Stick with the Nova - bought one the first year made and shoot about 2-3 cases per year of mostly 3" and 3.5". It hasn't missed a beat. It is lighter, smoother and kicks less than the 870 or the mossberg (which is junk). Wife and kids gave me the 20 ga version two years ago and now i shoot that as much as the 12 (teal, doves and sometimes big ducks). BTW I have a SBE that pretty much stays in the cabinet, unless i go to a clay shoot and don't want to look too old school with a pump.

Thank ya'll for the advice and input....really appreciated.

I see all kinds of guns come through the blind and most have there good and bad points. I have been guiding for 22 yrs and have had 1 or 2 broke guns in the blind. An 870 is hard to beat if you want a pump but with a 3 1/2 they kick like mules. I have seen a lot of Mossbergs break due to spring issues. For the money, the Bereta is hands down the best buy. They give us Beretas to shoot at Little Pecan and we have zero trouble out of em. The guns are 3 in Eurekas. When I hunt outside the island I shoot a Maxis. Best gun I have ever owned. I have worn out 2 SBE 1 and 1 1187 that my guides gave me for Christmas. The Remington went south after about 10 cases. The gunsmith here said I was lucky to get that. Hope this helped.

Very informative, Thank you

awesome post thanks!!

Remington 870 pump... Dependable, easy to breakdown & clean and been around for decades to to backup its dependability..

I don't trust the new remington 870's as much as the older models. I bought my first 870 in 1990, and it lasted until 2004. I hunted right off of Intracoastal canal too. Salty

I bought a remington 870 Supermag in 07 and pitted the barrel the first year. Of course I shot a lot of steel out of it, but still.

I bought a Browning Maxus last year and hammered the ducks. No recoil to speak of and Light years better than a pump. It is also the lightest gun on the market. That being said, It started cutting up lately, not feeding shells right. I brought it back to the dealer yesterday and they said I should have it back by Thanksgiving at the latest:eek:

Edit:
The other poster that talked about the 870 Supermag kicking like a mule is right. Wayyyyy too much kick. Don't shoot more than 1.5 boxes of 3 1/2" without proper insulation, or a limb saver. 3 1/2" off of a bare shoulder will hurt and make you wince after a while.

That's okay, back to the 870 Remington Supermag until then.

I agree about the new ones compared to the older ones...after all the advice we just decided to push out more money and buy him a Benelli Super Nova. Thanks for the input

Remington 1100...can't be beat. Plus your shoulder doesn't take the pounding. Not sure how old your dad is, but the 870 will lay a lick on your shoulder.

good choice

Good choice on the benelli super nova. I have one that is my back up gun since I shoot a benelli auto. You cannot go wrong with benelli or bretta.

870/1187 both awesome guns for the money.I have a SBE and Gold Hunter and allways grab one of the remingtons when its time to put meat on the ground:D

My shoulder is still tender from teal season.......remington wingmaster 3" heavy loads

I have a s& w 1000 auto got it in 1980 jammed once when I did not clean it for 3the yrs still shooting. It today

Don't know if anyone suggested it yet, but I just bought two Beretta 3901s. A 28" 12 gauge and a 26" 20 gauge.

In 4 weekends I have put 400 rounds through both without an issue. Great gun for $600

I guess the real question here is how much does your dad hunt and how many shells does he shoot per year. All shotguns are good ones if you only hunt 3 to 4 times a year. If you hunt 50 plus days and shoot 2 boxes per hunt then you really need to look hard at your purchase. I see that you are leaning towards the Nova, in my experience it kicks pretty damn good itself. If your dad is over 50 yrs old, a pump may not be the best way to go. I am sure he will be capable of shooting it but he should WANT to shoot it every day. I still feel for the money a 3" Berreta is the best way to go. I kill PLENTY of ducks every year and usually 50 or more geese and I hardly ever shoot 3 1/2". Just my thoughts.

Well thank you for your Input but yes we already bought him the Super Nova and gifted it. I know a couple managers at local gun stores and I asked for a gun that had the least overall complaints from their customers period. I also looked online and did lots of research. We would have loved to buy him an Auto but did not have the money to spend on a reputable one. He has an old pump and old auto that he usually uses. The problem is that on rainy duck days we do not want him messing up his good antiques. We wanted to get him something that went BOOM, BOOM, BOOM all the time and that is it. As for the recoil... yes he just turned 60yrs old but currently chooses his pump over his auto. We also chose the Super Nova because both my brother and me have the Nova and has treated us way better than any auto thus far. One day money will not matter and we will be able to buy him whatever he wants. He was very happy with our gift and that is all that matters. Thank you all again for your input.

awesome