A Challenge to the 870 Express Bashers....

Thanks, Max. I agree, there shouldn't be a problem. As for the extractors, only problems I've seen were crud related.

"Unnatural fascination"?

I've owned and operated 870s for over 50 years. I wish everything I have owned worked as well. Now folks with a lot less time on them and a much lower round count report all sorts of stuff.

I want to know what's really going on.
 
I agree with all of it and there are a few chambers that are a little tight and need to be opened up a few thousands with a hone. The QC problems are minor but it's a big issue to some who don't know much about shotguns. They shouldn't have to correct problems anyway.
Click to expand...

I have no proof that this is the case, but I wonder how many of those sticky extraction instances result from poor cleaning after using plastic shells?

Will also add the MIM extractors rarely give problems.
Click to expand...

Yes, and if you watch the normal feed/extract cycle, it's obvious why. :) Gas guns sometimes break extractors - but it is very, very rare with pumps.
 
The 870 Zombies are at it again. The new production Express 870 has issues but why let reality get in the way. Memo to the Zombies, the problems are real and can be resolved but there are problems. As usual MAX100 got it right. Get over it Zombies.
 
jmortimer, the 870 is a religion to these guys. You are telling them their god is not real.

The 870 is a great gun once it is made to run properly. Unfortunately, Remington is putting out complete cr*p 870 Express guns. It is a DIY project. Think of it as a kit gun. It is not the stupid preservative or cleaning. The chambers are rough and screwed up.
 
I'm not real fond of the newer 870's. The saving grace of the old ones was that they were milled well and built very solidly.

Compared to other shotguns they have a pretty crude action. Single extractor, large locking lug etc... Its eloquent but inelegant. That action was designed to better work with the 2 3/4in round but anything bigger makes them feel sticky imo.

The old ones were so durable that it justified the weight and the simplicity. Once the reliability is even called into question is isn't worth it any more.

I've got a great old 870 Wingmaster and a Winchester 120. As cool as the 870 is, the Winchester is smoother, lighter, and I've never had a problem with either of them.
 
No takers yet.
Click to expand...

Gee, I'll get right on a plane and meet you there in a few hours...:rolleyes:

You know...with the exception of the aluminum frame (which gives it less tolerance for abuse) the Winchester 1300 is a waaaay better gun than the 870...old or new. Never felt a smoother action...and this is from someone who has fired THOUSANDS of rounds through one without ONE SINGLE MALFUNCTION. I never had to worry about whether it was clean or not...or if the chamber has been polished, etc. It's a darn shame that they don't make the 1300 any longer.

Now excuse me while I go put on my flame suit. :D
 
Being an obsessive/compulsive type, I've been thru a few shotguns.

Back in the late eighties I had the joy of owning a fifties vintage Remington 870 that was as plain jane as you can get in a shotgun and lugged that thing everywhere I hunted back then.

I remember just how well that gun balanced and pulled up to my shoulder. I never had a malf. and it ate evrything I shot thru it. I traded for a semi and have regretted it to this day.

That gun was special and it introduced me to the folly of trading something away that I dang well should have kept.:(

I have not picked one up after that that even felt like that gun.

I can fully understand the love that 870 owners have for the 870 and, if the good Lord was to smile on me and let me get that gun back, I'd fill a void in my heart that I've felt since I foolishly let that one go.

The only gun I have that remotely felt like that gun is one that I have, a J.C. Higgins Model 20, which I love dearly, but it ain't that old 870 I had back then.

Man, the memories....
 
http://www.shotgunworld.com/bbs/viewtopic.php?f=58&t=197762

http://www.sksboards.com/smf/index.php?topic=16062.0;wap2

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090818204942AANkRC2

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=42719&page=2

http://www.thehighroad.us/showthread.php?t=199275

More Mossberg "issues"

I'm not saying either gun is a bad choice. It still comes down to the features you prefer.

I just spent the better part of an hour googling "Mossberg 500 malfunctions" and "Remington 870 malfunctions". I was plesantly surprised to find a great many of the responses for both guns noted that their owners had never had a malfunction in either gun.

Yes, I did find responses indicating issues with the 870 as well as the 500. Every single 870 issue dealt with sticky chambers and ejection problems. This is a cleaning issue as has already been discussed.

We are talking about the least expensive budget shotguns on the market. Any of them are going to have issues as long as the manufacturers are trying to build the cheapest gun they can get away with.
 
Jmr40, it is not a cleaning issue. My gunsmith had to re cut the chamber on two of these for me.

It doesn't matter if these are low priced guns. I give Remington $300. They should give me a gun that works out of the box or notify me in advance.
 
Then according to your logic Mossberg should do the same. There are plenty of examples of Mossberg QC issues. But according to you and a few others Remingtons are the only shotguns with problems.

Your gunsmith CHOSE to cut you a new chamber and charge you for the work. It is pretty well documented that a good chamber cleaning fixes the problem.
 
What's even funnier is the Benelli M4 owners who trash every other make/model and act as if the M4 never has, ehhhm, "issues," but if you hunt around you can find where they do their complaining. Considering the cost of that gun, you might be quite surprised!
 
Let's leave terms like "Zombies" out of this, lest I have to put on my Moderator's hat.Personal attacks are forbidden under the rules we ALL agreed to when we signed up here.

What I decry is the mindset that says.....

"I had a problem with my Express so they are all complete junk....''

My Beretta O/U is the most expensive firearm here. I got it after long searching for the one clays gun that would do something my cherished 870s did not. I shot it well from Day One and love it.

But from Day One, the inertia trigger would occasionally not reset for the second barrel,especially when using my creampuff 7/8 oz loads. I didn't jump on the Net telling all who would listen all 686s were junk. I just lived with it until things smoothed out. And they did.

BTW, the price of a White Onyx then and now is about 5-6X that of an Express.

All shotguns should work right out of the box. Some do not, and need minor tweaks or adjustments. Sometimes so do the owners.

Still no takers.

I never expected to have to buy any Expresses. I did expect to get a PM saying someone is havin trouble with theirs and asking me to take a look....
 
My gunsmith had to re cut the chamber on two of these for me
Click to expand...
Why would you pay a gunsmith when its warranty work that should be done on Remington's dime? Doesn't make sense to me.
Click to expand...

It cost to ship the gun to a Remington service center and they don't always get it right the first time, then you will have to ship it back again. The service centers will only polished the chamber and sent it back. His chambers were under size and needed opening up a little. So he would have had to pay to ship two guns in and they would have come back doing the same thing. He had a smith do it right the first and didn't have wait. Makes sense to me.


GC
 
Last edited:
Honestly, was a bit surprised to have read the problems on the 870 Express. Had one a few years back, worked fine. Personally I prefer the Browning BPS but that's just personal opinion and not based upon performance of my 870, which worked fine out of box. Kind of wondering, since these complaints are coming from the last two years, if it's in part due to the run on guns from '08/'09, people just entering the firearms world, and not knowing how to properly use them. That and with the tons of aftermarket parts, perhaps that explains some of the issues being seen.
 
I just got back from the skeet range. My new 870 jam-o-matic is going back to the gunsmith. I still have to slam the buttstock on the ground to extract about 15% of the time with the field barrel.
 
rc601962,

Just buy a used Winchester 1300 on gunbroker. You can get them for about $300 and you won't have any other issues.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top