Best Remington 870 year/variant

I Dont Care About You said:
Think I bought mine in 87 or 88 maybe.



And how is the Express inferior ... mechanically?
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Known issues for the Express:

- chamber not polished meaning sticky extraction (happened to me)
- action bars and bolt carrier not polished and might lead to malfunction (happened to me)
- The matt blued finish is prone to rusting. You need to keep that gun well oiled or it will start to rust.
- I even had one Police model where the interior of the barrel was not polished
- and other issues
 
I would just get a current production Wingmaster. They are nice guns for the money ....

This one is from 2024, ... and this is one of the few 870 that I bought brand new and that did not have any issues out of the box.

Rem870_Wingmaster_RifleSights_MonteCarlo_2024_lowres.jpg
 
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I Dont Care About You said:
I have a late 80's 870 Express that has done yeoman's service over the decades. I like the Express because of the matt surface finish on the metal. It doesn't show scratches nearly as badly.
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Express guns from the 80's were actually very good quality. I've got 2 of them, and never had an issue.
 
dave524 said:
For a short time in the late 80's the 870 Special Purpose Magnum came with a real parkerized finish and a real walnut stock with machine cut checkering not the die impressed crap, got one with a 26 inch barrel with the 3 choke set, my idea of the perfect 870, it came with sling swivels and a camo sling too
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SP and SPS were both quality guns. I've got 2 12 ga SPS's and a 20 ga SPS-T. The big Rem SP-10 is the same SP finish. Had an 11-87 SPS years ago but sold it.
 
0faustus0 said:
I would just get a current production Wingmaster. They are nice guns for the money ....

This one is from 2024, ... and this is one of the few 870 that I bought brand new and that did not have any issues out of the box.

Rem870_Wingmaster_RifleSights_MonteCarlo_2024_lowres.jpg
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Looks like an 870 Trap stock...
 
dave524 said:
For a short time in the late 80's the 870 Special Purpose Magnum came with a real parkerized finish and a real walnut stock with machine cut checkering not the die impressed crap, got one with a 26 inch barrel with the 3 choke set, my idea of the perfect 870, it came with sling swivels and a camo sling too
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I have the mate to your 870 SP on the EE for sale. My waterfowling days are over thus the sale.

Someone will get a nice shotgun with this one.

https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/for...purpose-12ga-made-1990-price-reduced.2543214/

.
 
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All Wingmasters that I’ve owned, regardless of year made, were top notch in fit and finish. I’ve owned Wingmasters from every decade from the 60’s right up to Freedom group Wingmasters. Fit and finish excellent and metal parts polished nicely. Freedom Group Wingmasters were made as well as the rest of them. Can’t say the same for the other Freedom Group 870’s like the Express’ as mentioned in the preceding posts, the fit and finish on them from the factory was lacking, but some time and attention gets them running smoothly.
 
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For a shorty, any wingmaster or police receiver would be a good choice. If you want 3” mag capability, make sure it’s a magnum receiver (not super magnum).
 
A little update for anyone who may care , got this late 70s/early 80s (I can’t figure out which) wingmaster for $400 and just put a dlask 12.5 barrel on it that showed up today

First time buying from dlask , fit and finish is a little meh like the ball detent for the mag cap being too high for my mag cap and the chamber end being different from a oem barrel, don’t know if that’s a problem yet but we will see but overall I’m happy with the look and reduced length
 

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Noble473 said:
A little update for anyone who may care , got this late 70s/early 80s (I can’t figure out which) wingmaster for $400 and just put a dlask 12.5 barrel on it that showed up today

First time buying from dlask , fit and finish is a little meh like the ball detent for the mag cap being too high for my mag cap and the chamber end being different from a oem barrel, don’t know if that’s a problem yet but we will see but overall I’m happy with the look and reduced length
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It’s a two piece barrel. I’ve posted one I cut apart on here if you search sj hardware threads? Simon. Remington has/used to make two piece barrels
 
Noble473 said:
Hey everyone I’m looking at getting my first 870 to build out possibly as a shorty/dlask clone or just keep stock so I’m just wondering what’s the best year/model combo I should be on the hunt for or if I should just grab a new one

Also an additional question what’s the shortest barrel I can fit on a standard length mag tube
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buy an 870P police magnum
 
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