Remington Automaster 878

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Dave1987

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Hello all;

So I bought a Remington Automaster 878 from tradex. Received it today, noticed it was a bit dirty in the action. But took it out quickly to get a few rounds off. Worked well with some reloads I had(this is my first semi auto 12 gauge) but would not cycle regular target loads Remington gun club, and some winchester I had.

So i got the gun home and looked a bit closer. It was just caked. i was surprised how dirty it was after i took it down. like it had never been cleaned before.

It seems that there is a small piece on the inside of the gas piston, and a chunk on the outside of the gas piston that is cracked off.

My question is where in the world would i get parts for this gun? its a beautiful gun and would like to have it in working condition. but i definitely do not want to fire it anymore without replacing the gas piston.

Any help would be awesome!

Thanks in advance
 
You may need a piston assembly. Look at the included pic and see how your piston compares. There is one on E bay listed by Bunns 1. I have dealt with this man and he is very honest. I don't know if he would be able to ship but he has shipped other small parts to me.

U4K7rOK.jpg


Darryl
 
You might try a listing in the EE and try to buy one for parts but seriously these vanished back the 60's when the 1100 came out. Parts were hard to find even back then
Even die hard vintage remington shotgun guys like me never kept one of those
They were just not on anyone's keep list (other than maybe the mad trapper :) )
I hope you didnot pay more than $150 for it
Cheers
 
The 878 was a good shotgun. It was produced at the same time the Sportsman58 was. The good old 1100 put an end to both models. The 878 allowed using varying loads without having to "adjust" the system like the Sportsman 58 did. If the piston is the issue and you can find one to replace the bad one the gun will last a long time and give good service. Sportsman 58 pistons are not interchangeable with the 878.

Darryl
 
madtrapper143 said:
The 878 was a good shotgun. It was produced at the same time the Sportsman58 was. The good old 1100 put an end to both models. The 878 allowed using varying loads without having to "adjust" the system like the Sportsman 58 did. If the piston is the issue and you can find one to replace the bad one the gun will last a long time and give good service. Sportsman 58 pistons are not interchangeable with the 878.

Darryl
Click to expand...

It could not have been that good or there would still be a few around. I remember very few of them even back in the day
1148 then 1100 for most guys
The 58 was a good shotgun the 878 was a flop IMO and seem to remember them being a real joy to clean and the old 2 3/4 mags would kill a 878
 
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madtrapper143 said:
Well I guess it wasn't so good. The one my friend had gave him good service.

Darryl
Click to expand...

I'm sorry. Don't base it on my comments. If you know of one being used that is more than I can remember right now
Sure cannot lay my hands on one which is rare for me and a vintage remington shotgun
Cheers

Seems even remington was not crazy about it

In 1959, Remington introduced its second gas-operated shotgun called the Model 878 Automaster. It was much like the Sportsman 58 except its self-compensating gas piston allowed the use of both light and heavy loads without making any mechanical adjustment.

The Sportsman 58 and Model 878 were designed by a team headed by L.R. Crittendon and, while many hunters and clay target shooters loved the two guns, Remington management acknowledged the fact that both fell short of perfection. For close to three years a young engineer by the name of Wayne Leek and his team consisting of Clark Workman, James Martin, R.P. Kelly and Charles Morse devoted a big part of their time to making improvements to the Model 878. They eventually came up with a shotgun that would go on to become second only in popularity to the Model 870 pump. When introducing it to members of Remington’s advertising agency in December 1962, Leek proudly stated “Gentlemen, this is the new Model 1100, and it’s going to revolutionize shotgun shooting.” And indeed it did.
 
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Thanks for all the advice guys.

I did pick it up for a good price and it is in relatively good condition. With the engraving on the side of the receiver

Tried to buy the piston from Buns1 but he won't ship to Canada, unfortunately

But i will continue to try and locate parts

Thanks
 
My friend that uses one has never cleaned it. He is hard on guns that way. It has had a steady diet of hi brass #4's and it never stopped. I do remember that it had no bolt close button/switch (by design) I remember him pushing the follower forward to close it.

Darryl
 
An interesting note the 878 barrel will fit on the 870 receiver .a buddy had a rifle sighted 878 barrel that he had the ports filled for permanent use for a slug gun .
 
