I just got this Remington 870 special purpose super magnum at a pawn shop. I think it's an older 870. Does anybody have any experience with these guns for turkeys? It has a 23 inch barrel. Can somebody tell me about this gun and what choke and loads they shoot out of it? Thanks
Congratulations. That should make a fine turkey gun for you. I would recommend that you strip that gun down to its basic components and clean everything. I'd recommend that you "deep clean" the bore. That cleaning will allow you to take a good look at everything and make sure all is well. It also allows you to get the gunk out of the fire control unit, bolt assembly and of course the chamber and bore.
I own several 870s and they are fine guns. With proper maintenance they will last several lifetimes. Your camo finish will also help prevent rust on the exterior of your gun.
I have shot quite a variety of chokes and shells through my guns. Currently, if you want to shoot lead, it would be very difficult to find a better shell than the Winchester Long Beard products. Even though your gun has a 3.5" chamber, I'd recommend the 3" shells with either #5 or #6 shot. I prefer the #6 shot and like the 1 7/8 oz. loads. A 3" shell will do all that you need to cleanly kill a turkey at ethical distances of 40 yards or less.
If you would like to shoot tungsten based shot, I'd recommend 3" Hevi-13 shells with 2 oz. of either #6 or #7 shot. They both work exceptionally well and will do the job cleanly and efficiently. I also like the new Magnum Blend shells that have #4, #5 & #7 shot. The Federal 3rd Degree shells are also quite good. Lots of choices and all will work.
I use and recommend the SSX turkey choke in Rem-Choke shotguns. The JEB's chokes are excellent as well. Everyone seems to have a favorite or one that works best in their gun and that's to be expected. There are many good chokes on the market today. Innovation and technology are playing a large part in the development of new products and we'll see more of that.
You may find these 2 articles to be of help
http://www.nwtf.org/hunt/article/choking-winchester's-long-beard-xr &
http://allaboutshooting.com/article_info.php?articles_id=759Please let us know what you decide to use and how it works for you. If I may be of any help whatsoever, please do not hesitate to let me know.
Thanks,
Clark