870
The 870's steel-to-steel lockup and simple pump action have made it the default choice across hunting, home defense, and law enforcement for longer than almost any other gun in production. Like the Mossberg 500, it ships with almost nothing beyond the gun itself; a shell carrier is the accessory nearly every owner adds first.
Start with these three
A receiver-mounted shell carrier that puts six spare rounds exactly where a reload happens, with no gunsmithing required.
Everything for the 870
Range Bags & Gear
4 items
Cleaning & Maintenance
7 items
870 questions
Does a Mossberg 500 sidesaddle fit a Remington 870?
No. The two shotguns have different receiver shapes and mounting points, so shell carriers are made and sold separately for each pattern. Always match the listing to "Remington 870" specifically rather than a generic "12 gauge pump" claim.
Will a sidesaddle clear the 870's factory forend?
On most standard-length forends, yes. Some field- or youth-model forends run long enough to contact a 6-shot sidesaddle, the same issue that affects the Mossberg 500; check your specific forend length before ordering, or size down to a 4-shot carrier if needed.
Pump or semi-auto: why does the 870 still sell so well against modern semi-autos?
Simplicity and reliability under neglect. A pump gun has fewer parts to malfunction, doesn't rely on the shooter's grip to cycle correctly the way some semi-autos do, and tolerates being ignored in a closet for years. That's exactly the profile of a lot of home-defense and truck-gun use cases.