picked this up the other day.....how did i do?

so i picked up this Mossberg 500 at a gun show for $120, it has a 'C-lect' choke on it, which from what i can tell dates it to 1970-1977. its mechanically perfect, but its been heavily used, which is what i like, a gun thats been used means its a gun that can be used.

i plan on using it mostly for informal trap/skeet, as well as general plinking

• the bluing is ~75-80% and i am in the process of touching it up to bring it back to near 100%
  
• i am planning on picking up some aluminum black to fix the scratches on the receiver.
  
• the wood is in great shape with the exception of 'kill' marks carved into the back of the stock, i am planning on filling and staining them to match the rest of the stock as best as possible.
  

.....so, for $120, how did i do? also, any additional information on either the gun, or restoration tips would be appreciated.

 

Take a look at the DuraCoat stuff that Brownells carries. Could cover all the scratches and wear marks on the reciever.

As for the stock, I would give it the car wax treatment, clearcoat polish then the wax. You might be surprised on how it will "come up".

And by the way for $120 you did well.

 

You did well. Enjoy....

 

Good buy on a very reliable shotgun that should last many years. Shoot it often and have fun.

 

Uh.. you did horrible.

You need to get rid of it and sell to me!


Very nice pickup and congrats.

 

You'll need to get that receiver evenly scuffed up, with no deep scratches for duracoat to come out right. We use a lot of it in the shop, and surface imperfections will definitely show

 

The barrel with the choke alone is worth what you paid for the gun.

 

That`s real nice for 120 buck, good find..............

 

Congratulations on a great find. I was about to use Brownels Aluma Hyde on a S&W snubby that I thought was just a work horse. My Gunsmith tells me it is more valuable than I first thought and should be professionally restored. Look into Aluma Hyde as it is thick and relatively easy to apply. To be honest that is a quote from their web page as I have not used it yet. Just might work for you though. Good Luck.

 

still plenty of mileage left on that one...

 

Done good...

I am a proponent of adjustable chokes...

 

I would say you have done well, if I look at the local market the Barrel you have on its own is worth that you paid.
A functional Barrel on a working receiver is easily worth twice what you paid for the gun regardless of the condition of the finish.

 

I always enjoy it when members here get a great deal! Well done!

 

thanks everyone.

i got around to getting it touched up a tad, figured youd all like to see


its amazing what a little cold blue and wood filler will do to a gun....













not the greatest job with the wood, but it looks a lot better than it did, its a shame the wood filler didnt accept stain too well, if im ever feeling up to it, i may just carve that section out and replace it with a new section of wood.



and i got that hideous nail polish off the front sight, it actually made it much easier to see.

 

I notice it's got dual action bars, newer than what I had. Mine was labeled "Revelation M310" and had a 2 3/4" chambered C-Lect 26" choke barrel. I bought a new vent rib 28" Mossberg accu-choke barrel for mine for 100 bucks off Numerich Arms. I'd traded for the gun when steel shot got mandated and wanted it to be steel compatible, which I wouldn't shoot steel through that funky adjustable choke. The new barrel was a 3" barrel and the action fed and ejected 3" stuff just fine to it. I also bought new wood for it cheap because the wood that was on it didn't match and, heck, the wood was only about 50 bucks front and rear. It was a good gun, well broke in, but I got the urge for something new about 10 years later and bought a new Mossberg 500 camo/synthetic for 200 bucks (had an FFL at the time) and sold the old Revelation for $100.

So, to answer you question, my old gun had scratches, too, and the wood didn't match. When I sold it, I got 20 bucks less for it than you just gave for yours. I think you got a good deal.

 

Well done!

 

You might want to try birchwood casey aluminum black on the receiver.

 

I had a Select Choke Mossy, bought new in the mid 80s. I thought it was a pain to use, but kinda neat. Nice gun, sir.

 

Not too bad.

 

UPDATE: Refinished just about everything!

i figured you guys would like to see an update.....

now to be honest with you, i HATED the "restoration" i did to it, so i redid it all.

i i ended up painting the receiver and mag tube with some super hard wearing epoxy enamel paint

i then stripped the wood and restained it with some real nice red mahogany stain (now i dont know what kind of wood they used, but getting it to take stain was incredibly difficult), i then hit the wood with 6-7 coats of polyeurothane....and i couldnt be happier with the results.


wood stripped, damn wood stripper ate through 3 layers of gloves and gave me a nice chemical burn.



stock and forearm drying nicely










All assembled and looking like a champ.

its not heirloom quality, but im in no rush to get rid of it now

not too shabby for a $100 gun show find.

 

Not bad at all!!

 

That is a great restoration job there! It is (for lack of a better word) a beautiful gun!

 

You did very well. Enjoy it. The Mossberg has a fine reputation of excellent reliability and if taken care of , will last for several generations.

 

Fantasic DIY refinish job. Any chance you could make me look that good?