BACK TO THE FUTURE LEGO SETS!

Being the Back To The Future nerd that I am... I am all over this once it's released!

http://www.teksushi.com/2012/12/great-scot-121-gigawatts-lego-confirmed.html?m=1

Paul McCartney + Dave Grohl + Krist Novoselic + Pat Smear

Hmm... Paul McCartney and Nirvana?! Oookay... It's kind of weird but I'm sold... Check it!

The Last Stand Trailer (Arnold is back!)

Buddy cop type movie with Arnold... Oooookay sold...

Tactical Stocking...

You know... For the tacticool holidays...

Trigger Time - Fostech Bumpski Bumpfire Stocks!

Qii Flexible Keyboard

I like the idea but in the case of something like an iPad does that really make that big of difference? Call me old school but I like the "clicking" of physical keys... But definitely points on portability... (fast forward to :45 mark... That lady has no business pouring coffee for herself :-) )

MAN OF STEEL - 1ST FULL LENGTH TRAILER!

It's a movie trailer kind of day I guess! And yes, this looks kind of awesome...

NEW(er) Lone Ranger Trailer

Okay, I'm a little more interested after this version of the trailer...

Sig Sauer P238!

My new pocket pistol... Range report and review coming soon...

My Christmas List: Crovel

I was watching Doomsday Preppers the other day and saw this nifty little invention by one of the preppers... It's all of the following and more!: - Crowbar - Shovel - Edged weapon - Saw - Bottle opener - Chair!

.700 WTF Round

Yup... Some guy made .700 cal round and let his girl friend shoot it... Pretty freaking epic...

IC PSD From LWRC

Chambered in 6.8 SPC.... Yes, please!

World War Z Trailer!

Sometimes I think the whole zombie thing is a little played out... BUT THEN! I see something like this and kind of get all gitty for zombie things!

Q-Line SafeGuard Shelving

Yup... That's kind of awesome...

A Good Day To Die Hard: Trailer

Yup. John Mclain is back kicking ass and taking names! Done and done!

New iPad Mini Starts at $329

I still rather have a full sized iPad... But that's just me maybe...

Bullet Proof iPhone Case vs. .50 BMG

Slow Motion ML40AUS... Grenade Launcher...

IRON MAN 3 TRAILER!!!!

Iron Man 3 Teaser

This will get you just a little geeked up for the full trailer which comes out tomorrow on apple.com/trailers...

Daniel Defense & Kershaw Team Up For A Folder Knife

Daniel Defense has been making some buzz with their high quality and durable AR's... Fittingly they team up with a great Oregon company like Kershaw Knives to make a sweet little folder knife! Check it out!

MORE SLOW MOTION FULL AUTO GUNS!

Full Auto FNH F2000 & SCAR

Paracord Watch Band

So, I guess I'm progressively becoming more tacti-cool... After searching for a replacement band for my watch and pretty much finding nothing that fits I decided to weave my own paracord band... I guess I'll have about 11 ft. of paracord if I ever need it on my person...

Delta Six Controller For FPS (XBOX360)

Looks better than the gun controller for Cabela's Dangerous Hunts... But I wondering if aiming will mimic more like real life where as the Cabela's controller you pretty much aimed by watching the screen... Looks interesting though!

3M Streaming Projector

I'm intrigued... Hmmm...

Will A Gun Fire At -110 Fahrenheit...

As they say in the video... Please don't try this at home... At the 11:30 mark they throw the Hi-Point into the freezing alcohol mixture...

TAVOR TAR-21

Check out Military Arms Channel and their sneak peek at the Tavor TAR-21 bullpup!

Rocky S2V Provisions Coat

Interesting gimmick in including a survival kit with a jacket... The jacket itself sounds pretty solid but I feel like my hunting jacket from Kryptek has welded seems and everything else this jacket has (with the exception of 20k mm waterproof polyester) and is much less than it's $600 price! Cool idea, but I think I'll stick to the Kryptek Koldo Rain Jacket (which comes in none camo too!).

