Weird 870 barrel?

P

pmglock

New member
I just purchased a used 870 Express (pre-key lock safety) with a 20in barrel and standard rifle sights. It was dirty when I bought it with a lot of lead fouling in the end of the bore. After cleaning it I noticed that there are shallow, wide spiral grooves towards the muzzle end of the barrel. The barrel is marked improved cylinder, which is what I would expect on a slug gun. This is NOT a screw in choke. What the heck is it?

Patrick:confused:
 
Sounds like somebody put a bunch of rifled slugs down it. I'd try cleaning it again, since you said that it was leaded badly, and this sounds like it's still leaded.
Possibly what you're seeing is lead left by the rifled slugs. This WOULD look like wide, shallow grooves.
 
thanks for the response

But the barrel is bright and shiny clean- the lead from the slugs had accumulated in the grooves and was tough to scrub out. These grooves are definitely in the steel of the barrel. Never seen anything like it before.

Patrick
 
I have a 870 Marine Magnum, and the barrel had what I thought at first were permenent marks from copper plated buck shot and slugs. Hoppes powder solvent took them right off... just run a 12Ga brush through it a couple times and then some patches. After doing that a couple times, with no results, then you may have a problem.


good luck.


Ps. ain't there some sort of "rifled choke" also.. maybe that's what it is?
 
I swear....

The barrel is clean! I can see and feel the grooves in the metal of the barrel. I was wondering if it were a type of rifled choke, but nothing on Remington's website seems to describe what I'm seeing. And the barrel is marked improved cylinder. The grooves are well defined, smooth and shallow. Doesn't look like a hack gunsmithing modification. It's WEIRD!

Patrick
 
Some black powder gunsmiths have done rifling in shotguns bbls to improve performance with slugs. This may be an 870 altered as such.

How does it pattern? And how does it shoot slugs?
 
Hi Dave Mc

I thought you'd show up as the 870 expert in residence. I haven't had a chance to pattern it yet or group slugs. Looks like a proffesional mod of some kind; maybe to shoot sabots? It does home defense duty so I hope it will group decent with shot.

Patrick Mc
 
You sometimes see "rifling" like this done to spread out a shot pattern, usually for skeet or close-in bird hunting. I was at the IWA show 2 years ago, and this was an option for woodcock/"becassier" hunters.
 
What a horrible thing to do to a gun that is going to be used with shot. Want to spread the load, use a different load.
\
Like Dave says.....How does it shoot ? With shot and slugs ?

Sam
 
C.R. Sam- haven't had a chance to pattern it yet. Maybe in the next couple of days. If the mod is to increase shot spread it does seem stupid on a rifle sighted slug gun. I guess I'll just have to see what happens. I was hoping somebody would tell me it was a great custom mod:D ;) .

Patrick
 
The proof's in the pudding. pattern it and shoot some groups with slugs. Then, you'll have actual results instead of theories.

Sure wish you were close to here, I'd like to see this....
 
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