Remington 870 problems with trigger assembly

[03Marine4Life]

I have a Remington 870 I bought about a year ago. It takes 2 3/4" and 3" shells. I have only shot it a few times, but when I do the pump won't pull back to eject the shell. Sometimes the pump will not pull back for days and won't be able to eject the shell. I had a new trigger assembly put in under warranty, but it still seems to be a little stiff. I am looking for some thoughts on what could be the problem or any other similar problems.

 

[Drail]

This is a known issue with 870s from the last 4 or 5 years. Standard solution is to polish the chamber to remove machining ridges left by the factory. They left some of them really rough. You can wrap steel wool around a dowel and run it in a drill if the chamber is not too bad. If you got a really rough one the best tool is a wheel cylinder brake hone from the auto parts store carefully applied with a hand drill (carefully). This "jam" generally happens with cheap discount steel base shells. High brass shells seem to be able to expand and shrink back just enough to let go. Steel doesn't. Check out AIP Tactical's website, he has a tutorial on how to fix this. Also look for a burr at the extractor cut at the rear of the chamber. They can snag a shell.

 

[miles1]

^^^ This!
AIP tacticals site is really a great site for tips/advice on how to break-in and clean a rem 870.The guy really knows his stuff.Plan on buying my next shotgun from him.

 

[rcmodel]

It has nothing to do with your trigger assembly.

It has all to do with Remington's quality control lately.
And cheap steel head shells in WallyWorld bulk packs.

There is another thread about the same thing 12 threads under yours.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=747846

rc

 

[cammogunner]

the only problem is remington those guys suck they cant evan make a decent gun anymore it is disgusting the only gun worth the money from remmington is the 700 imo

 

[oneounceload]

Try the Wingmaster instead of their promo price point gun

 

[Frostbite]

Try the Wingmaster instead of their promo price point gun

It is funny, I was led to believe that its price was an important factor in the pump action shotgun popularity over the semi. I, of course, might be in error. If one has to pay the price of a semi to get something that will be reliable, why not get one instead of a pump? I was not aware of the malfunctions in 870s when I ordered my SXP last December, but for the moment, not having received it yet, I think I made a good choice. I can not express how much I look forward to try it when it finally arrives to the store. The 75$ difference in favor of the gun I chose might be insignificant, but if by any chance it proves to be a better buy than the 887 my buddy leans towards, that will be worth a million!

 

[Virginian]

In my opinion, the problems with Expresses are greatly overstated, and trumpeted by the anti Remington, anti Cerberus crowd. The newer ones have a better finish, too. And if you do need anything, Remington customer service is the best. I have looked at a LOT of new Remingtons, and there is nothing wrong with them. I personally do not like Expresses, but it's because of the flat black finish and cheap wood or plastic stocks, not because they don't work. I had one, but didn't like to look at it so it left.

 

[rcmodel]

I just can't understand why I would buy an 870 Express for $300+ when I can buy a nice old Wingmaster from the 60's or 70's used for $275-$300 all day long.

They were class act guns back then.

And a used one has already been made slicker then owl snot by years of hunting use, once or twice a year by the former owner.

It's not like a nice old used Wingmaster is going to be worn out or anything.

It's going to be better then a new express though.

rc

 

[Deltaboy1984]

Get a used 870 wingmaster and forget about it.

 

[btg3]

I've got a decades old WM that looks nearly new with a crack right thru the trigger body.
I've also got a rather new Express that I've tweaked and made as slick as either of my 2 WMs.

870 are great in any flavor. Some have problems. Most problems are easily fixed, if understood.

The aesthetics of the WM are easy on the eye.
The Express is no less reliable nor shorter on longevity.

If I could only keep one 870, of course it would be the WM.

If you don't know how to fix an 870, you probably don't know how to assess the mechanical condition of a used one and that risk is owned by the buyer. A new purchase carries a warranty.

 

[blaisenguns]

In my opinion, the problems with Expresses are greatly overstated, and trumpeted by the anti Remington, anti Cerberus crowd. The newer ones have a better finish, too. And if you do need anything, Remington customer service is the best. I have looked at a LOT of new Remingtons, and there is nothing wrong with them. I personally do not like Expresses, but it's because of the flat black finish and cheap wood or plastic stocks, not because they don't work. I had one, but didn't like to look at it so it left.

I have called Remington at least a dozen times for warranty issues on guns, and every time I am on hold for at least a half hour. This does not make me dislike their products, but customer service is not as good as Ruger, or several other companies.

 

[lobo9er]

slicker then owl snot

Some day some needs to mill through RC's post and create Tao of RC book.

 

[03Marine4Life]

I appreciate the tip and will look into. I thought of ammo too, I was using Federal. To run a control I also used Remington and Winchester and still had the same issues. Does your advice still hold to that? Thanks again.

 

[788Ham]

rc,

I have to agree 1000% with your comments. When I came home from 'Nam, my folks gave me a Remington 870 Wingmater 12 ga. for Christmas, ventilated ribbed barrel, beautiful wood in the stock. This shotgun has knocked the snot out of geese and ducks all day long, never a quit on the action working, no matter how cold it gets in Eastern Colo. in January.

