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Old May 17, 2000, 05:17 PM   #1
chris k
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i am looking for a remington 870 that has been nicely worked over, ie. synthetic forearm and stock,extended magazine tube,ghost ring sites,sling,side saddle,ect... i have looked at the scattergun tech guns and they look great but is it worth 800 dollars for a worked over 350 dollar shotgun? this gun will be used for patrol duties as well as home defense. thanks for the help
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Old May 17, 2000, 06:45 PM   #2
Mike Baugh
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Chris , see if your LEO supplier can get you the Remington Police model 870 with Ghost rings and an extended tube , it should be a stock Remington item with wood or synthetic , then add your own side saddle and sling . Good luck , Mike...
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Old May 17, 2000, 06:59 PM   #3
JNewell
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Weeeelll, if the $ are burning a hole in your pocket, Hans Vang will sell you a completely tricked-out 870 or 870 PM. It lacks (maybe?) only a light. Check out http://www.vangcomp.com for details. There are arguments (Dave, this is your opening <g> ) for spending less on hardware and more on ammo and training, but if you want to spend money on hardware, Hans is YTM.

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Old May 17, 2000, 07:06 PM   #4
pete80
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I'd go with Mike's option. Find a Remington LE dealer and purchase a gun with an extended mag. tube and ghostring sites. Some of these guns come with polymer stocks as well!

Don't let the LE dealer part scare you away from this gun. They are perfectly legal to own. The fact is, Remington will only sell to LE dealers. If you find one, jump on it!
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Old May 17, 2000, 09:19 PM   #5
JNewell
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OK, let's try again with less $.

The econo-solution might be: buy an Express, drill or Dremel (a verb? <g> ) out the dimples, install an extended tube (or not, as you wish), install a sidesaddle (if you wish), install a big-head safety, and buy or saw off an 18"-20" barrel. Dave McC has a barrel that's no-choked courtesy of his hacksaw. It works. There's a $100 difference between the PM and the Express that's accounted for as follows:

1. walnut vs. hardwood
2. no dimples
3. phosphate vs. whatever the Express finish is (someone said last week it was bead-blasted then blued...?)
4. IC vs. (I think) cylinder choke
5. metal vs. plastic triggerguard assy

Worth the money? Your call! Still goes BANG with authority...
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Old May 18, 2000, 05:29 AM   #6
Dave McC
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REMINGTON makes the best tactical 870, folks. But you knew I'd say that(G)...

Any 870 makes one fine HD/Tactical tool, and few mods are mandatory. A decent trigger, sights that work for you and the mission, and maybe taking out those $%^&*( dimples you keep talking about. The bells,whistles, fender skirts and fuzzy dice are nice, but not essential.

On a patrol piece, given unlimited funds and enough time, I'd add a peep and protected front sights, mag extension,sling swivels and sling,and some sort of light.Extra cash would go for ammo and maybe some training past departmental stuff, like Suarez or Awerback.

Also, if your dept will OK it, add a SideSaddle. Extra ammo is nice, and the weight turns that mule into a pony kick wise.
I'd skip the slings with bandolier loops, all that weight swinging will throw the weapon off in a crisis.

As for Vang, Wilson, etc, they have fine products, but all that isn't necessary. Even a stock, out of the box 870 Express is one fine weapon.

J,that bbl was cut by a smith who crowned it,and mounted the ramp and protected post front sight,then did the forcing cone. Good work all the way.
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Old May 18, 2000, 09:09 AM   #7
JNewell
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<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR> J,that bbl was cut by a smith who crowned it,and mounted the ramp and protected post front sight, then did the forcing cone. [/quote]

Ahhh, shoulda known you'd do it right, including the forcing cone! &lt;g&gt;

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Old May 18, 2000, 10:16 AM   #8
Dave McC
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J, he talked me into the forcing cone job. First I'd heard of it,and now I preach it to the multitudes(G).

