Remington 870 issues?

Evil_Edie

Evil_Edie

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So i'm looking into getting my first shotgun and i'm considering an 870.

i have been told a mixture of everything from them being perfect and reliable to POS that i should avoid. feeding issues? gun locking up? a finish that rusts easily? are these real problems currently or were they only around for particular batches. what is the deal with them?

now i dont want to hear anything about the old remingtons. i'm looking to buy a brand new one, and probably an express. who has recently handled a brand new one and can give me some honest unbiased feedback on them?
 
It really boils down to luck. Some folks swear by them. I've had enough bad experiences with the 870 platform in general that I've switched camp to Mossberg. You may luck out and get a rock solid one that works %100. I haven't been so lucky...
 
awesome guns. but i am disappointed with the fit and finish on the express. The blue finish is much nicer. Then again... if you will go hunt with it and beat on it you might as 'well get express. To say i have three 870's. Wingmaster is best of all, then HP9 norinco is my second best and express is last here for finish and operation. They all work perfectly reliable though. Only one issue with norinco was the one op rod fell off so i replaced with remmy original. No problems since.
 
Evil_Edie said:
So i'm looking into getting my first shotgun and i'm considering an 870.

i have been told a mixture of everything from them being perfect and reliable to POS that i should avoid. feeding issues? gun locking up? a finish that rusts easily? are these real problems currently or were they only around for particular batches. what is the deal with them?

now i dont want to hear anything about the old remingtons. i'm looking to buy a brand new one, and probably an express. who has recently handled a brand new one and can give me some honest unbiased feedback on them?
Click to expand...

I'm almost 40 years shooting 870's have them in every gauge and repaired a pile. If you are not buying a new wingmaster today it is a roll of the dice when buying a new 12ga express. Some are fine and give no problems others need the chamber polished etc etc.
If it is for home defense as much as I hate to say it I would go with a mossberg if you are not willing to buy a new or restore a vintage wingmaster which to me is pre 1986.
 
I bought an 870 express new a couple years ago. It has been fine for me, but I don't use it a lot and take very good care of my equipment. I can see where the finish might not hold up to being out in wet bush for extended periods. Yeah, I said that.
 
My marine magnum has a MIM extractor, so I picked up a police forged extractor just in case. I highly doubt I'll need it. Otherwise, rock solid build quality and it has never missed a beat.
 
IMO, newer 870s shouldn't even be called 870s as they're clearly not the same product that built the model's reputation. I believe they've long been at the point where, being an older and more production intensive design, they're no longer cost competitive with newer design and offshore competitors without cutting a whole bunch of corners quality wise.

It's not just the Express models, My 9 year old Police was rough and had major extraction problems with certain shells when I bought it.
 
Run away, look at Mossberg in the same price range. Depending on what you want you can get a Maverick 88 for $220 and have just as reliable a shotgun as you can buy. The Mossberg 500/590 have a matte black finish, tang safety, many more options like ghost ring sights, tactical crap you dont need but may want and even some retardedly stupid concepts that acheive a new level of f**kedupness that I cant describe without multiple use of the words anal whore. Mossbergs have been great for me, I couldnt ask for more out of a shotgun myself. For a little more cash, or similar price to a 590A1, Have a look at the Benelli Supernova. Zero issues in over 3 years with more features than a modded 870 from the factory. In a word: sweet.
 
A plastic trigger guard does not mean that it is inferior. Plastic simply means a lower price to manufacture and lower overhead. It is cold molded compared to the same part in metal. It is molded in colour which cuts the cost of polishing or bluing or coating, etc., and it is a far less costly medium to work in. It is in no way inferior in performance. It is no more inferior in performance than a synthetic stock is compared to a wood one, or a laminated wood stock is compared to a solid wood stock. It simply cuts costs. There are also benefits over metal, as it is usually more flexible (i.e. does not bend or dent) and will not rust or rot, and is often lighter in weight.

Why do the Police models use metal trigger guards? Perhaps because that is what they specified to Remington, not the other way around. Perhaps there was fear of UV or solvent damage over time, however unlikely.

