870 Rifle Sights

[RevolverRob]

I recently picked up a 20" 870P barrel which has rifle sight bases installed, but no front sight (dovetailed) or rear sight blade (the 'carriage' is present).

I want to put some sights on it, but I'm having a hard time deciding.

XS: https://xssights.com/products/dxt-st...-shotguns.html

Trijicon: https://www.trijicon.com/products/details/re05o

Meprolight: https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1005912619

TruGlo: https://www.truglo.com/tfx-pro-sight...gton-shotguns/

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So far, I'm kind of between the XS and the TruGlos, because I'm thinking the three-dot sight picture of the Trijis and Mepros will be distracting. Also the Mepro looks like a set of sights at home on a hunting gun, with wide spacing between dots and a narrow rear notch.

I know XS will give up some accuracy at longer distances, but I'm looking at 30y or less as engagement distances and this gun is predominantly going to be loaded with buck. My brain intuitively tends towards dot-the-i style bar-dot sights on all kinds of guns. I find that pattern works well for me.

That said, I'm perfectly willing to hear opinions if folks have strong opinions one way or the other.

[TCinVA]

The big problem I have with the XS sights is that it's really easy to get the relationship between the front and rear imperfect without noticing it. When I mount the gun I tend to get the beachball up front a bit higher than I would like. It's not end of the world, but it's not something that happens when I use the TruGlo sights.

The Trijicon sights are theoretically best when you are in one of those lighting situations where you don't need a light but can't see your sights very well. The only problem is that the tritium capsules in the rear sights is the same size as the one in the front sight, meaning those two are bigger and brighter than the front sight which is much farther away on the shotgun than on a handgun. I find this annoying.

I use the TruGlo sights on most of my 870's. I'm very happy with how they perform. The combination of fiber and tritium works well in all sorts of lighting conditions. I've successfully used them for buckshot up close and slugs out to 150 in awkward positions. The plain black rear sight isn't going to be as useful in the lower light situations as the three dot setups if you can't get a good mount on the gun since it doesn't give you much visible feedback.

I greatly prefer the TruGlo sights to the XS sights, but I can see the TruGlo sights. Yeah, you can use XS sights but I don't see them giving any real practical benefit over TruGlos. I can use the TruGlo fiber/tritium dot like a big dot, but I have a useful rear sight to go with it should I need more precision.

[shootist26]

I used to have a set of Ameriglo 870 rifle sights that I really liked, high vis white ring around a tritium front and subdued tritium rears. It looked a lot like the Trijicon ones, except no white rings around the rear dots. I liked the fact they looked like my pistol sights. This makes them very accurate with slugs at range while still being fast. You can buy the Trijicon ones and just use a sharpie marker to black out the rear white rings, which I think will mimic the Ameriglo sight picture well. I personally like a standard pistol sight picture on my 870.

That Meprolight rear sight looks like a really small notch (similar to a factory 870 rear rifle sight) unless my eyes deceive me. If true, I think this is the slowest sight picture of the four choices.

After Ameriglo discontinued those 870 sights and the tritium ran out, I went for the Truglos mainly for the squared off front sight. It has a combination fiber optic and tritium, so it's noticeably brighter than my Ameriglos. The only issue is that I went through three pairs of front sights before I got one that actually fit in my front sight dovetail. The first two were built so damn loose there was almost zero contact in the dovetail. Even the third one I had to use a center punch to dimple the bottom enough to fit tightly enough

I think the XS express style sights are also pretty good if you want to prioritize speed at close range. I've done a lot of shotgun training in the past few years and it's definitely possible to make very fast hits with buckshot at close range with the TRijicon/Truglo style sight picture, while still preserving really good accuracy with slugs at longer ranges.

[Gadfly]

I want some rifle sight to attach to a standard barrel that wont break the bank.

People charge an arm and a leg for simple drill and tap service.

By the time you buy the sight and have it installed, it would be cheaper to find a new barrel with rifle sights. But then you are stuck with a 20" barrel.

Would love to see something like just glock dovetails as standard on a shotgun, and you could always by and sight combo to install later.

Just thinking out loud since i got an 870P with bead sight and non tapped receiver recently.

[RevolverRob]

I want some rifle sight to attach to a standard barrel that wont break the bank.

People charge an arm and a leg for simple drill and tap service.

By the time you buy the sight and have it installed, it would be cheaper to find a new barrel with rifle sights. But then you are stuck with a 20" barrel.

Would love to see something like just glock dovetails as standard on a shotgun, and you could always by and sight combo to install later.

Just thinking out loud since i got an 870P with bead sight and non tapped receiver recently.

or3gun.com/OR3GUN/about_or3gun_sightsaddle.htm

A hand drill, a drill guide, a vise, and a center punch and your wish could be at your finger tips. Drill slow with cutting oil.

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ETA: Okay, I think I'll go TruGlo and probably just paint a post under the notch with lume paint. That'll get me 90% of what I want while giving me a square notch for longer distance.

[Gadfly]

or3gun.com/OR3GUN/about_or3gun_sightsaddle.htm

interesting... too bad I have an 870 with no vent rib... but that is the perfect concept.
since the shotgun has fallen out of vouge in police agencies, i am not holding out hop that this pistol sight set up would be a new trend on new manufactured shotguns.

[RevolverRob]

interesting... too bad I have an 870 with no vent rib... but that is the perfect concept.
since the shotgun has fallen out of vouge in police agencies, i am not holding out hop that this pistol sight set up would be a new trend on new manufactured shotguns.

The second option down is plain barrel (round). I don't know how close 870 and Mossberg barrel shapes are, but I bet they're close enough.

[Dave J]

So far, I'm kind of between the XS and the TruGlos, because I'm thinking the three-dot sight picture of the Trijis and Mepros will be distracting.

On a pistol, I find rear dots very distracting unless they're blacked out. On my 870, the Trijicon rear doesn't bother me at all. I assume that's due to the greater distance between the front and rear sights on the shotgun compared to pistols.

Vision being a very individual thing, your mileage may vary.

[SeriousStudent]

I had a long chat with Tom Givens and John Hearne years ago, when the three of us were in Dallas for a shotgun class.

Based on that, my fave 870 iron sight is the Trijicon rifle sights. I dull the two rear tritium vials with a little bit of Sharpie. They are visible in low light but not obnoxious. It is still quick to use for precision shots at distance, as well as a fast shot at close range. I probably have every type of shotgun sight known the the Western world and over 20 shotguns. But that one seems to be the best irons for me.

Having said that, my true fave is an old Aimpoint H-1 with the 4-ish MOA dot. It's just about perfect for a shotgun, and anytime I see one for sale from a reputable seller at a half-decent price I buy it. I have them on Beretta's, Benelli's, Remington's and Mossberg's. They just run and that dot is about the perfect size and intensity.

[RevolverRob]

I'll probably put a dot on my next shotgun which will likely be a semi. But this particular receiver is a mid-90s Express receiver that isn't drilled and tapped. And the gun was a gift from a friend. So the build is pretty straight forward: rifle sights, +2 extension, and eventually some furniture (I'm planning to wait for the new Woox Gladiatore for the 870).

It'll probably put a prototype FART side saddle on it at some point as well.