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Old February 28, 2001, 06:36 PM   #1
Dave44
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I have picked up a 870 HD and would like to pick up a afermarket slug barrel preferably with a cantilever scope mount-do they have just slug barrels or do they just come
rifled slug barrel? I think I saw something in Brownells
that also had an option of a muzzel brake. I'm not sure what I'm getting for that extra 30-40 bucks. Thanks in advance and any info would be appreciated. (870 is 2-3/4
or 3")
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Old March 1, 2001, 07:14 AM   #2
Dave McC
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By the time you find a bbl and get it set up, you'll spend not much less money than if you buy a complete used 870. I did the bbl swapping thing for a while. Losing zero after changing bbls cured me, now there's only one extra bbl here and that's for the kids' 20 ga.

I have 4 870s, a trap gun, a generic wingshooting/clays gun, a slug gun and a HD tool. The slug gun doubles as HD backup out season. All 4 of these, mods and all, probably set me back less than $1200 in today's money.

Also, as for porting, it increases muzzle blast,flash, and noise. While it does reduce recoil, there's cheaper ways to do so w/o those drawbacks. Check the archives here for some input.

A nice thing about 870s. There's so many and so much has been written, made for and tried about them, there's lots of input about any aspect.

BTW, all the cantilever bbls I've seen have been fully rifled....
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Old March 1, 2001, 09:46 AM   #3
Correia
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I'm doing the barrel swapping right now. I got a really good deal from a fellow TFLer on a used riot barrel. Plus I don't ever shoot slugs through it so I wasn't that worried about changes in zero. (Maximum range in the apartment is considerably under slug range )

But if I hadn't found this good deal, I probably would have just shopped around for a used 870 to play with. They never wear out, and in my area ther are always used Wingmasters for around $220-$250.

I've never seen a non-rifled cantilevered barrel, nor have I ever used one.
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Old March 1, 2001, 04:35 PM   #4
Rottweiler
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Those fully rifled/cantilevered barrels are great. Mine shoots about a 5" group @75 yards. and doing the barrel swap doesn't affect the zero. It does the swap several times a year from the 18"smooth bore home defense barrel to the 26" vent rib to the slug barrel and back to the hd barrel.
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Old March 4, 2001, 07:47 PM   #5
Dave44
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Rottweiler: where did you get your barrel and how much?
I'm looking to do exactly what you do
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Old March 5, 2001, 07:37 AM   #6
Dave McC
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Rott, if you replace the bbl exactly where it was the zero remains, but most shotguns have enough slop that they can be all over the target. This is why some custom smiths pin bbls or recommend dedicated slug guns.

FWIW, when I did the test a while back on KO Brennekes, my chokeless, smoothbore HD 870 gave less than 5" groups at 100 yds, my deer 870 w/ rifled tube a little tighter.Neither has had the bbl off in years, maybe decades.
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Old March 5, 2001, 09:00 PM   #7
Rottweiler
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I got the barrel from http://www.precisionreloading.com I can't remember the price. (it was a while ago) I'm assuming that the reason it holds its zero so well is the barrel and mount are permenantly attached to each other. If the scope was mounted to the reciever I'd bet it wouldn't hold zero worth a crap. There is some play between the bolt and barrel when the action is locked up, about the same amount as there is with all 3 barrels. On the HD barrel and the bird barrel there is also a little play between barrel and action but the slug barrel is pretty tight to the reciever. Maybe the folks at Hastings put the ring that slips over the mag tube just a touch further out than Remington people do.
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Old March 5, 2001, 09:05 PM   #8
Dave McC
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You may be right about the one piecebbl/mount adding to the accuracy, that was why the cantilever system was developed in the first place.

On my slug guns, I pad a set of channelock jaws and take it one, repeat ONE, click past handtight. This takes out the slop and greatly aids accuracy and zero retention.
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Old March 5, 2001, 09:32 PM   #9
Rottweiler
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I've heard of other people doing that too. I thought about trying it myself but, I'm pretty happy with the way it shoots. It makes nice dead hogs, and as Dad used to say" If it ain't broke... DON'T F*@K WITH IT". Years ago I thought he was crazy, lately I realize he was usually right
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Old March 6, 2001, 07:35 AM   #10
Dave McC
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Learned that trick at an instructors school, as part of an armorer's module, Rott.

Agreed on not fixing unbroke stuff.
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