The 870 is a great gun.The older ones,in my opinion, were better, but then again so was everything else haha. They are very durable guns. I always shot federal from mine since I only bird hunted with it. The 870 will definaltly stand the test of time, and as lonng as remington doesnt screw up, itll continue to be a great and reliable gun.

when kept clean it shoots great. let it get a little dirty and its game over. thats just the experience ive had

It's a good reliable mid range pump. No more. No less. I don't think it's deserving of it's legendary status, especially lately, but I will say that the vast majority of function problems are probably user caused. It works very well and is well put together, but other pumps equal or better it. Any good gun seems like the greatest gun ever until you get a better one.

It's a good, simple design, which is dependable. It will function well with any good ammunition. Like any decent pump gun almost all malfunctions are because the user has short-stroked, double-pumped, or done something to cause the malfunction. Some more recently designed guns may help prevent these malfunctions, but I can't think of one I'd rather have. Buck@score-your-hunting.com

I agree with what most everyone is saying. I've got an 870 20 guage that i've had for going on close to 30 yrs and I've hunted everything from rabbits to squirrels, dove to quail. It's never let me down. It's easy to break down and clean. It did jam on me one time last year rabbit hunting but after looking and then breaking it down right there I found a piece of a briar branch stuck under the slide and was back shooting in just a few minutes. I wouldn't trade my 870 for anything

There is a reason that a lot of law enforcement officers carry 870 shotguns. My officers ( 120 of them ) carried 870s and the only problem they had was not fully working the slide like they meant it. When they worked the slide like they meant it there were no problems. We used to have competition with the other agencies ( State Police, Sheriff's Depts ) and they had fancy shotguns with rifle sights. Out 870's had a single bead on the 18 inch barrel. They left the range every time pi##ed because we cleaned their plow with our 870's with the single bead. That was shooting Remington slugs. I was the armorer and used a bronze brush wrapped with steel wool on a long handle in my electric drill to remove the plactic from the wads because sometimes we would shoot as many as 50 or 75. Try that on your shoulder some time. You better be holding your shotgun right. I can say nothing bad about the 870 and the officers given a choice would have left all their other firearms at home and carried only their 870 loaded with slugs. After they saw how ineffective buckshot was at 50 yards all they wanted to carry was slugs. They felt that they could kill anything in the world with their trusty 870 and felt very confident carrying it, and that is saying something to trust your life to it.

It's a good gun, if half the people hated it it wouldn't be very popular or known as very reliable.

I love mine and I agree with the comments on keeping it clean, but then, that's the only way mine has ever been! Don't really know if it will function dirty.
Like also said, you can swap barrels easily with any type you could care to use.

I have been thinking about getting one too and i have also read mixed reviews but I think I will buy one because I keep my guns crystal clean anyway!

I've never had any problems with my 870. Keep it clean and feed it good ammo and it will serve you great for many years.

The only problem I ever had was back when we reloaded alot. Only the Hi-brass reloads would jamb when closing the action. After we tracked down the issue. It turned out that the brass was getting a burr on it that was caused by the extractores of the Rem. 1100 that I also shot. The 1100 also jambed. Otherwise the 870 is a very good gun.

I've hunted with nothing but Remington 870 20 and 12 gauges. Until recently, I have never had a problem. I just bought the new Turkey and Waterfowl addition this spring and it started jamming this fall while shooting super high velocity shells duck hunting. Backing down to a "lower" velocity shell (1300-1400 fps) took care of the "self-jacking" caused by the other shells. Even after this fall and winter, I don't think I'll ever hunt with another shotgun.

a great gun. own 4 of them 2-3/4" 3" 3.5" won't think about another but the older ones Wingmasters are truly better made IMO. compared to the new express models don't buy any other brands unless and older Winchester model 12y rolls up to my door. shoot trap with mine doves deer and other pests.

If half the people said it jammed easily then it wouldn't be one of the top selling shotguns of all time and it wouldn't be know for it's reliability.

It's a good gun to be sure, but it truely does not deserve the "god like" status everyone gives it. It is a quality pump that you can rely on, however, there are other better guns out there(the benlli super nova, and Ithaca 37 are my favorites)I guess it's a matter of personal preference

I have an 870 wingmaster and it shoots great. Ive killed alot of game with it. My cousin has a 870 express and dont get me wrong it shoots real good but in my opinion the wingmasters are better no offense. but they are both good guns.

What kind of Brandy did you buy. Peach or Blackberry?

With countless screw in chokes available its nice to have an improved cylinder wingmaster in 16 that patterns buck shot effectively(best within 40 yds) and doesn't tear up quails so much that it ruins the meat. Mine won't extract with a slow pull, but with a quick shuck it does every time, instead of replacing the extractor, I use that to my advantage removing a single buck shot from the barrel to slide in a #6 to eradicate vermin...quietly.