 

[Drail]

First thing to do is a detailed examination of your chamber. Any machining ridges, reamer chatter marks or burrs on around the extractor relief cut need to be cleaned up. Most barrels won't need much but I have heard of a few real horror stories. If yours is one of those contact Remington. Another thing to check is free movement of the extractor and its plunger and spring. One little burr can cause the extractor to be unable to get a good purchase on the shell's rim. Check to see that it pivots freely. I recently came across an older 20 ga. 870 that was "sticky".

 

[AI&P Tactical]

There is only one 870 and anyone knowing anything about this model would know that and not be putting out all the mess about one being superior to the other, different yes but superior, no. Have you been to the factory and observed each phase of an 870 being built? I have, multiple times. A barrel is a barrel except for sights and finish. I have seen every phase of the process and all the barrels are built the same. A receiver is the same except for engraving and finish and all are built the same. All the internal parts are the same except two small ones that have nothing to do with how the weapon cycles. So one model can not be any smooth, better, or more dependable then the other. How can they as they are have the exact same parts. And no people, there is no polishing inside an 870 to make it smooth. You get a different finish and upgraded furniture with the higher end models, not better parts because they are all the same.

The reason a used Wingmaster is smoother then a new Express is that used gun has been fired multiple times and any 870 with a high round count is slicker then eel snot no matter what model it is. I guess the misinformation about this gun is going to continue as long as there are open forums for misinformed people to state an opinion and pass it off as a fact and there are people to read it and accept it without any knowledge of the qualifications of the person posting it. I prefer to simply tell the truth based on facts and knowledge of the subject. He who has ears let him hear. Get the Model you want and the one you can afford. They are the same shotgun and will serve you for a life time.

 

[Virginian]

It has been more than a few years - late '80s - since I went thru the factory, and they told me they left the Wingmasters in the vibra honing longer than the Expresses.

 

[AI&P Tactical]

That could have been back in the day and might even be the case now. Each time we see that process we are simply told all receivers go through the process but length of time never came up. I will ask that next time I am there as you brought up something I can't answer.

 

[barnett]

I've only been shooting for 57 years, so maybe my knowledge is limited, but here are my thoughts.
I have a 60s model Remington 1100, and a current day Remington 870 Express 7 shot. Both have been 100% reliable. I have many firearms, that have been flawless for me, but I read on various forums that " they are crap". I Wonder. Is it just me? Am I that lucky? Or is it something else?

 

[Virginian]

It must be you AND me. I have had 13 1100s/11-87s and seven 870s and never one problem. Plus several others. Wait, I did break and extractor on my '63 Model 1100 in 1982 at about 95,000 rounds. That is it. But, I sold and worked on guns, and I have seen about everything broken by somebody. Remember an 1100 with a cracked receiver. "Junk" the guy said. The drilled out gas ports had no effect on that. It was that cheap steel Remington used. One wouldn't feed. Carrier bent to hell and gone - guy must have had really strong fingers.

 

[btg3]

Virginian, What other dating services have you tried?

FWIW, I'm still shooting a 12ga and 20ga Sportsman 58 that will soon be going on the 4th generation in my family. Lotta doves and clays with that pair. My WMs are more recent acquisitions but of similar age. Not saying that I haven't replaced a "starter" or "alternator" along the way, but all are good to go.

 

[Shotgun Sergeon]

I have an 870 Express Mag and I love that thing. I've never had a single jam with anything from light trap loads to 3" turkey loads, 0000 buck and slugs. I put at least 1000 rounds through it last summer alone. I dropped it out of a duck boat once, fished it out and proceeded to shoot 4 more ducks that day.

Your problem is most likely the chamber as others have said. It sounds like the spent shells are getting stuck due to expansion. A rough chamber can cause them to get stuck.

 

[gamestalker]

Exactly what ammo are you having this problem with? Some shells will give just about any SG problems. Like RC said, steel based hulls will often present extraction problems.

I haven't taken an inventory in a while, but I have a pretty large collection of 870's, some new, some quite old. All have functioned 100% with the exception being, those which were fed Winchester Universals. None of my 870's will cycle those darn Universals, unless I first take those shells apart, and then break up the solid hard lump of powder they all seem to have. Seriously though, I break those shells down and then use the same powder and components to reload them, and then they function 100%.

This might be the problem, or not?

GS

 

[Snowblind]

Seems to be a fairly common problem. I just finished polishing the chamber on my own 870 after having a very similar issue. Fired shells would stick in the chamber like glue, and I was almost afraid I'd rip the extractor claw out trying to remove them. And these weren't even steel, these were nice high-brass shells.

I took care of mine with various grades of steel wool. Did the first pass with some coarser stuff wrapped around a cleaning rod, followed up by finer grade attached to an electric drill, and finished up with some extra fine grade back on the cleaning rod. Shines like a mirror now.