Polishing Out the Bore of Remington 870 Express Barrel?

[aeromarine144]

I have several Remington 870 and 1100s and recently picked up a little 20 gauge LW Express with a youth stock and 21 inch Remchoke barrel that is handy, compact, a lot of fun to shoot. However, while it's obvious the Express model has a much rougher finish all around than the standard Wingmasters and 870s it has also become apparent to me that the same holds true for the inside of the barrel. Because it is quite rough inside the barrel tends to hold on the the lead, powder and plastic wad residues very tenaciously making it difficult to clean the barrel quickly and thoroughly. Has anyone else noticed this problem, too? I'm wondering how feasible it might be to polish out the bore using a swab on a clearning rod plus fine valve grinding compound/polish and an electric drill. Has anyone else attempted this on an 870 barrel? If so, how did you make out? Are there any tricks I should know about? Please advise. Thanks!

 

[Virginian]

I have done it, with basically the tools you are talking about, but it wasn't on an 870. It was an 1100 extra barrel a guy left in the garage and the inside got rusty as all get out for some reason. Anyway, I used the medium grit valve grinding compound and a little Kroil, with some homemade patches wrapped around an old bore brush for a tight fit - a regular swab wouldn't be tight enough I wouldn't think, and within 30 to 40 minutes it was shining like a mirror again from end to end. Changed patches a few times. Used a brake wheel cylinder hone on the chamber - I have done that on several chambers - with excellent results. If you ever try that, do not let those little stones come out the back end of the chamber more that a tiny bit !
I have heard of rough chambers on Expresses, but yours is the first barrel I have heard complaints about.

 

[BADUNAME37]

I have heard of rough chambers on Expresses, but yours is the first barrel I have heard complaints about.

I bet most of them are the same, it's just that most people don't seem to notice the roughness.

 

[Snarlingiron]

I know that the finish makes a great deal of difference. I have a couple of older Berettas, a Belgian made A5 and several other older shotguns. The finish on the inside of the barrels is mirror like, and I rarely have to do more that pass a Tico tool through them to restore them to that mirror like appearance.

The Beretta A390 is the one I shoot most, and I only scrub out the bore with solvent about every 500 or so rounds.

 

[Deadheadted37]

Just shoot it and it will smooth out, plus it more fun.

 

[aeromarine144]

Thanks for the comments! Actually, I'm a little skeptical, Deadheadted37, that just shooting the gun will smooth out the bore given barrel steel is much harder than plastic wads and lead shot in my opinion. But you're right it would be a more fun way to do it. Anway, I when I find some free time I'll try polishing the barrel out with lapping compound. When done I'll let you know how I made out! Cheers!!

 

[Sir Aardvark]

I tried polishing a reamed-out lengthened chamber with a bore brush wrapped with OOOO steel wool coated with lapping compound chucked into a drill and it didn't really do anything - it just spun around and made a big mess.

I then followed the directions that came with the reamer and used a cut-off piece of new Green Scotchbrite Pad wrapped around a bore brush chucked into a drill and it polished it up in just a few seconds! I used Breakfree CLP as a lube.

 

[rcmodel]

using a swab on a clearning rod plus fine valve grinding compound/polish and an electric drill.

That won't work!

The "swab" will just conform to the rings left from the reamer and will polish the bottoms of the rings just as much as the tops of the rings.
Leaving the rings!

The best way to do it and get rid of the reamer marks is with a brake cylinder hone. The flat stones will remove the tops of the rings but not cut the bottoms deeper at the same time.

http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=7930&title=SHOTGUN BARREL HONE

http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=987&title=BARREL HONE EXTENSION SHAFT

You can follow that up with a Flex-Hone to really put a final polish on it.
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/st...647&title=SHOTGUN BARREL POLISHING FLEX HONE~

For way less money, I have had reasonable success using a slotted dowel rod in a drill with "flaps" of progressively finer black Wet or Dry Emory paper & cutting oil.

Make the slot & "flaps" about 1 1/2" - 2" long and they will stay on top of the rings and smooth things up.

rc

 

[aeromarine144]

Good point about a swab potentially just cutting deeper without smoothing out the ridges and grooves. Using the abrasive sheets may provide enough "stiffness" to attack the ridges first. I also really like your suggestion about using a slotted dowel for the barrel and the brake cylinder hones for the chamber. I think I'll give that a try working up to higher grit numbers then finishing with crocus cloth and some Flitz or Brasso. At the very least I'll wind up with a really clean barrel! Thanks again for the suggestions!

 

[rodregier]

+1 for carbide paper, fine oil and a split dowel for polishing the chamber. Probably do a fine job on the barrel too.