Weaponized... Silly Putty...

$1.90 Light Mount For Weaver/Picatinny Rail

I couldn't pass up on the price... However, S/H was more than the mount it self... Oh well... Check it out on Amazon HERE

NEW SimCity Game Play Video

I've always been a sucker for SimCity...

DIY: Keep Pet's Off The Couch!

My wife knows of my distain for HER CATS and how they track kitty litter on the couch... This project maybe in the works in my near future...

Blue Tooth Control Your Smartphone W/BEARTek Glove!

I'm old enough to remember the original Nintendo Power Glove and how awesome it was in theory (you can thank the movie "The Wizard" starring Fred Savage) but it was in all reality a big fat piece of garbage...

However, this blue tooth connected glove seems pretty legit!Check out the video or check out their website www.beartekgloves.com/

My Next Pocket Pistol For EDC

Now that all wedding stuff is done with for me I can finally focus my money on fun stuff again... My next venture is what pocket pistol to get! I've got narrowed down to the Ruger LCP (.380), S&W M&P Shield (9mm) or the Keltec P11 (9mm). I'm liking the 2 9mm pistol choices as I don't really want to add another caliber to my family of firearms but the size on the LCP is pretty darn nice. Ideas?

"Miami Connection" Trailer...

Um, you're welcome.

Contest!

Pretty sweet little contest going on with M-Pro7 and Leatherman... M-Pro7 wants to get to 2,500 "Likes" on Facebook and they're giving away a small arms cleaning kit and a Leatherman MUT... I entered mostly for the Leatherman MUT... That thing is awesome! Check out the contest here: http://www.mpro7.com/contest.html

Leatherman MUT

Um...

Call me a square but that doesn't seem ethical... Or legal... Picture courtesy of thenonsequitur.com

"The Lone Ranger" Trailer 2013

I do love my modern westerns... True Grit's remake was in my opinion fantastic! BUT, I'm not quite sure how I feel about "The Lone Ranger"... Jerry Bruckheimer had his hand in this one... So, expect excessive explosions and possibly something on par with "Wild Wild West" with Will Smith... Let's hope not though...

M-4 Alaskan Survival .45-70 Derringer

Um... Just go to 2:38 in the video and you can see the guy shoot a .45-70...

Gerber Instant Review

It’s been tough trying to find a replacement for one of my favorite EDC (every-day-carry) knives, a Gerber 06 FAST. A beefy tanto blade with Gerber’s FAST spring assisted opening mechanism that’s pretty much seen everything from field dressing animals, opening cans, cutting zip ties and whatever else. Now, I should say I’m not fully replacing my favorite knife but finding a good fill in knife with a little more versatility.

In comes new Gerber knife. The Gerber Instant. Tactically inspired, 7Cr17Mo steel, a modified drop point blade with partial seration, G10 handle and Gerber’s new FAST 2.0 opening mechanism.

FAST 2.0: Right out of the box the first thing I notice is how tactile the handle on this knife is. Great texturing to keep a good hold and control while doing various tasks. The new assisted opening on the Instant takes a couple times of use to break in but is very solid. I first noticed that the 2.0 FAST system differs from the original FAST system in that the spring tension lets off at about 1/3 of the way on the 2.0 version where if you’ve ever used a original FAST knife the spring tension goes all the way until the blade locks into place on the frame. For myself, it took a little getting use to but after few flicks the blade deployed an locked into place each time. To release the blade lock to fold it back into the handle Gerber has implemented a plunger locking system in which the blade will fall free to the point of where the spring system stops and from the point you can press the blade back into the handle. As oppose to my Gerber 06, the Instant does not have a “safety” to lock the blade in the handle but I in my opinion to deploy the blade you very much have to deliberately flick it open from the thumb studs.

