Shotgun Sights

Have a Rem 870 (belive its called an express synthetic) with an 18.5' barrel. This shotgun comes to hunting camp and is a camp gun, or going into the bush to retrieve a moose that was shot/gutted the night before in the bush. Lots of grizzlies where we hunt. It gets loaded with Rottweil Brenneke or Challenger slugs 2 3/4". The shotgun has a small bead at the end of the barrel but that's it. I have problems when really taking my time and trying to use that bead to aim. I can hit what I'm shooting at, but if I want to be real precise/accurate, I don't like that little bead and I find the shotgun gets real uncomfortable then. What I am interested is another sight-system. I realize there are lots of option, but I would be after something that is easy to use in a very uncomfortable and anxious situation and is fast to line up. I hear talk of ghost-ring sights, or fibre optic or something similar to "iron sights" that would normally be on a rifle. Would appreciate peoples thoughts who have tried specific things and the pros and cons. Remember this firearm is not for hunting. It is used for fun in practice/target shooting, but its primary function is a camp/defense gun so if ever called into action the situation would be tense and lighting conditions could be quite low.

thanks

Thought for sure someone would have offered up something by now....

red dot or the fibre optik truglo

I've considered ghost ring sites myself, in looking through them on guns at stores they seem like a great fit for hunting (I was going to use it for deer with buckshot from a ground blind then just got a cross bow with a scope instead). Never actually used them and no idea if or how they would get fitted to your weapon.

Might be a good idea to look into what some of the Remington 870 tactical shotguns use for site systems and see if a gunsmith can adapt that to what you have. Or its an excuse to buy a new "tatcicool" gun...

Beat in Front and adjustable Rifle Rear sight in rear. If Mr. Grizz comes after you don't fire until he is almost on top of you. Most stop there Bluff charges well before. If you need sights for that he is to far and you may waste the only chance you get.

Cheers

I put a red dot on mine. I picked up a vortex sparc II at Cabela’s. They seem to go on sale fairly often for $200-230. I’m not a vortex guy except when it comes to electronics. All electronics will poop the bed eventually so the warranty can’t be beat.
I broke my ranger 1500 and they replaced it with a brand new 1800. I wasn’t even the original owner of the 1500 and I told them I dropped it in the garage haha.

Hi. I went thru a similar process with my Mossberg shotgun. I started with an aftermarket snap on fiber optic front sight element in front of the bead sight, later I mounted a red dot sight to the receiver. (My Mossberg was already drilled and tapped for a scope mount.) The snap on fiber optic sight element worked well but it was a bit fragile. Basically I just lined up the dot of fiber optic sight element between the centering groves in the receiver of the shotgun and could hit targets up to 100 yards out (I never tried shooting any further.) I had to compress my face against the stock to get a nice sight picture and it was a bit uncomfortable for me when shooting magnum slugs. I sort of guestimated the elevation when shooting at 100 yards and the apparent diameter of fiber optic sight element was a bit larger than I liked when shooting at 100 yards. At 50 yards and below it was fine. I realize smooth bore shotguns are not precision firearms but I enjoyed shooting groups on paper targets out to 100 yards and it gave me some confidence.

I found the shotgun somewhat more comfortable to shoot with the red dot sight as my head is in a somewhat different position when aiming and the smaller apparent diameter of the red dot was helpful when aiming at 100 yards, which made it easier to shoot groups at 100 yards with the red dot sight, although the accuracy didn’t really improve, it was easier to aim at 100 yards with the red dot sight. I have done a bit of shooting at 25 yards and below without using the red dot to convince my self I could use the shotgun at close range if the red dot sight was not working.

I suspect your experience may be different than mine. Good Luck.

I don't have any experience with bears but just popping in to say that most shotgunners shooting competition like 3gun use fibre. It is quick to acquire and snap to a point. There are some who upgrade to red dot sights though with the same principle. Ghost ring is for longer shots.

I second the issue with the red dot or optic and cheek weld. I had to go with a tactical style stock with riser for the scope mounted on the rifled slug barrel. On the round ( no ventilated rib ) barrel I use the plastic snap over red or green glow tube style front sight. Could use some additional adhesive to hold them steady as they can be bumped out of line easily if mounted just as is. I have not tried out the two piece, three dot system for ventilated rib style yet, ie. turkey sights. I am not a fan of red dots, can not seem to get them to work well for myself. Your experiences may be different. Enjoy the journey.

I sent you a PM did you get it ?
Arctic Lake

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Originally Posted by moondog

Thought for sure someone would have offered up something by now....

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