Should I set up my minty 870 wingmaster for HD?

Status
Not open for further replies.
W

WutUpGeez

member
Joined
Mar 19, 2009
Messages
50
I've got a mint/never shot 870 wingmaster that's just sitting in my closet not being used. It's got a 28" vent ribbed barrel with 3 different removable remington chokes. Nice satin finished wood. Awesome bluing.

The thing is, I don't hunt and I don't really have a HD gun. I figured if I ever really needed something for HD I could pull it out and use it, but the 28" barrel would be kind of awkward in that situation.

Should I sell the barrel and get a shorter one? Maybe a mag extension? I'll probably keep the wood on it cause it's really pretty walnut.

I don't really want to sink a lot of money into this project.

How much could I get for a mint/new 28" vent ribbed barrel w/3 removable chokes?
 
Put up some pictures! I might be interested. Besides, I hate to see you ruin a classic for the need of something other than what it is now. You can buy an Express model darn cheap to make the tacticool look if you like. Your Wingmaster should bring enough to buy the Express and a couple of doodads to boot.
 
Give Remington a call tomorrow during business hours at 800-243-9700 and ask the Parts Department if they have any 18" or 18.5" 870 barrels in stock. They might not have polished blued ones, as they seem not to be doing any blue 870Ps any more. You'll want to get a barrel with a detent in the barrel ring, since that's the way your Wingmaster is set up. A barrel for one of the newer Express guns will fit, but the detent system is different and you'll have to jury-rig something to keep the magazine cap tight if you get one of that type barrel.

Used to be those barrels were only about a hundred bucks new in the box. Used ones show up from time to time for even less, if you look around. Whether you sell the existing barrel or not is up to you, I wouldn't do it myself- but then, I have a storage box full of barrels that go with different shotguns...

lpl
 
You may get burned on it, but you could trade it for an express.

I dont know what the price difference is between the two (I'm a mossberg fan, due to being wrong handed), but you may be able to get a mag extension and/or a side saddle thrown in.

It sucks getting burned on a trade, I know. I've traded a few firearms I didnt use for less expensive ones that get used often. So, IMO, I broke even or came out ahead.

Of course, if I had the cash when I needed it, I wouldn't have traded anything.
 
I'm a "buy and hold" kind of guy.

Hang on to that 870 and shop around for an 870HD. I've seen brand new ones go far cheaper than you'd believe.

You're gonna spend $250 for a new barrel and it isn't going to be blued. Trade on your 870 is about $175-200 depending on the FFL, lately they've been real skinflints at the shows.

Save your shekels, buy an HD and keep the field gun.
 
Or you could just sell the Wingmaster for cash to someone and then take a portion of that money and buy a less expensive HD gun and keep the difference to buy ammo with (or whatever).
 
Just decide if someone beaks into your home you will meet them at the back wall of your bedroom. That way the barrel length does not matter anyway. Besides who really wants to go around in the dark looking for trouble, leave that to the kids and the Marines. ;)
 
Last edited:
Keep the Wingmaster! Just buy a short bbl .. and a mag extension if you want more rounds. Plus, local shops often have used/traded bbls at a good price. So what if you have to saw one off.

New bbls are in the $200-$250 range. Would not be worth it [to me] to sell the original bbl.

You can get a complete Mossberg HD on sale for not much more. Check Big5 sales. And, they are good guns.

Or, like I did, buy old Ithaca M37 for $75 .. sliced it behind the Cutts an loaded it with 00. Lots of pump guns out there so why mess with a nice Wingmaster??
 
thanks guys...I'm gonna keep the wingmaster as is and pass it down to my kids(that aren't born yet lol).
 
I bought a 21 inch barrel that has rifle sights and takes Remchokes new for less than $150. They are out there, you just have to look.

My dad bought one for his 60's vintage 870 with no problems.
 
You could sell the 870 Wingmaster and have enough to buy a used 18'' or 18.5'' cylinder bore 870 Express, Mossberg 500, or Maverick 88 with money to spare on accessories if you want them. If you're lucky, you may even find a used Wingmaster out there that is set up for home defense.

I have a Wingmaster, but it LOOKS like an Express. It was originally a police/riot model, so it has a plain looking stock and a corncob fore end and an 18'' cylinder bore barrel. I found it used at a pawn shop for under $200.

