I am looking for suggestions on which choke to try. I am running an 870 Rem. 3.5 inch from around 1998/1999. I am currently using what I believe is an undertaker choke with #5 Winchester XR's. I am looking for a choke that can shoot both the XR's and TSS so if I want to make the switch I can try them. My pattern has always been decent at 40 but it opens up more than I want at 50. If it doesn't make sense to use a tube that is compatible with both for the sake of maximizing the patterns then let me know also. Thank you.
Indian creek, .665
Those 870's like .665 chokes. Indian Creek, SSX and Sumtoy are a few. Check the Remington Pattern Pictures posts. Many of the guys on here have done plenty of research.
Thank you
My 870 doesn't like 3 1/2' shells. I get better/more even patterns with 3" shells. I only shoot lead, no TSS.
A choke you see mentioned fairly often in association with 870`s is the Primos Jellyhead. Mine is a .660. I shoot Hevi-13 2oz. #6. To tell the truth, I`ve never actually counted the pellets at 40 yards, but it`s a several times over dead turkey for sure. 50 yards? No idea since I limit shots to 40 and in. I have patterned Longbeard XR and Remington Nitros and wouldn`t hesitate to use either if for some reason I didn`t have Hevi-13s. A qualifier: My Jellyhead is an older model. I`ve patterned a newer Jellyhead out of my backup 870 and it works, but I like the older model better that came with my `05 870 Super Mag SP-T.
Interesting how shotguns are different. My 870SM 26"bbl wouldn't turn good patterns with Kicks, Hevi 13 , or Jellyhead which are normally dead ringers for the 870 shotguns. It turns the best patterns with the Remington stock chokes. Ventilator .655, Rem Super Full .665, and Ren Extra Full .687
Quote from: captpete on April 22, 2020, 07:42:29 AM
My 870 doesn't like 3 1/2' shells. I get better/more even patterns with 3" shells. I only shoot lead, no TSS.
Agree with this, I have 4 870's and they all pattern the best with 3" shells. Further more shooting lead the POA/POI stays on. Shooting double beads is my preference. Nothing is complicated or goes wrong with the set up. Don't have to worry about dead batteries, fogged lenses, base screws loosening, sights broken off etc.
Rem Ventilator .655/ Pb 6's
Rem Super Full .665/ Pb 5's
Have found these set ups to be more productive even though I have guns that turn 270's-330's in a 10 @ 40. Turkeys get inside 30yds in timber I do much better with the lead set ups. Guiding for many years got to see people miss a whole lot of turkeys up close with these guns that turn super tight patterns.
($1.00 a shot doesn't hurt either especially when practicing)
I have an older 870 super mag Indian Creek .665. My gun has no problems with 3 1/2"
Longbeards #5's. 55 yard gun if needed. My buddies 11-87 supermag loves Indian creek to.
Quote from: Which Gun on April 28, 2020, 08:26:52 AM
I have an older 870 super mag Indian Creek .665. My gun has no problems with 3 1/2"
Longbeards #5's. 55 yard gun if needed. My buddies 11-87 supermag loves Indian creek to.
Did the POA/POI stay on or did you have to add sights?
In my 870 I use carlsons longbeard xr choke .660 with 3" longboards 5 shot. Very good pattern at 40yds.
I have an ultra dot on gun.
:z-winnersmiley:
Quote from: captpete on April 22, 2020, 07:42:29 AM
My 870 doesn't like 3 1/2' shells. I get better/more even patterns with 3" shells. I only shoot lead, no TSS.
x2!
Quote from: captpete on April 22, 2020, 07:42:29 AM
My 870 doesn't like 3 1/2' shells. I get better/more even patterns with 3" shells. I only shoot lead, no TSS.
I don't know if my 870 likes 3 1/2s or not , but I know I sure don't! Never felt a need for them. Also, I'm fond of having my teeth and eyeballs remaining in my head!!
my 870 reguardless of popular opinion has never performed well with a 665 choke. In lead or TSS. I shot a 655 sumtoy with lbxr 6s. and I currently shoot a 660 sumtoy with tss 9s. having shot a vast assortment of chokes and contstrictions including indian creek my best patterns were with slightly tighter than average constrictions. I know many people who have patterned successfully with 665s mine just never would ...even when my gun was bone stock years ago with a full length barrel shooting standard cheap loads even then the 660 jellyhead was the best I could find at the time. so take it for what its worth and see if you can borrow one before you just buy whats suggested because every gun is different.
I'm beginning to think that the vast majority of 870s have either .660 or .665 constriction chokes in the barrel.
