timbercruiser

What kind of budget are you looking at?

craig

I have to disagree with the above & here are my reasons:

The better made shotguns not only will hold up better in the field, they also help you shoot better. They are better balanced & thus swing more smoothly.
Maryland is one of the finer locations in the nation for waterfowl hunting, so the 3.5" guns are ones well worth a few bucks more for the opportunities you'll have. The 3.5" gun does not have to be choked tight for max range, a slightly more open choke will allow you to hit more easy (while still placing enough hits on target) & take more game as you are learning.
For a entry gun I'd not suggest the Benelli, though that companies Super Black Eagle (SBE) is the standard against which others are compared when waterfowl guns are discussed, they are just to expensive for a entry level hunter. But the 3.5" Remington 870 with a second rifled barrel for deer hunting is a fine choice. Better balanced than most cheaper guns, yet won't break the bank. Also you get the 870 with BOTH barrels & mid-range scope, for less than a SBE with only one barrel & no scope.

While I currently own both a Beretta 391 & Benelli SBE autos, I've killed hundreds of ducks & geese, pheasants, quail & grouse with a 870 pump. And the 870 is as well balanced as any pump shotgun made.

And the Mossberg pump guns are some of the most badly balanced shotguns on the market in ANY action. They are tough & rugged for the price paid, but deplorably balanced.

While it makes good sense not to spend a ton on a first gun, it also makes NO sense to buy a cheap gun that will hinder your shooting skills development.

I wish you the very, very best in hunting! May that buck pause broadside, the geese & ducks set in to your decoys & may the wind always be in your favor!

TheHardWoods913

Not sure of your budget, but when I first started hunting I too was in the same situation. At the time I was a lot younger and on a tight budget. I went with a 12 gauge Mossberg 500 Field/Deer combo for a very reasonable price. It came with a smoothbore barrel as well as a rifled barrel and scope. Killed my first turkey with this gun and my first deer as well. Like stated in a previous post, you can always spend more money down the road. Good luck and welcome!

Sheridan

That's "90%" of his huntings needs.

Sounds like a smart guy to me !

As a beginner you made a wise choice !!!

NebBuckHunter

To each their own I guess. I brought up the mossberg as an example of a gun that one who is just getting into the sport won't be scared off by its price tag. I'd have to disagree with a cheap gun hindering your shooting skills. For the first several years he'll be working on the basics, not fine tuning his shooting. Hunters across the country were started out on dads/grandpas beat em up shotguns without any problems later on once they could afford a nicer gun of their own. If you can hit your target, you can hit your target, regardless of the price tag hanging off the shotgun.

buffybr

I don't know much about Mossberg shotguns other than they make a rifled barrel that fits a 870 Rem. I don't think I've ever even held a Mossberg 500, so I don't know anything about it's balance, but I don't see how it would be much different than the balance of an 870 Rem. I do know that these two shotguns are comparatively priced and they are susposed to be good entry level shotguns.

I think the only pump shotgun that I have ever shot is a new 870 Rem 12 ga that I saw on sale for $220 at a local sporting goods store a few years ago. It had a black plastic stock and the barrel and receiver have some sort of black finish. Definately nothing fancy.

Anyway, I thought I couldn't go wrong at that price so I bought it and also bought a Skeet choke for it for about another $15. So the next week I took that 870 "ugly gun" out to our local Skeet range, and first time out of the box, I broke 24 out of 25 targets with it. Having never shot a pump before, I kept forgetting to pump it for the second shot at the doubles stations so the guys started to yell at me to pump it for the second shots.

iowa whitetail

In my opinion I would go with the shotgun if you want to hunt all of them. Hunting whitetail deer with a high power is not the way to go. First of all you will find yourself shooting bucks that are not mature cause they are to far to really tell there age. If I was you I would get that 870 cause they are very good first time shot guns go out get some experience then go from there. If you truly want to get into the whitetail hunting managment is the key and high po will not do that for you.

Mojotex

Here's another $.02 ... lots of good advice. A 12 ga. pump action shotgun or auto loader is certainly a good way to go as a "one gun" approach. Most, if not all pumps or auto loaders, will come new with a smooth barrel and several choke tubes. Usually 3 - Full, Modified and Improved Cylinder. You may find a "combo" set up that also includes a rifled barrel. You can buy an additional choke that is essentially extra-full that is often preferred by turkey hunters because if the resulting tight pattern out of 45-60 yards.

For deer, you can certainly use a smooth bore. If I did, I'd opt for a rifled slug rather than buck shot. The rifled slug, in general, will group fairly well and is effective out to about 75-100 yards.

An option is to buy a rifled barrel too. This will allow you to use a sabot type slug. The advantage is that the effective range is going be about double that of a rifled slug. The draw back of course is the extra cost .... something like another $200 +/- for the barrel alone. And if you are going to scope the "deer set up", probably another $300 - $500 for a decent scope and mounting system. You'll end up with something like $1000 - $1500 in the whole deal, depending upon the route that you take.

Now if you are going to primarily hunt deer and the law allows you to use a center fire rifle, that is by far the better route to go. In my opinion, as a good entry level option you'd be well served with a simple single shot center fire rifle such as a NEF Handi Rifle say in 243 Win. or 308 Win. topped with a decent scope in the $250 range. I have deer hunted for nearly 50 years now and have killed humpteen. I can count on one hand the times that I needed or had a decent second shot opportunity. I'd say 95+% have been clean, quick one shot kills. Don;t get me wrong, I prefer a bolt action to a single shot, but just starting off ... you may be wise to not invest much at this stage.

Just a suggestion ... you could probably go this "single shot" route, then add a Mossberg pump action shot gun and still stay around $1000 for both. That's comparable to a good shotgun, plus a rifled barrel, plus a decent scope set up.

NebBuckHunter

WHAAAAT? Yes the shotgun allows you to hunt all the mentioned animals but saying deer hunting with a rifle is NOT the way to go is crazy! A rifle is substantially more customizable with loads, more accurate, and more versatile than a shot gun when it comes to deer hunting. Notice he said he will mostly be hunting deer. A shotgun limits your range, decreases your accuracy, and has less options for loads.

I notice this poster is from Iowa, where they do not have a rifle season for deer, soooooo......take that for what it's worth. Don't be mistaken. A rifle is THE way to take deer.

And the point of saying you will shoot smaller deer because you mis judge the size....please.....know what you are shooting at. Mlearn how to judge a rack based on height, width, and beam length in comparison to known average lengths of length of nose, spread from ear to ear, etc.....and you will know pretty darn close to how big any deer your are shooting is.

iowa whitetail

Yes you are right we dont have rifle season and this is why iowa is the the leader of biggest non typical and second in typical bucks killed. our managment is second to none not meaning to offend but iowa has proven that high powers are not good for managment.