870 Receiver Picatinny rail

[dak0ta]

Hello,

Which is a more sturdy setup to put a rail on top of the receiver? Mesa Tactical side saddle/rail mount that uses the receiver pins or to have my Wingmaster drilled and tapped for a base? I'm leaning towards drilling and tapping to get less bulk and make take down less complicated not to factor in potential zero shift when removing the mesa mount.

 

[TurtlePhish]

More sturdy? Definitely D/T the receiver for a base.

 

[AI&P Tactical]

Depends on what you are doing with the weapon. If for defense then go with the Mesa. The reason is you keep your head up higher and if your optics fail or become damaged in a fight you simply look under the rail and anything in that square box catches buckshot. It is a back up sighting system.

Of course optics have no place on a fighting shotgun but some guys seem to need them and the Mesa is the way to go for that application.

 

[dak0ta]

What about for deer hunting and slug shooting? I originally used my Mossberg with a 28'' barrel and IC choke installed. it worked fine, but lining up the two beads was rough. My 870 wears a 12.5'' barrel, cyl bore. I was hoping that this light and handy package would be more maneuverable in the bush/timber, and by adding a red dot on top, I'd be able to effectively shoot slugs out to 80-100 yards.

Also, is there much velocity drop from 12.5 vs 28'' barrel?

 

[TurtlePhish]

Also, is there much velocity drop from 12.5 vs 28'' barrel?

With a shotgun, hardly. While most rifles suffer large amounts of velocity loss with shorter barrels, shotguns don't start to lose anything significant until (roughly) the 11" mark.

 

[dak0ta]

Ok well that's promising. I found using the 28'' VR on my Mossberg to be unwieldy in the forests, so a heavier 12.5'' 870 with a red dot on top should fit the bill. More muzzle flash, but I suppose only need one shot if I hit what I aim at.