# 870 Express Combo ammo?



## harpo1 (Dec 6, 2007)

My daughter just purchased an Remington 870 Express Combo (12 gauge). I'm not at all familiar with the gun but I belive it comes with two barrels (26" vent-ribbed shotgun & 20" rifled slug). Her immediate plans will be to throw on the slug barrel and use it on whitetails this fall. My question is, where do I start with slug types/manufacturers? I'm shooting Lightfield's out of my H&R Ultra Slugger so should I start there? I was hoping to get some input from other 870 owners on what they've had luck with.


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## onebigdaddy29 (Nov 14, 2008)

i shoot the remington copper solids and have had no deer go anywhere except straight down. they put them down at close to 100 yards. shot 2 last sunday morning and they were dead before hitting the ground


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## Thunderhead (Feb 2, 2002)

My 870 deer barrel is a smoothbore. Regular Remington foster slugs will clover leaf at 100 yards.

If she's rifled, I'd definatly try the Lightfields first.


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## bigcountrysg (Oct 9, 2006)

The best thing to do is get a couple boxes of different ammo. 

I like the Hornady SST ( Sabot Soft Tip), I used to use Remmington Copper Solids, I tried Winchester slugs as well. 

Then you will get to see what the weapon likes. Which ever ammo shoots better with the weapon is the ammo you buy and use. 

It is not about sighting in the weapon with one type of ammo. You want to get ammo that groups well from the get go. Once you find that then you sight in the weapon with that ammo. Then you use that ammo only for the weapon and that is what you hunt with.


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## I-MUST-HUNT (Nov 8, 2007)

I'll second Remington Copper Solids, my friend has that combo and he shoots great with them, but they are the best option if it is going to have a scope, no scope find a cheaper slug, brennike makes some good round. But I also use copper solids and took a doe last fall at 178 yards out of my mossberg 695 bolt action.


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## harpo1 (Dec 6, 2007)

bigcountrysg said:


> ......It is not about sighting in the weapon with one type of ammo. You want to get ammo that groups well from the get go. Once you find that then you sight in the weapon with that ammo. Then you use that ammo only for the weapon and that is what you hunt with.


That's the exact method I used with my H&R. I'm just wondering if there's a group "favorite" for this particular gun and just as with my H&R..... it seems to be a little different depending on who you talk to. Thanks for the info!


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## TrekJeff (Sep 7, 2007)

Unless you have a bad outa the box gun, any quality sabot through that rifled barrel will dial in nice and put venison on the table. If you already have experience with a particular load, run with that. No need to spend a bunch of money on "trying" different loads. Unless you are match shooting or hunting bean fields with 200 yard shots with the slug gun, the clover leaf isn't a big deal. I'll run any major manufactured slug through my 870 and put it in the kill zone within 70 yards...I have the smooth bore and no shot past 50 yards in the woods.


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## spooledbseries (Aug 15, 2008)

I have used about 6 different types of ammo through my 870 supermag. I have the rifled barrel. My gun LOVES the winchester slugs. It dont bug me at all. They are cheap and can buy them any where. The slugs my gun DID NOT like the most were breneke wich dissapointed me


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## harpo1 (Dec 6, 2007)

Hopefully she'll get the scope picked out and mounted this week so we can get started on sighting things in.


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## reelworld (Dec 29, 2005)

My 12 gauge 870 has an older model 20" slug barrel with the rifle choke tube. It shoots nice groups at 50 and 75 yards with the 2/3" MP brenneke slugs. I don't shot it any farther than that because thats the limit I am comfortable with, with that gun and the only time I use it is in very tight cover while still hunting. I have a newer 20 gauge 870 with a fully rifled barrel that my nephew uses. It shoots the 2/3" Hornady SST's very well. This was new last year and has yet to take a deer yet (although he had two bucks behind him and one in front on Sunday and never shot, thats another story though). But I have taken several deer with the same slug, the 250gr SST, out of my muzzle loader with outstanding results. One of my friends also uses the 20 gauge Hornady SST out of a H&R rifled shotgun and it's great on deer as well.


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## turkey track (Sep 18, 2008)

Remington Copper Solids in 2-3/4" shot great out of my 870. Very accurate and stopped 'em dead every time.


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## Quack Addict (Aug 10, 2006)

My 12ga 870 with rifled barrel likes Winchester slugs - the lead hour shaped ones. I shoot open sights and wouldn't have a problem taking a shot out to 100 yards with my setup but in reality my longest shot to date has been about 35 yards.

You may want to have your daughter try the Lightfield slugs - I have heard they have less recoil than other slug loads. My 870's recoil with slugs is considerably stouter than my bolt action 30-06.


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## Ed Kurzawa (Sep 8, 2009)

Quack Addict said:


> My 12ga 870 with rifled barrel likes Winchester slugs - the lead hour shaped ones. I shoot open sights and wouldn't have a problem taking a shot out to 100 yards with my setup but in reality my longest shot to date has been about 35 yards.
> 
> You may want to have your daughter try the Lightfield slugs - I have heard they have less recoil than other slug loads. My 870's recoil with slugs is considerably stouter than my bolt action 30-06.


I shoot the lightfeild highbreds and they kick like a mule. Especially out of an unported barrel.


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## jjc155 (Oct 16, 2005)

My 870 combo shoots both remington copper solids and hornady SST's very well at 100.

J-


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## Quack Addict (Aug 10, 2006)

Ed Kurzawa said:


> I shoot the lightfeild highbreds and they kick like a mule. Especially out of an unported barrel.


I have never actually shot Lightfield's out of my 870 but have heard from several folks that they have at least 1 slug load that doesn't hurt the shooter as much as it does the deer they are aiming at. What that load is, I don't recall however.

A 12ga with rifled pipe and sabot slugs has wicked recoil and if you drop it in the hands of most lighter-framed people they will be unable to piece together a decent group on paper let alone on game. In that circumstance, it's advantageous to seek out a low recoil load that the shooter can shoot accurately. It doesn't take a cannon, or a cannonball to take a whitetail.

Both my brothers picked up 870 combos a half dozen years back. One of them (he's 6'-2" and 210lbs) didn't have the buttstock properly in the 'pocket' on his shoulder for 1 shot during a range session when sighting in with slugs... the resulting bruise was purple, green and yellow and stretched from the base of his neck, half way down to his right nipple and half way down the length of his bicep... :gaga: 

A ported barrel would take a lot of the fun out of it...


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