Remington 870 Express Tactical Magpul 12 Gauge Shotgun

High-capacity pistols and ARs are definitely the darlings of today’s law enforcement officers. Meanwhile, the shotgun, which has ridden with law enforcement and military personnel since the days of the blunderbuss, seems to have unfairly lost some of its previous luster with many agencies. Yet the capable smoothbore perseveres in LE circles. Metropolitan and rural agencies, and those in between, continue to utilize it when conflicts arise.
The shotgun may have been relegated to the trunk instead of the in-cab rack, but knowledgeable officers and agencies still find a place for it in their operations. Luckily for them, the technological trends driving weapons development in the handgun and rifle
arenas have made themselves felt in the shotgun world as well.

From the amalgamation of two popular companies—Remington and Magpul—comes the newest in a long line of 870 pump-action shotguns. The Remington 870 Express Tactical Magpul is an excellent blend of a well-proven platform and Magpul’s newest furniture, providing for a highly practical and very flexible shotgun setup. And flexibility is exactly what is needed when a long gun is being used by a variety of officers.

Gun Details

Magpul’s new polymer-based shotgun furniture is innovative and solid-feeling, as one would expect. In keeping with its “ambidextrous, user-configurable” description, the SGA stock is chock full of features, starting with the colors offered for the stock’s very lightly textured polymer: black, Flat Dark Earth and orange. The grip area has been modified and pebbled, providing improved ergonomics and resulting in a more comfortable and secure grip.

The stock’s flexibility, allowing the 870 Express Tactical to accommodate different circumstances and officer statures, is quickly obvious. Included on the shotgun I tested were several cheek risers to adjust for the varying heights of sights and optics. And length of pull is critical for effective and comfortable shotgun use. Magpul included four replaceable spacers on the stock’s butt, providing an adjustable length of pull ranging from 12.5 to 14.5 inches, which should accommodate most body sizes and the amount of armor worn. Swapping spacers is easily accomplished. In the comfort arena, Magpul uses a SuperCell buttpad, advertised to reduce felt recoil by over 50 percent. While I can’t measure that, the design of the stock and the SuperCell buttpad did noticeably reduce felt recoil during testing. Finally, the SGA stock includes slightly recessed sling-strap attachment points on each side.