Remington VERSA MAX Tactical

I agree for the most part. I like how the gun looks with all the 'cool' stuff but I took off the rail and comb riser, as well as the breacher. Its now basically a 22" VM with a glow sight and extended/oversize controls, as well as the Nordic tube and clamp.
 
I have one of the first VMT that came into Canada and it came with a fully functioning magazine. It holds 8 2 3/4" shells. My friends has the same magazine but it has a pin in the tube and it hold 6 2 3/4" shells.
 
Hello, VMT guys, just got mine before the weekend and shot it today at the range, YES, love it.
A few complaints, as everybody is saying, the packaging sucked big time, UGLY! Kinda in disarray and not protective :-(
Missing red fiber-optic replacement (for the green) and it only holds one in chamber and 4 in mag, yuck.
Otherwise, it shoots well, fast, reliable and looks sharp, too.

Hope some fellow-CGN'ers can pitch in re magazine issue, pistol-grip options/alternatives and recommended upgrades, too.
Thanks & HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone!
 
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OK I have revisited the issue of the mag capacity. As you are aware it is shipped as 'Canada compliant' which means no more than 5 in the mag.

In fact as delivered it has a capacity of 4 simply because the factory doesn't utilize the Nordic extension tube which would bring it's capacity to 8.

So having attended a shotgun match on the weekend, and looking at some of the rigs that ppl are running, I was VERY motivated to do something about this gun.

First off I disassembled the gun and made the extension operational, but after careful review of Bill C-80 and Bill C-17, a chat with my local gun dealer, and the realization that I am far too old to go to jail, I decided to make the mag operational for 5 shells. Not 5.9 3" shells, but five 2 3/4" shells.

Now that the preamble is done what I did simply was to remove the spring retainer from the magazine, turn it around and put it in the extension. I reassembled the spring and follower in the mag tube, and put the extension on. (no mean feat cause now the spring is unsupported) I put the rest of the gun together and put 5 shells in the mag. Then I stuck a dowel down the extension (which has it's own cap) cut it to length, epoxied the dowel to the cap, and reassembled everything.

Because the dowel is epoxied in - and not easily removed I have satisfied the law and now have a gun that can hold 5+1. NOT a super open gun like some have been running - but then I don't have to worry about a knock on the door either...
 
What accessories fit this thing?

Not many, as far as I know... its still a new gun. Im happy with it in factory configuration, so I haven't looked, but some guys installed Benelli M2 pistol grip stocks with very very minor modifications. Maybe M4 stocks would fit too.

Regarding packaging: mine was fine. Sure it didn't ship in a padded case, but the cardboard box was neatly organized and the hard cardboard supports were in place. I think maybe you guys had your boxes opened by someone, or they were REALLY mistreated during shipping. Still, it could be better packaged for a $1300 gun... they should be using foam.
 
Although I could be wrong, if you epoxied wood to metal they may not except that. The last time I spoke with a tech they wouldn't except epoxied metal. Expoxy was only acceptable on plastic.

OK I have revisited the issue of the mag capacity. As you are aware it is shipped as 'Canada compliant' which means no more than 5 in the mag.

In fact as delivered it has a capacity of 4 simply because the factory doesn't utilize the Nordic extension tube which would bring it's capacity to 8.

So having attended a shotgun match on the weekend, and looking at some of the rigs that ppl are running, I was VERY motivated to do something about this gun.

First off I disassembled the gun and made the extension operational, but after careful review of Bill C-80 and Bill C-17, a chat with my local gun dealer, and the realization that I am far too old to go to jail, I decided to make the mag operational for 5 shells. Not 5.9 3" shells, but five 2 3/4" shells.

Now that the preamble is done what I did simply was to remove the spring retainer from the magazine, turn it around and put it in the extension. I reassembled the spring and follower in the mag tube, and put the extension on. (no mean feat cause now the spring is unsupported) I put the rest of the gun together and put 5 shells in the mag. Then I stuck a dowel down the extension (which has it's own cap) cut it to length, epoxied the dowel to the cap, and reassembled everything.

