What Light & mount?

[45Guy]

I want to put a light and mount on my 870 HD. The problem is I don't have the money for the Surefire forend. What would be an inexpensive but secure mount and what kind of flashlight would be best so muzzle blast doesnt kill it?

Thanks-45Guy

 

[Stretchman]

The 870 HD has more than a few options for light mounts. One of the least expensive is this:

http://www.uncle-mikes.com/adtempla...y=1279575&subcatky1=4548843&subcatky2=2000180

BE forewarned. Mine has been on order since the 3rd. You may want to try and get it from someplace else.

There are other options out there as well. More expensive and less functional. About as much with rail systems, etc. That is the simplest.

As far as the light is concerned, there are options. One of the best options I have seen is

http://www.inovalight.com/site.html?faq
Can I mount the Tactical line to my gun?

The Inova T1, T2 and T3 will work as weapon lights as they are impervious to recoil and fit in standard 1in rings. We also offer a remote pressure switch for the T Series of lights for Rifle/carbine applications. For further information about the model# TSPS, contact Matthew Wolfe at [email protected].

Another option is this
http://www.paraklesetechnologies.co...ry=2. Weaponlights and Flashlight Accessories

Hopefully that will at least get you started.

 

[Fred Fuller]

I like rails. They allow you to remove the light completely when not needed or when practicing in the daytime, so you don't batter the light/batteries unnecessarily.

http://www.opticsplanet.net/streamlight-rem-870-tactical-mount-69906.html is one option- it mounts under the magazine cap on 870s. I have these on several guns and have used them since the prototype came out without any problems. Not flashy, not complicated, not expensive but they work.

If you have an extended magazine, look at http://www.opticsplanet.net/streamlight-69903-mag-tube-rail-tl-tactical-flashlight.html or http://www.opticsplanet.net/streamlight-12ga-extended-mag-tube-tactical-mount-69901.html for other options. Again, I have used this style mount since it was prototyped and had no problems with it. It's a little more hassle though since you have to remove the mount to take off the magazine extension, but it's good and solid in use.

As to lights, any mount that will fit a Picatinny rail will work for these. That includes normal 1" scope rings with 1" body flashlights installed as well as the dedicated weaponlights. IF you plan to use a conventional 1" body flashlight in a scope ring, I strongly suggest sticking to LED lights. Normal incandescent lights generally don't 'live' very long on a shotgun. Dedicated weaponlights have lamp assemblies supported by springs to help cushion recoil, even so the incandescents sometimes have problems when mounted on a scattergun. At this point, having has some experience with LED weaponlights, I don't see myself buying any more incandescents for any weapon-mount use again. YMMV of course.

BTW, I have ordered from OpticsPlanet more than once, and have had good service from them. No financial interest, merely a happy customer.

lpl/nc

 

[Robert Hairless]

Lee, any suggestions about mounting a light to a 20 gauge 11-87 with an extension?

 

[Fred Fuller]

They gotcha covered at Streamlight. Just mount http://www.opticsplanet.net/streamlight-m16-ar15-tactical-mount-69902.html on the forearm in a place where the internal parts of the rail are out of the way of the gun's internal workings.

I put one of these on an 1100 forearm and it worked great, I've put a couple on ARs also as they were designed/intended. I put one on my mom's Marlin Model 60 armadillo gun over Christmas, and with a little relief carved and countersinks drilled in the barrel channel of the stock, some judicious filing down of the backplate to fit and two holes for the machine screws drilled in the bottom of the stock, it works just fine too.

You can use a piece of Weaver rail in a pinch, but you really do need a rail with 'shoulders' on it that will stop a light from being pushed back all the way off the rail if you bump it against something while moving the gun around.

I called SpeedFeed once upon a time many years ago to ask why it was that they weren't molding their plastic shotgun furniture with integral light rails. Turns out Bill Davis, then the owner, answered the phone that day. He told me there were patent issues in the way but he had a line of accessory rails in the works and if I'd give him some feedback on them, he would send me some. He was as good as his word, and that was my first experience with these items. I've been using and recommending them ever since.

hth,

lpl/nc

 

[Robert Hairless]

Ah, very nice indeed. Is installation simply a matter of drilling two holes through the forearm and tightening a couple of nuts?

 

[PJR]

This is what I use on my 870.



This is where you can order it.

http://www.opticsplanet.net/streamlight-rem-870-tactical-mount-69906.html

 

[Cesiumsponge]

Mesa Tactical makes 3 types of barrel/mag clamps with universal mounting (including QD for sling mounts) on the '3 and '9 position tight between the barrel/tube. No pictures but it's on their PDF catalog, page 11-12. $$55 MSRP for the clamp itself, $80 MSRP for the clamp and 3.5" rail. They're generally 20% cheaper street. Its relatively new and I'm still waiting for pricing and ETA through a dealer. Higher price, but Mesa stuff is top notch.

If you insist on lots of rails, Surefire makes a M69 triple rail forearm that runs $123 MAP. You can get it for $100 street with the right outlet. Also if you look for the right dealer, you can get the $250 618FA for about $200 if you search for dealers that give forum discounts, a nice saving. I'm not sure how much more expensive that foregrip is than your budget is but that's just an option you might not have heard.

Wilson Combat makes something similar for less. I have NO IDEA why they call it a -quad- rail system since you can only have 3 rails on a foregrip, but that's what they call it. $80 direct, a few bucks cheaper outside.

Lightwise, I would personally pick an LED light since it's got greater resistance to shock and whatnot. If you want a shock-isolated bezel on a Surefire light, it's going to cost you a pretty penny. You can just bolt up a run-of-the-mill CR123 xenon light and hope for the best though. I had a Pelican 6P survive 500+ rounds on my Saiga-12. I finally took it off to replace it with something else but the light didn't die on me. It only flickered on occasion with full powered loads (batteries probably jostled enough to break contact momentarily)