Aimsurplus LE trade 14.5” REM 870 Rifle Sight Barrels

[LHS]

OK, with the barrel ordered... what is the best way to put a dot on an 870P? My receiver is not tapped for picatinny rail. If there are gold-standard shops I will probably use them. Wilson Combat seems to offer this for $150, could do worse but open to competing offers.

Short answer is "it depends". I like a few different options, in no particular order:

1. Have the receiver drilled/tapped and slap a CROM on there with an Aimpoint. This is probably the easiest option, as it's a standard pattern that most any competent smith/shop ought to be able to do.
2. Have a Vang barrel optic mount installed. This keeps the top of the receiver clear for emergency reloads and helps with return to zero if you take off the barrel for whatever reason (cleaning, etc).

Most anything involving a pic rail will result in an optic mounted too high and you'll need a riser on the stock, which I tend to dislike because it just doesn't seem to mount as intuitively, especially at speed. YMMV, of course. And I agree with Dan, those sights are pretty low so I'm not sure a CROM would cowitness. But it'll certainly be more likely than anything with a pic rail interface

[BobM]

Those sights seem lower profile than the standard slug sights. I'd be concerned that a pic rail would make them unusable.

Drilling and tapping for the pic rail is a pretty straight forward job, you could do it yourself if you have a drill press and a drill press vise. Any local gunsmith should be able to do the job without a problem and save you the time and trouble of shipping.

Another thought might be a sidesaddle-rail combo. I've used both Mesa and Tac-Star side saddles, but not the rail versions. I'd favor Mesa over Tac-Star because the Tac-Star's seem more prone to stripping the threads in the side plates.

https://www.mesatactical.com/product...2-ga-5-in.html ($120.00)

https://www.amazon.com/TacStar-Indus.../dp/B00I77PNUA ($74.00)

I have the Mesa Tactical on an 1187. It has worked well through a couple turkey and deer seasons and two combat shotgun classes with an Aimpoint Micro on it. I put it on as it was a quick way to get the optic mount but I’d rather drill and tap the receiver for a different mount and lose the excess weight. Also, this past turkey season, I had four shells fall out of the shell holder while hiking into the hunting area.

[SeriousStudent]

Please @ me if anyone finds 14" 590 grs barrels

I would love to find one as well. I have a 590A1 that needs that to complete a Form 1.

[Nephrology]

Those sights seem lower profile than the standard slug sights. I'd be concerned that a pic rail would make them unusable.

Drilling and tapping for the pic rail is a pretty straight forward job, you could do it yourself if you have a drill press and a drill press vise. Any local gunsmith should be able to do the job without a problem and save you the time and trouble of shipping.

Another thought might be a sidesaddle-rail combo. I've used both Mesa and Tac-Star side saddles, but not the rail versions. I'd favor Mesa over Tac-Star because the Tac-Star's seem more prone to stripping the threads in the side plates.

https://www.mesatactical.com/product...2-ga-5-in.html ($120.00)

https://www.amazon.com/TacStar-Indus.../dp/B00I77PNUA ($74.00)

Yeah, the sights seem like they would be occluded by any receiver-mounted optic most likely... but an optic would be much faster, too.

I have a Mesa side saddle on this gun already without the rail - I will ponder replacing it with a railed version. Too bad they don't seem to offer a 4-shell version with the short rail anymore as that would be my preference.

Local gunsmith would be best, but I haven't really found one locally who I've found very compelling...

I have the Mesa Tactical on an 1187. It has worked well through a couple turkey and deer seasons and two combat shotgun classes with an Aimpoint Micro on it. I put it on as it was a quick way to get the optic mount but I’d rather drill and tap the receiver for a different mount and lose the excess weight. Also, this past turkey season, I had four shells fall out of the shell holder while hiking into the hunting area.

Yeah the Mesa side-saddle I have on the gun now is pretty old (probably got it 10+ years ago) and shells really only stay in by virtue of gravity and good luck.

Short answer is "it depends". I like a few different options, in no particular order:

1. Have the receiver drilled/tapped and slap a CROM on there with an Aimpoint. This is probably the easiest option, as it's a standard pattern that most any competent smith/shop ought to be able to do.
2. Have a Vang barrel optic mount installed. This keeps the top of the receiver clear for emergency reloads and helps with return to zero if you take off the barrel for whatever reason (cleaning, etc).

Most anything involving a pic rail will result in an optic mounted too high and you'll need a riser on the stock, which I tend to dislike because it just doesn't seem to mount as intuitively, especially at speed. YMMV, of course. And I agree with Dan, those sights are pretty low so I'm not sure a CROM would cowitness. But it'll certainly be more likely than anything with a pic rail interface

I think drill/tap is probably the way to go. RMR CROM might be the ticket to keep the receiver free of bulk. Holosun would be a tempting option for this gun with the crosshair reticle.

