[Thanis]

I'm to a point where I think I'm just chasing my tail. For some reason I keep considering that there must be a way to get a shotgun that will have a 18 to 18.5 barrel for home SD and other barrel options for say deer and turkey hunting, different chokes, and also good for shooting sports like skeet, trap, clay, etc.

The more time I waste looking at all the options, it just appears that for the $, you don't save much, and you just end up with a lot of accessories.

I doubt I'll ever deer hunt with anything other than a 30.06 rifle, .308 rifle, or a 44 mag (revolver or level action). I guess I keep thinking I may end up hunting, at some time, in a shotgun only area.

Still, it comes down to Home SD, turkey, and sports. They are just specialised enough, that I'm going to want to customise the home SD shotgun enough to mount a light, I already own a good turkey shotgun (model 12 winchester, and as long as I can used lead, I'm fine), and really I might prefer something other than a 12 guage for the sports.

Am I missing something or am I starting to think in the right direction. Get the right tool for the job, forget the multi tool.

 

[C9H13NO3]

This has been my dilemma also. I want a good home defense shotty, so I'm thinking 18 inch barrel. I know I want the remington 870. But then again, I want to do some bird hunting too, and for that, I want a longer barrel. Do I get the HD or hunting gun? Do I just get multiple barrels and swap them out?

 

[SIXTO]

Like anything else, if you ask a piece of equipment to take on multiple rolls, it may be able to do all, but it wont do them all well. There is a lot of compromise in a do it all shotgun... and I don't like to compromise in guns.

BUT, if I had to, I'd buy a wingmaster with a 26" and add a 18.5" barrel.

 

[buckeye .45]

In my mind, if you get a pump shotgun that can chamber 3.5" shells, with an 18.5 inch barrel, and a 26 inch barrel, you will have most of it covered. You can use a cylinder bore 18.5 inch for HD, along with slugs out to 50m or so for deer. With the longer barrel and 3.5" shells, you are good for turkey, and with 2 3/4" shells, good for sporting and whatnot.

I think that would be your best bet. But I like owning lots of guns, so I'd just buy multiple weapons in order to fill all the roles.

 

[goldshellback]

A Remmington 870 or 11-87 would be a great choice for an "all-around" scattergun. Good firearms with plenty of barrels/chokes and configurations availiable. My old 1100 served as my all around shotty for many, many moons. I have four diffrent barrels for it and it's taken upland birds, ducks, rabbits, squirrels, turkey, hogs, and deer. A tight budget sometimes calls for a multipurpose tool to get 'several' jobs done, but like SIXTO posted, compromises are made.

 

[Janq]

Agreed with others as related to buy a full gun and secure a second purpose specific barrel.

But I would not go Remington toward such an option.
Why? Check the prices on a Remington barrel. They cost half as much as a whole new 870 Express as from Dicks.
To spend $150 to $180 on a barrel you might as well just buy for nearly the same price a used Wingmaster or Super Magnum or 870 Express as a _second_ gun for a given specific purpose and then call it a day done, with higher investment value at that.
In my area at gun shops a used Wingmaster with a 24" barrel can be had in the low 300s and high 200s. I was looking at two on a rack as in good condition this past Sunday.

If you're going to go the barrel swap route then Remington is not a good option, unless you happen to know of someone selling used barrels for cheap...to which I then would wonder why are they doing so when Remy barrels even as used are valued and sell for coin.

A better option to that end is Mossberg.
They sell from the factory brand new replacement barrels for as little as $65 including shipping! Finding them are just as easy as Remington and the cost will not at all break ones bank or be difficult to justify.

All then that is left is to decide on; Action type (pump, auto, or muzzleloaded which is a Mossy 500 factory option), barrel length, barrel type (smooth or rifled), sight type if any (rib, bead, rifle, scope mount as for deer), finish (blued, camo, stainless) and receiver model type.

- Janq

 

[SIXTO]

Or you can buy a Mossberg barrel for your Remington... Sorry Jang, just bustin your chops a little.

 

[Janq]

:lol: ^^

On a serious note though...To offset price if one really must have a Remington is to buy a receiver as used and build up a gun around that customized to a need.
Or buy a brand new 870 Remington clone such as from H&R 'Pardner Pump' or Norinco (Chinese mfr. but is said to be good quality), both of which can be had on the cheap.
Then add in the cost of a second barrel and at that you'll be just several dollars higher than that of a new single 870 Wingmaster or Police with just one barrel.

Aside from these options there is pretty much no other choice as other mfrs. sell their barrels at Remington prices and higher (i.e. Benelli).

- Janq

 

[dhshark]

I vote for specialization. I'd buy the hunting gun first, since in my neck of the woods deer season is around the corner, and save up for a SD shotgun ASAP (that is IF you are going to hunt this season).:danceban:

While building the funds to buy the SD shotgun I'd use the hunting gun as the SD gun temporally. Summit gun broker has 870 riots for $229 . They had 870P for $265 and may have some in stock.