The Blade: A modified drop point blade this knife has a great looking profile. As much as I love my tanto blade the Instant’s modified drop point will probably serve me better in various uses (particularly field dressing animals). From the box the edge was fairly sharp as well as the serrations on the blade. After a couple weeks of pretty medium use the edge has held pretty well. After running the blade a few times on my pocket Arkansas stone it’s edge was back to razor sharp. Overall, I’m very happy with the blade on this knife.

The Frame: As I mentioned earlier the G10 handle is very tactile and provides great traction for your hand. Cutouts in the handle help reduce weight on the knife making a little lighter than my Gerber 06 which for me weight wasn’t a huge issue to start with. In the hand the frame feels very agronomic and comfortable. The clip if you notice is placed at the hinge of the blade so when pocketed it’s held with the blade point facing down as oppose to most traditional folders in which the clip is on the butt of the handle with the blade pointing upwards when folded. At first this was a minor annoyance as pretty much every folder knife I’ve ever had was a blade point up style but after a couple weeks I’ve gotten use to it. One nice point about the clip on the Gerber Instant is that it allows you to “deep carry” the knife meaning that it sits deep in your pocket with pretty much the clip only showing on the outside. There are no options to move the clip anywhere else on the frame. What you see is what you get.

Overall: Overall the transition from my Gerber 06 to the Instant has been pretty smooth. With my only real gripe being the positioning of the knife clip it ended up not being really a big deal in that you get use to it. For a MSRP of $49 you an usually find the Gerber Instant for a street price of $40. A very practical knife that is light, has assisted opening and is relatively inexpensive. I definitely recommend this knife for every day carry.

But don’t get me wrong… Since I live in the great state of Oregon where civilians can own automatic opening knives… I do plan to get myself the the Gerber 06 Automatic in the near future (which you can find at Oak Grove Guns).

Still Blogging... Just Takin' A Breather...

Apologies to all those who read "The Things That Rock Blog" for the lack of post recently! As some know but I don't think it's common knowledge but I'm getting married this coming Sunday and things needless-to-say have been hectic! Trust me, I'd much rather be blogging about things that are awesome like gadgets, video games, movies & guns then figuring out wedding schedules... Anyway, I promise I will be back in the blogging once the honeymoon is over in a week! Thank you all for support and I look forward to giving you guys the update on all things that "ROCK"! ~DL

Trigger Time - 1911's

NEW TRIGGER TIME EPISODE!

Awesome Testimonial Of Spike's Tactical

As seen on Vuurwapen Blog

Glad I got my Spike's Tactical setup at Oak Grove Guns!!!

This Spike's Tactical midlength spent two days lying in the dirt with fine sand blowing over it - ejection port cover open as you see here - and it also fired several thousand rounds during this time. Yesterday 13 full magazines, or 390 rounds, were fired through it in just under 4 minutes without a single malfunction. It has never been cleaned in any way. It took 15 minutes to pick up the 390 steel cases...

More of Star Wars: 1313 Game

My inner and outter Star Wars nerd is flipping out right now...

NEW RED DAWN TRAILER!!!

Yup...

Halloween Costume... FOUND!

As seen at Tosh.0's blog...

Call Of Duty Black Ops II Multiplayer Trailer

Start drooling you CoD fanboys...

New Paratus-16 Rifle

Me likey... It's like an ACR/SCAR but it breaks down and can be assembled in less than 60 seconds!

Kershaw Blur... In Tan...

I've been on a "tan" kick recently... Magpul tan furniture is definitely coming to the Spike's AR in the near future... But this little guy caught my eye recently! And it's made it America!

Kershaw Blur

Skittles Commercial

I had to watch it twice to appreciate it's ridiculousness...

Billionaire Wants To Build REAL LIFE JURASSIC PARK!?

Okay, just because you're a billionaire doesn't mean you have to go all mega extravagant with your money and build a real dinosaur park!? You can read the article HERE

What I want to know is did Mr. Palmer not learn anything from the Jurassic Park movies?!

