I thought Remington 870 was the definition of reliability?

new guns are dirty, I doubt very much that the commercial HD gun gets a very good check over out of the factory.
Remington, my opinion anyway....Has tried to get into the HD aftermarget line up on a commercial level. Useing not the best parts Im sure.

I have put a handful of mag extensions on my 870s---so far the only one I didnt need to polish up with a brake cylender hone is the one I purchased from Tanks rifle shop.

I would consider a shotgun designed from thr groud up as a Defensive shotgun.....one piece tube.
 
Because of the position of the mag extension, it would be impossible to overtourqe it without using tools. Which I haven’t.

This hang-up is not a small imperfection in the tube due to factory dust or something, It’s like jamming the shells into a brick wall, they are getting caught on a major gap or something. They don’t slowly bind as if the tube was too small. They SMACK into something.

I’m in Lowell, I shoot at a range in Dracut.

Ill update you all on this later today after I talk to Rem.

If they don’t want to replace the gun, I’m going to do one of two things:
- Call Four Seasons to see if they will replace it
- Buy an aftermarket follower to see if that helps.




Thanks for all the replies, the prompt and experienced feedback is what I love about this site.
 
I VIVIDLY remember a recent thread that I got ripped on for preferring the 500 over the 870. My biggest reason is no extraction issues in the 500, and MUCH easier topping off the tube. Having to push the carrier is absolutely stupid. I like 870's, don't get me wrong, except the 870 express. It's a complete is a piece of sh*t. However, the wingmaster and police are both still A+.

That being said, this is my sweet revenge for being ripped on about taking the 500 over the 870.
 
have you tried to use a dowel to see if its the follower hanging up. It sounds as if the extension when installed leaves a gap between the tubes?
Are these extensions plastic,aluminum or steel ? My most reliable and only extension tube I still own is the one from Tanks quessing its a cheote manufactured as Cheote was the got to have it stuff @ the time. Its heavy and thick steel it also came with a follower that is aluminum ?

I have run the full course with shotguns tactical,tactifool, back to basics.
My newest but odlest gun fir HD is my Remington 870 20g youth model bare bones.

IO have come to the conclusion that if the standard capacity does not defer the threat,,,,,Im out numbered out gunned and @ a looseing posisition.
?
 
Well just got off the phone with Rem...

Basically they are telling me exactly what they told me last time, I need to send it in with a detailed letter regarding the problem and the "repair man" will take care of it.

I went into detail about the mag tube and all of that....he told me to put it in the letter

I asked for a replacement shotgun....he told me to put it in the letter

I told him that I had lost confidence in this individual firearm and its reliability for HD...Sorry, put it in the letter

I asked for a contact to refer to about the repair..... Repair men dont talk to customers

"So basically just send it back with the exact information that I sent it in with last time, and cross my fingers?" ....."yes, Ill send you a shipping label"....(bullshit)



Anyone have experience with any 3rd party mag followers that I can try before going through this circus again?
 
CIby1012 said:
Well just got off the phone with Rem...

Basically they are telling me exactly what they told me last time, I need to send it in with a detailed letter regarding the problem and the "repair man" will take care of it.

I went into detail about the mag tube and all of that....he told me to put it in the letter

I asked for a replacement shotgun....he told me to put it in the letter

I told him that I had lost confidence in this individual firearm and its reliability for HD...Sorry, put it in the letter

I asked for a contact to refer to about the repair..... Repair men dont talk to customers

"So basically just send it back with the exact information that I sent it in with last time, and cross my fingers?" ....."yes, Ill send you a shipping label"....(bullshit)



Anyone have experience with any 3rd party mag followers that I can try before going through this circus again?
Click to expand...

Either Wilson Combat or Vang Comp (or both, who knows) offers a nice metal follower.
 
glostamon said:
+1
homedefense2.jpg
Click to expand...

Looks like a fun project
 
aluminum,,,still say scrap it.......there should a very very small gap. Maybe felt with a detal pic thats it. As I said somestimes you need to smooth things out.
I would try to put a nice slight bevel on the edges with a fine file. No straight edges for things to grab onto.
2nd I would order the scattergun technologies mag tube,follower and stainless spring.

another thing also is: Im not sure if remington actually installs a different mag tube on the express before it gets the HD treatment....but the little tits the are on the end of the factory tube need to be drilled out completely as to not catch on anything. I wish I had a pic of this handy.
.
 
I have owned and worked on many 870s and 1100s and sometimes have had to tweak them a bit to get them to run reliably with the two piece Remington OEM Magazine Extensions. Personally, I have had better luck using Tac Star and Wilson one piece units and Vang, S&J Hardware Delrin, and Wilson followers. However, any follower should work. There is no excuse for the problems you are having but I'm quite sure it can be fixed.

