Difference Between a Mossberg 500 and Mossberg 590?

[Pele]

So would I be able to tell the difference between a 590 and a 500 both set up for Tactical use?
Can someone explain Tactical, Sporting, and any other configurations that I may want to know about?

This is for home defense, I want a highly maneuverable gun with as short a barrel as legal... Going down a hallway or down stairs, I can see a very long gun being a bit unwieldy and potentially dangerous, as the bad guy can see the barrel coming before you see him.

Then again, I want the mag tube as long as the shotgun barrel for maximum capacity, just in case I need it.

I'll get the hooks that I can put on the side of my bed so it'll always be at the ready.

[Glock Fan]

Originally Posted by Pele

So would I be able to tell the difference between a 590 and a 500 both set up for Tactical use?
Can someone explain Tactical, Sporting, and any other configurations that I may want to know about?

This is for home defense, I want a highly maneuverable gun with as short a barrel as legal... Going down a hallway or down stairs, I can see a very long gun being a bit unwieldy and potentially dangerous, as the bad guy can see the barrel coming before you see him.

Then again, I want the mag tube as long as the shotgun barrel for maximum capacity, just in case I need it.

I'll get the hooks that I can put on the side of my bed so it'll always be at the ready.

Side by side, the way I tell the difference is looking at the mag tube. The 500 has a nut that screws into the top of the mag tube, which holds the barrel in place. The 590 has a ring that goes over the mag tube and a cap at the top of the mag tube. If in doubt you could always check out the model number stamped on the receiver.

There are many different opinions as to what a "tactical" shotgun looks like. My "general" definition is a shotgun that has features (cosmetic or functional) that make the gun look different from a "sporting" shotgun". These features could include a pistol grip, barrel shroud, "tactical" sights, "M-4" type stock, etc. A "sporting" shotgun would generally have a fixed stock, no pistol grip, standard "bead" sights, and is usually not "all black". Stock might be composite material in various colors or a wooden stock.

Manuvering through your home with a shotgun isn't a very good idea unless you have proper training. Many factors come into play. A BG seeing the barrel of your shotgun coming is a minor thing compared to everything else. Before I go further, I suggest that anyone wanting to use a shotgun for HD get proper training if they plan to use it for purposes other than defending themselves from a single location.

I believe that the 590 has a magazine tube extension that can be added. SHOTGUN MAGAZINE TUBE EXTENSION at Brownells

Hope I've been able to answer your questions.



gf

[Pele]

Originally Posted by Glock Fan

Manuvering through your home with a shotgun isn't a very good idea unless you have proper training.

Duly noted and I'll definitely look into training with any gun I purchase.

Would the Mossberg be useful for skeet/trap/clay pigeon shooting?
More specifically, if I configured it for tactical use, would it make it completely useless in a sporting situation?

[Glock Fan]

Originally Posted by Pele

Duly noted and I'll definitely look into training with any gun I purchase.

Would the Mossberg be useful for skeet/trap/clay pigeon shooting?
More specifically, if I configured it for tactical use, would it make it completely useless in a sporting situation?

You would need to use the appropriate "choke" for the activity you're doing. A good "all purpose" choke would be the "modified" choke. This is what usually comes with the shotgun. For skeet/trap shooting, you'll probably want to use a "skeet choke" with the proper shot shells.

Once you get the shotgun, you'll want to experiment with different chokes and shot shells to see what works best for you. For HD I use the "modified choke" that came with the shotgun and 00 buckshot in 2.75" shotshells. For hunting, I usually use #4 birdshot for everthing other than turkey. I'll have both my "modified' and "skeet" choke tubes and swap them out depending on the range and game bird species I'm hunting.



gf