28-gauge and .410 Remington 11-48 Nirvana

[farscott]

I was able to purchase two 11-48s, both choked Skeet and having ventilated barrel ribs. One is a .410 and the other is 28-gauge. I may have paid too much as I could not find a value for the 28-gauge, but these are in wonderful shape. I bought them for $1300, and I am estimating these are at least 95% finish guns and appear to have seen very few rounds.

Any special maintenance needed? I am aware that the forends on these guns are prone to cracking. Neither of these are cracked. Is is worth having the forends glassed to prevent the cracking?

 

[Gordon]

They are indeed a wonderful score! $1300 for a matched brace is about right. Just a light oiling of a non congealing lube like Marvel Mysterey oil (which is an anti congellant) and a protective outer coat of a good gun oil. These guns use friction rings but other than position I am sure there is no wear, ditto the springs.

 

[788Ham]

You did very well on your buy, in fact, you probably "stoled" the 28 ga.!! Just joking on that comment, not many of those 28's were probably made. Any good non-congealing oil would be good, in fact, a very good gunsmith told me about using Gun Butter oil on my firearms. I did, and have used this oil on all of my arms, this stuff in fantastic! It takes just a little bit on metal to metal surfaces, like greased lightning on my .32 auto. Enjoy!

 

[farscott]

Are there any step-by-step takedown and assembly instructions? From my reading, I am assuming the friction piece on each gun is dry as the gun appear to not have been fired for several years, so the guns need to be lubed before use.

From Google, it appears that getting the trigger group back into the gun can be problematic due to the shell stops. Any tricks on this?

 

[NCsmitty]

I am aware that the forends on these guns are prone to cracking.

They are prone to cracking, and a low round count would likely be the reason that they are still intact. I have seen some with a thin fiberglass weave glued inside for strength. It would be difficult to match up the wood if they did crack. Sportsman 58's have the same problem.

I'm not sure, but the trigger group may be easier to install if you remove the barrel first.

These guns usually work best dry, if you use lube, wipe off the excess. Only lube if you are having FTE light target loads.

Wonderful acquisition by the way.



NCsmitty

 

[Gordon]

You don't lube the friction piece BTW and if you keep the end cap tight the forearm should not crack, especially on a 28 or .410. I never took down an 11-48. I have lots of 1100s and A-5s though...

 

[6x6pinz]

I am truly jealous. I have an 11-48 in 410 that I use for small bird hunting (dove, quail...) would love to have an 11-48 in 28. Currently I was only able to get a Franchi in 28 nice but just does not go with the 410.

Very nice acquisition

 

[Red Tornado]

I've got 11-48's in 12ga and 20ga, and I never had any problems getting the trigger group back in after cleaning. I don't remember if I put it in before or after the barrel, but probably after. Neither of mine has a cracked forearm either. Great looking guns and they're both worth considerably more than mine as there were few made in .410 and 28.

From the S/N list, looks like no more than 18K in 28Ga and not more than 25K in .410. Possibly less. http://www.remington.com/products/archived/shotguns/autoloading/model-11-48.aspx
RT

 

[farscott]

Yes, these do seem to be scarce models. So I want to be sure to take care of them for the next generation. I want to enjoy these while allowing others in the future to also do so.