Anything that'll get you out there and putting rounds downrange is good for a beginner. Buy something, buy lots of ammo, shoot the hell out of it, repeat. Although you may give up some performance with the shorter 20" barrel when you start shooting stuff out the sky.

On a side note, I'd never think that Wally World would have $1800 Winchester over-unders at their stores. Go figure.

 

With a 20" barrel length, I assume it is a slug barrel. I have had Mossbergs before, and never had a complaint about them. As far as the sight, Never had one of that type, I have always preferred just regular iron sights.

PS - Please if you haven't already, take a hunter safety course. Especially if this is your first gun.

 

Thanks for looking out for me (and anybody else who might happen to be in the woods).
But the boy scouts taught me well. It's just been a long time I've shot a gun and I've never shot anything living with anything besides a BB gun.

And I don't lnow if it's a slug barrel or not. What's the difference? Can't it take all kinds of ammo? I just want to shoot deer with it.

 

Just looking out for all the other Floridians. Still wouldn't hurt, and many states now require it before you get a license, especially if you have never had one before. Don't know about Florida, but it wouldn't surprise me.

 

20" barrels on guns like that are usually slug barrels, in that they're fully rifled, with lands and grooves to give the slug spin as it exits the barrel, like a football. You're supposed to use saboted slugs out of these barrels for best accuracy.

See the grooves cut into the business end of the barrel? A typical shotgun barrel is a smoothbore, in that it has no lands and grooves. You can shoot slugs out these barrels too, although you're supposed to use a rifled slug for best effect. A rifled slug barrel is a speciality kinda thing, mostly intended for deer sized game and the like. You can shoot shot other than slugs out of a rifled barrel, although you'll probably get some weird patterning and if shooting lead shot, the lands and grooves of the rifling may get leaded up. I've never tried it, I don't own any shotguns with rifled barrels. For a multipurpose gun, I'd go with something with a 26" or so barrel, plus a couple inches. This'll give you enough sight radius (yes, contrary to popular belief, shotguns do have sights, and they do need to be aimed to a certain extent) to easily line 'em up to blast stuff out the sky. A longer barrel swings easier to me shooting at clay targets as well.

 

It has a ventilated rib barrel. Does that mean it's rifled?

Choke: Fully-Rifled Bore - whats that?

 

No...

See along the top of the barrel, the rib running along top of the barrel, with the slots underneath it? That's the "ventilated rib."

ETA: "Fully rifled bore." That's a slug gun. I don't think that's something you want, since rifled barrels on shotguns are kinda specialized. See, you can shoot buckshot, birdshot, and rifled slugs through a smoothbore shotgun barrel, but rifled barrels perform best with only saboted slugs.

Chokes are restrictions that are threaded into the end of the barrel that can change patterning and point of impact of the cluster of shot. These read things like cylinder bore, full, improved cylinder, modified, turkey, extra full, skeet, etc.

 

I would still take the hunters safety course. Here in Missouri, it is mandatory before you can get a hunting license, fishing license, or game permits. It's a free course took about 8 hours. Common sence and you can pass the test. I took it with my dad when I was like 12. Dad did not have to take it he fell into the grandfather clause. But since my brother and I did then he stayed with us and took it too. We had a lot of fun.

Hardest part for some people is the section on the different types of firearms. You might want to read up on the differences between a Flint Lock, a Percussion Lock, Match Lock, Wheel Lock, Snaphaunce. They cover everything in the class that is on the test and the test is multiple choice.

A slug barrel typically has a little thicker walls, and is rifeled. Make sure to get a slug barrel. Then you can get a smooth bore barrel later for bird shot, OO, OOO, or other scatter loads.

 

Awesome... all this good information!
The one I want has a new ported tube choke, what's that?

 

I think this is what I'm going to get
Will it shoot deer and use other shot besides slugs?
If it will kill Bambi and wild boar I'm all set!

 

A ported choke tube is one that has holes in the end of it to serve as a type of muzzlebrake. The holes disperse gases after the shot or slug leaves the barrel to help reduce recoil. The only real drawback is that ported tubes, depending on size and manufacturer can be really loud. The holes that disperse gases also disperse sound and kinda amplify it. Shotguns are already gonna be loud, but a ported tube or ported barrel may enhance that.

 

It looks like the same one as before. Wally World ain't posting no model numbers, so I dunno whether that one's a smoothbore or not. Given the 20" barrel, I'm willing to bet it's rifled.

An "adjustible" sight on most shotguns is one that's adjustible for windage only, in that you can move it left or right to tune point of aim to match point of impact. Fiber optic just means that it has a pretty bright colored tube on the end of the barrel that may be easier to pick up against a darker background (like Bambi). Fiber optic sights are popular in action type shooting and some clay sports. There's lots of different sights available on shotguns nowadays, the old school bead, rifle sights, ghost ring or aperture style sights (like those on an M16).

 

What that one is from the Mossberg site is a Turkey gun. For deer you want a slug barrel. Also it is not good to fire slugs thru a choked barrel. If you are specifically going for deer, get a slug barrel and buy an extra barrel for birds and clay targets later.

Edit - Take a look at this one. It is a combo. It not only has a 28" regular barrel, it has a 24" slug barrel.

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=3163716

http://www.mossberg.com/pcatalog/model500_1.htm

 

Oh man... I'm so confused. I just want a good all-around gun. Mostly for shooting deer and wild boar. And I don't want to spend over $300.
I'm going crazy here!

I really do appreciate everyones help though!

 

Take a look at my edit. It will give you an all around gun for under $300.

Hell, if I needed a shotgun right now, I'd buy one of them myself. Danged good price for what you get, especially 2 barrels.