XS Big Dot Tritium Front Sight (Remington 870)

The XS Big Dot Tritium Front Sight is the standard front-sight upgrade for the Remington 870 and the answer to two factory problems at once. First, the factory 870 brass bead is acquired slower than any of the modern alternatives because the eye has to find a small, low-contrast dot against the rib. The Big Dot is a large, high-visibility orange or white dot that catches the eye instantly and centers naturally on the target. Second, the factory bead is invisible in low light, which matters for any defensive use case. The tritium insert glows green in total darkness for 10+ years, so a Big Dot front sight is just as fast at 0300 as it is at noon.

The sight is a press-fit replacement for the factory front bead. The factory bead unscrews (Wingmaster, Police, some Express models) or pops out (most Express variants); the Big Dot threads in or press-fits in the same hole with no permanent modification. Installation takes about two minutes with a small flat-blade screwdriver and a vise. XS makes both a tritium version (~$74) and a non-tritium high-vis version (~$33) for shooters who want the speed gain without paying for the tritium element. The tritium version is the right pick for any defensive use; the non-tritium version is for range and competition use.

Pairing matters. The Big Dot is designed to pair with a ghost ring rear sight, not the factory rib alone. The Aridus CROM has an integrated XS rear ghost ring built in, which is the cleanest pairing: install the CROM and the Big Dot, and the gun has both a co-witnessed red dot setup and an iron-only ghost ring backup on a single optic mount. The Wilson Combat and Vang Comp aftermarket ghost ring sets also work; XS sells matching ghost ring rear sights as well. The Big Dot will technically work with the factory bead-only setup but loses some of its accuracy potential without a rear aperture to align against.

Verify your front sight pedestal before ordering. The 870 Wingmaster and Police models use a different pedestal than the Express, and XS sells separate part numbers for each. The Express variants ship the most Big Dots, so check XS's compatibility chart on the product page if you have a non-standard 870 trim.