Maverick 88

LEGION 12

LEGION 12

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Have a very old Remington full barrel shotgun fine old piece gotten a lot of use from my grandfather down to me. Think its time to upgrade was looking at either mossbergs Maverick 88 or there 590A1 models . Want something i can use for the field and home protection if need be . Anybody have any experiance with any of these models . Any advice would be greatly appreciated .
 
Get the 500 if anything. The Mav88s are just a cheaper (Read less sturdy) model. Personally if you look around you can find a Remington 870 for around $200.00. Best damn pup shotgun on the planet. Steel reciever and legendary reliability. Plus lots more accessories should you want to deck it out for Home Defense. I used to own a Mav88, 500, and 590. Wished I had just gotten the Remington 870 from the start.
 
LEGION 12 said:
Maverick 88
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:barf: The shotgun you have may be better then a brand new one of these. These IMHO are vastly inferior to a Remington 870 Express which last time cost me $260 out the door BRAND SPANKIN' NEW.

LEGION 12 said:
590A1
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:) Much better option, especially if you don't want another Remington. Personally, a Remington 870 Police model for $500 Brand New is where I would spend my money. A used Remington 870 Wingmaster is another good option at lesser cost.
 
If your Grandfather's Remington is an 870 you're really set..this Grandpa has had his and used heavy for over 48 years.

Also have owned a Maverick 88 for many years, cut barrel to 18"+ a hair and remounted the ramp front sight [has rifle sights] and was my truck gun for long time. An early model mine has a single action bar, believe current offering had two. I've owned one cheaper and better pump shotgun..a High Standard Flite King I bought for $62 and made into a sluggun...trigger like a match rifle..broke like glass.

I've always shot heavy loads..slugs, buck and field lead/steel..in the field no issue but at a bench sighting in slugs. buck will handle you pretty good.

My 870 currently has an 18" rifle sight, Rem Choke barrel. Years ago I did whack the original 30" full to a 18" cylinder but was disappointed with slug accuracy performance... DOH!

I like short barrel rifles/shotguns..handling in and out of vehicles and buildings is superior IMHO however if had only one and field use was primary would opt for a >21" adjustable or RemChoke, YMMV.
 
You can probably find a lightly used Mossberg 500 at a pawn shop for $175. The Maverick is ok but for a few dollars more a much better investment would be the mossberg or remington.
 
Sounds like good advice dont want to buy a cheaply made shotgun as far as the remington goes its a 870 but its gonna stay in the safe . Reason i was checking out the 88 was the price seemed right for me at this time.but i think i will probably spend a little more and get the 590a1-6six shot with the ghost ring sights gonna look around more before i make a final decision and also get as much advise from here as i can next one i get is gonna be my main user . Thanks guys. Rich
 
Pay once, cry once. ;)

Buy something inferior that fails you when you need it or must be replaced when it doesn't work is not a good value by any measure.

If you are buying new for home protection, make sure you look for dual action/slide bars and ghost ring sights. Bottom ejection is a nice feature as well. Use the older Remington 870 for hunting season.
 
There was something recently in the news about a police department that had to return its 590A1s, I think they were, because of some kind of mechanical problem that had to be checked and fixed, but personally I've had good results from both Mossbergs and Mavericks. Yes, the Maverick 88 is cheap and yes, you get what you pay for, but I've owned two and they were functional shotguns that did not fail me over a reasonable service life.
 
There is nothing wrong with the maverick 88 shotgun..my friends and I all bought them and they are great! They are not a well fit and finished gun, just a basic as you can get 12 ga. defender..Ive had mine for 3 years and use it all the time..its NEVER jammed, it has a smoothe action and i find it to be quite sturdy..nothing wrong with the gun at all...If you want the best of the best though, go with a remington 870 or a mossberg 500/590...both are nice shotguns..you cant go wrong!..Mossberg has a much better selection for defender style shotguns than remington..what can i say..i am a mossberg fan..they make the some of the best military/law enforcement shotguns in the world...but on that topic..so does remington.

just go buy the 88..if it is right for your price range, giv'er man..if somone broke into your house or a wild animal was charging you and you layed 'em out with the 88 and saved your life are you going to think later that maybe an remington 870 or a mossberg 500 would've done a better job? Nope..shotguns are shotguns...but if you have any doubts about the 88, wait until you have the cash for somthing better.

thats interesting about the police returning thier 590A1's..somthing to consider for sure..
 
Maverick 88 at $200 or Mossberg 590A1 at $350? If a $150 makes a significant difference in your purchase decision, you may want to look at a used Remington 870 Police Magnum.

For home defense, do you really want the cheapest thing you can find? If that's all you can afford, then yes. Otherwise, step up to a little better quality. Especially when you consider the fact you will own this firearm for decades and possibly pass it on to your children in your estate decades from now. ;)
 
Speaking as a gunsmith, the main difference, but a potential for failure between a Rem 870 and a Mossberg 500, is the shell lifter. The Rem, Win, and others, have a complex cam/spring loaded 'shelf' at the front of the trigger assembly to lift the next round into place. But Mossbergs have two thick, sturdy steel arms at each side of the lifter that extend back through the receiver to anchor/rotator points at the rear. These arms are activated by the bolt travel to lift the new shell into position for chambering. As a result I have NEVER seen a Mossberg fail to feed. And, in the most recent military torture tests I am aware of, a Mossberg pump fired six thousand plus continuous bckshot rounds without a failure.
 
Go with the Moss. Marine Detatchments still issue the Mossbergs and will do so for a long time.
 
Old CW4 said:
Speaking as a gunsmith, the main difference, but a potential for failure between a Rem 870 and a Mossberg 500, is the shell lifter. The Rem, Win, and others, have a complex cam/spring loaded 'shelf' at the front of the trigger assembly to lift the next round into place. But Mossbergs have two thick, sturdy steel arms at each side of the lifter that extend back through the receiver to anchor/rotator points at the rear. These arms are activated by the bolt travel to lift the new shell into position for chambering. As a result I have NEVER seen a Mossberg fail to feed. And, in the most recent military torture tests I am aware of, a Mossberg pump fired six thousand plus continuous bckshot rounds without a failure.
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This is true....however at the end of this test the rest of the shotgun was falling apart. :D

Just kidding.

I saw a number of 590's when I was in the Army. The most common problems I saw over my armorer's bench was safety switches falling off, bent pump drawbars that would bind the action, and lost parts. Outside of the safeties, most of this was caused from soldiers improperly trying to field strip the piece.

Not a bad shotgun.

TR Graham
The Glocksmith
 
Either Mossberg or Remington will likely serve admirably as a pump gun (Speaking of the Mossberg 500 & 590. I've no experience with the 88.) Look hard at them both, and pick the one with the features you like best. Things to compare would be:

Position of the safety,

Position of the slide lock,

the shell lifter (Mossberg stays up, Remington stays down,)

Receiver material (Steel vs. aluminum.)
 
I found an old 870 mag for $150.00 at a gun shop. It was dirty and worn, but mechanically it was sound. Took it home, spent about another $150.00 fixing it up with accessories and such and it's just a tank. I later filed a form one on it and chopped the barrel down to the factory mag tube length (about 12") and it's hell on wheels.
 
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