Rem 1187 will not cycle shells help

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PowerJoker6.0

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i have an 1187 that is about 18 years old, it was one of the first guns to come out with the camo pattern painted on it. my dad used it for turkey hunting for years but about 5 years ago it started having an ejection problem and he shelved it and bought a browning gold series. im getting into turkey hunting now myself and he gave the gun to me and im trying to figure out whats wrong with it, my guess is it just needs a new buffer spring in the stock, the only problem is, the screw to remove the stock is stripped and i cant get it out. do i break/cut the stock off and get that screw out? what parts should be replaced to make the gun cycle shells reliably again? sometimes the shells ejected will have a dent in the case? could this be of any help diagnosing the problem? should i attempt this myself or send it to a smith?
 
First, has it been really cleaned, especially around the gas ports? Is the o-ring damaged? Is this one set up for hot magnum loads and you're trying to shoot light loads in it?

Try those first before breaking a bolt to get the stock off - it might something as simple as a clogged gas port
 
its been very well taken care of its whole life, never abused or shot in the rain and cleaned every season. i can physically feel the spring in the stock is weaker than my other 1187, idk if it makes any difference though. thats why i thought it was the spring. the gun has shot nothing but 3" magnums for the most of its life
 
Can you not use a long extension and a socket to remove the stock bolt? Mine had a hex head srew with a slot in it. I always used a socket to get it off. Good luck!
 
ok an update, i got the stock off and got the whole thing dissassembled. it was a real B*tch getting the stock bolt off and i stripped the first few threads on the spring tube in the stock, am i sol or is it possible to re-thread the tube?
 
What barrel length? If it is shorter than 26" and designed as a turkey gun it is not meant to shoot light loads and will not cycle them unless you modify the barrel's gas ports.

All Remington 11-87's with barrels shorter than 26" will only cycle 3" magnums and the heaviest magnum 2 3/4" loads.
 
the gun always shot fine until this, i think what happened was the action spring in the stock needed to be replaced, the stock bolt got rusted and seized, and now i messed up the threads on the spring tube. i hope i can re-thread that tube and get a parts kit to get this old thing back up and running.
 
it was rusted and seized, and the nut broke in half i had to cut the stock off and pull the nut off with a pair of channel locks. somehow it got stripped. so somehow i need to either re-thread the tube or cut and weld a new tube on...? idk i am going to take it to a smith to have the tube fixed
 
UPDATE: took the gun to gunworks in verona ny, they cut the action spring tube down and re-threaded it. cost $70.
 
1187

Had my 1187 since they came out. Premier, light contour, in 1990. Not for sure?But probably close to 2G rounds. Some what high mantinance! Got to keep them clean!!!!! Replaced all the gas seals at least once, the O rings,, can't say how many times!!!!!!!!! VERY GOOD GUN<Not a gun, who does like to clean!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
yes they are excellent shotguns i have 2 now and they are both from probably the early 90's and both still function well, the only reason i couldnt get into this one to fix the bad spring was that my father probably let it rsust
 
First, has it been really cleaned, especially around the gas ports? Is the o-ring damaged? Is this one set up for hot magnum loads and you're trying to shoot light loads in it?

Try those first before breaking a bolt to get the stock off - it might something as simple as a clogged gas port
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WD40 has been known to cause cycling troubles. 1100's are pretty sensitive to gunk on the mag tube.
 
There is nothing wrong with WD-40. If you spray a bunch on and let it sit, yes it will form a gunk - it's a very light petroleum product. But if you wipe off the excess after spraying it won't hurt a thing. It was all I used for about 20 years on my 1100s, with zero problems. It is not the best lubricant, and I switched to RemOil long ago, but it is still a great protectorant. If you look at corrosion tests, the only thing I ever saw come close was G-66, the precursor to G-96.
 
avoid wd 40 at all costs kills primers.assemble the stock nuts and tube with antiseize compound
Click to expand...
While I do agree that antiseize would be better on parts that stay assembled for long periods of time. I completely disagree with the stay away from WD-40 at all costs because it kills primers. How? are you soaking them in it? Like Virginian, I used WD for many years before better things came along and never had a primer succumb to it. But then, I've never cleaned a loaded gun either. Could this be possibly another internet myth?
 
jmr40 said:
All Remington 11-87's with barrels shorter than 26" will only cycle 3" magnums and the heaviest magnum 2 3/4" loads.
Click to expand...

My 20" will cycle anything but the cheap "loss-leader" winchester shells from the big box stores.
 
for the record, the issue with this gun had nothing to do with the o-rings, they were changed every season. the issue ended up being the action spring in the stock losing its strength after 20 years of use.
 
I think it was more rust and or crud than age. My 48 year old, and 45 year old action springs are just fine. And so are a few other 'younger' ones. BTW, the 48 year old was a skeet gun for years, and has eaten far more than a handful of shells.
 
yeah probably when i got it apart it was very rusty. i think a key to maintaining these guns is to break it down and clean that tube out with a brush every year or 2
 
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