refinish my remington 870 express

[justin22885]

i want to refinish my 870 express shotgun.. although i do like the way the finish looks, it seems to be rather high maintenance and prone to corrosion.. especially in the small nooks and crannies such as the serrations on the vent rib so im seriously thinking about refinishing it

something that concerns me though is whats underneath the ejector and magazine block pieces.. remington made it so difficult to get these components out that it would be hard to apply and finish on the inside without the headache of removing them but im willing to do it to do a COMPLETE refinish on this shotgun either to something more durable like duracoat, cerakote, parkerizing.. or to something more aesthetic like a slow rust blue

any suggestions as to how i should refinish this thing?

 

[bodam]

I airbrushed Durocoat on my entire 870. Holding up well, it was a mess before.

 

[justin22885]

so then im not the only one having issues with the 870 being rust prone?.. what do you do about the inside of the receiver? seems logical that if the outside could rust so easily, so could the inside, kind of makes me paranoid about the surfaces under the ejector and shell latches that you cant get to

 

[dfariswheel]

If the inside is given normal maintenance and a coat of good lube it usually won't rust.

The outside rusts due to handling and weather removing any lubricant.
You can keep the outside rust free too if you just make sure to reapply some good rust resisting lube after use or handling.

 

[bodam]

I sprayed the inside too. But to be honest, I need to clean it up a bit. It's too dry now and doesn't feed properly.

 

[rcmodel]

<<< What he said.

Clean and lube the inside of the receiver and it will never rust inside.

Your outside rust is being caused by operator error.

Not wiping salty fingerprints off it after handing, rode hard, and put away dry.

Buy a RIG-RAG and wipe it down every time you get done using or handling it, and there will be no more rust issues.

http://www.brownells.com/gun-cleani...ag-universal-grease-applicator-prod31843.aspx

And lose the dang abrasive scouring pad in the trash can while you still have any visible finish left!!!!!

 

[Taurus 617 CCW]

I have several guns done in Cerakote and I can not speak highly enough of its corrosion resistance. Excellent product but not for the DIY person at home to apply.

 

[justin22885]

i left it in my closet for about a month and it got some rust on the inside, in some places i cant even touch because they are so hard to access like inside the cutouts for the bars on the slide, not fingerprints and i did oil it regularly, just not soaking wet... and it seems im not the only one with an 870 express that is finding them incredibly prone to corrosion either

 

[justin22885]

anyway if im not mistaken this looks like a cheap hot bluing on a blasted surface... kind of like parerizing but a cheapened version of it.. cant understand the reasoning behnd this.. too cheap for parkerizing? seems like if i was going to keep it blued it would look a hell of a lot nicer if i polished the surfaces and applies a slow rust blue and have an even better finish than the 870 wingmaster

hmm.. im wondering if it would be worth getting the tools to remove the ejector and shell latches to do a COMPLETE refinish of all surfaces to either duracoat or slow rust bluing

 

[LeonCarr]

I have had two 870s parkerized without removing the ejectors and they both run like a champ with no issues whatsoever.

IME removing and replacing the ejector on an 870 has to be done exactly right. I would not remove it to duracoat it.

I have owned multiple 870s, both Wingmaster and Express, and I have never had any rust problems. A silicone cloth rub down after handling and a thorough cleaning (Removing stock and forend) after doing stuff like duck hunting in the salt marshes and mine have been rust free.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

 

[bodam]

I'm a do it yourselfer and I apply cerakote at home.

Just follow directions, take your time, prep properly and you can do it yourself.

 

[justin22885]

arent the ejectors and shell latches easily removed on mossbergs? kind of making me jealous right now if they are

 

[justin22885]

anyway, from what i could tell this is in fact some kind of matte blue finish.. not parkerized

the way i see it, i dont like the finish at all, if i want a blued surface then by all means im going to strip the crap thats on there now, polish the metal, and slow rust blue it so i have a blued surface that actually looks quality

the other way i see it is if i wanted a more durable, rust resistant finish, then i dont want bluing at all, not slow rust, not matte.. i've noticed cerakote to be much more durable than duracoat, and i dont have much of an opinion on parkerizing but if im going for durable than id rather cerakote it

so slow rust bluing for aesthetics, cerakoting for durability, and maybe parkerizing if theres a good reason to but that doesnt seem to be as durable as cerakote or look as good as a rust blue

 

[BBBBill]

Parkerizing makes a fantastic base for Cerakote.

