Hi Folks
I have been searching for a muzzle loader barrel for my 870.. Does anyone know where I can get one used, they have been discontinued. Also the reviews are not all that good.. Any input would be greatly appreciated. I have found a muzzle loader but I want to look at all my options. This is my 870
https://www.remington.com/shotguns/pump ... or-w/scope
870 Muzzle loader barrel
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Re: 870 Muzzle loader barrel
Hastings used to make them, as I recall. They still turn up on sites like Gunbroker from time to time. Some of the used barrels floating around out there are in kind of rough shape, though.
I'm not an expert on muzzleloaders, but I do know that the 870 isn't exactly the most precise platform out there. The barrel is secured to the mag tube quite a ways down from the breech, so it's about the opposite of free-floated. Plus, since the gun's a take-down design, the barrels have a small amount of play in the receiver, meaning that for setups like yours, where the optic is mounted on the receiver, your zero can shift slightly under recoil. This doesn't matter for shot loads, and the gun does pretty well with traditional smoothbore slugs, but 870s set up with rifled barrels for shooting more precise spin-stabilized slugs usually either mount the optic to the barrel, or pin the barrel to the receiver to address this issue.
I've done some reading on the .50-cal muzzleloader 870 barrels, and like what you found, the consensus seems to be that they shoot kind of dirty, with just so-so performance. Maybe worth something as a novelty, or to a prepper who wants a one-gun survival system, but I doubt sticking a muzzleloader barrel on your 870 without pinning or shimming it, and using that TruGlo mounted back on the receiver, is going to do anything spectacular. If you want a serious hunting arm that can reach out, I'd expect you could do a lot better with a modern, purpose-built muzzleloader with good glass on top.
I'm not an expert on muzzleloaders, but I do know that the 870 isn't exactly the most precise platform out there. The barrel is secured to the mag tube quite a ways down from the breech, so it's about the opposite of free-floated. Plus, since the gun's a take-down design, the barrels have a small amount of play in the receiver, meaning that for setups like yours, where the optic is mounted on the receiver, your zero can shift slightly under recoil. This doesn't matter for shot loads, and the gun does pretty well with traditional smoothbore slugs, but 870s set up with rifled barrels for shooting more precise spin-stabilized slugs usually either mount the optic to the barrel, or pin the barrel to the receiver to address this issue.
I've done some reading on the .50-cal muzzleloader 870 barrels, and like what you found, the consensus seems to be that they shoot kind of dirty, with just so-so performance. Maybe worth something as a novelty, or to a prepper who wants a one-gun survival system, but I doubt sticking a muzzleloader barrel on your 870 without pinning or shimming it, and using that TruGlo mounted back on the receiver, is going to do anything spectacular. If you want a serious hunting arm that can reach out, I'd expect you could do a lot better with a modern, purpose-built muzzleloader with good glass on top.