old school Remington autoloaders

[USAF_Vet]

Well, the 11-48 price was not the $200 I thought. It is marked $280. Not horrible, and still in the running. The Sportsman 48 has been moved to the top of the list. I might be chopping it down to size, as more of a range toy and yard gun that can pull some home defense as well. I don't trust chopping down a gas operated recoil system, especially one that isn't adjustable. Now, before anyone says not to chop down a great old Remington, its only an option, and I'll check for spare barrel availability beforehand. The Sportsman 48 isn't exactly a rare diamond, they were made for 20 years. Its not exactly a .45 acp Luger.
Another reason I'm leaning toward a recoil operated system is my experiences with a Remington 1100. Great gun, but have had gas ring issues, short strokes, misfeeds, etc. Which has kinda put me off older gas operated systems.
School me on the pros and cons between the recoil operated 48, an the gas operated 878.

 

[Virginian]

I have a '63 1100 I bought new, have 4 others, have had 12 all told, and every single one has been dead reliable. If you had one that wasn't, something was wrong. They may not run as clean as some of the newer designs, but they run every bit as well.

 

[USAF_Vet]

Not sure what year it is, but the 1100 is my step dads. Sadly he does not take great care of his guns. It could very well be that it hasn't been cleaned in a few decades. It probably just needs a good cleaning and some new o rings.

 

[Virginian]

You are probably dead right in your assessment. The old "dirty action spring tube in the buttstock" is a very popular issue when one doesn't work right.

 

[USAF_Vet]

Too honest for my own good

So I swung by the LGS after I got off work. Much to my chagrin, the Sportsman 48 for $200 was gone. Checking through the rack of other used semi auto shotguns, I see something mind blowing. A 12 gauge 1100, 28" barrel, modified choke, near perfect bluing, and only a few nicks and a small dent in the wood. Price tag: $229.95. I call the sales guy over and had him unlock it. Shouldered great, looked fantastic. But I know there has to be something wrong with it to get that price. So, I ask him. Come to find out, the clerk who wrote up the tag made a mistake, should have read $429.95.

Could I have pressed the issue? Probably. The price in the computer was accurate. I certainly wouldn't have made any friends had I insisted on the tag price. I do enough business with this LGS to not want to screw them. The clerk thanked me, and gave me a free hat for pointing out their mistake.

On to the other auto loaders. They still had a model 11 and an 878. Checked them both over, and preferred the Model 11. The 878, to me, didn't balance well. It locked up tight as a bank vault, but so did the Model 11. So, long story short, I've got the model 11 on hold for me.

The finish is rough, the fore end has a small piece of wood missing, about the size of a dime. Needs some TLC, but it is a shooter, not a show piece. ETA2: Apparently, by serial #, this gun was manufactured in 1910.

Now... part of me REALLY wants to get out the old hack saw and recreate a Bonnie and Clyde style Whippet.





ETA: Ok, surfing for extra stock sets and barrels in case I do want a Whippet, and came across one with a mag tube extension. Not sure if it is a custom thing or not, but it made the M11 7+1 capacity.


This is with an 18" barrel.

 

[Russian Hammer]

I know 870 extensions will fit the 1148 so they might also fit the model 11

 

[Fred Fuller]

Remington mag extensions will fit Model 11s too, they are still Remingtons. Browning extensions have different threads.

 

[rodinal220]

Add a 1/4" spacer to take up the gap when adding the mag extension. M11 and 11-48s are great guns and "can" be had on the cheap.

 

[rromeo]

Do you know if the Remington extension will fit a Savage 720?

 

[Fred Fuller]

I don't know what the receiver cap thread pattern is on the Savage - perhaps someone else here does.