

 

[Teppodama]

I didn’t see this post before posting my first reply. The hogue 12” LOP is the one I have, and I’m happy with it years later. I’ve run it it a 3 gun, and although I was the only guy running a pump action, I still did pretty well.
I have the Mesa tactical side saddle and it’s ok. It looks cool but i found it cumbersome to reload quickly from.

How do you feel about the feel/texture of the stock? Wondering how it is with sweaty palms from a hot day? Under rainy conditions? Etc... regarding the mesa side saddle, can you explain a little more regarding the cumbersome reload?

Thanks by the way for the post that prompted these questions.