I love waterfowl hunting, but to be clear I don’t think of my self as the worlds greatest duck and goose hunter. (I am a turkey hunting legend in my own mind) The rugged Appalachian Mountains that I hail from is not exactly considered a waterfowl mecca. We have some ducks and geese, but it’s a drop in the bucket compared to what other states have for waterfowl numbers. So, you can see why I was thrilled to be on a waterfowl hunt in North Carolina, near the fabled Outer Banks. We were there in late January and it was cold, I mean way colder than you would expect in the southern state of North Carolina, but it’s duck season, right?
I glanced over at Linda Powell and fidgeted in my waders. It was cold, not Artic Circle cold, but twenty degrees with a stiff wind is chilly. I was dressed for it and not in bad shape other than a nagging feeling I might have a small leak in my right wader. Along with outdoor writer Brad Fitzpatrick and our guide Robert Manning, Linda and I were sitting in a partially submerged duck blind near Engelhard, North Carolina. Ducks were flying, our shotgun barrels were sometimes warm to the touch, and I was happy to just be there on a day duck hunters dream about.
When twenty Green-wing teal come screaming in low over your blind to hit your decoys they make a sound that is hard to describe. Their wings cutting the air makes more than a swish but less than the blare of a jet. This sound makes duck hunters hunker lower in the blind and Labrador duck dogs roll their eyes as they shiver and wait. Our guide Robert keeps up welcoming chatter on his duck call and finally says “Ok! Take ‘em!” Linda, Brad, and I rise as one and start banging away. I keep up my streak for the morning by missing three times. Teal may be the fastest ducks around and these guys have big tail wind, it’s like shooting at bees in a hurricane.
Cold ducks and chilly weather aside I am thrilled to be here. Along with Brad and Linda, we are here to put the new Mossberg 940 Waterfowl shotgun through its paces.
Linda Powell is the Director of Media Relations at Mossberg,she has us booked with Dare to Hyde Adventures at Swan Quarter, North Carolina, and we are staying at their Lake Mattamuskeet Outpost. Dare to Hyde Adventures offers a wide variety of hunting, fishing, and wildlife viewing opportunities in this area. They may be best known for their world class duck hunting and guiding their clients to the largest black bears in the world. This area has vast crop fields of corn, soybeans, and wheat with many almost impenetrable swamps all around. This makes for a bear smorgasbord with plenty of nearby cover. As I understand it, these bears do not hibernate so they basically can stay up all winter and eat, unlike the mountain bears in my state. All of this adds up to bears reaching a monstrous size and Dare to Hyde reported their average bear taken this past season was over 500 pounds!
We are here for the ducks however and on our first day in the blind we are not disappointed. Robert the guide keeps the duck calls going and we keep the Mossberg 940 barrels warm. I am shooting a lot of Kent Cartridge shotshells, but not reducing the local duck population as much as I would like. Fellow outdoor writer Brad did a very unselfish thing in the morning by missing the first duck so we would not feel too bad when missing later, I really appreciated it!
Even with these temps, when the ducks are flying, we don’t seem to notice it. Robert never stops scanning the sky, he keeps the duck chatter going and when they come barreling in we keep the barrels on the 940’s hot. It’s a mixed bag of several Teal, (surprising to me, this late) Gadwalls, Widgeon, and some Ringnecks. The Mossberg’s preform without a hitch, we continue to bang away, and as more ducks come to visit, I don’t think as much about that leaky wader.
As always, our stay in this beautiful part of North Carolina was much too short. We had great food in the evenings with the guides and staff at the Outpost where we were made to feel like family. The hunter’s banter around the table with this bunch of young guides made you want to stay and visit much too late, but duck hunting mornings start really early. It all went by way to fast. My family and I visit the Outer Banks almost every summer and I often look across Pamlico Sound and think “Wonder what is over there?” Well, I found out, and I like it. I will be going back, for the ducks, maybe the bears, and the beauty and wildlife of this wonderful place.
Lowdown on the Mossberg 940 Waterfowl.
The 940 has descended from the Mossberg 930 line of semi-auto shotguns which I have had some experience with. A few years ago, I took a Mossberg 930 to Gunsite Academy in Arizona and went through a grueling shotgun course. The 930 did nothing but eat ammo and shoot for three days in the desert sand. In truth I didn’t see much room for improvement with the 940 model, but Mossberg did it.
Working with world champion shooter Jerry Miculek, Mossberg gave the 940 a redesigned gas system, oversized bolt release and charging handle (great for hunters with bulky gloves), a slimmer fore end, and a completely adjustable stock system. All of these features are great, which you will see when you grab a 940. What may have impressed me the most is this new gas system can reportedly go over 1500 rounds without a cleaning, in the semiauto shotgun world, that is impressive.
A problem with many shotguns is they do not shoot where they look, that is the point of aim (PIO) does not match the point of impact (POI). Many of us don’t know this because we never pattern a shotgun on paper. Mossberg engineers worked to design a new barrel-making process for the 940 that ensures the consistent production of a platform that will allow a user to maintain an accurate point-of-aim/point-of-impact when utilizing quality factory-made ammunition.
The internal components of the 940 Pro (gas piston/rings, magazine tube, hammer sear, return spring plunger and return spring tube) are nickel boron-coated and the return spring plunger is hard-anodized aluminum. Combined with the chrome-lined barrels and self-draining stocks, these 940 autoloaders are designed for corrosion-resistant, reliable functioning. This is important, no other shotgun gets the abuse a waterfowl gun does. Rain, snow, ice, mud, goose blood and Labrador slobber are all part of a typical day. This shotgun will also be offered in a black synthetic field model and snow goose model with an extended magazine.
Some of the specs on the 940 Pro Waterfowl include a 28-inch, vent rib barrel equipped with a HIVIZ TriComp fiber optic front sight (with interchangeable triangular and round LitePipes) and AccuChoke-compatible X-Factor ported choke tube. Metal surfaces of the receiver and barrel wear a durable Cerakote finish in Patriot Brown, complementing the True Timber Prairie-camouflaged stock and forend. Completing the package is anaggressive Mossberg signature texturing on the forend and stock; sling swivel studs; 5-round capacity; drilled and tapped receiver; and the convenient Mossberg ambidextrous safety, right under your thumb on the back of the receiver, where it should be. This is a lot of shotgun for an MSRP of $1,050.00 (as always, street price will be less)
Larry Case