quasimojo, awesome reply! I'd love to stay with CZ as awesome as their handguns are, but I need that versatility at a budget that it seems the Mossberg 500 can afford. Now what are the differences with the three barrels you mentioned? I understand the 18.5" for home defense as you want to be able to maneuver I doors. Where I don't know what the difference is with the standard 26" barrel and 28" sabot. If try upland, but I think deer would be more my preference. Part of why when we get to that point I'll have a bigger budget for the rifle then I would for shot gun. Would it be cheaper to land one with the 18.5" barrel and pick up the other for hunting, or what would be the most cost effective way about it? I was originally thinking $500 or under, so even your suggestion with all three is definitely on point. I looked at the CZ 612 & 712 but didn't know what to look for when shopping for versatility. I just want the most versatile shot gun with a good capacity that I can use for home defense, take to the range, or actually go hunting.
OK, so some slight revisions by me just to make sure I don't steer you wrong:
Sabot barrel: 24" rifled shotgun barrel used to fire a sabot round or slug. This is what you would use to hunt deer as the rifling and slug extend the accurate distance of the shot, probably out to 75 yards with plenty of hitting power. This barrel would also include a cantilevered scope mount on the barrel for mounting the included shotgun scope (which is of questionable value and would likely need to be replaced with a better one for reliable, consistent accuracy.) My big reason for this purchase was that it allowed me to use a rifled slug in counties where rifle hunting has been banned.
Shotgun barrel: 28" normal shotgun barrel that you would use for bird (pheasant, turkey, or goose) , clays (trap, skeet), or home defense (not as desirable because of the longer barrel, but it'll still get the job done. Included with shotgun barrel are 5 chokes to modify the spread of the shot as well as a choke wrench for inserting/pulling from the barrel. You could also use plain old buckshot in this barrel to hunt deer.
Tactical barrel: 18.5" used to spray either buckshot or highbrass birdshot at a home invader. This barrel configuration has no useful purpose outside home defense and target practice in my opinion. I would not use a slug for home defense purposes.
I opted to buy geared toward hunting first, and eventually purchased a tactical barrel when I ran into a really good deal. We have plenty of handguns so I wasn't pressed for home defense. You just need to prioritize for yourself. Capacity wise with the Mossy 500A package you'll be confined to 5 shots max and must plug the shotgun to 3 max capacity when using it to hunt. Personally, if a home invasion can't be resolved in 3 shots, there is a much bigger problem...
This is about as versitile as you are going to get for the price. Hopefully some of the other folks will also chime in. I just purchased a 12 ga Redhead Deluxe O/U over Christmas. I'm delighted using it for upland game hunts but a double wouldn't be my 'go to' gun for home defense. A low priced Mossy is in the sweet spot for that role... Again not dissing CZ shotguns, but you really need to consider the role the tool will play verse the money you will be putting down.
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