870 Express Barrels

Any 20ga lightweight barrel fits any 20ga Express. Only the finish is different. Wingmaster barrels will have a detent plunger on the barrel ring to retain the magazine cap but that is not an issue as your Express magazine cap will simply push that down out of the way.

You can get a 26" Vent Rib Express Barrel from Remington but get your wallet out as retail is $266.95.

There are two types of barrels for small frame 20 gauge 870's.
Standard and Special Field.

Special Fields are no longer made, but their barrels can be found.
Mag tubes are shorter on them so the bbl ring that the magazine cap screws down to, is farther back.

Special Field barrels only fit special fields (in 870).

1100 Special Field bbls fit standard and Special Field 1100's (within gauge and frame- standard and LT)........since the forend holds them, mag cap screws down on end of forend. 1100 special fields also have a shorter mag tube. IIRC 1100/870's were shortened to hold one less round.

The old 21" fixed choke 20 gauge 870 Special Field.......was pretty sweet.

FWIW used 870 Express Remchoke bbls sit in gunshops, used like new, at $150 sticker priced. Two 26" sit at my LGS.

There are two types of barrels for small frame 20 gauge 870's.
Standard and Special Field.
Special Fields are no longer made, but their barrels can be found.
Mag tubes are shorter on them so the bbl ring that the magazine cap screws down to, is farther back.
Special Field barrels only fit special fields (in 870).
1100 Special Field bbls fit standard and Special Field 1100's (within gauge and frame- standard and LT)........since the forend holds them, mag cap screws down on end of forend. 1100 special fields also have a shorter mag tube. IIRC 1100/870's were shortened to hold one less round.
The old 21" fixed choke 20 gauge 870 Special Field.......was pretty sweet.
FWIW used 870 Express Remchoke bbls sit in gunshops, used like new, at $150 sticker priced. Two 26" sit at my LGS.

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Exactly correct Hookeye, except the mag cap on an 1100 Special Field screws down against the barrel gas ring, there's no wood in between like a standard version. The later Special Field barrels were 23" with RemChokes if I remember correctly. Paying retail for an Express barrel is not necessary. Usually plenty of barrels on ebay as well. Lots of folks get them and get an 18-1/2" barrel for defense and sell the original barrel, and due to plenty of them they can usually be found cheap.

PJ... there's one Express 20ga barrel on E-Bay right now with a very low starting price....
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Remington-8...859?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4198cbd6c3

Not very much info about it as to length, choke, etc. - that sort of stuff you'll have to ask about. When I do a search on E-Bay I try to keep my parameters a bit loose at first. For this one I just started with "remington express barrel" to get where I needed to go...

My first SF 870 20 ga was fixed choke. Then they came out with Remchoke and the flare for the choke looked funky. Of course now that look is common and seems to go unnoticed.

Dunno if Remington ever did a 23" VR on small frame standard 870 for a turkey rig.

I wouldn't pay over $125 shipped for a matte bbl.
Remchokes sometimes are machined crooked (bbl, choke itself OK).

Online....it better have pics of muzzle and skirt step for concentricity or no buy.
Even in a gunshop (where you can check things yourself).......$125 out the door.

They're 870 bbls, Express models......not diamonds.

Don't go in telling them you NEED it. Be casual. Now is the time to buy, since dove season isn't in yet. Hunting seasons approach, less room to deal.

Hunted bunnies one yr with 1100 LT Special Field (fixed choke). It worked but I liked the 870 better.

Later on I got a Sportsman 12 and slapped a 21" Rechoke SF bbl on it. Round top was a little funky but usable, was my low $ HD rig. Thought about deer, tried various chokes, scope mount.....old Weaver V7 w post and wire reticle.

Shot like crap.

Sold it and got a Wingmaster Magnum deer, and another WM Magnum 26", both mint w Remchokes

Hunted them, but babied.....still like new. Sold them for hefty profit and got a first yr SP turkey model. That thing was super slick. If it had walnut I'd have kept it.

"...E-Bay right now..." Buying or selling there gives money to the people who want to take your firearms away from you.
An Express is just a lower end 870. Same thing as any 870 except for the finish.

Sunray... yes the folks at E-Bay are in business to make a profit - but the seller is a gun owner (probably) that needs access to the market and buyers. As a small business type myself (full time fishing guide for almost 20 years now, and retired cop, 22 years worth) I buy quite a bit of gear there to keep my operation as low cost as possible.... In my case I'm at nearly a 98% satisfactory transaction level - and it's all due to the infinite number of other folks needing to sell both new and used goods of every description under the sun.

That more than makes up for any big business that might take political or social stands that I disagree with (and it's a sure fire cure for local retail outfits that treat their customers like cattle.....).

Now that we've gotten thoroughly off topic the item I mentioned is listed at around $50... not bad for a used barrel that needs to be re-blued (if it's what the buyer needs....).

Bad bbl finish? Gunkote it.
Or Cerakote.

I did my 1100 SP with Gunkote (receiver). So far so good (3rd yr on it).

PJSprog said:

My wife has an 870 Express 20ga with a 21" barrel. She wants a longer barrel. I started looking around today, and I can find all manner of 26" barrels for various 870s, but not so much for the Express. Will any 870 barrel fit, or does it need to be an Express? What is the difference beyond the finish?

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Not long ago, I bought a new 20ga. 870 Express with a 24" bbl. with Rem chokes...

That bbl. fits right on my old 870 Light weight 20ga....no problem ar all...

DM

All 870 Express 20 gauges are built on the LW frame.
All 870 Express 12 gauges are magnum receiver (M at end of serial number even if not stamped with "Magnum" elsewhere).
They standardized stuff by the time the Express line came out.

But, if you look at the new ones all the old serial number codes are out the window. Everything is "RS ********".