Shark

 

[adaman04]

For me, the barrel swapping isn’t the problem, it’s the everything else. I would want to run a sidesaddle on the receiver, an extended magazine, light and mount, etc. Taking all that off very regularly so you can hunt with it is a pain IMO. A jack of all trades is a master of none as they say. If you’re just going to swap barrels, it won’t be a problem, but everything else is something to consider.

 

[10thmtn]

I have a Rem 870 Express, came with a 26" barrel that I use for trap.

For HD, I got a 20" barrel with rifle sights.

Switching the barrel takes only a few seconds.

I did not add the extended mag tube - I figured that might raise some eyebrows at the trap field. I do have a spare 6-shell carrier that fits to the buttstock, however (elastic nylon type). That gives me 4 shells in the mag tube, plus 6 on the buttstock for HD.

This is my "do it all" shotgun. If I ever get into skeet, I may get a double barrel, or a semi auto, as trying to use a pump action for skeet is very very difficult - at least for me!:blink:

 

[varob]

Don't forget to plug your mag tube (in my state you can only have 3 shells in the tube). If you get caught hunting without a plug, bye, bye gun, hello fines.

 

[Janq]

...Summit gun broker has 870 riots for $229 . They had 870P for $265 and may have some in stock.

This was a good bit of advice. ^^

I went to Summit and guess what I found!

So called 'Riot' barrels are nothing more than defense length 18" barrels (minimum legal length for shotgun without being becoming an NFA item) as opposed to being 'Turkey' (24"), 'Deer' (rifled), or 'Duck'/waterfowl (28"!) type barrel in length.

$229 - http://www.summitgunbroker.com/Remington_870_riot.html
$229 - http://www.summitgunbroker.com/870_Riot_LLW.html
$229 - http://www.summitgunbroker.com/870_Mag_Riots.html

I've got at my house right now as on loan a Remington SuperMagnum factory 'Turkey' gun with a 24.5" barrel and an external Remington AccuChoke which adds another inch in length overall.
For giggles, with a confirmed EMPTY magazine and chamber!, I used it to simulate slicing the pie as against walls and negotiating second floor bedroom area halls.
Forget about it! Very much non functional. Very very much.
A handgun is far better than any woods or clays (!) oriented shotgun.

A HD defense shotgun should be 18", or if one can afford the NFA tax stamp...less.
I'm awaiting BATF clearance on a Form 4 toward a Mossy 14" barrel 590A1 which will do the HD job perfect, and act as double duty with a second 20" barrel toward hunting.

- Janq

 

[Ssmo]

I'm to a point where I think I'm just chasing my tail. For some reason I keep considering that there must be a way to get a shotgun that will have a 18 to 18.5 barrel for home SD and other barrel options for say deer and turkey hunting, different chokes, and also good for shooting sports like skeet, trap, clay, etc.

The more time I waste looking at all the options, it just appears that for the $, you don't save much, and you just end up with a lot of accessories.

I doubt I'll ever deer hunt with anything other than a 30.06 rifle, .308 rifle, or a 44 mag (revolver or level action). I guess I keep thinking I may end up hunting, at some time, in a shotgun only area.

Still, it comes down to Home SD, turkey, and sports. They are just specialised enough, that I'm going to want to customise the home SD shotgun enough to mount a light, I already own a good turkey shotgun (model 12 winchester, and as long as I can used lead, I'm fine), and really I might prefer something other than a 12 guage for the sports.

Am I missing something or am I starting to think in the right direction. Get the right tool for the job, forget the multi tool.

I use a Benelli SuperNova Tactical Turkey Gun.
Its has a nice advantage camo pattern.
Addons by me:

-Tacstar tube extension can hold 8 2 and 3/4 shells with one chambered.
-8 shot Mesa tactical side saddle picatinny rail
-Meprolight night sights
-Getting ready to add a lumaforce light to it. (of course i would remove this for hunting)

The gun has a 24 inch barrel and and an IC Full and Mod chokes. The IC and Mod chokes are good for steel shot and slugs.

I like the gun very much. I also have a tactical sling for it.

 

[GunGeezer]

My first shotgun was a 12 ga. Remington 870 Bicentennial edition. It came with a 26" barrel w/ full choke which worked for hunting and trap shooting. I purchased an 18" barrel for skeet shooting and kept it on for home defense. I was told the only difference between the full choke and trap barrel was the sights. I never knew the difference and won several buckles at my sportsman's club shoots. It was a great gun but I had to sell it when I moved to Florida because of the rust issues. I bought the gun in 1976. I'm sure today's finishes are more rust resistant.

 

[pcon]

This has been my dilemma also. I want a good home defense shotty, so I'm thinking 18 inch barrel. I know I want the remington 870. But then again, I want to do some bird hunting too, and for that, I want a longer barrel. Do I get the HD or hunting gun? Do I just get multiple barrels and swap them out?

I have the Mossy 500 and just have separate barrels from all my needs

 

[mikeprekopa]

I would go for the Remington 870. Buy your hunting gun first. Assuming your only holding your position, and not clearing the house, the long barrel would be fine till you stumbled into a shorter one. though it may be a bit ungainly to get out of a closet or from beside the bed or something.

 

[Stevew]

And no one even mentioned the Stoeger Coach gun.