I have been thinking of getting a good pump riot gun for home defense. While I would love to get an Ithaca 37, my price range limits me to the Mossberg 500 or a Remington 870.  While I have fired both as a kid , and they both seem good as field guns, I was wondering what might be better for self defense. I am leaning more towards the 500, but some say the plastic trigger group make it a fragile design. Any advice?

Do you prefer Ford or Chevy?  Coke or Pepsi?  Budweiser or Coors? 

For the application you mentioned; can't go wrong with either model shotgun.
Military uses the Mossberg
Most Police forces use the Remington
Mossberg 500 has duel extractors
Remington 870 has been around for generations (tried and true and stood very well against test of time)
Do you prefer the safety on top (Mossberg) or on trigger guard (Remington).

It truly comes down to personal preference.  Pick both up examine closely, then decide which suits you the most.

Fair notice: I bought my Remington 870 right out of school almost 30 years ago for less $150 (all I could afford at time).  Countess successful dove, quail, pheasant, turkey, squirrel, deer, hog hunts (rain, dust, blazing heat, freezing cold and snow).  From bird shot to buck shot as well as 3" magnum slugs; never, ever a hick up or problem.  Which is why, it got an a factory 18.5" shortened barrel and sits in a gun safe 15' from my bed to this day. 

Although Mossberg is great too.  Both have plentiful aftermarket accessories (recommend a mounted light at minimum for your application) and either would serve you very well when things go bump in the night.

Good luck!

PS.  Ford, Diet Coke, Coors Light (on second thought, when mentioning my beer brand - cold suits me just fine).

It the REMINGTON 870 for me!  My dad had his since he was a kid (after he passed (RIP)I got his) and when I was old enough I bought my own wit a 30" real full choke (about 9" of inside taper to a full choke)(not those short screw in things) and also bought the 18.5" rifle sight barrel for slug and close quarter needs.  Oh yea I have handloaded for mine since day one, using Blue Dot powder 2 3/4" shells (3¾dram eq. 1¼ oz No.6 shot @ 1,330 fps).  Using same loads to drive 10 pellet load of 00 buckshot.

To me the 870 just points very naturally, like Rojo27, mine has been dragged through the swamps and marshes of Louisiana for hunting, still going strong.

I have both an 870 and several mossbergs, there is nothing fragile about the mossberg. One is older than me, inherited from my grandfather... i will be 41 next month.
Buy used, you can pick up either for $100 or less if you hit the pawn ships. I have paid as little as $69 otd for a mossberg 500. I picked up my 870 a few months ago for $100 plus tax and then found a shorter barrel for $40 at a gun show. Yes, these were ugly guns with some rust, but i have way more time than money. The 870 will soon be cerakoted and have new hogue stocks with a factory mag extension.

The 500 is a very nice choice
They come in several variants and have a host of aftermarket parts available to customize it to your needs
I LOVE my Winchester 1300 Defender
Very nice and at a reasonable cost (if you can find one now)

I have seen the Ithaca 'Home Defense' shotty for sale under $500 USD.  As far as price goes, Remington 870's would probably be the most expensive followed by Ithaca, and then Mossberg.  Don't let the 'plastic trigger-group' bother you, it's no biggie.  You can always go to Brownell's and buy the all-metal Mossberg replacement part for just under $100 USD, I did as a spare.  I also, purchased the upgrade unit for my 870 Express pump.  You might also look into the 'Maverick' brand, also owned by Mossberg just made in Mexico.  The Mossy, and Ithaca are both 'southpaw' friendly.  The Mossberg also comes with a 'plastic' safety-slide, which I also elected to eliminate for less than a few bucks.  As Rojo stated:  there's tons of aftermarket products for both Remmy, and Mossberg guns.  The Model 500 is the only shotgun to pass the U.S. Army's Mil-Spec 3443E test, so you can rely on it to be tough as nails right out of the box! 

Hickock45 did an interesting video comparison video on the two shotguns about a year ago.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6vaa6wsw7Ts

Don't necessarily always agree with his conclusions but he's very informative and interesting to watch.  Doesn't hurt that he likes 10mm and has done several videos concerning the cartridge (particularly the Glocks).

Thanks for all the advice. I think with my budget I will go with a Mossberg 500. As much as I want an Ithaca  37 riot gun, I never seem to find any near me and when I do they are very expensive new-more than 870s. Though sometimes I see LE trade in Model 37s for cheap, I may just wait and pick one of those up.

Quote from: CCantu357 on August 09 2014 03:27:14 AM MDT
Thanks for all the advice. I think with my budget I will go with a Mossberg 500. As much as I want an Ithaca  37 riot gun, I never seem to find any near me and when I do they are very expensive new-more than 870s. Though sometimes I see LE trade in Model 37s for cheap, I may just wait and pick one of those up.

Well, you know you can't go wrong with the 500
There are a ton of options and aftermarket add-ons available to it
I've seen them on sale at places like Big5 for around $200.00 (+/-) at times
Hope you find what you need

Quote from: CCantu357 on August 09 2014 03:27:14 AM MDT
Thanks for all the advice. I think with my budget I will go with a Mossberg 500. As much as I want an Ithaca  37 riot gun, I never seem to find any near me and when I do they are very expensive new-more than 870s. Though sometimes I see LE trade in Model 37s for cheap, I may just wait and pick one of those up.

Don't forget Moss's 500 little brother the Maverick 88 ( i believe).. many same parts as the 500, safety is on trigger guard.  Cheaper than the 500, works fine and can use 3" shells too.
come in defense lenght and normal

Here's my trusty bedside 30 year old Mossberg with the original "fragile"  trigger group



For outside the home a 9 shot/20 inch is better (have several) but my go to outdoors shottie is an MKA1919 or FN SLP autoloader. The problem with cylinder bore shotties is too wide of a pattern at longer ranges. If all I had was that, they would remain indoor or close range weapons and I would use my SIG 556R, etc

I STRONGLY advise buying and memorizing this excellent training video if you're going to use a shottie

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XCv0X6SqUg

AVOID the 870 Express like the plague.    I needed a shortie 20 gauge for a female relative to use for home defense.  I've had an old Wingmaster 12 gauge for years, great shotgun.  Bought a 870 Express 20 gauge.   It died right out of the box;  action locked up when I tried to pump it.   Took it back to the store.   They pulled another one out of its box, and I insisted on handling it.   Sure enough, its action also locked up at first pump.   They gave me my money back.  I found a barely used Winchester 1300 series 20 gauge that had been sitting in somebody's closet for years.    Outstanding gun.

The one to get is the Remington 870 Police model.   No powdered metal parts, and they check them out before they ship them.   Lawmen can't afford to carry cheapo turds--and neither can you.    Pay extra and get something real.   

Quote from: Rojo27 on August 02 2014 07:37:45 PM MDT
Hickock45 did an interesting video comparison video on the two shotguns about a year ago.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6vaa6wsw7Ts

Don't necessarily always agree with his conclusions but he's very informative and interesting to watch.  Doesn't hurt that he likes 10mm and has done several videos concerning the cartridge (particularly the Glocks).

That's the Mossberg 590 not the 500. Either will work but the Mossberg 590 is a proven workhorse.


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Used to have a Mossberg 590 Mariner, 8 or 9 Shot capacity, throw on a pistol grip and heat shield and your set

http://www.mossberg.com/product/590-mariner-9-shot-50299/