[tenifglockfin]

I hear people talk about the old 870 Wingmasters or just old 870s in general. I hear quality and everything about them being great. Also people say that the new 870s are not as great. Sometimes I see these guns fetching a premium price. I understand old guns might be pricey, and not as good as a glock for self defense. The price on those old guns are more for people that love them (which I understand.) Do you think any of those old 870s can stand up the 590A1? 590A1 has been through some torture test from my understanding.

 

[ranger1968]

As someone who owns both, yes.

 

[bubbatime]

I was an 870 armorer. I’ve rebuilt a ton of them and kept them running.

A self defense 870 should absolutely have the flexitab system installed. The old guns do not have this and are not suitable for self defense.

Old guns have worn out springs. Buy ALL the springs and swap them out. Worn out springs will make the gun jam or unreliable. The carrier dog follower spring should be swapped for a Remington 1100 spring. This is the same spring they use on the 870 police model and increases reliability. It’s a very important reliability upgrade from what I have seen.

I would NOT take an off the shelf old azz 35-45 year old Wingmaster and use it for self defense without giving it new springs and flexitab upgrade first.

The flexitab and spring upgrades is pretty expensive if you buy the parts outright. The cheapest way to do this is to buy a late model shotgun , swap all the good parts from the new shotgun into the old wingmaster, and then sell the new shotgun. That way the cost on the parts is practically free.

 

[DeraldR]

The flexitab and spring upgrades is pretty expensive if you buy the parts outright. The cheapest way to do this is to buy a late model shotgun , swap all the good parts from the new shotgun into the old wingmaster, and then sell the new shotgun. That way the cost on the parts is practically free.

Unless you are disclosing the fact that the '''New Shotgun" has used parts, this is fraud.

Please tell me that you are providing full disclosure when selling the New Shotgun

 

[warbow150]

I hear people talk about the old 870 Wingmasters or just old 870s in general. I hear quality and everything about them being great. Also people say that the new 870s are not as great. Sometimes I see these guns fetching a premium price. I understand old guns might be pricey, and not as good as a glock for self defense. The price on those old guns are more for people that love them (which I understand.) Do you think any of those old 870s can stand up the 590A1? 590A1 has been through some torture test from my understanding.

1. Old guns are cool.
2. Old guns, or any correctly functioning, properly set up shotgun, is much, much...much better than a Glock for self defense. The only downside is concealability. Handguns are easily portable and convenient, it’s the only reasons they exist for SD.
3. As an 870 armorer and one who issued/carried them for over 20 years, yes, they’re as good as 500s/590s. Actually they’re better in my opinion, but perhaps that’s because when I started using 870s Mossberg QC was somewhat suspect. I understand the new Mossbergs are excellent. Basically it’s a Ford/Chevy, Glock/Sig argument. One won’t do anything the other won’t do.
4. In my experience old or new 870s are very stout and handle use/abuse very well. They’re simple, reliable, durable weapons which are perfectly suited to SD/LE roles.

 

[PattonWasRight]

I bought the 590A1 after reading about the testing the military did

And hey ... It's got a bayonet lug

 

[0311INF]

I'm not sure the 590A1 is really worth the price. It has a military pedigree so gets an automatic mark up. The difference between it and the regular 590 is a thicker barrel and a metal trigger guard. The difference between it and the 500 tactical is really about the same, other than its 870 style mag cap.

So instead of letting Mossberg charge me double for a feature that is inherent on the 870, I chose the 870.

One used to be able to get a basic 870 and upgrade it with a few parts to essentially turn it into a Police model. I suppose the 870 is back in production as of yesterday so the option still exists.

I own a 1980s 870 police which is every bit as good or better than a 590A1, aside from missing the bayonet lug.

 

[PattonWasRight]

I'm not sure the 590A1 is really worth the price. It has a military pedigree so gets an automatic mark up. The difference between it and the regular 590 is a thicker barrel and a metal trigger guard. The difference between it and the 500 tactical is really about the same, other than its 870 style mag cap.

So instead of letting Mossberg charge me double for a feature that is inherent on the 870, I chose the 870.

One used to be able to get a basic 870 and upgrade it with a few parts to essentially turn it into a Police model. I suppose the 870 is back in production as of yesterday so the option still exists.

I own a 1980s 870 police which is every bit as good or better than a 590A1, aside from missing the bayonet lug.

I agree with you overall, but nothing says "find another victim" that shotgun with a bayonet on it

The 590A1 also has the extended mag tube, and you can pay a good chunk of $100 to add that otherwise. Plus premium sights

Paid $425 on sale from a major online retailer, that was before all the craziness of course

That was pretty hard to turn down

 

[0311INF]

I agree with you overall, but nothing says "find another victim" that shotgun with a bayonet on it

The 590A1 also has the extended mag tube, and you can pay a good chunk of $100 to add that otherwise. Plus premium sights

Paid $425 on sale from a major online retailer, that was before all the craziness of course

That was pretty hard to turn down

At that price, belay my last.

 

[J_Rico]

We used Mossbergs in the USN. I am comfy with them. Bought a new 500 and thought I was done. Then found a police trade 590A1 for under $300.

Rough exterior but functions 100%.