Because the dowel is epoxied in - and not easily removed I have satisfied the law and now have a gun that can hold 5+1. NOT a super open gun like some have been running - but then I don't have to worry about a knock on the door either...
 
Although I could be wrong, if you epoxied wood to metal they may not except that. The last time I spoke with a tech they wouldn't except epoxied metal. Expoxy was only acceptable on plastic.

Well another thought that I had was to put a rivet into it.

This has 2 problems as I see it:

  • It may not support the spring retainer as well as a wooden dowel
  • It looks bad unless I can get it right on top of the tube where it's not so visible...

I could drill a hole through the tube and retainer and press a pin into it but:

  • this could work loose over time.
  • still looks shabby

The other thing I was considering was a plastic tube that I could cut and slide down in. Does plumbing tubing come in 7/8 diameter?

The main thing is I don't what to introduce a whole bunch a weight out there or it will be like swinging a sledgehammer...
 
First off I disassembled the gun and made the extension operational, but after careful review of Bill C-80 and Bill C-17, a chat with my local gun dealer, and the realization that I am far too old to go to jail, I decided to make the mag operational for 5 shells. Not 5.9 3" shells, but five 2 3/4" shells.

Well it seems that I am wrong on this point too - my sphincter rigidity has made me far too cautious.
The following is a quote from a reliable source - which I am not going to name simply because I haven't asked permission - but it reads as follows...

"Good day,

Yes the limit is 5 for a long gun in semi-automatic action and centre fire cartridge. Refer to the Regulation http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-98-462/page-2.html#h-4 .(PART 4 PROHIBITED DEVICES).

We never count the one in the chamber and we always use the longer cartridge even if you can use shorter shells (2 2/3", 2 1/2", etc...)."


So go for 5.9 of the longest shell marked on your barrel - and if more shorter shells fit in - oh well -
 
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Sadly, the VM Tactical is only marked as 3", despite the chamber being verified at 3.5" just like all the other VM's... shame.
 
I did a little more work on the Versa Max tonight - trying to get the mount just right - and even tho most 3-gun shot stages aren't really clays style shooting - it's nice to have the gun come to shoulder perfectly.

That being said Remington has really thought this thing out. I was able to adjust the drop, cast and the LOP with just basic tools. Conversely I have a M4 in my gun safe right now that I can't adjust anything on...

Deets:

Being a tall guy - I put the ½" spacer in the stock to bring the LOP to 14¾" - seems about right as it brings my elbow forward and allows a nice shoulder pocket.

Using the provided spacer I gave it a ¼" right cast - that's it - take it or leave it. Right now it's dead on - but it might have been nice to have ½"

I tried to drop the stock using the same spacer, but surprisingly it was too much! Never had that happen before when I was setting up stocks. Remington must have lots of drop engineered right into them cause I couldn't get a good sight picture using the spacer. So I tried the cheek riser. Eureka! Never thought I'd be running a tactical shottie with a cheek riser but it seems to shoulder perfectly with a nice straight head/neck alignment.


So that's it for tonight - I'm happy with the setup for now, of course the real test will be out at the range.
The other thing I'll have to address is carving deep checkering on the stock or some sort of grip tape. Silky smooth is nice on a clays gun but sureness of grip is more desirable on an action gun...
 
I might play with mine if I have time the next few days, I'll let you know how it turns out. I think I have essentially the same washer in there but when I checked it out before it looked epoxied or something. I may take a fine-tip dremel bit to it and see what happens.
 
Forgot to mention again that mine is also limited to 4 rounds from the factory, I don't know why Remington did that instead of the proper 5 rounds. Just be sure to plug the magazines in a proper fashion so that they are not easily tampered with.
 
Messed around trying to find a way to remove the washer. Looks like dremmel is the only viable option. Considering just ordering a new extension instead.
 
Yes as a matter of fact I'm going to be shooting it tomorrow at a match in Hamilton. This will be the second match for the versa max - the first match um well encouraged me to tackle the magazine issue. Now that I have that resolved and the drop and cast adjusted I expect to do a little better. Of course with any shotgun competition the biggest the problem is reloading and counting the number of rounds you shoot to ensure that you can finish the stage.
 
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