Remington 1100 Chamber Reaming

[chas08]

I posted this thread in the gunsmithing section. But since not everyone reads that section on a regular basis I decided to post it here also. I know there a lot of 1100 enthusiasts in this section. Maybe one of you can help.

Remington offers a Steel Shot barrel that is chambered for 3 in. ammo and is supposed to work just fine on a standard 1100 reciever with steel shot only in the 3 in. length. My question is; Can you safely ream a standard 1100 barrel chamber to accomodate a fully open 3inch round? And will it eject? My reasoning for this is; I want to eliminate the possibility of, me or a hunting buddy, accidentaly loading a 3in. round into a 2 3/4 in. chamber. I primarily duck hunt with 2 3/4 hevi-shot but I prefer steel in the 3inch length. I would like to make the gun 3inch capable without spending another $250. Or do I just need to go ahead and buy a steel shot barrel with the 3inch chamber? Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[ArmedBear]

Not sure I'd do either.

How long is the ejection port on your 1100?

I can measure my 3" 1100 Magnum and see if it's the same. I've heard that 2 3/4" 1100 receivers aren't all that good about ejecting 3" rounds, but I have no actual evidence for that.

I'm not trying to spread rumors; I just think that I'd do some more research before spending $250 on a barrel, or having a barrel reamed.

Is your barrel steel-shot rated? (Good for your purposes) Is it chrome-lined? (Bad for what you want to do)

 

[chas08]

Greetings Armed Bear, thanks for the response. I havent taken possession yet. I just won the auction last week and its in route. It was made in 97/98 (according to the owner) and has a fixed modified choke with a 28" barrel. I owned a similar gun made in 71/72 that I shot a lot of steel through until I got the benelli bug and sold it. I'm still kicking myself for that one and the benelli is no longer in my stable. As for the chrome chamber or barrel, I doubt it has one. My old one didn't. I really don't plan on shooting a lot of 3" through it even if it can be done. I would just like to eliminate having to scrutinize every shell in my bag just because I changed guns.

 

[Virginian]

The only differences between a 3" 1100 and a 2-3/4" gun, are the barrel - 3" has one gas port, 2-3/4" has two - and the action sleeve - magnum action sleeve is heavier. The receivers are identical except for the rollmarking. I checked quite a few many years ago, wanting to do the same thing you want to do. The fly in the ointment is Remington does not sell the Magnum action sleeve.
My advice is to buy the 3" "steel" barrel, which is essentially the same as every other 3" 1100 barrel except it carries that "CYA" writing on the barrel. Better to have one gas port than two when bleeding off the gasses from heavy loads to operate the action. I bought the 3" "steel" barrel and shot everything made for 20 years, but I did keep a close eye on the recoil buffer, and replaced it once.
I think if you go putting 3" heavy loads thru an 1100 barrel with the two ports you are going to slam you and the receiver pretty hard, and that could lead to cracking. I finally got a magnum action sleeve for my old 1963 trooper, and then I bought a 1966 Magnum 1100 and restrict the old girl to clay targets.
With the 3" "Steel" Barrel you get RemChokes with the deal, and Remington does make a steel safe "Full" choke that works very well with Hevi-Shot, steel, lead, and bismuth, I can vouch for that.

 

[chas08]

Thanks for the input Virginian. So the steel shot barrel only has one gasport, like the old magnum barrels? I'm still a bit undecided about modifying the fixed choke barrel. I was basicly looking for a cheap way out. The lack of the heavier action sleeve is probably why Remington only recomends the use of steel and not lead in the 3 inch length. I wonder what's the lightest load a steel shot barrel will cycle? The Remchokes would be a plus too.

 

[ArmedBear]

Can't say what a steel shot barrel will cycle, but my old 3" Magnum barrel will cycle game load (1 1/8"
@ 1290) 2 3/4" just fine.

 

[Virginian]

I got the 3" steel barrel when they first came out, and it would not cycle some 1-3/8 ounce 3" steel shells. I called Remington and they advised me to open up the gas port to the next drill size, and gave me the number. I was a dealer back then, and I knew the right people to talk to. I do not remember what it was, or what I went to, or how it compared to a standard magnum barrel. It is now, very slightly larger than the gas port in my old 3" Magnum barrel now. Again, sorry, I can't remember the thousandths, but it was darned few. I have heard that Remington did increase the gas port size in that barrel, but I do not know that.
I suspect the gas port in my barrel was not a clean drilled hole to begin with, by what I got when I went to ream it out, but that is a SWAG. But, since then, the gun functioned flawlessly with everything from 1-1/4 ounce heavy lead field loads through 1-7/8 ounce lead goose loads. (what can I say, I had them, and I gradually used them up) I have shot Bismuth, Steel, Tungsten Iron, Tungsten Matrix, Hevi-Shot, Remington HD, Winchester Supreme heavy whatever, basically everything through it. Mostly 3". Before I got a Magnum Action sleeve, you could tell it was working on the buffer, and I changed it.
I cannot tell the difference in functioning between the 3" steel barrel and the standard 3" 1100 barrel now - both work down to 1-1/4 ounce loads. Oh yeah, I had the steel barrel shortened to 28" just this past year, because that is what I like best, and the one size they didn't make, and it is now on the 3" gun because of the choke tubes.