1.) Dinosaurs will eat people! No longer will we be atop of the food chain which I feel is a position humans should not give up in the chain...

2.) Raptors are smart. They can open FREAKIN' doors!...

3.) T-REX has no manners... He'll eat you even if you're on the toilet.

Spikes Tactical ST-15

First and foremost, I'd like to thank Oak Grove Guns for making this rifle possible. And I mean that. In the past year I've been engaged I've been on a gun moratorium set by my fiance... Yeah, not fun but so it goes as one prepares and acts "responsible" with an upcoming wedding. And of course with Oak Grove Guns coming on as my sponsor for the Things That Rock Blog... Well, let's just say I justified it as work related accessory thus circumventing my moratorium.

On to the rifle. Spikes Tactical is an American company based in Apopka, FL. Attention to detail is their specialty and it shows in the quality of there parts for the rifle. Details via their website (spikestactical.com) are thorough and pretty much give you everything you need to know about the parts and different components to the rifle.

My setup that Oak Grove Guns got me into is a Spikes Tactical ST-15 (direct impingement) 14.5" with a pinned Spikes Tactical Dynacomp compensator (making the barrel overall 16"). It's furnished with Magpul's MOE grip and stock and has a rear Magpul MBUS sight (A2 front sight), carbine length gas system and a standard Spikes phosphate coated bolt carrier group. and a Troy Industries Drop-in Battlerail.

At The Range:

As I understand it's frowned upon to shoot steel case ammo within most of the AR community because of various reasons such as ware (steel is obviously harder than brass) and grade of steel ammo (typically Russian surplus) and etc. Of course, there's the other side of the community that says it's perfectly fine and they really haven't ever had issues with it. Albeit, I decided to take my first 40 shots with some steel cased Herter's ammo (25 cents a shell). 3 failure to feeds in two 20 round magazines was enough for me to decide not to shoot this ammo anymore. Not so much as what the general consensus would dictate but mostly that I believe that the pressures on the steel case ammunition caused cycling/timing issues hence my problems. On to the next least expensive brass ammo which was PMC made in South Korea which shot flawlessly.

As to where I shoot I can really only pace off 40 yards roughly. I managed to land a softball size group in my target shooting off hand (I am by no means claim to be a good rifle shot) which by my standard was great. I have no expectations for this carbine to be a tack driver by any means.

As I was pretty satisfied with the level of accuracy after sighting in I went to test function. A 20 round mag dump proceeded without any failures followed by a second 20 round mag dump again with no issues. As for how the Spikes Dynacomp compensator functioned it seemed to help keep my muzzle down however it was hard to tell in that .223 isn't the most recoil intense round and the only other rifle on hand at the range was my friend's AK (which is comparably more recoil intense).

Overall: I am extremely satisfied. This rifle shoots great and is a lot of fun. Already I'm making a list of accessories I need to tack on. Optics, lasers, etc. The best part of being an AR owner is that there is NO SHORTAGE of aftermarket parts/accessories for your rifle. I of course highly suggest if you're in the market for an AR or even just your next firearm to check out Oak Grove Guns. There's no pressure into buying something that isn't quite what you want or what you're looking for... And in my experience, if you have something in particular in mind they can get you there!

Way To Go Kim Rhode.... BUT....

Congrats of course to Kim Rhode and her 5 consecutive olympics and medaling in all of them (most recently gold in skeet shooting)... BUT... I'm not going to lie... I kind of have a crush on Corey Cogdell who's also on the shooting team :-)

Ammo Can Speaker

DIY ammo can speaker! Step by step instructions! CHECK IT OUT HERE!

DPMS Showcases New TAC2 Carbine at Outbreak Omega

You have my attention DPMS...

Kick Starter - Tactical Lamp

Add this to my previous post of a Tactical Coffee Mug of things I want if I had more money! $229 for this sucka!

Those Crafty Japanese Kids...

