Mako Remington 870 Ambidextrous Sling Adapter Review
January 30, 2011

With the growing popularity of home defense shotguns on the market, there is also a growing need for quality aftermarket accessories.  Even with the trend of manufacturers providing items such as pistol grip stocks, forend rails and upgraded sights, I have yet to see a Remington shotgun come with a single point sling adapter.  If your preference is like mine, when I'm carrying my tactical 870, it is usually because I'm looking for action and I don't want it over my shoulder.  I want it close and ready.  That's why I immediately started looking for a good single point sling adapter.  The Mako Group ("Mako") is known for making quality accessories so I decided to get their MD-SAR Remington 870 Ambidextrous Sling Adapters for a review.  At the Mako website, the adapter sells for $21.60 plus S&H.  If you shop around on the internet, you can find it for a couple of dollars less, but I couldn't find a place that was offering any significant price difference.  I actually found some places selling it for more than Mako's price.

When you purchase the 870 Sling Adapter, it comes packaged as shown below.

The photo below shows the back of the package and gives some additional data on the sling adapter.  Throughout this review, you can click on a photo to bring up a higher resolution photo showing more details.

The 870 Sling Adapter is made from 6061 Aluminum (probably T6) and is Type III hard coat anodized.  This material and coating is common for many types of firearm accessories and is suitable for this application.  As you can see in the photos below, the adapter has two large rings (loops) on each side of the adapter making it ambidextrous for mounting a sling on the left or right side of the shotgun.  The adapter I received had a couple of blemishes on the underside as shown in the right photo below.  All of the visible exterior surfaces looked good with the exception of two pin head size dots on the inside of the rings.

  

The next two photos give you a better perspective on the thickness and beefiness of the adapter.  I have to agree with Mako's assessment that this is a "rock solid" adapter.  Also notice that it has nice rounded edges that protect the operator and other gear from scratches.

  

The Remington 870 Single Point Sling Adapter weighed in at 0.65 ounces.

 

 

To install the adapter, you must remove the buttstock from your 870 shotgun.  Start by removing the two screws that attach the butt pad to the end of the stock.

Next you remove the stock bolt that holds the stock to the receiver.

With the stock bolt removed, the stock easily separates from the receiver and the parts are shown below. 

In the photo on the left, you can see how the adapter will nest inside the rear of the receiver.  The photo on the right shows how the adapter has the same profile as the receiver to allow your stock to interface properly with the adapter just as your stock did with the receiver. 

  

Once you put the stock back on the shotgun, you have completed the installation of the 870 sling adapter.  The photo below shows the single point sling adapter installed on my Remington 870 Express Tactical Shotgun.  When you install the adapter, it will add ¼" to the length of pull of your shotgun.

With the sling adapter installed on the shotgun, you get a better idea on the size and solid design of this adapter.  The rings allow a quick and easy connection of my CAA Single Point Sling.  More than likely, other single point slings would easily adapt as well.

This next photo shows the 870 Ambidextrous Sling Adapter installed on my Remington 870 along with a Mako Recoil-Reducing Folding Collapsible Buttstock which I will be reviewing in the near future.  Overall, I'm very pleased with how this shotgun is coming together.

 

Bottom Line:

The Mako Remington 870 Ambidextrous Sling Adapter is clearly worth the money.  It is made from lightweight aluminum, but at the same time is a very rock solid product.  The adapter did have a couple of blemishes on the anodized finish, but that has no negative impact on this product because the rings of the adapter will develop wear after use anyway and the aluminum is not subject to rusting like steel.  If you do a search on the internet, you will find that this sling adapter has a competitive price and I recommend it being considered when you are looking for a sling adapter for your 870 shotgun.

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