Cutting Barrel of 870 wingmaster 20 ga, optimal length for bush hunting grouse

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slamman190

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Hey All,

I have a older 20 ga wingmaster that i picked up for a good deal, the plan is for the wife to use it for upland birds, grouse etc. (no duck or anything longer range)

Right now it has a 28 inch barrel, which is a little bit long for her. I have looked for a new barrel, but they are pretty expensive compared to what I paid for the gun.

How hard is it to cut down the barrel of a shotgun? I am thinking it would be easier than a rifle as there is no rifling. Do you still have to crown a smoothbore?

The second question would be on what a good length would be. Shorter is nicer in the bush, and allows for quicker target acquisition. It also lightens up the gun, making it easier for the wife to lug around.

Any input would be appreciated!
 
26 inches on an O/U feels just right to me for close cover. The centre of balance just right as I shoulder it.
I've yet to discover the perfect length on pump actions though. I have everything from 14 to 28 to choose from. But for natural feel & swing on flying things, 26-27 seems about right for myself as long as, bushes and trees are not in the way. For me, 24 just doesn't feel right for birds in a pumpgun, but everyone has thier own answer.

Edit: My older 20 gauge 2 3/4 inch reciever M37 Featherweight with a 27 inch barrel feels like the perfect shooting wand for casual trap. However, in the field my 26inch barrel O/U gets put to work putting grouse on the table more often than not.

my two bits.....
 
I have a wingmaster special field that Remington had out in the 80's. It came from the factory with a 21" barrel and the later ones had 23" barrels. I find it to be a great gun for grouse hunting and the gun handles great (for my build).
DSC00649.jpg
 
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Look into Dlask, I know they make short barrels for the 870, maybe a couple sizes, for a pretty reasonable dollar amount.
Keep in mind that you will be opening up your choke as well, which may be desireable for upland birds, depending on what you're starting with and how much you want to chop it.
Probably won't make a lot of difference with POI but it shouldn't be too hard to crown it to finish it. The squareness of the cut would matter more, I think.
 
I have an 870 wingmaster 20 ga with a 26" modified choke barrel . Works great! Do you have a vent rib? If yes cutting the rib could be an issue. If plain barrel, use a tube cutter to cut to desired length, remove internal burr with a rounf file and enjoy. once the last couple of inches are removed you probably have removed any choke and will be cylinder, For close shots this would not be an issue but anything past 15 to 20 yards your pattern would be pretty sparse and misses could be expected. For ruffed grouse where shots are close and quick this may not be an issue.
 
A 24-25 inch bbl on that 20 considering the long(er) receiver will serve well. Shouldn't be a great chore to cut the barrel itself if there is no rib present....would need to be re-crowned and a bead installed. Cyl bore won't be an issue for Grouse hunting as it is generally a close quarter affair.

EDIT: Redundant post on my part as iceman2 has already mentioned the same thing. :)
 
I used a hacksaw (make sure you cut straight) round file on the inside to remove the burs and then finished with a flat file on the outside .Some liqiud bluing on the exposed metal and it was done . If you want to replace the front bead it will be easier to mark the center line before you cut it .
Overall length must be over 26 in and barrel min length 18 ìn for non restricted
 
"...a new barrel, but..." Remington barrels are pricey, for sure. However, there are lots of aftermarket barrels for 870's.
Pipe cutter to 20", if there's no rib. Then file off the burrs and smooth the muzzle(isn't a crown like a rifle barrel, but it needs to be flat and square).
A ribbed barrel needs to be cut on one of the ribs. Hopefully it's a metal rib that is attached over the whole length.
Just remember that there will be no choke at all. Epp's smithy wants $100 plus the cost of the tubes to install chokes. A local smithy should be close to that.
 
slamman190 said:
Hey All,

I have a older 20 ga wingmaster that i picked up for a good deal, the plan is for the wife to use it for upland birds, grouse etc. (no duck or anything longer range)

Right now it has a 28 inch barrel, which is a little bit long for her. I have looked for a new barrel, but they are pretty expensive compared to what I paid for the gun.

How hard is it to cut down the barrel of a shotgun? I am thinking it would be easier than a rifle as there is no rifling. Do you still have to crown a smoothbore?

The second question would be on what a good length would be. Shorter is nicer in the bush, and allows for quicker target acquisition. It also lightens up the gun, making it easier for the wife to lug around.

Any input would be appreciated!
Click to expand...

Before you cut anything best to check if the gun is a large frame or LW frame. If one of the large frames the barrel you are cutting is worth more than your gun.They are not easy to find. Large frames off the top of my head end in X for 2 3/4" or N for 3" in the serial number and a quarter will pass through the barrel ring approx 1" bore vs 3/4" on a LW.Have not been made since 1972.
 
i checked into dlask, and they do not seem to have any inventory on their website. Is there anyone else that carries non-remington barrels that fit the 870? I have looked on cabelas and wholesale sports, no dice. A google search brings up lots of US stuff...

My gun is not the ribbed barrel, so should be easy to cut.

If i cut the barrel down to 24 or 25", with open cylinder, what would the effective range be realistically?

Anyone get a smith to do this for them, any idea what the cost would be to chop the barrel and re-bead it? If it was around a $100 I might go that route, and not have to worry about keeping the cut straight etc..
 
I have a BPS Upland Special, 22" barrel. it is a joy to carry and swing while walking bushy old logging roads and skidder trails for chickens.
 
slamman190 said:
If i cut the barrel down to 24 or 25", with open cylinder, what would the effective range be realistically?

Anyone get a smith to do this for them, any idea what the cost would be to chop the barrel and re-bead it? If it was around a $100 I might go that route, and not have to worry about keeping the cut straight etc..
Click to expand...

Realistically, the effective range would be at the usual range the majority of Grouse are taken i.e. under 20 yards. :) With a Cyl bore one could effectively reach out to and even beyond 25yds.

A greater number of Grouse hunters choke their guns with tubes such as Cyl/Sk/IC or a mix of such in the case of double guns.

The $ figure should cover the barrel job you have in mind. Scroll down the following page for an idea (under Misc section).....
http://ellwoodepps.com/gunsmith.htm
 
Amphibious said:
I have a BPS Upland Special, 22" barrel. it is a joy to carry and swing while walking bushy old logging roads and skidder trails for chickens.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I have a BPS upland special as well but I, personally, like the Remington special field much better. I find it lighter, it fits me better and I find it handles better. But there is nothing wrong with the BPS as far as quality.
 
slamman190 said:
i checked into dlask, and they do not seem to have any inventory on their website. Is there anyone else that carries non-remington barrels that fit the 870? I have looked on cabelas and wholesale sports, no dice. A google search brings up lots of US stuff...

My gun is not the ribbed barrel, so should be easy to cut.

If i cut the barrel down to 24 or 25", with open cylinder, what would the effective range be realistically?

Anyone get a smith to do this for them, any idea what the cost would be to chop the barrel and re-bead it? If it was around a $100 I might go that route, and not have to worry about keeping the cut straight etc..
Click to expand...

I guess you missed my first post or you just decided to ignore it.
Barrels being sold today will not fit the gun if it is a large frame 20ga wingmaster and if it is the barrel is too rare to be chopped.I have seen them sell on gunbroker pending the choke for 300 -350.Not hard to find a 20ga express barrel with choke tubes for a LW.
 
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I was thinking that all along, that being I would also not chop off a 20 gauge barrel unless the rest of the gun was in very poor condition, beyond refinishing. I would look for an express barrel.
 
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