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Pistol grip shotgun, 20 or 12ga?

I tried a friends 20ga short barrel Rem 870 with pistol grip. The gun would break the grip of my left hand and recoil fairly violently. Will a PG 20ga Mossberg with the 18" bbl have much less felt recoil? I ask because I was a Remington fan until i shot my first Mossberg. Maybe it was that it fit me well, but it seemed to recoil less than my 870. Wonder if it is angle of the grip or some other factor. Right now I don't have any shotguns or I would have tried it before asking here.

Also, does low brass 20ga recoil much less than low brass 12ga? I would just go with the 20ga, but I really like the Magpul forearm for the 12ga 500.

Thanks in advance.
 
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As an owner of a 12 gauge Mossberg 500 Cruiser with a pistol grip ( also have a full stock ) I can attest that they can be a hand full when shooting...but there IS a trick to it. And felt recoil is a perception that varies with each person differently...depending on so many variables it really is personal to the individual. What bothers me may not bother you...etc

Having said that...a 20 gauge would be a lot easier to shoot in the pistol grip config, due to reduced recoil associated with the loads available. And since we know you're not going to duck hunt with it...I figure it's safe to assume it's for home defense...with ranges of the kill zone to be measured in feet rather than yards...and the 20 gauge with the right load would excel in that regard. Winchester make a 20 gauge PDX load for just that situation...

BTW...high brass and low brass have nothing at all to do with recoil. Period.

Just do your homework...no forum can tell you what will work for you...only you can tell what the difference in felt recoil will be with a pistol grip (and a stock) between the two gauges...and therefore ease of use when you need it the most.

Just my 2 cents...
 
Certainly not my first shotgun, I've had several Mossbergs and a couple of 870's. I sold most of them over the years, but try to always try to keep a couple on hand. I just purchased a Mossberg 12ga Shorty 14"bbl pistol grip only firearm and sold my last two Mossbergs. But my police department will not register it and I have to send it back to the manufacturer. Now no shotgun...have to have one soon, thus my questions.

I always thought low brass was less powerful than high brass and that high brass recoiled more than low brass.

I really want to know if a 20ga, 18"bbl PGO shotgun recoils substantially less than a 10"bbl PGO shotgun? I'm not concerned about managing the recoil, i'm sure I could train up to it, just want to know what to expect so I can make an informed decision.
 
I guarantee that if you bolt one of these to the back of a 20 gauge 500, you will be able to comfortably shoot it all day long:

th


ATI Scorpion. Take care. Tom Worthington
 
Where you getting a 14" barrel shotgun...!?

18" is the shortest shotgun barrel they sell...16" for a rifle...( unless you got a stamp for a SBR / SBS ) no wonder you didn't get the PD OK...ever hear of the NFA !?

Yea...the shorter the barrel, the more felt recoil...12 or 20 gauge.
 
14" bbl Mossberg, bought mine from a custom shop, they are available from other gunsmiths. No stamp needed, nor is it NFA. Don't want to get into specifics, but they are legal and available to those who are aware of them.

"the shorter the barrel the more felt recoil." This is the kind if insight I am looking for.

I'm pretty sure that within a manufactures line, a low brass load will recoil considerable less than high brass load. It just makes sense.
 
As long as the firearm began life as a pistol grip only model and the overall length of the firearm is greater than 26" it is not classified as an AOW and thereby not an NFA regulated firearm. Kinda like and AR-15 pistol, except this particular configuration doesn't fall into any NFA classification...
 
OK, now I'm totally confused.
Is shotgun barrel length/overall length a federal regulation or state?

I'm about to start looking for a coach gun for home defense: a pistol grip side by side, and I was considering a 12 Ga.
I thought 18" was the shortest allowed, with a 26" overall length.
But I also thought this was just a California thing.

Also a 12 Ga is the only gage shotgun I've ever shot. I wasn't considering a smaller one, but should I and why?