The 58 and 878 looked similar and many parts were interchangeable but not the gas piston, unfortunately. They apparently had a design life of around 10,000 rounds but when the 58 became popular with skeet shooters like Barney Hartmen they found the receivers would crack behind the ejection port and other parts would fail so they were a challenge to keep operational and many skeet shooters hoarded parts or spare guns. The other downside was the piston had to be cleaned regularly or the gun would not function reliably very long. I knew a skeet shooter who claimed he rinsed out his receiver at the gas pump when filling his truck on the way home from the gun club....a bit extreme but it worked for him! By comparison, the design life of the 1100 was 100,000 rounds I was told by Remington. Contact the Remington warranty service for a source of old parts: sorry but I cannot provide any better suggestion.
 
That is how you close the bolt on this model as well, push up on the follower .. I really enjoyed shooting it just hope I can find that piston.
And yes it seemed to cycle the heavier loads better. 00 buck cycled awesome. I had some handloads #2 shot 1 1/4 loaded with some blue dot. they cycled awesome.. #7 1/2 gun club did not cycle. perhaps because it was so dirty!
 
Dave if you could post a picture of the piston you have to see the damage it would be appreciated. Most times when these type of pistons fail it is the stud of the action bars pulling through the hole on the piston.

Darryl
 
Hey Madtrapper143,

Thanks for the interest in my situation, very much appreciated!

I did snap some pics, so there looks to be some obvious cast missing from the outside of the piston assembly, but the piece that dropped out is smaller in dia.
i tried to take a pic of the inside of the piston but you cant really see. but from what i see its from the inside retaining the spring.

IMG_1445.jpg

IMG_1446.jpg

I extremely enjoyed shooting this gun. this being the first semi auto 12 i've owned.

But think after this project gets fixed. It should be rarely used. So that being thrown out there.

What is the best bang for my buck getting into a semi auto I can use regularly? the 1100 ...

I would be in the market of spending around 1500 - 2000 on a gun

Thank you all
 

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I notice TradeEx is selling a stripped 878 receiver. Maybe they broke the gun for parts. Might be worth asking them.
 
Thanks for the pictures. That is a very strange place for a break. I have no idea how that could happen unless it was dropped maybe. Lots of good auto loaders out there. If you liked how the 878 handled then an 1100 would suit you fine and not cost a lot. I found a lot of the newer "B" guns felt big in my hands and no where near the nice lively feel the 1100 has. A real good condition 1100 would only be about 500.00 to 600.00 bucks and leave a lot of coin in your budget for shells to practice. Of course it is always nice to buy a brand new gun. Good luck with your search. Oh by the way when you get the 878 fixed use it and enjoy it a lot. That's what it was made for. The issue with yours looks like shear abuse, not average use from my point of view.

Darryl
 
Rather than an 1100, I suggest an 11-87 because it will handle a wider range of loads, including 3" whereas the 1100 - 3" version is unreliable with light target loads. I have owned several of both models. Currently, I find the Win SX3 in 3" version very comfortable and reliable. A Grand will buy any of these with $$ left over for ammo.
 
Thank you everyone for the imput.

Great thanks to BUNNS -1 eBay part distributor. I managed to get him to ship a piston assembly. After hounding him I managed to “buy some other items” that would ship to our motherland.. can’t be happier that I sources the part.


I do my own relaods, what is going to cause/prevent this from happening again

I have read some comments online (not CGN) that say the 878 will die from heavy loads...

That’s all I shoot. # 2 -4 ... 00 buck or slugs. Moastly loaded with blue dot
 
Dave1987 said:
Thank you everyone for the imput.

Great thanks to BUNNS -1 eBay part distributor. I managed to get him to ship a piston assembly. After hounding him I managed to “buy some other items” that would ship to our motherland.. can’t be happier that I sources the part.


I do my own relaods, what is going to cause/prevent this from happening again

I have read some comments online (not CGN) that say the 878 will die from heavy loads...

That’s all I shoot. # 2 -4 ... 00 buck or slugs. Moastly loaded with blue dot
Click to expand...

Those comments are real. Not a gun for what you mention and blue dot
 
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