Making a fantasy blank firing gun... Beginning in CAD... Okay, you little over achiever... Touche...

So Many Modern Day Shooter Games...

The guys over at GameSpot.com talk about Battlefield & Medal Of Honor...

Interview With Larry Lasky. Founder of FrogLube...

As it has been making considerable buzz on the internet I got a chance to chat with Larry Lasky today, the founder of FrogLube. In case you're not in the know of what FrogLube is, it's an all natural CLP for firearm (cleaner, lube, protectant). As there's a ton more to convey which a lot is covered in my recorded interview with Larry I'll get that up as soon as I can. But from what we discussed this stuff sounds legit!

For now, you can check out their website Froglube.com

Kogeto Dot - Shoot 360 Degree Videos on iPhone!

Yup. That's pretty damn cool... If only I had an iPhone still :-(

Sony Vaio S Series 13P

According to CNET this little 13" laptop out does the 13" Apple Macbook Pro... Hmm... I might beg to differ but I suppose if you are PC person this is a pretty sweet little setup!

USA Basketball...

So, by no means is this blog becoming a "sports blog" as that's not really my thing. But, I did grow up loving the game of basketball as it was something me and my grandfather bonded over and watched countless hours of together... Basketball has always had a special place in my heart.

With the summer Olympics coming up I get excited as always for olympic basketball! But, as good as a team as it is this year I don't believe I can ever recapture the excitement I had back in 1992 when I was heading into the 5th grade. Seriously, a team with Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley and home town hero Clyde "The Glide" Drexler (I grew up in Portland)!? How can you beat that!!!

Gun Stories on Outdoor Channel

Probably one of my favorite in the series of "Wednesday Night At The Range" on Outdoor Channel! It's hosted by Joe Mantegna and they cover the history of some of the most historic fire arms of all time...

I especially like the episode about the Thompson sub-machine... Mostly for the high speed camera (slow motion) action of the gun... CHECK IT OUT!

List Of Gun Acronyms

For those new or even kind somewhat involved in the gun world... You might find this helpful to navigate the acronyms of the gun world... Sadly, I know more of these acronyms than the business ones I hear in the office... Check them out over at Rootin' Tootin' Gun Blog

Say Hello To My Little Friend...

So, I wish words could describe how badly I want to go to the range but prior commitments have been taking up my time...

Of course my biggest reason for wanting to go is this brand new spikes tactical AR that I just got from Oak Grove Guns! Thanks of course to Nick at Oak Grove for getting me into this awesome setup! Expect a range report coming soon!

Primary Arms 3X Compact Illuminated Scope

Okay Diametre is kind of a werido BUT this scope he's talking about sounds pretty bad ass!

Dark Knight Rises Featurette...

If for whatever reason you weren't excited about the Dark Knight Rises (which comes out in theaters this WEEK!) you probably should watch this video... Then freak out! It's going to be AWESOME!

NEW Green Day Single - "Oh Love!"

Check it!

Please DON'T EVER Be This Guy...

Congrats if you're new to the world of firearms! You will definitely have a lot of fun in your near future... However, I do encourage people to take a safety course... Otherwise you could end up like this guy... DON'T BE THAT GUY!

Dark Knight Rises Trailer... Dubbed By Pee Wee Herman!

Yes. I did laugh out loud at this...

I Miss You Nerd Fest...

Today is the first official day of Nerd Fest (Comic-con)! Granted it's been 2 years since my initial pilgrimage to San Diego for Comic-con, my friends and are still share fond memories of the experience.

The thing is you don't have to be a comic book nerd to appreciate Comic-con. If you like movies, sci-fi, toys and things of that nature it will definitely be worth it to you to check out.

My advice though if you do go... Try to get more than a one day pass. Though entire weekend passes tend to sell out instantly it's not impossible to get a couple single day passes. Second, plan ahead. Lodging is scarce for this event so make sure you're on top of finding a place to stay. Also, with planning ahead, map out a general itinerary for yourself when at Comic-con BUT most importantly have contingency plans to your itinerary because things fill up fast at Comic-con and there are crap load of people there!