Right now, 3 870s here all have the cone done, and I might get both bbls on the 20 ga done also. It's not a HD tool, just a trainer for the kids.
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Old May 18, 2000, 08:05 PM   #9
gunmart
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try the scattergun tech border patroll model its just $690.it a great way to start.
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Old May 20, 2000, 01:31 AM   #10
Bennett Richards
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Scattergun stuff is great... but if you want the best go VANG, VANG, VANG....

Ask any owner you happen to see....

Ben
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Old May 20, 2000, 06:16 PM   #11
Jeff Thomas
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If you decide the spend the money, Hans Vang does excellent work, and he is one heck of a nice guy. Never met the man, but when I dealt with him, he treated me like a brother.

Hope he sets up shop in AZ someday.

Regards from AZ
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Old May 22, 2000, 11:17 AM   #12
monoboy
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Hans Vang. Period.

The guy treated me like a brother. I went in to get "the treatment" on my barrel, and walked away with a free lunch for me and my girl. My GF also walked away with a shotgun that actually *fit* her. The smile she had on her face will be remembered for some time.

His customer service is second to none. Many can learn from this gentleman...

My $.02.
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Old May 24, 2000, 03:33 PM   #13
SEAN WILLIAMS
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Hey Dave McC: What type of protected front sight does your 870 sport...
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Old May 25, 2000, 05:33 AM   #14
Dave McC
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It's a Lyman ramp,post and bead with a metal cover,popular on sporting arms since the 20s. The cover is removable by simply sliding it forward.

When I did the bbl,there was little aftermarket stuff for the 870. Time may have dimmed the memories, but I believe I had all this done before the 81 riot at the Md House of Correction.Working there gave a certain urgency to making a HD plan and getting the tools. I had the 870, courtesy of my Dad,and had the mods done.

One thing about the protected sight, with the aperture out of the Lyman peep, the cover is quite visible in very low light, making it an excellent tool in those scenarios. The post has a touch of white Testor's enamel to speed up acquistion also.

BTW, during my career with the Dept, the most common damage to dept 870s was the loss of the bead sight. It takes little mishandling to knock it off, the ramp and beads being SLIGHTLY better at this than the plain bead. That was one reason I wanted the protection...
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Old May 27, 2000, 09:18 AM   #15
tuc22
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Hans Vang.
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Old May 27, 2000, 10:50 AM   #16
scottMO
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I bought my Rem 870 express for 210.00.
speedfeed stock and forearm- 80.00
extended tube- 20.00
4RD side saddle- 22.00.

total is abt 330.00 for one hell of a tactical shotgun.

scottMO
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Old May 28, 2000, 09:05 AM   #17
old hawk
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what im looking for is a trigger group kit to make my express in black matte like an ithaca 37 with a marching trigger. i know timney has trap/disconnector kits but wondering who else has them or if a stock unit can be had from a m+p site? also i got mine new @ 244$ but what i didnt like was the rough feel to it , i cleaned up the flash on the inner rails for the slide on them and inner reciever, also buffed the area the bolt slides on , i wish they coouldve taped up the inner reciever during the matte process as well as cleaned the stuff out of the barrel as well(matte finish yutz leftovers in the bore)the nylon stocks is what i really like but i have to cut the butt end down about an inch or so to get that feel i like more comfortable.i think the finish is a parkerized phosphate myself but aint sure on that one.......
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Old May 28, 2000, 02:39 PM   #18
Monkeyleg
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Some weeks ago I bought a Benelli M1, and have put just 25 shells through it. I paid $815 for it, but I'm sure I could get $900 at a gun show.

You guys have me second-guessing the 870 vs.
Benelli, so I have some questions to ask. I see that Scott put $330 into his and has a great gun. I like the ghost ring sights, though. Does anyone make them for the 870 at a reasonable price? I was also thinking of a flashlight foregrip, but $200+ seems like a lot of cash. Any other sources for that?

Just mulling this over in my muddled mind.

Thanks,

Dick
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