One of the earliest plastics, Bakelite, has survived quite well for about 100 years now, and today's polymers are infinitely better. Someday alien anthropologists will find all these polymer lower sections laying around long after all the steel has rusted away and wonder what the hell they were used for.

BTW, know of any 30 year old "brittle" Glocks?

My Marine Magnum is absolutely 100% reliable, and didn’t need polishing or deburring or a "break-in period”. And if it did have a rougher chamber/receiver internals, a piece of emery cloth tied to a wood dowel in a drill for about 15 minutes is all that is needed. I will take it over any other 870 model: Express, Tactical or Police, or any other pump shotgun, regardless of brand, any day of the week.

And, if you’re hung up on the total of two MIM parts in the Express-based models, replace them for a total of $20 and two days wait for shipping. My $14 forged extractor is sitting in a drawer and will likely get lost long before I ever need to use it.

Some people seem to want exclusivity at any cost, and will dismiss lesser priced models, and spread rumour and fear about their inferiority.
 
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Lol.....the plastic trigger guard is not mentioned as an indicator of lower quality in itself, it is used as an indicator of what version/timeframe of gun it is...which kind of says the same thing, just in a different way. I have in front of me an older metal-guard and wood express....and it is superior in EVERY way to the new guns. Sorry, but it's true. I've had more than a few new expresses come through my hands, and they most certainly are crap compared to what the 870 used to be....and theres not an experienced 870 guy on the planet that would disagree with me on that.
 
i see, so from what i'm gathering, the problems are mostly with the current production.

whats everyone's opinion on the Grizzly? i hear they are built as 870 clones and will take with no problem all the same parts and upgrades. do those have the same issues?
 
Evil_Edie said:
whats everyone's opinion on the Grizzly? i hear they are built as 870 clones and will take with no problem all the same parts and upgrades. do those have the same issues?
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I like mine, but if starting over I'd go the Wingmaster redone route. If you want a short barrel, the grizzly is by far the best value. I had to have my shell latch replaced on my Grizzly. Truth is, the 870 is the most common shotgun ever, so you'll hear a disproportionate amount of problems with them, while the problem guns are probably a small fraction of the 870 population. 870s also have the most easy to find parts, both stock and aftermarket.
 
Sadly, these chinese POS junk shotguns, as some call them, are better than an express. Finish wise they are alot better, a coat of oil brings a nice even matte to them that doesnt abhorently rust itself out. Ive heard the new express finish needs to be dried before being oiled otherwise the coating's deep pores trap moisture and the thing rusts out even with a coat of oil. What The F**k? My HP-9 needed work right out of the box, they were easy fixes but it still bugged me. The 870 design is not confidence inspiring to me. Back when they were made with quality steel and quality control, they were just too robust to fail. Add in whatever cheap steel and skimpy manufacturing (mostly heat treating) processes and its a recipe for disaster. The one shell stop is a thin, bent piece of steel that is staked in place. If it gets f**ked your gun is going to the gunsmith for most folks. I wont own one, I couldnt trust it. Most have good luck with the grizzly/hp-9 and they seem durable. Mine was a dud which seems to be rare. I would still buy one before I bought a Remington however.

Evil_Edie said:
i see, so from what i'm gathering, the problems are mostly with the current production.

whats everyone's opinion on the Grizzly? i hear they are built as 870 clones and will take with no problem all the same parts and upgrades. do those have the same issues?
Click to expand...
 
I purchased my 870 express brand new like you not too long ago, it fires and cycles great, and for the money i feel that it is a great bang for your buck entry level shotgun. The gun cleans and comes apart incredibly easily and i have had over all a great experience with it! One complaint is the finish, When the safe was in the basement and i didn't have my de humidifier in there i did notice that i was getting surface rust! Which i found to be pretty annoying to see a new gun get surface rust especially when it was babied! However i put in my de humidifer cleaned up the surface rust and haven't seen a speck since! Great gun, great buy and at 300 bucks you cant go wrong. Its by no means a benelli, but still, a great gun. Love mine, dont regret it one bit.
 
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