[gato naranja]

Short answer is "it depends". I like a few different options, in no particular order:

1. Have the receiver drilled/tapped and slap a CROM on there with an Aimpoint. This is probably the easiest option, as it's a standard pattern that most any competent smith/shop ought to be able to do.
2. Have a Vang barrel optic mount installed. This keeps the top of the receiver clear for emergency reloads and helps with return to zero if you take off the barrel for whatever reason (cleaning, etc).

#1 is definitely the easy button.

That said, I have noticed - as you pointed out in #2 - that a receiver mounted red dot can be a PITA if one swaps barrels and/or uses removable choke tubes. Like anything else, some combinations are worse than others... the level of pain also depends on how OCD a person gets about shotguns as precision weapons. While I was on my 870 walkabout, I noticed that a receiver-mounted aperture rear with different barrels suffered similarly. I concluded that 870's were a bit like T/C Contenders, and I was better off having sighting equipment dedicated to the barrel.

(An aperture rear on a shotgun proved a bit problematic for me in low light, but that is whole 'nother can of worms.)

I don't personally use the 14.5" version that is the subject of this thread, but the 18.5" version is hands-down my favorite all-purpose, "factory" 870 barrel.

[jlw]

Unless you are running slugs, is an optic really going to be of benefit? In my own limited experiments with open sights versus both optic and ghost rings, I am faster working multiple targets with the open sights.

[Nephrology]

#1 is definitely the easy button.

That said, I have noticed - as you pointed out in #2 - that a receiver mounted red dot can be a PITA if one swaps barrels and/or uses removable choke tubes. Like anything else, some combinations are worse than others... the level of pain also depends on how OCD a person gets about shotguns as precision weapons. While I was on my 870 walkabout, I noticed that a receiver-mounted aperture rear with different barrels suffered similarly. I concluded that 870's were a bit like T/C Contenders, and I was better off having sighting equipment dedicated to the barrel.

(An aperture rear on a shotgun proved a bit problematic for me in low light, but that is whole 'nother can of worms.)

I don't personally use the 14.5" version that is the subject of this thread, but the 18.5" version is hands-down my favorite all-purpose, "factory" 870 barrel.

I would presumably form 1 this and run only the 14.5" zeroed for 00 buck most likely. I'll keep the 18" barrel but dont anticipate I would use it much. I have a police surplus 20" Wingmaster with walnut furniture if I want a long one.

Unless you are running slugs, is an optic really going to be of benefit? In my own limited experiments with open sights versus both optic and ghost rings, I am faster working multiple targets with the open sights.

It might be if only because since my vision has worsened, I rarely shoot iron sights of any kind these days. Given that the amount of time I would spend training with this gun will realistically be minimal, some kind of reflex optic would at least preserve commonality of sight picture with my ARs.

That said would price it out first on the same spreadsheet I keep the rest of my Xmas list that I pick away at as funds and time accommodate

[DDTSGM]

Short answer is "it depends". I like a few different options, in no particular order:

1. Have the receiver drilled/tapped and slap a CROM on there with an Aimpoint. This is probably the easiest option, as it's a standard pattern that most any competent smith/shop ought to be able to do.
2. Have a Vang barrel optic mount installed. This keeps the top of the receiver clear for emergency reloads and helps with return to zero if you take off the barrel for whatever reason (cleaning, etc).

Most anything involving a pic rail will result in an optic mounted too high and you'll need a riser on the stock, which I tend to dislike because it just doesn't seem to mount as intuitively, especially at speed. YMMV, of course. And I agree with Dan, those sights are pretty low so I'm not sure a CROM would cowitness. But it'll certainly be more likely than anything with a pic rail interface

Off-topic, have you worked much with the Burris Speed Beads?

[DDTSGM]

Unless you are running slugs, is an optic really going to be of benefit? In my own limited experiments with open sights versus both optic and ghost rings, I am faster working multiple targets with the open sights.

This has been my experience as well. Although, I haven't worked with an optic enough to really offer an honest opinion. Buckshot, I'm definitely a bead guy.

[jlw]

This has been my experience as well. Although, I haven't worked with an optic enough to really offer an honest opinion. Buckshot, I'm definitely a bead guy.

I have the Trijicon sights on a two barrels. They look like pistol sights. They are great for buckshot. I had trouble with them on the steel at Gunsite as the front sight was wider than the steel, I typically only have FFC in these guns.