Mossberg 835/935 or Rem 870 sps shureshot

[Birdyblaster]

Now that season is over for me I'm looking into getting a dedicated turkey gun instead of just using my waterfowl gun again next year.  I've got it narrowed down to the 835 or 935 or an 870.  Whatever I get I want a pistol grip style stock and a barrel in the 24" range.  I've read lots of great things about the patterns the Mossbergs throw but the only options they seem to have with a pistol grip is a 22" in the 935 and a 20" in the 835.  The 870 comes with a 23" barrel.  I don't really want to go much over a 24" because I hunt some pretty thick stuff but 20" seems really short to throw a good pattern. 

I'm more familiar with an 870 with regards to takedown, operations, etc because I've owned them and operated them at work.  I just can't get over some of the insane patterns I've seen posted on here thrown by the Mossbergs though.  What would ya'll recommend and why?  And BTW I'll likely be shooting Hevi-13 3.5 Magblends or #7s.  Thanks in advance for any input.

[SCDieselDawg]

My main setup. Remington 870 Super Magnum with 23" barrel. It patterns 210-220 with 3.5" mag blends using the Hevi-choke.

[Bigspurs68]

To each their own, I carry a supermag with shur shot stocks and it's not gonna get replaced anytime soon! Shoots great, points great, solid, no rattles. 665 IC and nitros or mag blends. Deadly.

[Huntaholic]

Im a Remington man through and through and I dont care who knows it!  My 870sm with a rhino 660 and nitro 4x5x7 puts over 300 in the 10" at 40 yards. Ive also got an 11/87sm that does about the same.
With that said, Ive told everybody thats asked that if youre going to take it out of the box, screw in the choke it comes with and go hunting, the 835 patterns better. Every 835 Ive shot as factory equiped, will put 175ish in the 10". BUT, youve got that annoying forearm rattle, a stock that feels like holding a 2x4, and a safety that is a pita to get to sometimes when a bird is on top of you.
At the end of the day, its up to you, handle them both, see which one fits you best, and decide if youre going to go aftermarket on the choke, and make a decision from that.

[Birdyblaster]

I'll definitely be going with an aftermarket choke and fully intend to tinker until I get things right.  I'd really like a gun that will put up around the 300 mark with Hevi 7s when it's all said and done.

[allaboutshooting]

I own all 3 of those guns. They all pattern very well and I'd be happy to take any one of them to the turkey woods. They are quite different from each other.

When the 835 was first introduced I won one at an NWTF banquet. Currently, I'm evaluating the latest iteration of that gun with the Matthews Harmonic Dampner recoil reduction system and I must say the quality has improved dramatically. The bore is excellent and it's very tight with no rattles.

I recently commented about the 935 which is also an excellent shotgun, patterns like the 835, is exceptionally reliable and the only possible complaint that I'd have it that is is a bit heavy.

I own and have owned a number of 870s and have no complaints whatsoever about them.

I think you've had some great advice about finding each of those guns, handling them and seeing which feels best to you.

There are excellent turkey chokes for all of them, so you can't go wrong no matter what your choice.

Thanks,
Clark

[ohiomossyoak]

Now that season is over for me I'm looking into getting a dedicated turkey gun instead of just using my waterfowl gun again next year. 

What's your setup for waterfowl?

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[RAY]

What sold me on the 835 is the barrel. Unbelievable patterns and no forearm rattle. My 870 rattles more than my 835. But if you go Remington get the thing camo dipped because the reciever and barrel rusted on mine.

[Birdyblaster]

 [/quote]What's your setup for waterfowl? [/quote]

I shoot a Beretta Xtrema II.  I love the gun for waterfowl and it does fine for turkeys too I just want something I can mount an optic on and leave it on and something a little lighter and more compact.  I've spent a fair bit of time behind M16/M4's and I've handled a few shotguns with pistol grips and that's definitely a feature I want. 

For those of you with the 835's, what barrel lengths are you running?  The pistol grip model is only offered with a 20" barrel that I'm aware of.  Also, what kind of numbers are your guns putting up?

[Bigspurs68]

300 with hevi 7's shouldn't be too hard to get with any of those guns and the right choke. Like I said before, I love the 870 IC combo but for sure, many other tubes will do what you want. I have a 3" 11-87 that puts up around 240 with hevi 7's and a rhino tube. The shur shot stock is what seals the deal for me tho. You may or may not like it but it allows great purchase of the gun and allows me to shoot well in all of the distorted positions these steep hill birds put me in. The safety on a Remington is also in a position that allows me to keep my finger out of the trigger guard and disengage it quietly by just pressing it with the underside of my finger where it naturally sits. Things that matter when they just appear at 15 yds. Reaching up with your thumb at that point can lead to trying to kill a 20 pound grouse!

[Phire Phite]

All true.  I don't think you can go wrong with either of those.  If you do as intended and put in the time, you'll get what you want.  That being said, I regret getting rid of my 870 with the Sure shot stock, one of the most comfortable firearms I've held.    I only did so that I could get something in 3.5".  I was planning on an m3500 until I landed on a 835 for $200.  Now if I could only get it to pattern anything at 40 I'd be happy. 

[captin_hook]

Remington 870 with sureshot. No brainer

[WildSpur]

I really like my 870 with the shurshot.   The quality difference between that and my 2011 835 is night and day.  I am interested on seeing the rattle less mossberg though.  I don't think it will change my mind on my 870 though.

Mike shoots great with a Jellyhead 660 and 3.5" magblends.   The photo count is wrong...I recounted 218. 

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[ILIKEHEVI-13]

I have both.  I recommend them both.  They are in a nutshell hard to beat. 

[Birdyblaster]

For the few of you who have said you either have or had both, what would you consider the pros and cons of each?  Given the responses so far I'm stating to lean towads the 870.