Eta: 870s are great guns as well. Handled and shot them. The rattle a lot less.

Like someone else said, Ford vs Chevy. Both will get you to work, but people like one or the other.

 

[Jeep junky]

I bought the 590A1 after reading about the testing the military did

And hey ... It's got a bayonet lug

Bayonet's are a fun accessory.

 

[PattonWasRight]

View attachment 923390 Bayonet's are a fun accessory.

Nice set up there! And I couldn't agree more

 

[cyphertext]

I was an 870 armorer. I’ve rebuilt a ton of them and kept them running.

A self defense 870 should absolutely have the flexitab system installed. The old guns do not have this and are not suitable for self defense.

Old guns have worn out springs. Buy ALL the springs and swap them out. Worn out springs will make the gun jam or unreliable. The carrier dog follower spring should be swapped for a Remington 1100 spring. This is the same spring they use on the 870 police model and increases reliability. It’s a very important reliability upgrade from what I have seen.

I would NOT take an off the shelf old azz 35-45 year old Wingmaster and use it for self defense without giving it new springs and flexitab upgrade first.

The flexitab and spring upgrades is pretty expensive if you buy the parts outright. The cheapest way to do this is to buy a late model shotgun , swap all the good parts from the new shotgun into the old wingmaster, and then sell the new shotgun. That way the cost on the parts is practically free.

I wouldn't say that an 870 without the flexitab are not suitable for self defense. After all, they did the job for 30+ years before the flexitab became standard. As long as the shell stops are functioning properly and you push the shell in past the shell stop when loading, there isn't an issue. That 870 sitting in the corner for home defense isn't getting bumped around like a shotgun in a cruiser and the average home owner with a shotgun is not going to be reloading on the run where he / she may not get the shell fully inserted under stress.

I've got a 1959 Wingmaster that I cut down the old 30" fixed full choke barrel down to 18.5", put a fiber optic sight on it and keep it cruiser ready for anything that may go bump in the night. I take it out occasionally and run some shells through it to make sure it functions properly, clean and oil it, and return it to the corner for use if needed.

 

[cyphertext]

I'm not sure the 590A1 is really worth the price. It has a military pedigree so gets an automatic mark up. The difference between it and the regular 590 is a thicker barrel and a metal trigger guard. The difference between it and the 500 tactical is really about the same, other than its 870 style mag cap.

So instead of letting Mossberg charge me double for a feature that is inherent on the 870, I chose the 870.

One used to be able to get a basic 870 and upgrade it with a few parts to essentially turn it into a Police model. I suppose the 870 is back in production as of yesterday so the option still exists.

I own a 1980s 870 police which is every bit as good or better than a 590A1, aside from missing the bayonet lug.

The 870 has served the US Military too... some even had an adapter to affix a bayonet as well. While Remington didn't submit to the military shotgun trials, (probably because they knew Mossberg would beat them on cost) their shotguns were already seeing use by the US military.

 

[FullClip]

For me it was the safety location that made me choose the Mossberg over the Remington. Years of clay shooting and bird hunting made thumbing off the tang safety of my Ruger Red Labels ingrained. The cross bolt safety on the trigger guard of the Remington would have taken my a while to get used to.

 

[Collo Rosso]

While the Mossberg tang safety is ideal for a lefty like myself, I always wind up owning 870's. Fortmenn's makes a left handed safety button for 870's and 1100's. $17 at Midway. Easy to install, both of my 870's and the 1100 have one.
If a deal came up on a Mossberg 500/590, I wouldn't hesitate to grab it.

 

[Blackshirt]

I started hunting ducks with an 870 when I was a lad, and we used them for breaching when I was in the security business. Thus, I am very familiar with the platform. I dig the strong, simple design, the ability to easily switch between configurations, and the ability to rack through double feeds. I own two of them. Back in the day, the Mossberg’s single action bar and magazine cap made it second best, but current models have made the difference a small matter. I think I’d buy Mossberg if I was buying today. Remington firearms will likely return, but Mossberg is going strong...

 

[Ordell Robbie]

A bit of an apples and oranges comparison, the Wingmaster is a bird gun whereas the 590A1 is a tacticool gun. I know I'm knitpicking a bit but he 870 tactical Express is the better comparison.

 

[cyphertext]

A bit of an apples and oranges comparison, the Wingmaster is a bird gun whereas the 590A1 is a tacticool gun. I know I'm knitpicking a bit but he 870 tactical Express is the better comparison.

Guess I better tell my Wingmaster that it is just a tacticool poser with it's 18.5" barrel. Simple barrel swap and the bird gun becomes the riot gun. Lots of police guns were Wingmasters back in the day.

 

[Ordell Robbie]

Guess I better tell my Wingmaster that it is just a tacticool poser with it's 18.5" barrel. Simple barrel swap and the bird gun becomes the riot gun. Lots of police guns were Wingmasters back in the day.

We're not talking about back in the day though we're talking about today and an insane amount of options as far as SD guns go. Remington makes a downgraded version to tinker with, modify and trick out in the Express version. It is just my opinion but taking a work of art like a Wingmaster with nice bluing and walnut stocks and turning it into a tactical shotty is a downgrade wrecking that work of art...