Oh, man, have I been having fun with the Mossberg 590 Shockwave. There is just something mischievously fun about a Non-NFA 14 inch barreled 12 gauge pump action, that’s totally not a shotgun. I’ve upgraded mine quite a bit in a short period of time. Sure it’s not the most practical weapon, but I don’t need practicality to turn money into noise. My list of upgrades includes a LaserLyte Center mass laser, a Meosight M3, a Magpul pump and foregrip, and now the Knoxx BreachersGrip gen 3.
But that’s Illegal!
There is a lot of bunk going around about the Shockwave. A lot of people have this odd idea that you can’t ever modify the gun. That’s just plain wrong. Legally as long as the overall length of the gun is over 26 inches it is still a firearm. I wrote the ATF and they gave me a vague answer that essentially said: “We won’t say yes, but don’t create an AOW while installing anything.” So I took my 18.5 inch Mossberg barrel and installed it while I change the grips out. Therefore it was never under the 26 inch OAL requirement.
The Knoxx BreachersGrip is not like a normal pistol grip. It contains a buffer and spring to help reduce recoil. This system requires a short buffer tube and this makes the grip a lot longer than any other pistol grip. It extends the length of the Shockwave from 26.37 inches to 27 inches.
The Knoxx BreachersGrip Gen 3
The Shockwave is a pretty shootable gun with the Raptor grip, but it could be better right? Well, mine is, because of the Knoxx BreachersGrip. The buffer works surprisingly well and makes controlling the shotgun pretty damn easy. I’ve fired bigger and heavier shotguns with just pistol grips and they were miserable, but the Knoxx is downright comfortable.
None of the painful recoil associated with pistol grips is present here. I felt more recoil in my forward hand than the firing hand. I even fired the gun with those nasty PDX slugs from Winchester and didn’t regret it. In fact, I barely felt it. With standard buckshot, the gun is more comfortable than you’d ever expect. In fact, I could shoot faster, and more accurately with this grip in place. Aiming at eye level is easy and I never worried about catching a faceful of Shockwave. The Knoxx BreachersGrip truly tames the Shockwave.
It’s an unorthodox grip, but it’s comfortable in the hand. You can install it easily, and Blackhawk is even nice enough to make it sling compatible. It’s perfect for running a single point sling. Admittedly with the Mossberg 500 layout reaching the safety isn’t intuitive, but it’s not difficult either. To me, the Shockwave is a fun gun so comfort and fun are the goals. If the Shockwave is a bit too much to handle give the Knoxx BreachersGrip Gen 3 a try.
