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Thread: Cleaning Intervals for an 870?

  1. #1
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    South Louisiana

    Cleaning Intervals for an 870?

    I've got about 250 rounds through my WC refurbed 870. The only maintenance I've done on it so far is to run a bore snake through the barrel twice about 100 rounds ago, prior to the Urban Shotgun class I took with Steve Moses yesterday. All through the class, the gun ran slicker than owl shit. My instinct is to not fix something that ain't broke...plus I'm instinctively lazy.

    Is there a ballpark round count at which one needs to pull the barrel off and pull out the bolt and wipe out the receiver? What else might need to be cleaned?

  2. #2
    Quote Originally Posted by revchuck38 View Post
    I've got about 250 rounds through my WC refurbed 870. The only maintenance I've done on it so far is to run a bore snake through the barrel twice about 100 rounds ago, prior to the Urban Shotgun class I took with Steve Moses yesterday. All through the class, the gun ran slicker than owl shit. My instinct is to not fix something that ain't broke...plus I'm instinctively lazy.

    Is there a ballpark round count at which one needs to pull the barrel off and pull out the bolt and wipe out the receiver? What else might need to be cleaned?
    I have a half dozen 870 shotguns, half 14 inch, all with NP3, and I don’t think I have ever cleaned them. That includes carrying them on countless rainy days, and having them in and out of aircraft and boats. Maybe I have added some lube to the action bars, but I am not certain.
    Likes pretty much everything in every caliber.

  3. #3
    Site Supporter Erick Gelhaus's Avatar
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    Jun 2011
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    The Wasatch Front
    Non-work shotguns get cleaned, wiped out once a year or after any multiple day class.

  4. #4
    When we issued the 870 here at work, some of them were beat up real, real bad and they were never cleaned or oiled. They were issued daily and you had to ask for one each shift. They never missed a beat even though some of them had surface rust.

    I carried my own 870 Special Purpose with some Scattergun Technologies goodies on it. I took better care of mine but it still took a beating riding around in the trunk of the patrol car (mandated to carry it that way then due to feelings) in a rack near the bumper on the inside. It got rained on, temp changes, hit with traffic cones, etc.

    Never missed a beat. I still have it and I clean it after each use. I kept it oiled when it was riding with me at work and never had an issue.

  5. #5
    Member
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    Jul 2019
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    Almost Heaven
    It’s not unusual to shoot a couple hundred rounds per day at a skeet, trap or sporting clays range with low pressure dirty birdshot loads. Most shooters only clean their guns once or twice per season.
    The only particularly bad shells I’ve seen are Foster style slugs that will lead a barrel is it isn’t cleaned fairly often.

  6. #6
    I usually just pull a bore snake through the barrel after each trip to the range. The only time I’ll use a brush is if I’ve been shooting slugs, which isn’t very often anymore.

    Otherwise, I just wipe the gun down every month or so. A microfiber towel and some CLP help to keep rust away.

  7. #7
    Murder Machine, Harmless Fuzzball TCinVA's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    Virginia
    I shoot thousands of shells through my 870 every year so I try to make sure I take the fire control group out for a cleaning and little bit of lube once a year. I also clean the magazine tube at the same time. This usually happens at the same time I clean the bore of the gun, which is once a year or when the gun starts to pattern funny.
    3/15/2016

  8. #8
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    Mar 2016
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    Knoxville, TN
    Quote Originally Posted by Rick R View Post
    It’s not unusual to shoot a couple hundred rounds per day at a skeet, trap or sporting clays range with low pressure dirty birdshot loads. Most shooters only clean their guns once or twice per season.
    The only particularly bad shells I’ve seen are Foster style slugs that will lead a barrel is it isn’t cleaned fairly often.
    Well count me as NOT most guys. My clay gun as well as the many people I shoot with will shoot O/U or autos. Some are high end guns but all get more frequent cleaning and care. Autos are more prone to hiccups and while they may not get a thorough cleaning but every other month or so, they do get some attention. Unless I am shooting back to back day, my O/U gets cleaned after every outing.

    If this is a HD gun and my life or family member's life depends on it, I would tend to clean it after a lot of rounds, can't hurt and helps ensure reliability for the most important things in life. A malfunction when duck hunting is one thing, versus when someone crashing through the front door.

  9. #9
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    Jul 2019
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    Almost Heaven
    Quote Originally Posted by chances R View Post
    <<<edited>>>
    If this is a HD gun and my life or family member's life depends on it, I would tend to clean it after a lot of rounds, can't hurt and helps ensure reliability for the most important things in life. A malfunction when duck hunting is one thing, versus when someone crashing through the front door.
    I agree with a serious use gun actually getting PM’d. As an LEO instructor I saw 870’s that went years without service unless you sat on the user and ordered them to. IMHO the Remington 870 may be more tolerant of abuse than an SKS and approaching a Mosin Nagant. But it doesn’t hurt to strip it down, clean and inspect for worn/cracked/missing parts at some interval.

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