The first time I recall using a shotgun was with my Grandpa while Duck hunting somewhere in Texas. My shooting style, experience, and preference has evolved much since my days of ripped waders and my grandpa’s guidance. Now I focus mostly on tactical shooting, not only because it is my passion but also because for me, everything I can do to be able to protect mine is high on my priorities of work list. I am kind of peculiar when it comes to buying weapons in the sense that I look at like I do Call of Duty. Yes, I’m talking about the video game. I like to have a wide variety of weaponry, all of which has a specific purpose. Don’t act like y’all don’t know what I’m talking about when I say everyone has their “sniper” loadout, their “CQB” loadout, and their “shotgun” loadout.
Once it came time for me to put together my shotgun kit I looked around a lot before I decided on the Mossberg 930 SPX. Here is a quick overview of the specs of this specific scattergun as per Mossberg’s website. It is available with a pistol grip or standard stock.
SPECIFICATIONS (courtesy of mossberg.com)
- Gauge – 12
- Capacity – 8
- Chamber – 3
- Barrel Length – 18.5”
- Sight – Ghost Ring
- Choke – Cylinder Bore
- LOP Type – Fixed
- LOP – 14”
- Barrel Finish – Matte Blued
- Stock Finish – Synthetic (Black)
- Weight – 7.75
- Length – 39″
Now I’m no Grand Master 3-gun sensei that can reload twice within a nanosecond so capacity was a huge plus for me with this weapon. The 930 SPX comes standard with a magazine extension that puts you at an impressive 7+1 of either 2 ¾ or 3in which is a plus but it does have a drawback which I will explain later if you remind me. This weapon also boasts a picatinny rail along the top of the receiver that wears a set of sexy ghost sights like crown fit for a king. Fully adjustable in the rear it is easy to manipulate until you get the sights aligned perfectly where you need them. Now the front sights is a bit of a negative for me. While they are easy to acquire in that beautiful rear ring sight because of the red, the front sight itself actually rises a good inch from the muzzle and has a tendency of getting caught on things.
The semiautomatic action seems to cycle pretty smoothly every time it is shot and has a relatively large charging handle which is another thing I like about this gun. There is several aftermarket charging handles available also if you are the kind of guy that likes diamond studded accessories or some weird stuff like that. The trigger pull is set at 5 pounds says Mossberg but it does feel a little lighter. The bolt release is just under the ejection port and is a pretty nice size although it could stand for an upgrade to a little larger of a button. The sling attachment points aren’t ideal because they flip the gun in an awkward position if you are actually utilizing one. I went to the guys at GG&G and got their rear sling attachment that installs just in front of the buttstock as well as a forward sling mount and rail combo so that I could go ahead and put my surefire light up there as well.
Now for some upgrades I did. I already talked about the sling attachment points and the surefire light up front, so what else did I do? I added a GG&G shell caddy to the side of it, while it adds a significant amount of weight I think it’s a good trade-off to have an additional 6 rounds of hate on the side of my gun standing by for quick loading. I also got the GG&G enhanced follower and I am going to tell you why. With the magazine extension tube on this gun it has a tendency of jamming the stock follower where the extension meets the actual tube because there is a slight lip just enough to give it problems quite frequently. The enhanced follower from GG&G has a beveled edge on it and once I installed that I’ve had no more issues with the weapon. If you are on a tight budget a quick fix to the follower problem is taking a Dremel to the bottom edge of the stock plastic follower and beveling the edge.
This is a very good weapon to add to the arsenal and I can say with a reasonable amount of certainty that if you replace that pesky follower this weapon will run like the usain bolt. The MSRP on the Mossberg 930 SPX is $851.00 but you can find them all day for around $730.00. I can truly say that I love this shotgun more than the vast majority of tactical shotguns I’ve handled. So much so in fact it is sitting at my bedside right now as I write this and will definitely be my go to home defense gun if something goes bump in the night. Hell maybe one day I’ll be rich enough to add-on a SilencerCo Salvo.
Author – Wes Nanny is a former Marine with combat deployments to Afghanistan and is now pursuing a career in law enforcement.