Remington "Marine"

J

Jorah

Moderator
I was in the store on Saturday with my wife, who has had zero interest in guns up until now. I noticed that she had wandered away and was looking at shotguns. Long story short, out of nowhere she has fallen in love with the "saltwater" Remington magnum in black and silver: http://www.remington.com/firearms/shotguns/870MRMAG.HTM
Any comments on this gun as far as reliability, useability, and so on? Gun would be primarily for home defense, as she is alone 13 hours a day. She really liked how easy the gun was to cycle. She is about 5'4", 150, average strength, strong hands from typing all day. She will be shooting from the hip I suspect, since she can't hold up long guns very well.

-Jorah
 
Jorah:

The Remington Marine Magnum is a superb shotgun, ready for use straight out-of-box. I seriously considered buying one for my wife and me.

However, if your wife is under 5'5", then you must realize that the length-of-pull of the Marine Magnum is going to be too long for your wife. Longer than necessary stock will magnify the effects of recoil and may put off your wife. It is also a fairly heavy gun.

My recommendation is to go with a Remington 870 Express or Mossberg 500/590 in 20 gauge with the stock cut to 13" pull. The barrel length should be between 18" to 21".

Skorzeny

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For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the supreme excellence. Sun Tzu
 
Im not sure if that synthetic stock can be cut down for length of pull.....ask George.
If it could be fitted to her< there is a huge confidence factor in having the "gun", she wants...I would just try to fit that shotgun to her and make what ever modifications are necessary to have the shotgun shoot comfortably for her...including the reduced tactical loadings by federal in the 2 3/4 loading....the only problem is that hip shooting stuff, I would seriously shy away from that and have her learn to use the sight, if she can not hold the shotgun she should not be shooting it, find her something that she can handle properly,,aka a 20ga semi auto, you can find em in good shape for around $450 or just about anything she can handle, shooting a 12ga at the hip is a lot for some men let alone a women who does not have the strength to raise the shotgun....thats jmo...luck to ya...fubsy.
 
The 870 Marine Magnum is a very good shotgun--well made and well finished. I was a little hesitant about the magazine extention, but it seems to work.

Anyway, I like mine.
 
Thanks for the push-back on the Remmington. I'll have to take my wife out to the range and borrow a couple shotguns, see how she does... the inability to shoulder the gun might be more of a training problem than a sheer strength problem.

-Jorah

(PS: I think she secretly wants to have the gun so she can imagine herself as Linda Hamilton in Terminator II, where she was racking the gun one-handed, and generally looking buffed. ;-)
 
Jorah:

Please do not take this an insult as I do not mean to be offensive, but you mentioned earlier than your wife has demonstrated zero interest in guns until now, correct?

If so, can I assume that she hasn't really shot many guns? I guess the reason I am asking these questions is that the 12 guage (particularly one that is too big for her) may be too much of a gun for her. For many beginners and novices, particularly those who are petite, the buck and the roar of a 12 gauge pump are, ah, most unexpected.

If she is a beginner, I suspect that the 12 guage may frighten her more than get her interested in shooting sports.

When I had my wife shoot a Remington 870 in 20 gauge for the first time in life, she wanted to drop the gun and run away, fast. It scared the living daylights out of her as she did not realize how loud and "powerful" it was.

So, after training her through .22LR, .38 special, 9mm Parabellum and .40S&W handguns, she became brave enough to try the 20 gauge again. To her surprise, she found it quite manageable and fun to shoot ("hey I can hit stuff with this!"). It also helped tremendously that I cut the stock to 12 1/2" pull.

So, for the beginners who are small framed, I really recommend a 20 gauge pump or semi-auto. Even Massad Ayoob likes the 20 over 12, because he can always shoot the 20 faster and better than a 12 in the same platform. He really recommends the 20 in pump or, particularly, a semi-auto for small-framed women.

Just my two bits.

Skorzeny

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For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the supreme excellence. Sun Tzu
 
I was considering another brand of "Marine" shotgun until it was pointed out to me that the brand in question used a "marinekote" coating on only part of the gun. The result is that it does not have full corrosion protection, and that red/brown stuff is spelled: R-U-S-T.

That is why I will buy a Remmington Marine model in the near future.



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Regards,
~Douglas in CT :)
 
Very nice gun I love mine but my GF didnt like it and she is well built 5'11 150 and strong as an ox but like everyone said she shot a 20 with all different loads. She shot it faster and better than the marine mag. I love the marine for my use and the finish kicks butt. Throw on a sidesaddle and some
Fed tach buck and ride on..........Just my 2cents though...Murray
 
Hey, everyone. Great feedback on the Marine shotgun. I read all the points you made to my wife, offered my own opinion (start with a smaller gun) and watched her carefully... I know the signs! She is only going to be happy with that one gun. I've been thinking of getting a Mossberg 500 for my first shotgun (generally I want one because I don't have a shotgun yet, they are reputed to be reliable and good for home defense/TEOTWAWKI and aren't very expensive) but hey, if we end up getting the Marine for my wife and she doesn't like it, then (whahoo!) I end up with a sweet shotgun which will last forever and will digest most everything, by the sound of it.

Now I've gotta blip over to the Rifle forum and ask a question over there. ;-)

-Jorah


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jorah,
You might want to check out remingtons catalog and see if they make it in 20 ga so that after you wind up with that shotgun, she can have one she likes...lol....They know what your doing too.. :)..so get ready for the new piece of furniture or what ever....lol..fubsy.
 
I replaced the regular supplied Rem Marine 870 stock with the "non-speedfeed" standard stock from Speedfeed and like it tremendously. The length is shorter (not sure by how much, already traded the Rem. stock so cannot measure diff.) and it makes the entire shotgun feel easier to manipulate. Plus, the recoil pad it comes with is already chamfered on the edges.

I'm very pleased with my Marine Mag, and have had some extensive customization done to it. It is a heavy shotgun compared to the Mossberg 500/590 series though. However, I rest well knowing the darn thing can take pretty much any action and abuse you can dish out to it. They are tough. The marine "nickel" finish makes the shotgun very easy to clean. I have a ported barrel and at the end of a shooting session, after I clean the barrel, the carbon fouling at the end of the barrel around the ports simply wipes right off with a moist CLP rag. No rubbing or anything.

EricO
 
Regarding Douglas in CTs comments: I have had a Mossberg 590 in Marinecoat for several years. This finish will rust. The rust will wipe off with a silicone cloth, but it's still rust.

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“The whole of the Bill (of Rights) is a declaration of the right of the people at large or considered as individuals. ... It establishes some rights of the individual as unalienable and which consequently, no majority has a right to deprive them of.” -Alexander Addison, 1789
 
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