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ORIGINAL: Tbyrnzy82
I did try out the BPS liked the bottom ejection but was not totally sold on the quality although I know two lefties that use them and like them. I just could not pass up the reliability and toughness of an 870. also American made  I think that BPS is made in ***an now. Â*
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I've owned both the 870 Express and the BPS, and in terms of quality the BPS wins hands down. It isn't even a contest in my opinion. Don't get me wrong, the 870 Express is still a decent shotgun for the money, but you'd better hope you don't buy the one that was put together at 4:55pm on a Friday by a guy who was thinking a lot more about the quality of his weekend starting in 5 minutes than the quality of your shotgun. I really don't, by todays standards, see what people have against ***anese built products, considering that they make the some of the longest lasting cars on the road and some of the finest consumer electronics on the planet. And with the ***anese work ethic being what it is, the guy building your BPS wouldn't half-a$$ the last gun of the day because his shift was 5min from over, he'd voluntarily stay late, as long as it takes, to put your BPS together right.
My only gripes with the BPS is that, because of the bottom eject, all shells have to be loaded into the magazine with the slide forward, and then pumped into the chamber. It's not really a problem unless you shoot trap with it where you must load one round at a time by range rules, and must open the chamber after you shoot. This means that you wind up double pumping the gun for each shell, which gets tiresome after 4 or 5 rounds of trap. Also, if you plan to use it for an upland gun where you're going to be carrying it at the ready for a long time, the BPS is a fairly heavy shotgun (by virtue of the whole thing being made of machined steel) and the extra weight is very noticable after a few hours walking fencerows. These are the reasons I ultimately sold mine, though I wish I hadn't now.
The 870 Express's I've had (I've been through 2 of them), have both been crude by comparison to my dad's 40 year old 870 Wingmaster and the BPS. Remington has gone to great lengths to cheapen the 870 Express, and have been remarkably successful turning the gun against which other pump action shotguns were measured into a cheap, flimsy rattle-trap disposable shotgun. I'd buy a Mossberg long before I'd buy another 870 Express. Both of mine had loose rattily forends, they cycled roughly with a gritty feel no matter how well cleaned or lubed the action was, and would occationally not lock up unless the slide was slammed home with a lot of authority. They also had a tendency to have the action unlock and partially open with recoil. My BPS was tight and rattle free and so silky smooth a 5 year old girl could easily rack the slide and it'd lock tight every time, and stay fully in battery after the shot. The 870 Wingmasters are much better quality than the Express (for more money of course). I wish Remington still built them like my dad's 870.
Mike
need help any suggestions on a good left handed gun for duck hunting
