Remington 870 Shotgun
Matthew Painter, one of the readers of the Rem870 blog have sent me great photos of his Remington 870 shotgun. Some info from Matt:
Here are some before and after pics of a project gun I recently completed.
– Brownell’s Aluma-Hyde II “Dark Earth”
– TacStar +2 extension
– TacStar +4 Side-saddle carrier
– Take-off Speed Feed stocks
– HIVIZ M300 fiber optic sight
– Scattergun Tech. follower and Oversized Safety
I’ve been a police officer for over 10 years and I build these things to work…no frills, no “It-said-Tactical-on-the-package-so-it-must-be-good” stuff. :)
Remington 870 Before
4 Shell Carrier TacStar for Remington 870
Enhanced Magazine Follower
Fiber Optic Sight for Rem 870
Scattergun Oversized Safety for Remington 870
Plus 2 Magazine Extension
Speedfeed Stock for Rem 870
870 Flat Dark Earth and Black
Matthew, thank you very much for the photos and info!
Related posts:
Remington 870 Safety, Wilson Combat (Scattergun Technologies), S&J Hardware, Vang
Looks like a nice setup. I like the paint. How much time do you have on that setup?
jon
Thanks Jon! I probably have about 7-8 hours in the whole project:
2hrs- Locate & purchase gun (pawn shop), order parts
2hrs- Tear down, clean. Cut and prep barrel and all parts
1.5hrs- Apply finish
1hr- Re-assemble and touchup
1hr- Re-finish and sell (eBay) original stocks. This helps offset the cost of the project.
I have had great success with Aluma-Hyde II and have used almost most of the colors (OD green, Dark Earth, Matte Clear, Coyote). Great stuff as long as everything is preped properly, applied per instructions and thoroughly allowed to dry.
Have you used a similar setup before? How did you go about choosing the parts you did?
jon
It looks like you cut the barrel down? Either way I would like to know the length that you used. I have one that I am looking to do just like this, down to the color :)
-Mark
Jon- Yes, I’ve built six shotguns of this type and have been very impressed with these components. I like the Choate mag extension as well but I think the TacStar is slightly better quality. Mesa Tactical sidesaddles are nice but a little pricey for me. Scattergun Tech makes solid stuff and they never disappoint me. Really can’t say enough good things about TacStar, esp for the money. Speed Feed stocks are bulletproof but Hogues are nice too.
All that to say: Yes, after many of these guns I find these parts to be ideal.
Mark- Yes, I cut the vent rib barrel down to about 18.75″, measured from the breach face. I would love to buy a factory 18″ barrel but I can’t see spending that kind of money when the gun only cost me $150! I have found a very easy way to cut the barrel with excellent results and minimal tools:
– Measure from the breach face to 18″. This will typically fall on an “open” section of rib.
– With either a hacksaw or a Dremel with a cut-off wheel, remove the next (further) section of rib, from solid point to solid point. Most 12G barrels this will fall from about 18.5″ to 20.5″. This give you room to work. I highly recommend you don’t cut the barrel, just the rib.
What I found works best is a tubing cutter. You can get one at a hardware or home improvement store for less than $10. The tubing cutter cuts the barrel perfectly square and places a slight crown on the barrel. The end result is downright gorgeous compared to a hacksaw cut!
I have the 18″ barrel, but if I put a +3 extension on it will overhang the barrel a bit. I have not decided how I feel about that. I do have a 28″ vent rib for it too, but I am not sure if I want to cut it yet. Of course I have used it zero times to hunt birds, so I am not sure what my problem is.. :) So you have a barrel that is cylinder bore and that works ok? I know for multi-gun my 18″ cylinder bore barrel has worked fine. I bought it used so the finish is shot, therefore I liked the stuff about the coating you used.
-Mark
Recently bought 870 express. After first takedown the fore-end sticks on ejection. It will eject spent shell but takes more force than when new. Any help would be appreciated… Brad
I have experienced good accuracy with both 00 buckshot and slugs out to about 60 yards with the cylinder bore, cut-off barrels. I can’t say enough good things about Aluma-Hyde II. I completed my 5th shotgun this weekend and used a color I had never used before–Parkerizing Gray–and it looks great. Have fun!
Brad,
Is it sticky even when you pump it empty or just when cycling shells?
Is it sticky when ejecting live rounds or only after firing?
jon
Brad- first thing I would do is disassemble and make sure there is no debris or anything between the forearm tube and magazine tube. Next look at the two bars that carry the bolt in the receiver. If one or both are bent or out of alignment it will cause the problem you are describing. Finally, look inside the receiver and make sure nothing I obstructing the two channels the action bars ride in. If everything looks 5/5 then give all parts a coat of RemOil and reassemble. If you’re experiencing the same thing I would find a gunsmith. I suspect, however, one of the bars that carries the bolt is slightly bent.
Hi, i saw this great site about the 870… I’m going to buy one for recreational shooting and for fighting course after.. so will you incourage be buying a 870 home defence remington or maybe i have to save the money? i own two pistol and i practice ynamic shooting so.. a 870 will be a plus in my background… wich is your opinion… should i go for a 870 or not? you consider a pump shotgun an advantage while knowing how to use it or it is better i’ll save my time for other kind of training with handgun? thanks