 

[chas08]

the gun functioned flawlessly with everything from 1-1/4 ounce heavy lead field loads through 1-7/8 ounce lead goose loads. (what can I say, I had them, and I gradually used them up)

Nothing to explain or apologize for my friend, we all did the same thing. It was probably a number drill size, they're small like that, and in between the fractionals. I love SWAG's, more good data is discovered with them than research.(LOL) Being a machinist in the power industry for 30 years always makes me look for the "cheap way out" when it comes to machine work. I'll probably just buy a Steel shot barrel unless someone who's opinion I value talks me out of it.

Can't say what a steel shot barrel will cycle, but my old 3" Magnum barrel will cycle game load (1 1/8"
@ 1290) 2 3/4" just fine

Thanks Virginian and Armed bear for the data, I can't Imagine needing to shoot a lighter load than AB's in this gun, for what I'm buying it for. It will serve as an untried benchmark. I will probably leave the fixed modified barrel alone and use it for Whitewings.

 

[Pete409]

My question is; Can you safely ream a standard 1100 barrel chamber to accomodate a fully open 3inch round?

If the 2 3/4" chambered barrel is of recent construction (say about the last 10 years or so), then it MAY already be able to handle a 3" shell. Whether it will eject or whether it's a good idea to shoot a large quantity of 3" shells is a different matter.

Think of it this way. Suppose you are a gun manufacturer in this "sue happy" society that we live in. Being a gun manufacturer, you certainly know that a 3" shell will chamber (and fire) in a 2 3/4" chamber even if the case won't open fully.

Also, knowing that people sometimes do stupid things (such as shooting 3" shells in 2 3/4" chambers), do you want to make that chamber length 2 3/4" and knowingly leave yourself open to lawsuits by dumb people, or would it be smarter to actually make the chamber 3" in length and label it as "2 3/4" if that is what you have designed the rest of the gun to function with?

If I'm the gun manufacturer, I'll make the chamber 3" in length and label it 2 3/4" if the rest of the gun (gas system, ejection port length, etc) is sized for 2 3/4" shells. That way, if some idiot shoots 3" shells in the gun, he won't blow himself up and then sue me. The gun may not cycle perfectly and it may wear out a whole lot sooner than if 2 3/4" shells were used, but at least it wouldn't blow up due to insufficient chamber length for the 3" shell to open.

This may or may not be the situation with your gun. I'm not responsible for any idiots who fire 3" shells in 2 3/4" chambered guns. Have your gun checked out by a competent gunsmith if you have any doubts as to the ACTUAL chamber length.

 

[Virginian]

Pete, I had similar thoughts, but I haven't found a 3" chamber yet in an 1100 labelled 2-3/4". Or an 870. And yes I did look. It's pretty easy to make a chamber gauge; it doesn't even need to be round. Old expired credit cards are perfect, and then it's easy to check stuff at guns shows or anywhere, and they won't scratch steel

 

[Pete409]

Virginian,

I just checked the chamber length of 5 different modern shotguns (including an 870 and an 1100) with a long, bent paper clip. With the paper clip clearly marked at the 3" length, and doing it as carefully as possible in order to detect where the chamber ends still did NOT reveal the chamber length to me.

All I could tell for sure was that when I got into the forcing cone, the surface of the metal was rougher.

In modern shotguns, at least the ones I checked today, there is no clear-cut end to the chamber. The chamber just slowly starts transitioning into the forcing cone. I suspect it would take a carefully calibrated bore/chamber gauge to find out exactly where the chamber ends and the taper starts.

Then too, we have the issue of forcing cone length. Again, modern shotguns made for the US market tend to have much longer forcing cones than those made 40+ years ago. The one piece plastic wads in modern shot shells eliminated the need for an abrupt end of the chamber and a short forcing cone to seal off the bore with fiber wads.

 

[ArmedBear]

I just checked the chamber length of 5 different modern shotguns (including an 870 and an 1100) with a long, bent paper clip. With the paper clip clearly marked at the 3" length, and doing it as carefully as possible in order to detect where the chamber ends still did NOT reveal the chamber length to me.

All I could tell for sure was that when I got into the forcing cone, the surface of the metal was rougher.

Ditto here, and that goes for a new gun or an old one (oldest one I tried it with was made in 1926).

