Shotgun Question

N/A ^ | N/A | Washi

[Washi]

I am planning to purchase a shotgun. I'm fairly certain that I will be buying the Remington 870 Express, synthetic. I do have some questions, though.

I'm not experienced at all with shotguns. I've read that the barrel can be changed out on the Remington 870 and I am wondering to what extent that is true. What I am hoping is that I can buy one shotgun, and by purchasing a couple of additional barrels, I can have a true multi-tasker.

Can I, for example, buy the 870 with the 18 inch barrel, and the magazine extension so that I have a 7 shot, home defense shotgun, then remove the magazine extension, and replace the barrel with a 22 or 24 inch barrel to have a fowl and small game shotgun, then swap the barrel again with a rifled slug barrel (with gun sights) and have a deer gun?

Is it as simple as buying any 870 express and just swapping out the barrels?

Any additional nuggets of wisdom you can impart (re: shotguns) would be appreciated.

[WakeUpAndVote]

An 870 is a good platform to build upon. Great for small game. Barrel change outs are just a twist of the knob in front of the pump.

[Vendome]

Lean against a wall....

LOL

[PreciousLiberty]

“Easy to do and then look in to Centurion ammo for it. A large ball bearing surrounded by ten small ones. They will stop a bull of a guy.”

The Centurion ammo sounds interesting.

Depending on your situation, overpenetration may be an issue though. Overpenetration is when (some) of your projectiles either miss or penetrate your intended target, then go on to pass through something you didn’t intend - such as your wall, your neighbor’s wall, and your neighbor. Or perhaps your child in the next room.

I’d recommend erring on the side of caution in this area. Many recommend #4 buckshot for home defense. It has plenty of penetration to be fatal (particularly for head shots) but will tend to stay in the walls a bit better. Bear in mind that at closer ranges the shot will act more like one big mass, and you will get a 1-3” hole in the intruder rather than multiple smaller holes.

The #4 buckshot is .24” in diameter, and you get twenty one pellets in a 1 oz. 2 3/4” load. That’s as opposed to eight .33” pellets using 00 buck. I’d also advocate using the 2 3/4” shells, there’s no need at all for 3” or 3 1/2”. The 2 3/4” shells are much more “user friendly”, meaning they won’t recoil as much.

[OKSooner]

" Is it as simple as buying any 870 express and just swapping out the barrels? "

Piece of pie. Easy as cake.

Note that you can't do this with most autoloaders - each new barrel needs to be headspaced by a gunsmith just like a rifle. With the 870, or any pump action (but why buy any pump action, or any shotgun, except the 870?), just switcheroo. Don't torque it down too much... you'll know what I mean when you do it.

Happy shooting. Use eye and ear protection, use AA target loads for practice and save your empties.

[762X51]

You can swap barrels to your heart’s content. You proposed getting the 7 shot 870 Express synthetic with the extended mag, which is a great idea. As someone else mentioned if you get the non-extended mag version it has the dimpled mag tube which makes it hard to add a mag extension, but if you get the factory extended mag version (model 25077) it doesn’t have the dimples. To change barrels you’d just remove the mag extension/barrel nut and replace it with a regular barrel nut and you may need a shorter mag spring. Another good thing about the 7 shot 870 Express Synthetic is that it can be had in 20 gauge too, if you’re so inclined.

[Tupelo]

“If you have a “small” home with smallish rooms, I might consider the shorter barrel for home defense.”

I agree 100%.
Taurus Judge works real well.

[BigOrangeI]

Re: racking the slide

By the time the perp hears the racking of the slide you aren’t
unloaded anymore!!

[OKSooner]

" And one last thing before I forget, the commonly reported saying that just the sound of a pump shotgun being "racked" scares off intruders is a fallacy. It puts you at a disadvantage, first it gives away you position, second it suggest that you are starting with an unloaded weapon (really bad in my book), and if so you loose the advantage of the extra round. I don't want the bad guy to hear me rack the slide. I want them to hear BOOM, end of story. "

Thank you. The ol' "Rack the slide" has gotta be one of the most tragic ideas on earth. It seems to show up on every thread.

Okay, a teen-ager looking to make off with your TV will mess his pants. Same teen-ager or anyone else on some kind of drug might not even register the sound and their reaction will be unpredictable. Funny thing how the brain gets messed up when drugs are introduced.

A professional criminal will be armed and he'll shoot in the direction of the sound. Don't give away the best advantage you have on him - surprise.

[Washi]

Thank you all for the great advice and information. I love FreeRepublic.

[P8riot]

Yeah, but in the time it takes you to pump the gun you could’ve gotten a round off. Starting off unloaded puts you at a disadvantage, period.

[Joe Boucher]

Yep though packaged in conveniant little 12 ga. shotgun shells.
You doing alright in Va. R. Scott?
Winter about over there?

[Joe Boucher]

I unde4rstand what you are trying to say.
I live in a pretty large house on 4 acres.
IF I shoot, in my home there is little chance of hitting anyone other than the intended.
I’ll stick with the centurion,
Check out who uses it.

[xone]

Get one of these:

knoxx stock

With one of these:

knoxx power pak

Keeps the nose safe if you are a 'crawler'.

[xone]

Get one of these:

knoxx stock

With one of these:

knoxx power pak

Keeps the nose safe if you are a 'crawler'.

[R. Scott]

Winter here is off and on. Temps in the high 70s today, low 50s tomorrow. I won’t trust it until about May.

[Salamander]

Wall, fence post, tree, truck fender....they all work.

;]

[Salamander]

Hubby would have a snit fit.
The Moss is “his”.

I much prefer my 1963 Centennial Winchester 30.30 or the Beretta 9mm.

[you stick with what ya grew up using, ya know?]

I don’t dare show him that stock..he might buy it just to ‘accessorize’ the Moss.

It’s bad enough the AR15 gets more “toys” than I do.....;D

[what’s a crawler? a puny person that the gun knocks flat and then has trouble getting back up again?]

[Salamander]

“Temps in the high 70s today”

It’s cold and raining here.

I have a Harley and I’m losing my freaking mind waiting for some “warm”, even if it’s “off and on”.

I hate you.

/jk

;-D

[xone]

what’s a crawler?

Someone who inches forward on a stock. If you had this on the Mossberg, shooting it would be alot more fun. Zero recoil.

[archy]

What I am hoping is that I can buy one shotgun, and by purchasing a couple of additional barrels, I can have a true multi-tasker. Can I, for example, buy the 870 with the 18 inch barrel, and the magazine extension so that I have a 7 shot, home defense shotgun, then remove the magazine extension, and replace the barrel with a 22 or 24 inch barrel to have a fowl and small game shotgun, then swap the barrel again with a rifled slug barrel (with gun sights) and have a deer gun?

Is it as simple as buying any 870 express and just swapping out the barrels?

Almost. There should be no problem with the barrel swaps, and that idea is so popular and there are so many 870s out there that some other manufacturers sell accessory barrels for the 870.

You may have a minor problem adding the magazine extension, however. Some of the Express versions have had *dimples* pressed into the sides of the magazine tube, apparantly to drive customers desiring the guns for security purposes to other manufacturers or to Remington's more higher-priced security models. Not a problem.

The dimples can be either pressed out with a swedging tool, or simply drilled out, and the mag extension will then work fine. Some of the Express 870s lack the ball-bearing detent used to latch the barrel in place, but this can be easily overcome by adding an accessory magazine tube clamp, which both better supports the front of the mag extension and provides a place for a front sling swivel. BTW, the Choate mag extension kit comes with the clamp included.