So maybe this is an impossible question, but when did the 870 express go from "not as good" to "crap"?
Reason I ask, I won a brand new 870 express in 2008. its never been fired. If its just a little rough, but will still give years adequate service to my son (learn some trap/skeet, duck hunting, and maybe for a bear defense shotgun), then I'll hold on to it.
I also have a BNIB Winchester 1200 made in the mid 1970s. 28" barrel, ridiculous LOP, but maybe that gun is a better bet to modify?
Thanks
James
My understanding is some time in the early 2000s. I don't know if mine falls into that range since I bought it around 2000 (before I got married in mid 2001, but after New Year Day 2000). Mine has never caused me any issues aside from not being silky smooth like a well-used Wingmaster.
You probably won't get much if you went to sell it (new ones are well under $300 NIB from most retailers). Since you have it in hand, I'd use the hell out of it for sporting purposes and possibly replace the questionable innards with known good parts (springs, extractors, etc) over time to get it up to par as a defensive arm.
Chris
As best I know:
The 870 Express models were introduced in the mid to late 80's. They had less external polishing and a matte blue finish, but aside from that got the same manufacturing and QC that the Wingmasters got.
In the late 90's, they introduced more economizing measures on the 870. MIM extractors, no more vibra-honing of the receivers, not polishing chambers, etc. At the time Wal-Mart was a huge buying force and were getting manufacturers to make special runs of guns. Marlin, Ruger, and Remington all made entire production runs specifically for Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart was always pressuring for lower prices and that played a role in changing the production on a number of guns, the 870 included.
There was such a degradation of quality that police departments who bought Express guns complained. Remington introduced an 870 Police model shotgun that was made on an entirely different production line than the Express and included a few upgrades like a stiffer sear spring and carrier dog spring. These were useful because police guns almost never saw proper armorer attention so it reduced the chances of an impact setting off a loaded gun (sear spring) and helped keep the lifter working properly for longer.
The Express model gun you have is, unfortunately, going to be from one of the darker eras in Remington history.
But that doesn't mean you should get rid of it. It might be just fine.
You can upgrade the gun by putting in a tool-steel extractor (Volquartsen makes them), changing the carrier dog spring to the heavier police version, and making sure the chamber isn't rough enough to cause spent shells to stick. If you do that it should serve just fine in the woods as a hunting weapon assuming it patterns well. If it doesn't, you can buy different barrels relatively easily.
Or you can go on Gunbroker and pick up one of any number of lightly used 870 Wingmaster shotguns for a very low price.
Modifying the Winchester 1200 is possible but it will likely be more difficult than the 870 just due to the fact that the 870 dramatically out-sold the 1200. You can do anything you want to an 870. It's more difficult to customize a Winchester 1200/1300. Although if you really want to, Vang Comp Systems can do it. (They did a 1300 Defender for me)
3/15/2016
Where does the 870 Tactical fall on the quality spectrum? I don't see any Express markings on the gun.
How's the quality of the the Marine Magnums?
David S.