I've owned all 3. The Remington, especially the 11-87 are much better than they get credit for. A lot of guys swear the 1100 is much better. I never felt that way. For the money the 11-87, especially if you can find one with the "light contour" barrel is a good gun.
That said, I no longer own an 1100 or 11-87. I've got a couple of 870's and 2 Benelli M-1's. While I think the Remingtons are good autoloaders, I like the Benelli much better for my uses.
I never liked that the bolt release on the Remingtons was on the loading gate. When dove or ducks are coming in fast I have never been able to reload as fast as with the 870 or Benelli. Even with the light contour barrel the Remingtons are much heavier than the Benelli.
I duck hunt on small beaver ponds, usually located several miles from the road so walking long distances wearing hip boots and carrying all of my other gear is the norm. A lighter gun is appreciated. Same with Turkey hunting. My honey hole is a 5 mile walk from where I park. That is a 10 mile round trip every day I go turkey hunting.
If you plan to shoot a lot of clays and not carry your gun as far as I do the 11-87 may be a better choice. The added weight, and gas system will reduce felt recoil. The Benelli does kick more. But it still feels softer than my 870's and could certainly be no worse than any double. I don't hear the guys shooting doubles or pumps complain too much about their guns recoil.
