Sling on an 870?

[HukeOKC]

I have an 870 Express Magnum and I was thinking about getting a sling put on it. It has no sling mounts or anything so they will have to be added (if possible). My questions are:

1. Can this even be done? I see no place to mount any sling on the front unless they make a different magazine cap with the sling ring on it.

2. Will this make the gun decrease in value?

[Dave McC]

1,Yes. The Michael's of Oregon set works fine.

2, No. Sometimes addons do not increase the value of the piece, but they rarely decrease the value.

[B Shipley]

I put a Scattergun's Tube w/ sling mount on my 870 and put a ST swivel on the back. I had some local "gunsmith" do this, which was about 5 degrees offcenter. It would have been better to have bought their buttstock to begin with, which is done right and countersunk to fit flush. Also bought a sling from them, which was well done.

I just can't see what they do to double the price of their guns from a stock Remington.

[gunmart]

scattergun?wilson does not dbl the price of there guns.if you ADD up the price of the quality products that they ADD to the basic remington you will see that you can only save maybe $80 bucks by building it your self.take the border patrol $675.ok you take a factory remington police model (not the express model)$425. add good sights $100 -$150
extended tube $25 to $50.sling kit $10 sling Elcheapo $10 that ads up to $570 and thats if you do all the labor.the wilson guns are the only ones on the market garanteed to shoot a decent pattern with buck shot or they will keep swaping the barrels out untill they do.you may choose to save the hundred bucks but i dont.after all this is a fighting shotgun.when in a fight dont compromise get the wilson and you wont have to worry about an offset buggered up stock.heheheh

[gunmart]

i just realized that i left out the jumbo head safty and the side saddle.thats another $50 right there.

i find that people that tend to skimp on the quality of there firearms are the same people that have $800 chrome packages added onto there new pickup trucks or buy a satalite dish for there bass boat.

not that there is anything wrong with chrome on your truck but we seem to have our prioritys out of wack in this country.

[Dave McC]

Priorities might be out of whack, Gunmart, with one who spends more on bells/whistles than ammo/range fees in a given period.

We love our aftermarket options,but I could pull the plug on my bird 870(21"bbl), stuff it with 00, and shoot darn near any qualifying course for ANY police dept or agency in the country and qualify in the top 25%.Total addon/custom work, lengthened forcing cone.

And I could do it because I've burned up truckloads of ammo, not bought the add-ons.

Once one has a reliable weapon, the best accessory is a case of ammo, not Wilson's or others' products.

And this is no dump on accessories, their makers or users. Just some concern about priorities....

[B Shipley]

Let's see $240 for basic 870 HD, $140 for 18" police barrel w/ rifle sights (could've saved about $40-50 by getting a police 870, but not easily available off the shelf) $40 for mag tube, $6 for swivel. $35 to drill swivel and remove dimples from tube. $65 for new stock and $12 for sling.

Looks like I saved $50, post "gunsmith" and could've saved around $100 if he had been any good. Forgot about $12 button for safety that I can live w/o and the ghost rings that I like less than rifle sights, but I guess the money I paid for my barrel negates this latter issue.

Maybe Wilson does swap barrels, but I think a forcing cone extension is in line for the price.

And he doesn't touch the action from what I can tell.

I don't have a pickup or bass boat, but I do like the flexibility to buy my options as I choose.

[HukeOKC]

Well thanks for the info. I just would like to have a sling for hunting. I don't mind carrying the gun but I thought it would be nice to have a sling and keep my arm fatigue down. I would rather use that energy and muscle for aiming at a Turkey and having to stay still.

[Dave McC]

You still can, Huke. The basic set that has a new mag cap with one incorporated and a screw in for the buttstock works very well. Not expensive either.

While I don't keep a sling on the HD, it does have QD studs.The others get slung as needed in the woods, etc. Good option to have.

Even a klutz like me can install them.

Mr Shipley, Police turnins are a great bargain. Most of my present dedicated deer shotgun was an Arlington,Va, PD cruiser gun at one time. Since few in any 870s ever wear out, if one doesn't mind honest use and honorable scars, there's a bargain. I think mine cost $165 in the early 90s.

That bird 870 started out at the Md Pen. I bought a receiver and wood, and built the gun from parts. Had to buy a trigger assembly, too.The Parkerized receiver does clash subtly with the matte finish bbl, but neither the birds nor I care a whit.

And, building a parts gun is not only cost effective, it's kinda fun....

BTW, I guess about $140 for the whole shebang...

[Randy Cain]

HukeOKC,

Since your original question was regarding slings, I'll try to answer THAT question.

I personally favor the "Hopson Sling" over other varieties on a shotgun. It is similar to an HK sling except that it uses standard Uncle Mike's hardware. It has the flexibility to be used as both a 'tactical' sling and as a conventional carry strap for African and American carry. It may also be used in 'backpack' carry.

You'll want to install a QD stud on both the side of the stock (for tactical use) and a stud in the conventional location on bottom of stock (for African and American carry).

The sling comes with QD swivels.

You may order by calling Cecil Hopson at 423-638-3546. He may be hard to catch. Keep trying.

The sling retails for $50. Works great on carbines, shotguns, etc.

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www.guntactics.com

[gunmart]

ive seen this sling in your class before and it is a good one.hows cecil doing.no more copperheads i hope.