My first 870 - Question about receiver pin..

Remington 870 Repair and Gunsmithing.
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CaPpedDoG
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My first 870 - Question about receiver pin..

Post by CaPpedDoG »

Hi guys, I purchased my first 870 about a week ago... a Police Marine Magnum. The thing is beautiful! Anyway, I disassembled it for the first time today. After putting it back together, I noticed the larger receiver pin has a bit of play to it. I'm able to push it back and forth about a mm with just my finger. I can also punch it out quite easily just with a punch and some force (no hammer, etc needed) Is this normal? Cheers
Vec
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Re: My first 870 - Question about receiver pin..

Post by Vec »

no its not normal, you probably lost the retaining spring for that pin.
CaPpedDoG
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Re: My first 870 - Question about receiver pin..

Post by CaPpedDoG »

Vec wrote:no its not normal, you probably lost the retaining spring for that pin.
Uh oh... thanks for the reply. Are you talking about those "D-springs"? Looking at my trigger assembly right now, I see 2 (1 on each side) for the small pin and 1 for the large pin.
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Synchronizor
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Re: My first 870 - Question about receiver pin..

Post by Synchronizor »

If you had lost the detent spring, your pin would fall right out. What you're describing doesn't sound like anything out of the ordinary.

Most 870s have a little bit of play in the trigger plate pins. The bushings can slip back and forth a little in the receiver & trigger plate, and the detent springs have a little movement in the bushing & pin notches. Add up all those tolerances, and the pins can have a small amount of play in the receiver. The pins also do not need to be very tight-fitting in the receiver holes. They sometimes have to be tapped out on guns with thicker finishes like multi-layer plating or coating, but for most 870s, once you pop them loose from the detent springs they'll slide the rest of the way out with little or no resistance. Here's a video example.

This is all normal, and will have no effect on the gun's function and reliability. Unless the pins are actually coming free from their detent springs under recoil, you shouldn't worry about a little play or looseness.
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