 

[justin22885]

well, i probably wont cerakote or duracoat the inside of the receiver.. ever.. i will probably refinish it somehow later on when i have another excuse to completely strip it down, like a broken ejector or shell latch.. until then i will probably just refinish the exterior surfaces and focus on finding a better, more reliable way of keeping it clean and maintained on the inside

its very difficult to lubricate some of the interior surfaces of the shotgun.. can anyone recommend an easier way to prevent rust on the inside while i likely duracoat or cerakote the exterior?.. would an aerosol lubricant work better for getting into some of the harder to reach places?.. and would this seep into the spaces behind the shell latches and ejector?

 

[Inebriated]

Try Frog Lube.

It's worked very well for me on Express finishes, and is easy to get everywhere... heat the metal, brush the paste on, let it dry, then wipe the excess. Helps carbon wipe right off, and lasts for a long time.

 

[justin22885]

well im not going to keep the original finish anyway regardless.. if im going to have a blued receiver then im going to have a gorgeous blued receiver (polished slow rust blued).. or if im going to go a matte finish then im going to have something thats at least durable and corrosion resistant like cerakote.. so one way or another im going to refinish this thing

but ive heard of frog lube before.. seem to hear some good things about it, they seem to sell a variety of products.. i am looking to try out a new liquid lubricant though.. may give them a try and see how well that protects

 

[Inebriated]

The paste will protect better than the liquid. From my experience using it, water just beads off the metal like a waxed car. With the liquid, it can get gummy. Might protect fine, but I just don't care for it as a protectant. I do clean with the liquid though, and it works well for cleaning the bore and whatnot. But I'm really not BSing you when I say that, with the paste, carbon wipes off like nothing else I've used.

Not trying to shove Frog Lube on you, but I have the same shotguns with the same finish, and they are no stranger being rained on, dropped in the dew in the morning, being in a humid environment (NC summers), etc. It just works well for me on Expresses, as well as my Wingmaster.

But if you are refinishing, then there's really no comparison, parkerizing or Cerakote are the way to go IMO.

 

[justin22885]

id definitely cerakote over parkerizing though.. i find parkerizing to be REALLY ugly to be honest.. comparing parkerizing to cerakote, if im not mistaken both of these add more material on top of the metal?.. which would be better for the inside of the receiver?.. id consider parkerizing the whole thing and then cerakoting the exterior surfaces if the parkerizing yielded a thinner coating on top of the metal.. i want to make sure the interior components still fit and operate together properly after the treatment

my primary concern though is refinishing the little areas that really hard to get to, like the grooves the bars on the slide ride in or under the shell latches.. how should these areas be refinished so not to have to worry about anything forming underneath them later?

 

[nulook45]

I would think a coat of paste wax on the entire shotgun would be fine .My 870 was cleaned and put away a month ago i just checked it still doin fine in the closet . No rust issues and the wood looks great Johnsons paste wax 60 years and going strong .

 

[justin22885]

does the wax rub off easy or does it tend to stay on during normal use?.. and right now im strongly leaning towards a parkerizing job topped with cerakote over rust bluing.. i think id rather have durability than aesthetics

anyway, does the ejector and shell latches need to come off for a parkerizing job?

 

[justin22885]

hmm.. seems the shell latches dont HAVE to be staked on, its just to make reassembly easier, but the mossberg uses similar shell latches and they arent staked, doesnt seem very hard to get them back in for reassembly... so i guess i wouldnt even stake them back in if i removed them.. theyd be easier to replace and remove for maintenance

as for the ejector rivets, it doesnt look like its all that difficult to re-rivet.. i've riveted trunnions in the AK and those required rounded rivet heads in doing so and a special tool, 870 rivets look like they have a flat head on each side and is squashed on the inside using a flat punch and a hammer.. so that wouldnt be too bad to remove and re-rivet after a refinish.. but would it be possible to just thread the rivet hole and install with a screw like on the mossbergs for easier disassembly for possible future replacements or maintenance?

 

[Drail]

The best protective finish I have found over the years for an 870 is Parkerizing. Nothing else even comes close if you keep the gun oiled. There is no reason to put Cerakote on top of the Park.

 

[justin22885]

unless i wanted a different color than parkerizing offers, or something more durable on its exterior.. but still, part of me still wants to slow rust blue it and put on figured walnut furniture.. though i dont want to make a safe queen out of it i think ill stick to manganese parkerizing (the darker gray / black stuff) with maybe a cerakote exterior.. i could parkerize it first and cerakote it later on if i still feel like it since parkerizing will probably be easier than cerakoting it

any comments on my idea of leaving the shell latches unstaked for easier future repair and maintenance (like on a mossberg 500)?

 

[LeonCarr]

IME the ejector and shell latches do not need to come off to be reparked. As mentioned earlier I have two 870s that were reparked without ejector or shell latches removed and they run like tops.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr