U.S.A. –-(Ammoland.com)- As I packed my Mossberg 930 Pro-Series Waterfowler Shotgun for a recent duck hunt with the Alaska Expedition Co. owner Charles Allen cautioned me that duck hunting could range from bad on up to an Argentina level, just depending on the day. All I heard was Argentina and I was pumped.
For the hunt, I selected a Mossberg 930 Pro-Series Waterfowler 12 ga. with a 3-inch chamber. For ammo I packed along Federal Black Cloud shells. For calls I took along my Sure Shot duck calls and Simms Waders and boots. Don’t forget if you go to Alaska, your wading boots cannot have felt bottoms. Charles advised that we’d be living in waders all day so he suggested bringing a pair of fleece wading pants. We went with the Simms pants.
Mossberg 930 Pro-Series Waterfowler Shotgun
I planned on using my Mossberg 930 Pro-Series Waterfowler Shotgun mainly for duck hunting but I also took along some Federal slugs for bears. Sure, I also had my .44 mag but for in close calls I love a 12 ga. loaded with slugs.
People forget how devastating slugs can be. I’ve dropped bulls up to 2,000 lbs. like a sack of potatoes with a slug.
I love autos. The only problem with autos is that you have to get a well-made one. At least I do. On a good dove or pheasant hunt I’m usually desperately trying to keep my gun loaded and end up shoving in half shells and half feathers.
Then when hunting waterfowl you and your gun will most likely get wet and muddy. For instance Charles called me two weeks ago and said they’d encountered 55 mph winds and the forecast predicted 25 inches of rain over the six days in AK. Weather like that will be the ultimate test for a shotgun. Or said a little differently, if gear holds up in Alaska, it will hold up anywhere.
I thought he was kidding about the 55 mph winds, that is, until a few days into our trip we encountered 80 mph winds. That’s some serious wind. We had some nice days but most days it rained and some days it really rained. So, the moral to this paragraph is, you better have a shotgun that is going to be able to handle it.
Like I said earlier, I like autos. There are quite a few autos on the market but not that many reliable ones. That’s not the case with the Mossberg 930 shot gun. The 2nd morning I put it to the test. The guide dropped off Ron Spomer and myself at the blind before daylight. We set up decoys and jumped in our blind.
The guide then had to run over to another slough to call for some other hunters. Not 30 minutes after he left I dropped a duck and ran over to get it but stepped off a drop-off. To make matters worse I face planted into a weed bed and couldn’t seem to get up. My shotgun was already submerged and I had to use it to push up. I finally got upright but not before my shotgun got filled and my waders were trying to as well.
I stood up, poured water out of the barrel, opened the action and looked down the barrel to make sure there no obstructions and kept hunting. I guess that’s about as good a testimony as I can give it. My shotguns don’t always have an easy life.
The day before I’d dropped five ducks with four shots. Today with Ron present, well…………. let’s just say it wasn’t quite that good. He’s getting where he doesn’t believe any of my shooting stories. Hmm, maybe next time I’ll pour a 5-gallon bucket of cold mountain water down his waders and two hours later document his shooting abilities! But regardless, I guess the Mossberg is only required to keep shooting. It’s not guaranteed to hit everytime you shoot.
I can vouch for the Mossberg 930 Pro-Series Waterfowler Shotgun, it take a dipping and keeps on killing.
About Tom Claycomb
Tom Claycomb has been an avid hunter/fisherman throughout his life as well as an outdoors writer with outdoor columns in the magazine Hunt Alaska, Bass Pro Shops, Bowhunter.net and freelances for numerous magazines.