What you are describing sounds very much like an alignment problem.

Since you have likely followed all the cleaning and inspection solutions offer by others please just try one more thing. Disassemble the Mag Extension completely by taking off the barrel bracket, screwing out the extension tube and then removing the barrel ring collar. Pull the barrel off then reseat it carefully in the receiver. Next screw on JUST THE BARREL COLLAR by itself. Snug this up very tightly (by hand only!). Now put the extension tube over the spring and gently screw that down until it runs out of thread but not further. DO NOT MAKE IT TIGHT. IN FACT IT IS OKAY IF IT IS LEFT VERY SLIGHTLY LOOSE. DO NOT PUT RE-INSTALL THE BARREL EXTENSION TUBE BRACKET. At this point reload the 870 and see if it functions properly. I STRONGLY SUGGEST you do this at the range to avoid a potential accident. If the gun loads up and cycles properly it indicates an alignment problem. If it works okay then try reinstalling the bracket clamp. Then check for function again.

Personally, I have had guns that ran fine with the OEM mag extension but after cleaning and reassembling they would exhibit the same problems you have described. Invariably, it was due to a slight misalignment caused by over torquing of the extension tube itself.

If this does not work let me know since I have some other tricks to suggest and could loan you some parts to try out to see if they might aid in the cure.

Finally, also be sure to use only 2 3/4 inch shells for this diagnostic. You will likely loose one round of capacity if you try to do it with 3 inch loads.

Good luck!
 
Last edited:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmoeuJS7m-U just to add a bit. This video shows a bit of what I am talking about. The dimples on the 870 express need to be removed.
NOW your thinking but its a HD model it shouldnt have the dimples..........We this may be true you dotr know if they did the HD before or after the dimples where pressed in. Maybe to fill a order they took base 870 express and modified. Check for the dimples or anything left of them. Also make sure the barrel/tube support bracket is not tweeking the tube when you snug that up.
As noted it only needs to be tight enough not to come loose. I add a touch of liquid teflon to any threads that are not very snug. It provides enough tension to keep from comeing loose but easy to disassemble.
 
I have not look to deep into the benelli, It just caught my attention the dual semi/pump seems like a good idea.

As I said in a past posting, I have come back to basics and my new HD gun is my old 870 express 20g youth model. cylender slug barrel, the stock is a tad small but great for small confined areas. I can also get a very good grip on it.
 
mac1911 said:
It just caught my attention the dual semi/pump seems like a good idea.
Click to expand...
I think that's the very definition of a bad idea. If you want a pump, get a pump. If you want a semi-auto, get a semi-auto. The Benelli M1 manual of arms is confusing enough as it is without adding more complexity.
 
M1911 just for S&Gs why would a semi auto that can function as a pump for back up be bad, NOW maybe the design is bad ie: If the auto function fails maybe the pump does also??????? I dont know.
 
mac1911 said:
M1911 just for S&Gs why would a semi auto that can function as a pump for back up be bad, NOW maybe the design is bad ie: If the auto function fails maybe the pump does also??????? I dont know.
Click to expand...
Simple is good. More complicated is bad. Lighter is good. Heavier is bad. And more is not always better. If you have it switched to pump, but you thought it was set to semi-auto, then it won't behave as you expect under stress, and that would be bad. Very bad. I've used an M1 and an M3.

If your shotgun fails, you don't spend time trying to figure out how to solve it. You drop the shotgun and transition to your pistol.
 
are the factory extension tubes shippied out new with the magazine limiter plug in them ?
 
As has been stated before, even brand new Mercedes can shit the bed at 50 miles, its happened. I hate to say it, but a lot of the current manufactured stuff in this world is crap. I personally prefer to buy used and older firearms that are " seasoned " with a close and detailed inspection, if possible, ( unless of course, the person is a greenie ). When stuff was made in the USA, years back, it was better. Not much can beat a 870 from the 50's or 60's.
 
bullseye said:
When stuff was made in the USA, years back, it was better. Not much can beat a 870 from the 50's or 60's.
Click to expand...

+1, all the older, well maintained shotguns and lever rifles I have come across (my fathers stuff) run 10X sweeter than my brand new similar gear. His marlin 336 beats mine to death, not saying mine isn't good....but saying his is just smoother. Old isn't always a bad thing.
 
bullseye said:
As has been stated before, even brand new Mercedes can shit the bed at 50 miles, its happened. I hate to say it, but a lot of the current manufactured stuff in this world is crap. I personally prefer to buy used and older firearms that are " seasoned " with a close and detailed inspection, if possible, ( unless of course, the person is a greenie ). When stuff was made in the USA, years back, it was better. Not much can beat a 870 from the 50's or 60's.
Click to expand...

