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Two 500's, different fore-ends?

Been a while since I've been here, but, here goes. About two years ago, I bought two new 500's, one 12, one 20ga. Both field models. Everything I read says the fore-end on these are pinned. Certainly is on the 12ga, but, for the life of me, I cannot find anything that looks like a pinned fore-end on my 20ga. The 12ga is pretty quite, the 20ga has the tell tale "rattle", if you will. Any explanation what I may be missing[or not], with the 20ga. Thanks guys. And have a Happy New Years!
 
old mossy. mine do not seem to look like those pictured. Both have two action bars. When I take the barrel's off, the top of the 20ga fore-end is pretty much enclosed. No pins are visible or apparent. The 12ga, I can clearly see mag tube and the spring thing notched into the action bars. Nothing like that on the 20. Stumped.
I'm not really worried about a failure, as I don't shoot as much as some do. It was just some stuff I read about those pins. It's the difference between the two thats got me.
 
Do you have a nut at the front of the forearm? Two notches on the front? If there is, it's a steel action slide tube and it will be identical to one of the first two in his pic. You said field model so it'll be the shorter one. Mossberg uses the long tube on tactical guns and the shorter on sporting guns. If you don't have a nut, your forearm is a one piece plastic with pinned in bars. Look around the spot where the bars go into the forearm and you'll find pins. You can see the pins in that pic OM posted where it says "if your action bar is a one piece type...". The pins are those two dots. You said you could see "the mag tube" and the "spring notched into the bars"....that's what's known as a "quiet carry" forearm slide tube. The mag tube you think you see is the slide tube ON the mag tube. That spring thingy notched into the action bars keeps the action bars tilted upward/downward under spring tension and eliminates the rattle. If your 20 is pinned, it won't have that spring. You can buy a quiet carry tube for the 20....but unless you really want to be able to mount a new forearm of some type or the sometimes rattle *really bothers you*....

Happy New Year, OM and Tel! Happy New Year, all! Although, as we all know, the REAL New Years Day is on Jan 8. Elvis Presley's birthday.

Thank you. Thank you very much.

I sounded just like him, didn't I? I amaze myself sometimes :)))))))))))))))))
 
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Roger that. We've probably all heard of the pins falling out or breaking. You'd have to kind of beat it up to do that. Those two go to the trap range 2-3 times a year, then some upland bird chasing. I don't abuse 'em. Thinking they'll last if I don't drag them behind my truck.
 
Yeah, I'm not into catastrophic failure testing either.
 
Same thing I was going to say, John. That one on the left, I have never seen one like it. The one on the right is a quiet carry slide tube although THAT spring is obviously not the one you were referring to. That little tiny flat spring band in the notch in the forearm up towards the receiver end on the right one is the spring I meant. That left one, I have never seen a forearm like it, but it's a good idea. Same basic concept as the one on the right.
 
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Yeah, sort of threw me to. And the one on the right[20ga] is the one with the Mossberg rattle. 12ga is as quite as can be. Well, as long as they work and last, I'm fine.
 
If you think that rattles with that slide tube, you've never handled an old style before the quiet spring ;))))))))))))) Your 20 is a steel slide tube, though. That nut at the front lets you switch out the forearm furniture if you want. You won't ever break it. If you want to fiddle with it, strip the entire forearm/action bars out of the receiver on a full strip/clean and use a butter knife in the slots to unscrew the nut. With it off, the forearm plastic will pull right off. Might be tight but it pulls right off. If you measure the steel slide tube, you'll match it to OM's pic above. The 12, that forearm, if you want to go for wood sometime later, you;ll need to buy a steel slide action tube like the one on your 20. A 12, of course. And if you DO decide to go that route, and most folks do at some point, come back here and one of us will give you the info on the exact tube you'll need. That's as in old/new, long/short, dimpled/straight etc. It's easy stuff, just the tubes have changed a tiny bit here and there over the years.

Congrats on your guns, btw!

richard
 
Richard,
Thanks for the info. I had thought about putting wood on one of them down the line, probably the 20.
But, for now, GTG. I agree about them lasting; I use 'em, but, I don't abuse them. Have a Happy New Year.
We'll be talking.
P/S: Now, I'll go over to the 930 threads. Great field gun!
 
One more tip. On that quiet carry on the 20, if you jerk the plastic off the tube, the spring is right at the very end of the bars. It's a little arc shaped flat spring with the ends bent up. If you want to lighten the tension or tighten it, you can remove the spring and replace it with little tiny pieces of tempered spring wire (any craft or modeling store). I forget the size....I think it's 18 or 20 gauge wire. You can adjust the forearm feel by adding more than one. Three wires side by side is about factory stiffness....five is a good solid non-rattle forearm. It's a pretty common mod that changes nothing on the gun. No gunsmithing. That big spring on your 12 would be the same, I figure. Change the wire, change the feel. In fact, I'm going to grab an old style Mav 88 carncob with the loose bars and see if it can be modded for a spring. You got me in a crafty sort of mood.
 
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