In the market for one that will serve a second purpose of hog and birds occasionally.

Narrowed it down to a few just looking for a reason to pick one over another

Mossberg 590
Remington 870
Benelli nova tactical

Obviously they all have aftermarket support to upgrade and prices are all within $100

Benelli is your best bet...

Any reason why you aren't looking at semis?

I use the mossberg 590 I would probably use any of them. But figured if its good enough for the marines it's good enough for me.

I'm not against them just looking at what I know. I'd listen to other options but these three I know are readily available. Plus I know I can get different barrels for these pretty easily.

Benelli.

I like the older Remington 870 Police or Wingmaster models.

Mossberg 590 is the only one that passed the specs laid out by the military according to its reviews. I have several of them and really like them. There's a bunch of different configurations for it to sweeten up the choice.

I thought the marines use Benelli? But regardless i love your setup.

http://www.usmcweapons.com/articles/M1014/M1014NF.htm

Benelli all the way

Dont go with the 870. THAT WILL LEAVE MORE OF THEM FOR ME! Seriously, the 870 has been there done that long before any of the other guns were on the design board. In the academy i shot one that was manufactured in 1959. All i had to do was re-stake the shell stop. No telling how many millions of rounds that has fired in the years at the academy, and is very worn. Looks terrible, but still functions perfectly.

Mossberg J.I.C.

Good! Too many people go with a gun they aren't familiar with for defending themselves. Not exactly a good choice, imo.

Out of the three you listed, I'd say 870, then Benelli, then Mossberg. All three are about as rugged as anything, and they'll make it through anything you put them through. But the 870 probably has the most widely available aftermarket parts, allowing you to get a HD shotgun for a good price. Replacement barrels are everywhere, chokes are cheap, etc.

You wouldn't happen to be the same dieselgeek as the one on /r/guns, would you?

My thought is what's worse than the sound of a shotgun racking in a round

Sorry you are correct, the Army is the ones that mostly use the 590. Regardless if any branch of the military uses these in combat it will suffice for what I'm needing it for lol.

My home defense shotgun is a 1959 model 870. Picked up at the local pawnshop on the cheap, quick trip to the neighbors machine shop to shorten the barrel to 18 1/2" and drill and tap for a fiber optic sight, loaded up with 00 buck and is now ready for the HD role. Took it out to the inlaws to test it and shoots like a dream, and so smooth!

Joe Biden sez you only needz a double-barrel shotgun if you want to keep bad people away for realz. Just tell your wife to go out on the balcony and fire off two blasts.

A loaded one.

Realizing that my last post did not add any content to this thread, I feel remorseful enough to add my $0.02...

Any of the above will do fine, but a tactical shotgun does not double as a hunting shotgun as well as a hunting shotgun doubles as a home defense weapon.

It's easy to get caught up in whether you need an 870 Police or not, but I have an 870 Express Mag that has been flawless through untold cases of ammunition over its entire life in spite of a MIM extractor and whatever the other cheapo features Remington designed into it. In spite of what the internetz sayeth, that shotgun has never given me a reason to doubt it. That said, I do keep a $15 forged extractor from MidwayUSA in my shell bag just in case I have a problem in the duck blind that would change me from a shooter to a spectator.

If I really wanted a knockaround gun for the home, I think I would try to pick up an 870 youth model in 12 or 20 and just keep it unplugged and loaded with buckshot.

Best bang for the buck is a Mossberg Maverick 88 pump action with 18.5 inch barrel. At only $189, it's hard to go wrong. For another $100, you can add an ATI Talon adjustable butt stock with a pistol grip. It shoots great & is made very solidly for the money.

Binelli Super Nova Tactical! I have a Winny Defender, which is a great HD shotgun, but I really like the Benelli SN Tactical( specifically model #20160) . Who cares if it doesn't have massive tacticool support on parts. W/an HD shotty, simple is best & the Benelli 20160 has everything you need in stock form!

This^^... but any 870 will do

Go to a gun shop that has all three and actually put them up to your shoulder and see which one you like best. They all have little differences in the way they function and you will find you like one better than the others. All 3 you mentioned are good guns. Each shooter will rave about the one they have at home, even if it isn't actually the "best" or most dependable. I have several of the ones you mentioned and shoot all them; although one is a favorite for night time skunk hunting, that doesn't mean it will be the best for you.