870 Reliability Upgrades

What are you having reliability problems with? Every 870 I have ever been around has functioned flawlessly even with minimal cleaning.
 
I have the super mag and had problems with 3 1/2" shells being stuck in the chamber and the the action wont extract them out. I want it to have quality parts where it counts, so I know it wont fail me when I need it. Not only because of the 3 1/2" shells getting stuck, but for peace of mind.
 
Chamber needs to be polished a bit. Something in there is holding onto the shell. Are the shells older? I had some older, cheap shells stick when the brass base swelled.
 
Check your chamber for smoothness. Should be mirror smooth/slick.
If not a little 4/0 steel wool wrapped around a bore brush or bore mop, WELL lubricated with motor oil, spun slowly with a cordless drill and checked often until smooth and shiny when dry may well make that problem "go away".
I had a shotgun that ran fine for years then began, all of a sudden, to have problems extracting the spent casing. Searching for the problem revealed some light rust in the chamber. Polishing as directed above cured the problem. A little extra care has prevented the problem from returning. That happened in I think it was.... 1975.
 
I tried the 10 ga bore brush high speed on the drill and then took a oily rag and squeezed it in the chamber and ran it on high. Dont know how well it worked yet. To be honest, I dont think it will help.
 
Sometimes 870 ejection problems are caused by the shooter. Completion of the ejection process is very important. Make sure you are doing your part before looking for problems with the gun.

After a little practice pumping the shotgun properly, my buddies ejection problems went away.

I have owned at least a half dozen 870's. 12 ga and 20's. I have never had a problem at all if the gun was even halfway clean.
 
It EJECTS but wont EXTRACT, with the 3 1/2" i was shooting. I can make a full pump cycle and the extractor cant get a hold on the rim of the brass strong enough to pull it out.
 
If this is an Express model some of them had egg shaped chambers that would cause this trouble. Many others in the Express line have really rough chambers (along with rough everything else) that cause this sort of trouble also. The chamber is the first place to look for your troubles. Another ideal though you didn't say if you have tried anything else, but another brand of shell may perform better than whatever is sticking on you currently. Wingmaster 870's are nearly bulletproof - Express models not so much. I’ve shot Lord only knows how many thousand rounds through Wingmaster and/or Police 870’s and can only remember one 870P that had an issue. Conversely I have personally owned three Express models and every single one of them had some sort of issue.
 
I agree with this. I won an 870 express at a local gun club, and I had extraction problems right out of the gate. Since it was new, I called Remington and got them to send a call tag and sent it in. They bored out the barrel a bit and since then it has run flawlessly.
 
The "poorman's method" to EFFECTIVELY polish your chamber...

Start with a fired 3.5" shell

Drill out the primer

Drop a 2" long small dia bolt through the hole from the inside of the hull (bolt sticking out of the base of the shell)

Tighten a nut onto the bolt

Close the crimp of the hull

EVENLY wrap the hull in masking tape 2-3 layers thick (wrap the layers side by side, not overlapping, i.e. only spool it on perpendicularly, don't work up and down the length, add new wraps to get length)

If desired, coat the tape in polishing compound or jewelers rouge

Lock the bolt into an electric drill

Remove your barrel

Spin the hull in the chamber for a few minutes in the OPPOSITE rotation of how it's wrapped on the hull (otherwise it'll peel and roll up on you), working in and out of the chamber slightly.

That should help extraction.

If you feel that your chamber is "egg shaped", then you can try a new barrel, or try reaming your chamber by hand
 
Originally Posted By: EasternPredHunterI tried the 10 ga bore brush high speed on the drill and then took a oily rag and squeezed it in the chamber and ran it on high. Dont know how well it worked yet. To be honest, I dont think it will help.

You're right. This will not help. If this had any effect, it most likely made your chamber ROUGHER by doing this. A bore brush is a relatively high abrasive, and an oily rag is NOT a polishing mop.

Read my above recommendation for a "poorman's polish method", and try that.

Have you tried other brands of ammunition? One example: I have a .410 that will fail to extract (bolt action, gets a VERY sticky bolt, luckily its extractor claw is incredibly strong) with Federal rounds EVERY TIME, but it does NOT have any issue with extracting any other brand of ammo I have tried.
 
I polish the chambers of my Cowboy Action side by side doubles using a coat hanger holder for a GREEN Scotch-Brite pad and a variable speed 1/4 drill.Haven't used lube as low speed and moving back and forth works.

In CAS you can have extractors but not ejectors on side by sides..with polished chambers, I open the action, snap the shotgun smartly to the rear[still pointed down range of course] and the empty hulls FLY OUT! Faster than reaching in and pulling out the extracted hulls.

Never had an extraction/ejection problem on a shotgun but would not hesitate to polish any shotgun chamber using this method.
 
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