Quote from: dzsmith on April 29, 2020, 04:19:33 AM
my 870 reguardless of popular opinion has never performed well with a 665 choke. In lead or TSS. I shot a 655 sumtoy with lbxr 6s. and I currently shoot a 660 sumtoy with tss 9s. having shot a vast assortment of chokes and contstrictions including indian creek my best patterns were with slightly tighter than average constrictions. I know many people who have patterned successfully with 665s mine just never would ...even when my gun was bone stock years ago with a full length barrel shooting standard cheap loads even then the 660 jellyhead was the best I could find at the time. so take it for what its worth and see if you can borrow one before you just buy whats suggested because every gun is different.
Just went a round of testing the Remington Super Full .665 in a 27" and 21" 870SM bbls. Not that impressed with anything out of the .665. The Win XX 3/ 1 3/4/ 5's was the only thing that shot well and it basically shot the entire pattern in a 10 @ 30yds with a significant amount of gaps. Splotchy pattern and not sure what would cause that other than it being under choked. Maybe I need to try the 5's in the Ventilator .655.
Ventilator .655 will shoot three different Win 3" 6 lead loads between 140-160.
Extra Full .687 will shoot good hunting patterns with WinLB 6's and TSS 9's.
Quote from: Longshanks on May 01, 2020, 10:55:29 PM
Quote from: dzsmith on April 29, 2020, 04:19:33 AM
my 870 reguardless of popular opinion has never performed well with a 665 choke. In lead or TSS. I shot a 655 sumtoy with lbxr 6s. and I currently shoot a 660 sumtoy with tss 9s. having shot a vast assortment of chokes and contstrictions including indian creek my best patterns were with slightly tighter than average constrictions. I know many people who have patterned successfully with 665s mine just never would ...even when my gun was bone stock years ago with a full length barrel shooting standard cheap loads even then the 660 jellyhead was the best I could find at the time. so take it for what its worth and see if you can borrow one before you just buy whats suggested because every gun is different.
Just went a round of testing the Remington Super Full .665 in a 27" and 21" 870SM bbls. Not that impressed with anything out of the .665. The Win XX 3/ 1 3/4/ 5's was the only thing that shot well and it basically shot the entire pattern in a 10 @ 30yds with a significant amount of gaps. Splotchy pattern and not sure what would cause that other than it being under choked. Maybe I need to try the 5's in the Ventilator .655.
Ventilator .655 will shoot three different Win 3" 6 lead loads between 140-160.
Extra Full .687 will shoot good hunting patterns with WinLB 6's and TSS 9's.
with double x 6s I could bump 200 at 40 with a jellyhead 660 in my stock 28" barrel. lbxr 6s 230ish. with the sumtoy 655 it went to 260 with lbxr from the stock barrel, and 230 with 21" and I shot that setup with the 21 for years until I started shooting tss. 665 was just never quite tight enough. plenty good to hunt with don't get me wrong...but it wasn't full potential. now my buddy shoots a sbe2 with a 26" barrel and his shoots a jellyhead max 665 and it absolutely screams. back in the day of shooting nitros he put up an impressive 345 in 10 at 40 and that was very very very impressive for its time
It's interesting with guns/chokes and turkey hunting. My Rem870SM shoots 230's at 35yds with a Rem Extra full .687 with the 3" shell and 3.5. Never would have though that it would shoot that well out of that choke. Fed TSS it shoots a ridiculous pattern at 35yds. Didn't count the holes. Believe the set up I need in the turkey woods has a lot to do with how I set up on turkeys. My shots are mainly inside 30yds.
Win LB's are so tight out my Ventilator .655 and Rem Super Full .665 that I wouldn't want to hunt with it.
Mine has never shot a 3" shell better than a 3.5" shell. Mine has done very well with RSF, IC, and Jellyhead chokes. 2.5oz loads of TSS is very deadly for a long ways.
Good luck.
My original turkey gun back in the 90s was an 870 express. I bought a H.S Strut Undertaker and some 2 oz federal # 4 lead. At 35 yds the pattern was excellent. At 40, it was gone. Our shells have for sure come a long way. I currently shoot a Special Purpose 870 and 3 in 2 oz Hevi-13 #6 with the Hevi -13 choke and it is an excellent 40 yard hunting pattern. That's as far as I'll shoot anyway.
I had an identical 870 Special Purpose that didn't shoot nearly as well as the one I'm using even with the same choke and shell combo. Each gun is different.
Just found a brand new Hastings .655 non- ported choke for $25.00. The last of the Mohicans.