Old S&W wheel guns are the same way. Brand new ones are good, but the old ones are built to fricken last and are works of art as well.
 
mac1911 said:
are the factory extension tubes shippied out new with the magazine limiter plug in them ?
Click to expand...

Some of them are, I seem to recall an NES post by DickWanner mocking a DU post on the subject. [laugh] What gun are you talking about? Even if they are, it's just a wooden dowel, pretty easy to remove.
 
mac1911 said:
are the factory extension tubes shippied out new with the magazine limiter plug in them ?
Click to expand...

Mine (870 Tac) was not.






And I remember that DU post, the guy had a 6+1 gun, but "loaded it all the way up to 2+1"....his plug was still in [laugh] IIRC, that was a Mossberg that DU guy was shooting.
 
Update..... Installed a Scattergun Technologies folower. It did not help the problem, it is getting stuck just like the factory folower.

So, I guess its back to the factory for this shotgun.

100$ says they just replace the mag extension again and send it back to me with the same problem.

I'll update when its returned. Im hopping for a replacement gun, but who knows...
 
CIby1012 said:
Update..... Installed a Scattergun Technologies folower. It did not help the problem, it is getting stuck just like the factory folower.

So, I guess its back to the factory for this shotgun.

100$ says they just replace the mag extension again and send it back to me with the same problem.

I'll update when its returned. Im hopping for a replacement gun, but who knows...
Click to expand...

Even though you shouldn't have to, DEMAND that they fully function test this gun. In the note to the tech, let him know you need the magazine filled and live-fire function tested. You have to spell it out for them. They get piles of weapons in there and will often just put a round in, fire and forget...
 
Update....

Here is what I wrote to Rem.....

Dear Remington Technician,

This is the second time I’m sending this shotgun to you for repair. When I received the gun back from the first repair, the problem had not been fixed in the slightest. Please take the time to read this description, because there is a major structural defect with this shotgun that is rendering it Unreliable and UNSAFE!!!

Please reference the previous repair invoice # 1***** - (Photocopy Attached)

Problem:
There is a problem with the alignment between the magazine tube (4 shells) and the magazine tube extension tube (+2 shells). The first 4 rounds load and cycle through the shotgun without an issue. Upon loading a 5th round, one of two things happen…
1. As the follower is transitioning into the extension, it rams into the gap between the two tubes and prevents the 5th shell from loading completely.
2. The 5th shell loads, and so does the 6th, however during cycling of the shotgun, the first two shells run fine and then the follower gets caught in the gap between the two tubes as it is moving through and the remaining 4 shells slide back and forth in the magazine tube because the spring is now stuck. At this point in order for me to empty the gun I must point the shotgun in the air vertically, and use gravity to cycle the remaining 4 rounds. Finally, I need to disassemble the shotgun in order to release the follower again.
This does not happen every time, and sometimes the gun will run through 6 rounds without an issue. However the problem happens often enough (About 50% of the time). To make me not trust this gun. Please understand that I am using this shotgun for home defense and this flaw in the mechanics of the gun makes it incredibly unreliable.

Previous Attempts at Repair:
1. I have tried replacing the entire magazine extension system with stock parts that Remington sent me, including new extension tube, spring, nut, follower. This tells me that the problem is with the magazine tube itself (Attached to receiver)
2. I have tried refitting the extension tube hundreds of times myself. And when the shotgun returned from repairs last time after one of your technicians fitted it, the problem remained.

What I would like to happen:
I would like to request that this shotgun (Serial # R*******) be replaced completely. I have lost my trust in this individual firearm and its ability to protect my home and family and I would appreciate it if you would send me a replacement. I feel that because the problem is with the magazine tube itself which is part of the receiver, then the quality of the entire receiver is questionable.

If you decided that the problem can be fixed:
Please understand the simply replacing the extension system or refitting the existing extension will not fix the problem. If you intend to try to fix this shotgun please focus on the distal end of the magazine tube itself because that is where the problem lies. (It must be in the alignment - I’m assuming the tube was cut wrong). I’ve been told that the tube may need to be filed down some more, or re-threaded.

However you address the problem, please be sure to FULLY LOAD THE MAGAZINE WITH 6 SHELLS AND CYCLE THROUGH THE ACTION SEVERAL TIMES TO ASSURE THAT THEY ARE NOT GETTING CAUGHT.

Thank you for your time,
(Rem. R******* Owner)
 

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