Product Review - Magpul SGA Stock AND Magpul MOE Forend

We had another great outing to a Gun Show recently. In addition to our business success, I had a personal triumph in scooping up a Mossberg 500 Cruiser for an incredible price. I hadn’t really been looking, but it was a deal I couldn’t pass up. The moment I had the new gun in-hand, though, I began to scheme.

This wasn’t my first Mossberg 500, but I wanted to further distinguish my new acquaintance from my previous friends. As a Magpul fanboy With a penchant for the superior products from Magpul, I set about outfitting this “Mossy”.

If you're reading this 20 years in the future, I will STILL be losing my mind about how good this deal was.

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Adding the Magpul SGA Stock was a no-brainer. I prefer the ability to shoulder a scatter gun over the more compact size that a pistol grip provides. I also like to look down the sights (or single bead) of a shotgun, and that’s not really something you can do easily with a pistol grip AND keep all your teeth. I’ve swapped pistol grips and stocks on Mossy’s before, and this was just as easy. The hex wrench supplied with the stock made short work of the supplied hex-head bolt. The only trick was the angle, but it was a small price to pay for a bolt much shorter than most stock bolts (e.g., the long bolt provided with the OEM stock). An easy to install (and remove, if needed) cap covers the bolt hole to create a smooth, near-seamless back to the grip of the stock. I left the stock…well…”stock”, and chose not to install any of the four optional spacers. For a shotgun of this type, I want the shortest length-of pull. If I choose to install a spacer (or spacers), I can add up to a handful of inches. I’ll also keep the out-of-the-box cheekrest though higher cheekrest upgrades are available from Magpul. I know I’ll add a sling eventually, but I didn’t want to get too wild all at once; I kinda want a project gun for a while. When I do add a sling, the SGA stock offers a number of mounting locations and options including quick-detach (QD) mounts (not included).

My ARs sport Magpul’s MOE Handguards, and I like their look and feel. When Magpul released the MOE Forend for Mossberg shotguns, I knew I had to have that, too. As with the AR hanguards, this is a smart upgrade. The forward and rear hand-stops keep you from over-pumping (Is that a thing?) when you’re running the shotgun hard. The texture – much like all of Magpul’s polymer products – keeps your hand practically glued to the thing. There are several attachment points for Magpul-specific accessories or rail sections for virtually whatever else you want. The installation was easy with the included forend castle nut wrench (which is practically worth the price of the part anyway), but I add a word of caution here: As the MOE Forend was created and is manufactured with the Mossberg 590 in mind it MAY NOT FIT your shotgun. The forend will only fit Mossberg 500s with the longer (7 ¾”) action slide tube. This wasn't a problem with the Cruiser, but I did check it on another Mossberg 500 (a "Field/Security Combo") and found it would not work. Check your 500’s action slide tube length before you give it a try.

After the installations, I gave the improved Cruiser a few good pumps, and the satisfying “chick-chucks” confirmed that everything was tightly affixed and where it needed to be. The only thing left was the best thing – range time.

Because it was the first time out with the new Cruiser, I went through my initial function checks. Pleased that this Mossberg was, so far, functioning flawlessly, I thumbed in a shell (Winchester Universal 12-gauge, 2 ¾”, 7 ½ shot) for the first live test. While the pump slid along the magazine, my hand never budged on the MOE Forend, and the SGA Stock stayed firmly rooted against my shoulder. With a shell chambered, I squeezed the trigger, and the Cruiser – built by Mossberg and dressed in Magpul – roared to glorious life in my hands.

It could have just been the excitement of a new gun (Who can’t relate to that?), but there seemed to be less felt recoil despite the Cruiser’s shorter barrel and lighter weight when compared to other Mossberg 12-gauges I've used in the past; other shotguns I've used would have had me writing this review one-handed with my arm in a sling. (Not really…but sorta.) Further, the secure grip of the forend and stock did well to tame the muzzle rise or jump that a 12-gauge can create.

The beginning-of-a-finished product. Look for more in the future.

The superficial “cool factor” of the way the Magpul products look, and the theory behind them, definitely piqued my interest. The easy installation and function told me that I was going to be in for a treat. But the final(ish) product – in use, sending clouds of metal down range – sold me all over again. Between its good looks and performance, the only thing this Mossberg is friendly toward is the user!

- Matt