Remington 870 is reliable and popular shotgun. But standard Remington 870 comes with standard stock, sights, follower, forend etc. Personalize your Remington 870 for your mission. 870 for home defense or 870 for hunting? You can find upgrades for any purpose.
Remington 870 with Fiber Optic Sight
Tactical upgrades and accessories for your Remington 870 depend on the model you have. There are less upgrades fro Remington 870 in 20 gauge. It is not possible to install standard Remington 870 barrels on new model of Remington 870 Tactical shotgun with one piece magazine tube.
So what are the top 8 upgrades in my opinion?
1. Stock and forend
Remington 870 Magpul Stock
Standard Remington 870 Express comes with wood stock and forend or simple synthetic stock and forend. Remington 870 Tactical can come with tactical Speedfeed stock or even Magpul stock and forend.
Why stock is so important? Because you use it every time you grab your shotgun. So many shotgun owners have wrong stock on their shotguns. Some buy tacticool stock because of the looks but I recommend choosing simple stocks which are comfortable to use.
Remington 870 recoil reducing stock is another good option for new shooters. They really work and reduce felt recoil.
Stocks available in many colors or you may even want to paint it yourself. Hunters may prefer to use camo stock but it is recommended to have highly visible orange stock when there are a lot of other hunters around.
Remington 870 folding stock is a good option when you need a compact shotgun to have it in your car or backpack.
I prefer simple solutions and like KISS principle. There are two stock that are simple and very comfortable to use: Hogue overmolded stock for Remington 870 and Magpul SGA stock for Remington 870.
Remington 870 pistol grip stock is not very comfortable for your wrist when you shoot a lot.
You can choose adjustable stock or get spacers for your Remington stock. Proper Length of Pull is very important for comfortable shooting experience.
So make sure that you choose stock and forend which are comfortable for you.
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2. Safety button
Remington 870 Safety and Alternatives (Wilson Combat (Scattergun Technologies), S&J Hardware, Vang
Safety button is a small but very important part in any firearm. This part can cost you a life in home defense situation if you forget to switch it off.
It is easy to upgrade Remington 870 shotgun safety button. Oversized safety button is much easier to switch off. This is very important upgrade for tactical Remington 870 shotgun.
Big Remington 870 safety button make it easier to find and switch it of in home defense or under stress. Small safety is difficult to find, especially in gloves. Large Remington 870 safety button enables you to easily use it even when wearing gloves.
Remington 870 safety button upgrade is inexpensive and simple but very important upgrade. Must have for any tactical Remington 870 shotgun.
3. Follower
Remington 870 Followers
Remington 870 magazine tube construction is very simple, it consists of several parts: magazine tube, magazine tube extension (some shotguns don’t have magazine extension), follower and spring.
Magazine follower and magazine spring are two important parts that you have in magazine and magazine extension of your Remington 870 shotgun. Those parts are responsible for reliable feeding of shells.
Magazine follower upgrade is very easy. There are a lot of aftermarket followers and magazine springs. They are inexpensive but greatly improve feeding. Most of the tactical or home defense shotguns have upgraded follower and spring.
The best springs are from Nordic Components and Wolff.
One of the first aftermarket followers was Vang Comp stainless steel magazine follower but now you can find a lot of them. They are available in different colors and made from different materials.
4. Sights
Remington 870 Universal Ghost Ring Firesights
Most of the Remington 870 models come with simple bead sight. It is simple and easy to use but there are lots of aftermarket sights with better features. Remington 870 Tactical comes with ghost ring sights from XS.
Remington 870 fiber optic sights (also called light gathering sights) gather light and make it much easier to shoot. Remington 870 Hi Viz sights are the most popular choice of fiber optic sights. Hi Viz manufactures many different types of light gathering sights.
Ghost ring sights make it easier to aim, especially when you shoot slugs. Ghost ring sights recommended for tactical shotguns.
Ghost ring sights for Remington 870 are available from many manufacturers like XS, Williams, Vang Comp Systems, Wilson Combat. There are also tritium ghost ring sights with Trijicon tritium elements.
Installation of rear ghost ring sights Remington 870 Express require drilling and tapping of receiver. Front sight is usually attached using epoxy.
5. Magazine extension
Remington 870 Vang Comp Systems Magazine Extension Tube
Magazine extension is on of the first tactical upgrades Remington 870 Express owners usually buy. Some 870 models come with already installed magazine extension.
Remington 870 extension tube installation is easier for older models but you will have to remove dimples on newer Remington 870 shotguns.
Most Remington 870 tube extension problems are caused by dimples which were not removed from magazine tube.
There are many Remington 870 extended magazine tubes for sale. You can buy magazine extension tube from Remington, TacStar, Nordic Components, ATI, Vang Comp Systems, Wilson Combat, Choate and others.
I would say that mag ext tube is a must have for any tactical Remington 870 shotgun. It enables you to have more ammo.
Extended magazine is a very good feature, you can get extension for 1, 2, 3 and more rounds.
6. Barrel
Remington 870 Barrels
There are many different barrels available for Remington 870 shotgun. You can get them directly from Remington or choose from the aftermarket barrels.
Long barrel is perfect for hunting or clays. Short barrel is must have for tactical or home defense use. Standard Remington 870 Tactical comes with short 18 1/2″ inch barrel.
Replacement barrel is easy to find and install. Just remember that newer Remington 870 Tactical with one piece magazine accepts only barrels designed specially for Tactical model.
If you want to build Remington 870 for home defense then recommended barrel length is 18, 18 1/2″ or 20 inches.
Short barrel makes it easier to maneuver around the house.
Remember, Remington 870 a shotgun with a barrel length shorter than 18 inches or an overall length shorter than 26 inches requires special license (Short Barrel Shotgun).
Remington 870 rifled barrels are not needed for home defense shotgun. They are good choice for hunters.
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7. Receiver mounted shotshell carrier (sidesaddle)
TacStar: 6 Round Sidesaddle
Sidesaddle – is a receiver mounted shotshell carrier. You can install ammo holder on your tactical Remington 870 shotgun to always have additional ammo with your shotgun.
Sidesaddles available from many manufacturers: TacStar, Mesa Tactical, ATI and others. Receiver mounted shotshell carrier can be installed on all models of Remington 870 from Express to Police.
Remington 870 side saddle installation is easy, you just remove trigger group pins and replace them with sidesaddle screws.
Sidesaddles are made of different materials and all priced differently. You need to compare them to find the best sidesaddle for your Remington 870 shotgun. Some of the shotshell carriers (Mesa Tactical Sureshell) are even have picatinny rail to install red dot, scope or ghost ring sights.
Sidesaddle is one of the tactical accessories which are inexpensive and very effective.
8. Flashlight
Inforce/Streamligth TLR-1 Flashlight on CDM Gear BMT Clamp
And last but not least. If you can’t see target you can’t shoot it. Flashlight is one of the must have tactical accessories.
There are many good tactical flashlights but you also need Remington 870 flashlight mount. The best flashlight mounts are manufactured by CDM Gear and Elzetta.
The most expensive solution is Remington 870 flashlight forend from Surefire or Eotech.
Flashlight laser combo like TLR-2 is a good choice too but laser is useless, it even slows you down.
You choose what is better for you: Rmington 870 flashlight holder like CDM Gear clamp or Remington 870 flashlight forend like Surefire.
Make sure that you choose reliable tactical flashlight which can work under heave 12 gauge recoil.
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