Last but not least... HAVE FUN. Even outside of Comic-con there are so many Comic-con-related things going on in San Diego. Enjoy it!

Perhaps next year I'll try to go again but seriously, I can't imagine topping my first experience at Nerd-Fest... ::sigh::

Saiga 12 With A Slide Fire Stock...

I'm not sure bump firing a Saiga looks fun to do... However, it's fun to watch other people do it!

$250 Tactical Mug

Um, if you were truly tactic-cool you'd drink your coffee out of this.

Z.E.R.O. Zombie Kit

So, Optics Planet has put together this little kit for the zombie apocalypse... Is $23,999 that good of deal? On the other hand, can you put a price on your safety during the zombie apocalypse?!... CHECK IT OUT BY CLICKING HERE!

Essentially, the world's largest potato gun...

Sure, you could probably fire a WHOLE sack of potatoes from this sucker...

Shotgun vs. Watermelon (spoiler! Shotgun wins...)

An interesting marketing gimmick... But apparently it worked for these watermelon farmers as it's reported after this video was posted business has been "booming". So, if I want more people to read my blog I should start blowing stuff up?! Uh, OK!

Happy 4th Of July

This pretty much says it all...

Oak Grove Guns Expansion!!!

Check it out! Oak Grove Guns will also be having specials going this week! Details at ogvguns.com

Oak Grove Guns Re-model

Just peeked into Oak Grove Guns today to check out how the expansion/remodel was going... The store is looking pretty awesome AND Oak Grove will be celebrating their brand new expansion with some pretty cool deals and giveaways! Check out ogvguns.com for more info!

300 AAC Blackout Barnes Vortex 110 through car door

Love high speed cameras!

AK-12

From what I've been reading this sounds like a pretty versatile rifle... The receiver is still stamped steel and the magazines it uses will remain the same however, the internals of the AK 12 are very different. The AK 12 will also come cambered in 4 different calibers (5.45x39mm, 5.56x45mm, 7.62x39mm and 7.62x51mm).

According to the article at GUNS.COM the rifle is currently still in the evaluation process and is looking at mass production towards the end of the year... I won't lie, I'm kind of excited.

Secret Code

A great little series featured on Gamespot.com that talks about indie games AND games you've never heard of... Probably for good reason... Today, they look at European Bus Driver Simulator! The commentary is priceless and not to mention the game is ridiculous! So good.

Rad-Mobile

So if you're in Knoxville, TN you might be able to "pickup" this little beauty... It's basically an Oldsmobile with a old truck cab... But just look at that AMAZING bondo work! $3000 firm...

http://knoxville.craigslist.org/cto/3091802234.html

World's Fastest Zip Line...

Allegedly the world's fastest zip line in Nepal... Regardless of it being the fastest or not, I definitely want to go for a ride!

Don't Be This Guy...

Yes, it can be boring when waiting for your car to fill up at the gas station... But don't be an idiot like this guy and try to remedy your boredom by playing with a light at the gas station...

WHAT?! GAS FUMES CAN BE FLAMMABLE?! Seriously? Duh!

Microsoft Surface

Hmm, being an iPad owner, this intrigues me very much... Looks pretty cool though!

Tactical Pen

Why not?!

SEND D.L. TO SUMMER CAMP...

Seriously though, I am taking donations because I can't image this Texas Triggers Camp which basically recreates every event from Top Shot is anything but cheap... BUT HOLY CRAP DO I WANT TO GO!!!!

Tactic-Cool Monster Strikes AGAIN!

Buhaha! You can never have too many accessories for your AR... I think?

XBOX 720?!

Over the weekend an alleged document leaked from Microsoft outlines it's plans for the future console and peripherals... Some things mentioned are Blu-ray support, true 1080p output with 3D support, 6X the power and a price point of $299... As awesome as this sounds it could very well just be a hoax but I will avoid any cynicism and hope for the best! According to the documents it won't be launching until 2013. You can read the full release at theverge.com by clicking here!