I suspect it would take a carefully calibrated bore/chamber gauge to find out exactly where the chamber ends and the taper starts.

There is another option.

Melt something and pour it down the barrel with the chamber face plugged up. I understand sulfur works, if you want to deal with molten sulfur.

Let it cool, remove the material from the chamber (which has acted as a mold), then you can measure it with a caliper.

Or just take it to a gunsmith.

Some things are downright practical if, like a friend of mine, you acquire literal piles of old shotguns and restore the gems as a hobby. However, they're not practical to get set up for, if this is the only time you ever plan to do them.

 

[Virginian]

Take a credit card. I prefer expired but a valid one will probably work too. Cut a strip lengthwise with an X-acto knife exactly the width of the chamber diameter dimension. Ideally it will be a tight fit, you may even need to sand the edges a small amount. Cut the end off square. I slide that in, and when I get to the very beginning of the forcing cone, I know it. I also have a machined aluminum tube just the right diameter that I made, but that worries some dealers/owners. I had been carrying around an inside mike, and one of my machinists put me onto the idea. I am not looking for 0.005" reliability.
Bear, Brownell's sells Ferrosafe I believe it is called, that does exactly what you are talking about.

 

[chas08]

I think I'll just machine a piece of 7/8 brass bar stock to the diameter of the brass end on a 12ga shell about 4" long, face the end square to the diameter, and scribe a line with the tool tip at 2 3/4", 3" and 3 1/2 " That should work well as a chamber length gauge for all the different lengths.

 

[ArmedBear]

I think I'll just machine a piece of 7/8 brass bar stock to the diameter of the brass end on a 12ga shell about 4" long, face the end square to the diameter, and scribe a line with the tool tip at 2 3/4", 3" and 3 1/2 " That should work well as a chamber length gauge for all the different lengths.

Yes, with the caveat that not all chambers are exactly the same diameter. Remington chambers tend to be tight and to-spec, and can even jam on shells that aren't properly sized, whereas some others (Browning comes to mind) will fit damn near anything.

If anything, the gauge would work best on a Remington.

 

[chas08]

Remington chambers tend to be tight and to-spec, and can even jam on shells that aren't properly sized

Good thought, I'll be sure to use ammo that I know works in my other Remingtons to get my Mic. readings.....Thanks AB

 

[Pete409]

I think I'll just machine a piece of 7/8 brass bar stock to the diameter of the brass end on a 12ga shell about 4" long, face the end square to the diameter, and scribe a line with the tool tip at 2 3/4", 3" and 3 1/2 " That should work well as a chamber length gauge for all the different lengths.

The only problem with that idea is that shotgun shells are tapered. The base of an unfired 12 gauge Estate shell I have in front of me measures 0.805" in diameter while the diameter near the front end of the shell measures. 0.787"

I assume that the chambers are tapered too. Otherwise, the front end of the shell would split upon firing.

 

[Virginian]

I've got some federals that average about .783 down near the base, and .788 up at the top. Some Kent that are .788 all the way. Some Winchesters that are .786 down low, and .803 at the top. 12 Gauge chamber spec is tapered from about .800 to .812 to the best of my recollection. I do not have access to SAMMI specs and can't find my reference at the moment so someone else can check that.
Just get one of these !
http://www.shotguncombogauge.com/multiboregauge.html

 

[chas08]

Nice tool, that Boremaster. Too bad it's so pricy. It costs almost as much as the gun in question, and more than a 3in steel shot barrel. I'll Mic. the bore at different known depths with a telescoping gauge and see what kind of figure I come up with in "taper per foot" then I could machine my gauge at that taper.

 

[Virginian]

Brownells sells much cheaper go/no-go shotgun chamber gauges, but being a machinist does have it's advantages.

 

[chas08]

Remington 1100 steel shot barrel

I decided to just bite the bullet and buy a steel shot barrel for my newly aquired, new to me, LNIB Sportsman Auto 12. It arrived yesterday. Remington assured me through their help and support link that it was an 1100 with cheap wood and no engraving, through and through. And all spare parts, barrels, and accessories for the 1100 would interchange without issue. Now to address a few issues brought up in the original thread. The ejector lug is located 1/4 inch further back on the barrel flange on the steel shot barrel than the original barrel. So even if I were to have reamed the chamber longer it probably wouldn't have ejected the longer shell. The chamber on the original barrel measured 2 7/8 " long, so a 3" shell would not have had room to open all the way. And lastly, an unfired 3 1/2" shell made a, quick and easy, chamber length gauge. The Winchester Drylok shell I used measured just a hair over 3" closed. I just placed it in the chamber and measured the standoff with a machinist scale. Close enough for the girls I go with. This is best done with the barrel removed. Thanks for all the comments Virginian, Pete409, and Armed Bear. HTHR