870 Barrels and Mag Extensions

[357wheelgunner]

I got my wife a 26" 870 Express for Christmas ($230 OTD at Dicks !). She wants the 20" rifle sight barrel from my Police Magnum, so I want to buy an 18" barrel (parkerized!) and magazine extension. Where is a good source for Police barrels and factory extensions?

[RCR29]

Try Brownell's or Remington. Those are the first two places that pop up in my mind.

[357wheelgunner]

They both want quite a bit compared to what I've seen elsewhere. The best I've found is $120 for a matte 18" barrel.

I'm either going to use the factory extension, or the Wilson +2 extension with a clamp. As a side note, which clamp will work with the Wilson Combat magazine extension?

[MAX100]

The factory clamp will work on a after market tube extension with a adapter screw.


GC

[357wheelgunner]

Maybe I'm looking in the wrong direction, and should ask for advice on what to get....

What I want is an 18" smoothbore barrel with ghost ring sights, and a +2 extension to go with it. What would you all recommend, keeping in mind cost is an issue, but I won't skip on quality.

Any advice is appreciated.

[stalkingbear]

Remington factory barrel used would be cheapest or new if not available. The express line is cheapest of barrels. try www.midwayusa.com or www.cheaperthandirt.com As to the extended mag tube & spring,go with steel NOT plastic. I made that mistake and wound up getting steel later anyway.

[jakemccoy]

The only way I was able to get a good deal on an 18" parkerized barrel with rifle sights was to buy a used 870P with it already there. If you're OK with used stuff, that's an option. I got my 870P from JGsales.com. (Call and don't rely on their website.) However, as you know, used stuff is hit or miss. For used stuff, know what you want, keep looking because it'll pop up eventually, and buy immediately when you see what you want.

What I want is an 18" smoothbore barrel with ghost ring sights, and a +2 extension to go with it. What would you all recommend, keeping in mind cost is an issue, but I won't skip on quality.

You'll probably have to buy the ghost ring sights separately.

[Sir Aardvark]

If you want Ghost Ring Sights, the barrel is only half of the equation, as the actual "Ghost Ring" sits on the receiver, not the barrel. To install Ghost Ring Sights on a shotgun that does not already have them requires drilling and tapping the receiver.

Also, if you want parkerized, you are looking at the "Police Model" stuff, as the Express lineup is matte blue, and the Wingmaster lineup is gloss blue. The Police model stuff is more expensive.

Mossberg manufactures and sells 870 barrels at a cheaper price than that offered by Remington, but not in the configuration you detailed (Ghost-ring and parkerized).

What I ended up getting was an 18" Rifle-sighted, Improved Cylinder, Parkerized "Police" Remington barrel from Brownells (I replaced the factory sights with XS 24/7 Big-Dot sights).

You can also get Remington factory extensions from Brownells, but the Parkerized ones are about $90.00, blued ones are cheaper.

Tac-Star makes extensions for the 870, but the general consensus is that they are pretty cheesy! Choate and Scattergun Technologies also has them.

If you get an extension, don't forget to get a longer magazine spring, too!
The original 4-shell one is not going to function properly in a 6-shell mag tube.

Also, make sure you get a clamp. Scattergun Technologies shows pictures of their shotguns without a clamp, but I think it makes more sense to support the extension because it is in a rather exposed area if you drop the gun or bump something with it. Brownells also sells clamps.

[357wheelgunner]

I decided against ghost ring sights.

Remington sells barrels with just the front ramp sight, with a tritium insert, so that you can use it with a ghost ring mounted on the reciever, but I decided to get an 18" barrel with regular rifle sights.

I'll be adding either Meprolight or XS inserts later...

I also ordered a Wilson magazine extension, I'll have to get the clamp from Brownells. I wouldnt dream of using an extended magazine without a clamp, I watched a guy snap his tube at the range for just that reason.