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Old December 13, 2012, 05:57 PM   #1
RevolverOcelot
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870 Wingmaster Problems?

I have my dad's 870 Wingmaster 12 gauge (2 3/4" only) that was made in '78, it has a 28" barrel for hunting and he bought an 18" barrel for home defense, so I was going to use it for both. He just recently gave it to me because my Mossberg 500 was stolen.


I've shot a couple hundred rounds through it and it seems to be in excellent condition, except for the fact that when I deliberately pump the slide very, very slowly (but still fluid motion) it fails to eject the shell. It tries to pop out but seems to not have enough force.

Should I not trust this gun for home defense? What if I'm injured or something and can't pump it very well? (Although it rarely does it even when I'm trying to make it) Or am I just being overly paranoid and should just not wrack it slowly? I only did it to see if it would jam.
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Old December 13, 2012, 06:12 PM   #2
dalecooper51
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You have to run a pump gun. Don't baby it.
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Old December 13, 2012, 06:13 PM   #3
Rebel9793
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^x2
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Old December 13, 2012, 06:20 PM   #4
Strafer Gott
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Good to Go pumping.

That's normal for the wingmaster. Some people think it's a feature.
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Old December 13, 2012, 06:32 PM   #5
RevolverOcelot
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Quote:
That's normal for the wingmaster. Some people think it's a feature.

I just tried it on my brother's Express, it does the same thing. Is it an 870 thing? Do all pumps do that?
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Old December 13, 2012, 08:07 PM   #6
Dfariswheel
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Most do.

Pump guns depend on manual operation to eject, and how forceful the gun ejects depends almost entirely on how forcefully you operate the gun.
Ease the action open gently and the shell may not eject at all, or it may just sort of dribble out.
This is no different then many firearms, especially pistols. Ease the slide open on an automatic and it won't eject well either.

However, other then ejection, you don't have to operate an 870 with great force for it to work correctly. Using "some" forceful operation is useful to insure you don't accidentally "short stroke" the gun and cause a failure to feed, and as you've discovered, it will insure proper ejection.
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Old December 13, 2012, 08:31 PM   #7
hogdogs
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Cycle the action with authority... Consider the speed and force in an auto loader cycling the action... Now try to replicate it with your wingmaster and if no parts are broken, it will cycle reliably without fail...

Brent
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Old December 13, 2012, 08:43 PM   #8
birdshot
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ejector

As everyone has expressed the ejection is in relation to the speed of operation. What happens when the slide is moved rearward the extractor grabs the shell from the chamber. As the shell clears the chamber the ejector mounted inside the receiver, hits the back of the shell, kicking the shell out of the receiver.
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Old December 13, 2012, 08:43 PM   #9
lefteye
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^^^

Yes, pump shotguns require sufficient force to operate the action to extract and eject a shell and chamber another shell from the tubular magazine. The 870 is a very well-designed, well-made and very reliable pump shotgun. I've purchased 5, inherited 2 and sold only one. I just wish all 870 models were available in left hand versions. Since they aren't, all of my 870 shotguns are right hand models.
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Old December 13, 2012, 08:47 PM   #10
Mezzanine
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Would you be pumping deliberately slow in a home defense situation?
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Old December 13, 2012, 10:43 PM   #11
the rifleer
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Semi autos will do that too if you work the slide slowly.
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Old December 14, 2012, 12:29 AM   #12
birdshot
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The only differences between a semi and a pump: a spring, a gas port, and 3 or 4 hundred dollars.
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Old December 15, 2012, 12:24 PM   #13
Lee Lapin
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Every pump I've ever tried it with will 'dribble' a shell or fired hull out of the ejection port if you just s l o w l y open the bolt.

Why?

There's no spring loaded ejector sufficiently strong to kick the shell out, ejection depends on the force imparted by the extractor dragging the shell back into the ejector and pivoting it out of the ejection port.

It's a feature, not a bug...

Pump it firmly - ONE count all the way back till the bolt stops, then count TWO all the way forward till it stops. If you will always think 'ONE stop TWO stop' as you run the gun, you will never short stroke it.
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