glad I could be of help. the remmington 870's are fine guns also ( thats why alot of police use them ) but I think the mossberg has more options of barrels/stocks and colors? be prepared for alot of kidding if you choose pink. not the best choice for turkey hunting, but you could cover it up with camo temporarily. and you won't have to worry about your husband using your gun, in public at least. now go get some practice in before the contest starts. a propper fitting shotgun is every hunters dream, they will naturaly shoot where you are looking/pointing. think about pointing your finger at something you never miss, now just apply that same principle to the shotgun.
my wife shoots clay with a rem 1100 20 guage. she loves it. its a trap gun, not a field gun but the recoil is low and she handles it well. i agree with FLDXT, dont be scared of the 12. when we were shooting lots of trap, there were quite a few 12's that she liked. the 1100 is just the one she felt was the most comfortable. her 870 express is not as fun to shoot for her, and she is not nearly as accurate. i believe her first practice round of trap she busted 19 or 20 out of 25. we use to frequent knights trail, and im sure like there, other trap places have people that will let you fire their weapons to see if it is a gun that will work for you. i bought my wifes gun out of the trunk of the president of the gun clubs mercedes. ask around while you are at the park to see if anyone has anything you can try out, and have fun!
I recently found out that the Mossberg 500 in 12 Gauge has a compatible barrel that is a .50 cal black powder.
That wouldn't a bad setup, one gun, can shoot blackpowder, slugs, or put on a 28" bbl and shoot some clays, birdies, bunnies or tree rats. It would really open up a lot more seasons to you. Mossberg's website says $113 for the barrel.
I have a Mossberg 20 gauge with a 24" slug barrel that I am about to replace with a 12 gauge. She is a little beat up and could use a re-bluing on the barrel, but she shoots straight. I don't know if you're looking for a used gun or something nice and shiny, but I'd be more than happy to let you shoot it and see what you think regardless.
Dunno, I was wondering the same thing... http://mossberg.com/products/access.asp?type=barrels§ion=access You can see the .50 caliber bbl listed on there and it specifically says muzzleloader.
I had one for my 500 but sold it years back it was kind of nice to have the muzzleloader bbl but needed the money.
