new to hunting need help

[jberre]

It sounds like you already purchased your gun but I wanted to throw in my opinion and tell you that I own both the mossberg and the Nova and have used my dads Remington 870 express quite a bit. I hands down prefer the Nova. It's balance, price, and shooter friendliness are exceptional.

[critter gitter]

for a deerhunting shotgun I use the benelli nova

[YoungGunz]

ok. im 14 and i can handle the recoil on a 12 gauge, if that gives you an idea. But it does kick like a mule. If your worried about recoil, you could go with a 16, 20, or even 28 gauge. Those kick a lot less. I know your probably less likely to take my advice because of my age, but i have hunted with all of those gauges. If your going small like a 28 gauge, or even 20 gauge, they will work fine at short range. Anyways, if you are looking for long range hunting, you may want to go with a rifle. Low recoil rifles are .222, .223, .22-250, .243, .270, .280, or a 20-06. But a 12 gauge will do the job if your ok with the rather high recoil. Especially with slugs, your looking at some high recoil.