I was originally looking for a Mossberg 500 or a Maverick 88 home defense shotgun, and I am really glad I found this Wingmaster instead, because it feel so nice in my hands, and it is so buttery smooth. I still believe the Mossberg/Maverick is a good shotgun, but I've never picked one up that felt as... RIGHT... as this Wingmaster.

That said, I am now wishing I had a shotgun with a longer barrel and the ability to use choke tubes. Today, at a local gun shop, I found another 870 Wingmaster about the same age as my current one, but it's a more conventional Wingmaster with a longer vent-rib barrel. The barrel on it has a fixed modified choke instead of removable choke tubes, but I was probably going to put a modified choke tube in there and forget about it anyway.

To make a long story short, I plan to put it on layaway and buy it. Then I will have TWO older Wingmasters, one for HD and one for hunting, and I will have spent under $400 for both combined.
 
Unless you can actually envision yourself conducting room clearing I don't see a long sporting barrel being that big of a deal when it comes to HD, one of my HD shotguns has a 30" barrel and I'm completely fine with that.
 
I agree with most here and say keep the Wingmaster. I was at Sportsmans Warehouse yesterday and new ones were over 600 bucks. You wont get that for a used one. Shop around and find a used short barrel and switch it out. Dont mess up a beautiful bird gun.

Oh and where are the mandatory pictures??????????
 
I'm not sure if this has been mentioned, but it's a huge point:

You need to shoot that gun plenty and be totally familiar with it if you're going to use it for home defense!!!

Otherwise, you're playing make believe.
 
WutUpGeez said:
I've got a mint/never shot 870 wingmaster that's just sitting in my closet not being used. It's got a 28" vent ribbed barrel with 3 different removable remington chokes. Nice satin finished wood. Awesome bluing.

The thing is, I don't hunt and I don't really have a HD gun. I figured if I ever really needed something for HD I could pull it out and use it, but the 28" barrel would be kind of awkward in that situation.

Should I sell the barrel and get a shorter one? Maybe a mag extension? I'll probably keep the wood on it cause it's really pretty walnut.

I don't really want to sink a lot of money into this project.

How much could I get for a mint/new 28" vent ribbed barrel w/3 removable chokes?
Click to expand...

Keep the barrel you have and get a shorter one ... pretty much all you need to do.

www.havlinsales.com

left hand side, remington accesories. either barrel will do just fine.
 
Don't sell the original barrel, that would be something you would regret later on. I don't see any reason why not to grab a 18" polished blue barrel with rifle sights though, if you never plan on pheasant hunting with it.
 
I sold my original wingmaster barrel and these guys are right. I definitely regret it. even though I hunt or target shoot with clays enough to count on one hand in a year, that thing was such a WORK of ART. Seriously....the bluing, the craftsmanship. Keep your Wingmaster all there, even if you do decide to tactical it.
 
No by the time you get it set up you could have bought a new one and then you will have an HD gun and a collector
 
If you have a Dunham's nearby, check with them. I just picked up a factory NIB Remington 18.5 inch matte barrel for $129.00. Mine will replace the 20 inch smoothbore and that will be used for deer season work.
 
No by the time you get it set up you could have bought a new one and then you will have an HD gun and a collector
Click to expand...

I had that same thought just before I replied originally, but I have to disagree. If he can find a quality polished blue 870 short barrel at a reasonable price, he'll have a much nicer HD gun than a typical sub $200 shotgun. I've seen new Remington polished blue short barrels for very reasonable prices. I think Brownells has them.

However if he DOES end up using the 870 for hunting eventually, I think he'll find switching out the barrels all the time a little bit annoying. So I think it kind of depends on the situation. In his, I think I'd go with the new extra barrel.
 
Of all the things that could annoy me in hunting, switching the barrel on an 870 wouldn't be one of them, even if I had to do it a few times everyday.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

O
  • Locked
870 Wingmaster Magnum
Replies
3
Views
401
Rshooter
Rshooter
Badger Arms
  • Locked
Remington Wingmaster Value?
Replies
8
Views
1K
Longbow
L
W
  • Locked
My decision: 870 Wingmaster.
Replies
10
Views
881
Dave McCracken
D
B
  • Locked
Is this a good deal on a 870 Wingmaster?
Replies
3
Views
447
Dave McCracken
D
S
  • Locked
1970 Remington 870 Wingmaster 12ga (should I buy it?)
Replies
21
Views
6K
MattShlock
M
Back
Top