Since 1961, the Mossberg 500 has been in manufacturing. Over 11 million have been produced in nearly each configuration you’ll be able to image. The Mossberg 500 sequence advanced into the 590 on the navy’s behest, and whereas it retains the identical receiver, there are some adjustments to the journal tube and barrel design.
Variants of the Mossberg 500
When you have got a gun in manufacturing that lengthy, there are going to be some variants folks have forgotten. Some are particular editions, and others, nicely, some received a bit bizarre. As an enjoyer of bizarre weapons and shotguns, my favourite style of firearms is bizarre shotguns. From the annals of Mossberg’s historical past, listed below are 5 bizarre variants of the Mossberg 500.
Mossberg 590DA
The Mossberg 590DA is likely to be one of many rarest Mossberg 500/590 variations. The 590DA was aimed on the legislation enforcement market and was an try to offer a Mossberg shotgun that matched the set off pull of revolvers and double-action automatics.
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The DA stands for double motion. It had an extended, heavier set off pull. It wasn’t a real, conventional double-action. As a substitute, when the pump was cycled, the hammer half-cocked and the set off totally cocked and launched the hammer. If there was a failure to fireside, the set off couldn’t restrike by any means.
A batch of LEO trade-in 590DAs just lately got here up on the market, however sadly, I missed out on grabbing one. These didn’t appear to be in manufacturing very lengthy.
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Mossberg 500 Rolling Thunder
Rolling Thunder is a helluva title. It’s one in all my favourite cult-classic revenge movies, the title of a shotgun-reloading drill, and the title of a singular version of the Mossberg 500. The Rolling Thunder was a pistol grip solely (PGO) shotgun with a 23-inch lengthy barrel. In actuality, it’s an 18.5-inch or so barrel with a completely bonkers muzzle gadget.
It’s listed as a barrel stabilizer. It’s an enormous chunk of aluminum hooked up to the barrel. This factor has 22 ports that make it look and theoretically act as a compensator. What’s additionally attention-grabbing is that it is a heavy-profile barrel. Heavy profile barrels are widespread on 590A1s, however they aren’t widespread on Mossberg 500 fashions.
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The Rolling Thunder was designed to be a “compact” possibility. It’s compact with out a inventory, however overly lengthy in comparison with different PGO choices with 18.5-inch barrels. Any recoil mitigation was probably because of the tall-boy-sized muzzle gadget and the load it added quite than the impact of the ports.
Mossberg 500 Highway Blocker
One other oddball pistol-grip-only gun with a bizarre muzzle gadget is the Mossberg 500 Highway Blocker. Ithaca had beforehand used the Highway Blocker moniker to explain their short-barrel, semi-auto 10-gauge. Very similar to the Rolling Thunder, the title is acquainted to shotgun lovers.
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Just like the Rolling Thunder, this mannequin of the five hundred had a heavy-walled barrel. On the finish was a tank-like muzzle gadget. It’s equivalent in design to the muzzle gadget discovered on Barrett .50 BMG rifles. In contrast to the Rolling Thunder’s stabilizer, I may see this muzzle brake really working. I wager it’s loud as hell, too!
The Highway Blocker wasn’t produced in any nice numbers and appears to be extremely uncommon as of late. In case you discover one, let me know.
Compact Cruiser
It’s an actual disgrace that Mossberg has gotten out of the NFA enterprise. Certainly one of their final iterations of NFA Mossberg 500 shotguns wasn’t a shotgun, however an AOW (Any Different Weapon). The Compact Cruiser shares DNA with the Serbu Tremendous Shorty. It’s stockless, pistol grip solely, and exceptionally small.
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The Compact Cruiser held two rounds of two.75-inch shells and fired from a 7.5-inch barrel. The gun is absurdly small and lightweight. Mossberg added a vertical folding pistol grip, very similar to the Serbu Tremendous Shortys of yesteryear.
The Compact Cruiser is a beastly gun, and Mossberg produced a restricted quantity. These have turn into extremely collectible in the present day. Possibly Mossberg will dip their toe again into the NFA world within the close to future.
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590M Breacher
Talking of NFA objects, Mossberg makes the 590M Breacher for the Regulation Enforcement market. The 590M Breacher is a magazine-fed shotgun utilizing Mossberg double-stack magazines. This permits the gun to be exceptionally brief however not restrict its capability. The magazines vary from 5 to twenty rounds of 12-gauge ammunition.
The 590M Breacher makes use of a Shockwave-style grip or a traditional grip with an 11.5-inch barrel. Mossberg’s micro-sized M-LOK pump-action forend is current and accounted for. On the finish of the barrel is a breaching barrel gadget to press it proper towards the door with out risking rupturing the barrel.
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This factor, transformed from AOW to SBS with a inventory, could be a compact shotgun with out the journal limitations of a tubular journal. Hopefully, Mossberg will carry this to the industrial market. They’d promote no less than one—to me.
Conclusion
The Mossberg 500 is 64 years outdated. It may well acquire Social Safety at this level. It’s not an enormous shock that there have been some oddities alongside the best way. I, for one, embrace the bizarre, the totally different, and the makes an attempt to do issues higher.
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