(I take it that it's illegal to cut the stock off to make a pistol grip?)
 
An 18" barrel is absolutely the shortest legal barrel length on a shotgun without going through the BATFE for a registered SBS (short barrel shotgun).

However, a key point of legal classification as a "shotgun" rests on the firearm being designed with a buttstock and intended to be used as a shoulder fired weapon (paraphrasing, of course). Pistol gripped shotguns do not have a stock and are not intended to be fired from the shoulder, therefore not legally considered as a shotgun according to BATFE classification. If one were to take a factory pistol grip only shotgun that has never had a stock fixed to the receiver and find yourself a 14" barrel, one could assemble said pieces into a non-NFA regulated firearm that is neither a shotgun, SBS, AOW, or any other form of defined NFA regulated firearm as long as the overall length measures longer than 26". The trick is to use a straight pistol grip like the Raptor Grip from Shockwave Technologies. This same configuration measuring under 26" overall length is classified as an AOW and subject to NFA regulations, tax stamps, etc. If the shotgun began life with a stock affixed, it can never be anything other than an 18" or longer shotgun without being processed through the BATFE and reclassified as a SBS with the accompanying tax stamps, etc...
 
So if I built one from a "cruiser" it comes with a pistol grip. Can I then change the stock to any available pistol grip stock? like I might build from scratch? Or replace a plastic stock with a similar wood one?
 
SHOOTER13 said:
...I figure it's safe to assume it's for home defense...with ranges of the kill zone to be measured in feet rather than yards...and the 20 gauge with the right load would excel in that regard. Winchester make a 20 gauge PDX load for just that situation...

So what makes it superior?
 
So if I built one from a "cruiser" it comes with a pistol grip. Can I then change the stock to any available pistol grip stock? like I might build from scratch? Or replace a plastic stock with a similar wood one?

You can reconfigure a cruiser any way you want, pistol grip or full stock. Once you attach a stock, it is then legally classified as a shotgun from that point on...
 
I never understood a pistol grip on a shotgun.
Mine are all good for HD, but they get much more use shooting flying targets. Either clay or feathered. It is what they were made for.
Just my not so humble opinion.
 
Affordability has nothing to do with it. Again just my opinion.
I never had a use for one and never will.
I have also never been a "Tacticool" guy. My shotguns win me money and trophies and put food on the table. None of which can be done with a pistol grip.
Your gun so have fun with whatever you bolt on it.
 
Some guys can't use a hammer, that does not invalidate the usefulness of the tool. Pistol grip shotguns have their place in home defense, some people cannot shoot a PGO shotgun and that is nothing to be ashamed of. A persons inability to use a PGO shotgun does not mean PGO shotguns are not a useful tool to other people.
 
. . . My shotguns win me money and trophies and put food on the table. . .

For me it's just the opposite. I don't hunt. I don't compete. There's a meat market 1/2 mile from my house.

This gun would be a gnarly range toy, and door gun.

BTW, thinking about this, I might be very happy with a smaller gage. I'm a victim of this bigger-is-better society, but while a 16 ga or 20 ga wouldn't be such a blunderbuss at the range, it's certainly adequate as a door gun.
 
The amount of brass vs. plastic used on the hull of a shotgun shell has no effect on recoil whatsoever. It's just cosmetic. It's what's inside that counts. You have to read the box to see how much shot (load) and powder (dram equivalent, feet per second) the shell contains.
 
Brass or aluminum is expensive compared to plastic. But metal is needed at the base of the shell to contain the pressure generated when fired. Low brass is for low pressure loads, i.e. lower velocity rounds and/or light shot loads. Higher pressure loads require "high brass", more metal at the base of the shell to contain the higher pressures generated during firing. More pressure, all other things being equal, results in more perceived recoil. Thus a high brass load recoils more than a low brass load. What's inside determines how much metal is needed. Cosmetics have nothing to do with it.
 
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