Resident Evil: Retribution (Trailer 2)

Zombies... Milla Jovovich... Yes, please.

Real Life Portal...

For fans of the game Portal, you should enjoy this video by Jason Craft... Who by the way is an incredibly talented video effects artist...

Fast & The Furious... Romanian Style...

Romanian thief's attempt to rob a truck in motion...

Two Minutes Of Runway Models Falling...

Yup. I laughed for a solid 2 minutes... I know, I'm a terrible person.

Grillin'

Need I say more...

The Hives "Go Right Ahead" Video

Newly released video for The Hive's "Go Right Ahead". Check it!

Tactic-cool...

For all your tactical hay bailing needs...

Side By Side Comparison Of Ruger's SR1911 & Springfield's Range Officer

Quick side by side comparison of two pistols I wouldn't mind owning from guns.com

The Kessel Run

This would rival "Cannon Ball Run" I believe in awesomeness... If not exceed it.

Me Likey...

I feel this would go well on my night stand...

Star Wars 1313 From E3

And this reminds me of Uncharted with a cool Star Wars theme... SOLD!

Watch Dogs Gameplay From E3

Just released at E3 is some footage of gameplay from the upcoming game from Ubisoft (makers of Assassins Creed) called Watch Dogs.

To me it looks kind of like GTA meets Assassins Creed with a lot cool gun play... And that's okay by me...

The Remington 870

There's a lot of said about the legacy of a gun... Particularly, it's history of reliability. I often look at guns as tools and typically tools get used and beat up. Sure, I can appreciate a beautiful gun (i.e. a mint condition Browning Superposed) but what I appreciate even more is if it shoots every time it's suppose to.

As with just about every purchase I make I like reading reviews and of course doing research on the product. Even more so when it comes to buying a gun. Which to some, particularly those well versed in firearms, would almost think it kind of silly to do so much research in looking into a pump shotgun. If you asked someone familiar in the topic they probably would spout out any of the following for a good entry level shotgun: Mossberg 500, Browning BPS, Benelli Nova and Remington 870.

To me all these are great options as I have shot all of these models of shotgun. As I was in the market for an entry level shotgun for upland bird hunting starting this summer my choice had to based on what's best for me. As for specifications I was looking for they were pretty basic. It had to fit and feel right in my shoulder and I had a budget (I'm getting married in September so I was actually lucky to even have ANY budget to buy a gun).

Well, the Benelli and Browning were both at the top of my budget so I automatically already was leaning away from those choices. Plus, for fit neither shotgun quite felt right resting in my shoulder.

Now, down to 2 choices between the Mossberg 500 & the Remington 870. Both very similarly priced and both very popular models that are time tested. Both felt good in my shoulder but I probably wouldn't have minded a slightly shorter length of pull on both. Both came with 3 chokes and both came in synthetic furniture (other criteria I was looking for).

At this point it was pretty much a coin flip between the two as I really had no particular brand loyalty. The Remington 870 it was...

A big thing I did learn from this experience is finding what works for you. A BIG emphasis on "YOU". For me this choice made sense cost wise and it fit for what I was going to use it for. Another factor I did considered was availability of aftermarket parts thus giving more options to make my choice fit me even better (literally & figuratively).

So, with that said, after all my internal debate I'm pretty happy with my purchase and I can't wait to get some quail...

**UPDATE 6/18/2012** After shooting about 100 rounds trap shot in the new 870 I noticed I periodically had failures to extract. After taking a closer look I found a rather large burr inside my chamber that very well could be the culprit. Apparently, with newer 870 Expresses people have been seeing a few finish issues such as burrs which can obviously cause your shotgun to not function properly. The remedy I've been reading online is polish out the burrs and get it smooth... A little disappointing Remington, a little disappointing...