Browning BPS or Remington 870

[mmasteve]

what do u guys think?. i want it to shoot clay just for fun on the weekends and SOME duck hunting. thanks for the input.

[Niagara Shooter]

Both guns work great, I own both and love them equally. There are a few things to consider, gauge/chamber, finish (870's) and which way you shoot. The whole gauge issue for me (being up here in Canada) alot of my stores you don't find anything besides 12's in 3 or 3 1/2, I'm currently looking for bps hunters in 10, 16 and 410. So once you've decided on what you want you can have more options, 12ga is basic all around, 3 1/2 for turkey and goose. Secondly is finish, if you go the 870 route, you have the express and wingmaster finishes, I personally own a 3 1/2 wingmaster and I can say she is beautiful. Theres nothing wrong with an express, its just dull wood and a matte finish on the metal. The brownings are all the same finish. The only real benefit to shooting a bps is the safety is on the top like a mossberg, but it is a bottem eject, so works fine for left and right handed shooters alike. I personally perfer the bps because its what I grew up shooting (old man was a lefty) but both guns work great and are nice to look at

[robc]

Coke or Pepsi?

Way more aftermarket goodies for the rem. BPS is bottom eject. Safety location is different. 870 is easier to take apart.

I can't think of anything negative to say about either.

[zoomie]

The BPS comes in a few finishes... a couple painted Mossy Oak finishes, blued, engraved...

I've got the Duck Blind Mossy Oak. I really liked it when it was new. Now it's peeling off all the corners. I would go with a wooden/blued finish in hindsight - I think it'll look nicer longer. It runs great - a little heavier than the 870 I think.

Another consideration - do you want a plethora of accessories? With a BPS, you might be out of luck. Browning just came out with a short ~18" HD barrel, but I haven't seen a place to buy it. On the other hand, the 870 accessory world is forever growning. You can get any size barrel, any type shell holder, etc, etc, ad naseum.

[BigJimP]

In my opinion the BPS is equivalent to the more expensive shotgun in the 870 lineup, the Wingmaster. The other 870's are a little lesser quality than the wingmaster, again in my opinion.

Between the 870 Wingmaster and the BPS, my personal choice is the BPS. I think the BPS is a little smoother - and easier to fully strip than the Remington. The fit and finish on both guns is very good. The BPS is made to a neutral cast on the comb - and I think that fits more people. I also like the the bottom ejection of the BPS, especially in the field, and the location of the safety on the Browning a little better. But the 870 Wingmaster and the Browning BPS are both very good guns.

[robc]

BigJimP,

The BPS is made to a neutral cast on the comb - and I think that fits more people.

Not quite sure I understand this. Don't they cast a stock to fit a right or left handed person? Aren't most people right? Wouldn't a standard stock, with a slight cast (right) fit most of us a little better than a neutral?

If such is not the case, why do they ever put cast on a factory gun?

[BigJimP]

By neutral cast what I mean is they try and make the comb so it is right down the same line as the rib on the gun. The BPS doesn't have a built in " cast to the right - cast on " or " cast to the left - cast off".

Some guns are built with a little cast on them - and a neutral cast is better in my opinion.

Not to get too technical, because its a really complicated issue, but whether you need a gun with cast on or off the comb - is affected by physical dimensions like the distance of your shoulder to cheek, length of your neck, how much weight you carry in your face, etc - and length of pull makes a difference too - and all gun companies make a stock to fit what they perceive as the average. Remington has a standard they follow, Browning is a little different, Beretta is a little different ... drop at heel, drop at comb, etc But with a neutral gun - a leftie or a rightie ought to be able to pick that gun up - and get their eye positioned directly down the line of the rib ( without mashing their cheek over the comb,etc ) and I think Browning does that pretty well.

For most of us, these "field guns" don't really have enough adjustability in them to make them fit us. I have pump guns that I add adhesive comb pads to - to bring them up to the right height, change recoil pads to lengthen the pull, etc. Some of the more expensive guns like Browning XS Skeet can be purchased with a comb that is paralell to the rib - but it still has about 1/2" of adjustabilty up and down - and about 1/4" side to side for cast. You can put an adjustable recoil pad on it too - with an adjustable jones pad - so you can rotate the recoil pad a little, raise it a little, etc to get it just right - so the guns point of impact is where you are looking / since your eye is the rear sight - this is what fit really means. I find the BPS is a gun that will fit a lot of new shooters / left handed or right handed pretty well right out of the box. Its relatively inexpensive / and a good long term gun - I still have the BPS models in 12 and 20 ga I bought 35 years ago .... hope that helps.

[mikenbarb]

BPS for the duck blind. The bottom eject is nice because you dont knock your buddy's chicklets out of his mouth with flying hulls.

[alfred]

The gun that points naturally to the target you have your eye on when you throw it to your shoulder is a simple way to check if the gun fits you.I like Remington.I think they are a good gun.I have never bought one because they just don't feel and point natural to me.We are all different.No one gun is best for everyone.If there was,you would not have to choose.Check them all out and shoulder them if you can.You will know by the feel when you shoulder "IT".Be it the most expensive or the cheapest single barrel,this is the gun that you will be most accurate with in a hurry.At one time I had 17 shotguns(at least.I am still thinking.). I shot all,but still hunted and shot a old single barrel the most and more than all of the rest put together.

I AIN'T DEAD AND I AIN'T QUITTING.alfred

[Scattergun Bob]

Yes, as a left handed shooter I have had to deal with this, most stocks are cast on. I have found a couple of aftermarket stock companies that offer 0 cast and variable pull.


Ford or Chevy, both run fine.