Well I did just the opposite than most expressed here. I bought one of the first 870 express models I ever saw in 80,s also had a wingmaster at the time .A few years later got in a thin the herd mood and sold the wingmaster. Most will scoff but the express was the smoother gun of the two and since the wingmaster was worth more it went down the road. My express has been a workhorse for over 30 years with nary a complaint.
Funny thing about my gun was it came with a 26" bbl and initially only 28" bbls were catalogued for the express. The forend on mine also looks to be walnut. I have long suspected that they used some parts for the special purpose guns for this gun.
