Mossberg 935 vs Remington SPR453

cuda67 · 04-16-2008, 08:49 PM

I was thinking about retiring my old 870 and getting a low priced auotloader. I don't want to spend alot of money on a new gun to trash it in the duck blind with wet dogs. I was looking at the Mossberg 935 till I noticed Remingtons SPR453. Which one would be better? Both are about the same price.

legion · 04-17-2008, 11:14 PM

I got my wife an SPR 453 in February for trap. I had target sights mounted and fit a limbsaver pad to it. (There is no factory fit pad.)

It had trouble cycling the first 25 or so rounds, but I now have 200 rounds through it and it shoots like a dream. It's still pretty stiff, but that just means it needs more trips to the range!

I was switching between my SPR 310 and the 453 last time I went to shoot trap. It was amazing the difference in recoil to me. With the new pad, it feels like it has NO recoil whatsoever.

Bloodsaw · 04-19-2008, 09:09 AM

I have the 935...recoil is KILLING me.. cant shoot it more than once or twice without saying F-it...need a better recoil pad, but i still dont think that will stop it a whole lot...

legion · 04-19-2008, 10:29 PM

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...&plindex=0

SwampCollie · 04-20-2008, 07:28 AM

Opinions vary on both. Most 935 owners I've spoken with seem to cite some sort of minor problem, be it in cycling, recoil, etc etc. Some have had major issues when Mossberg first introduced them, and those issues have apparently since been sorted out (some sort of part fitting issue... it was a big deal).

Folks who own the 453s seem to be split right down the middle... they are either the greatest thing since smokeless powder, or the biggest piece of crap since the Chauchat machine gun. I have assembled a few of them, and they are no Remington 1100 for sure. We've had a few get returned for factory warranty work, and a few get returned for good because they wouldn't work. Honestly, we still take back more Remington 1187s than any other gun at our shop. We don't stock or sell a terrible number of the 453s because of some of the early issues with them (mostly related to part fitting and cycling).

My honest objective opinion here, you cannot expect a $500 semi auto to perform (cycle and hold up to abuse) as well as a $1000+ one. The materials just won't take it. I personally, being a pretty serious waterfowler myself, cannot figure for the life of me why someone would want to use a semi-auto to the exclusion of all others for duck hunting. I have a couple semis and a couple pumps, and I'll tell you this.... no matter what semi-auto you buy.... sooner or later it will hang up on you.... even if only for a second...Benellis, Berettas, Brownings.... doesn't matter.... anyone who has NEVER had their semi hang up on them in a hunting situation just hasn't shot it enough to have it happen yet... but it will happen. I take meticulous care of my firearms... but when you introduce mud, water, grit and grime... things slow down and will eventually hang up. I'm not knocking semi's here, for any reason... they certainly have their place and a lot of people just can't get used to shooting a pump and thats fine. I grew up with a pump, and personally I still shoot one a lot better than a semi.