PDA

View Full Version : Looking for a guide on 870's


Wallabing
February 9, 2009, 08:25 PM
Hello all. I'm looking for any book, or anything that can teach me how to completly field strip my 870 down, including the inner workings of the trigger assembly. I want to be less dependent on gunsmiths, and hopefully save up more money in my wallet:), not that they are all bad, they are great people.

So, any books out there that can help teach me the inner workings of a 870 shoutgun? Any reccomendations?

Thanks for the help!

Tommy Vercetti
February 9, 2009, 08:27 PM
go to Remington's website and download an owner's manual and a catalog

problem solved

Lee Lapin
February 9, 2009, 11:22 PM
Best of the batch might well be Jerry Kuhnhausen's The Remington Shotguns, M870 and M1100/11-87- A Shop Manual, if you want to really understand the gun.

Best advice I can offer you is to buy a spare bolt assembly, and a spare trigger plate assembly, and don't worry much beyond that. Both of those assemblies contain almost all of the small parts likely to make the gun go down (and that happens very seldom in normal use), and they are drop-in repairs. Most anything else that takes the gun down is going to require a fully outfitted 'smith to fix.

Second best advice I can offer is to tell you flat out, leave the trigger plate ALONE as far as detail stripping it is concerned. There is no advantage there for you, and you can easily do permanent damage to the assembly by taking apart things that were not meant to be disassembled except in the unlikely event they needed to be replaced. The one thing I always warn people about who are looking to buy a used 870 is to keep away from any which have suffered kitchen table "gunsmithing."

Get the field stripping instructions from the Remington web site, and let it go at that... my dad always told me that sunshine was the worst thing in the world for automobile engines, and i should keep the hood closed as much as possible. Well, the same thing goes for shotguns...

hth,

lpl

spoolup
February 10, 2009, 05:41 AM
Agree with the other posts, field strippings is just that. Here is a video on the complete takedown of the 870, this is usually sufficant for most owners.

http://www.lifelibertyetc.com/RangeBag/video/LLE_Remington_870.wmv

Wallabing
February 10, 2009, 08:52 AM
I'll look into the shop manual, thanks Lee. At best, I want know how to dissasemble the breech bolt and firing pin to clean it spotless, unfortunate I cant dissasemble the trigger plate:( I really wanted to know my 870 down to every single part.

ActivShootr
February 10, 2009, 09:27 AM
Second best advice I can offer is to tell you flat out, leave the trigger plate ALONE as far as detail stripping it is concerned.

Second that. There is no need to take the trigger assy. apart unless something is broken. Just remove the trigger assy. and spray it off with your favorite solvent. Grease the springs and oil the other moving parts. Blast out the receiver and lightly oil the bolt.

Not rocket science. Brain surgery...maybe.

Lee Lapin
February 10, 2009, 03:01 PM
I want know how to dissasemble the breech bolt and firing pin to clean it spotless, unfortunate I cant dissasemble the trigger plate I really wanted to know my 870 down to every single part.

Just pick up a jug of Simple Green, and mix up a solution with hot water.... oh, about every five or ten years or so given normal use.... and soak the trigger plate assembly and bolt assembly in that for a while. Brush the components with a soft brush (toothbrush, 1" paintbrush etc) under hot running water to clean them, blow 'em dry with a hairdryer just to be on the safe side, then relube properly. No need to take stuff all apart to get it clean, no need to wear stuff out cleaning on it either.

As to getting to know every part of the gun and what it does, that's what exploded drawings are for. Kuhnhausen will help with understanding what does what.

hth,

lpl

copper
February 10, 2009, 10:07 PM
"Youtube" is your friend.

Dfariswheel
February 11, 2009, 07:43 PM
Just pick up a jug of Simple Green, and mix up a solution with hot water.... oh, about every five or ten years or so given normal use.... and soak the trigger plate assembly

If you have an aluminum trigger plate....DON'T.
Simply Green will seriously damage aluminum parts, especially the compressed powdered aluminum as used on the 870 trigger group.
Read the label.

Lee Lapin
February 11, 2009, 11:43 PM
For clarification...

http://www.simplegreen.com/solutions_faqs.php?search_query=aluminum

Aluminum - Is it safe to use Simple Green� on aluminum?

When used with caution and according to the instructions, Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner has been safely and successfully used to clean aluminum. Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner, Crystal Simple Green� Cleaner/Degreaser, Simple Green Pressure Washer Concentrates, and Pro Series™ Simple Green� Automotive Cleaner have been used on aircraft, automotive, industrial and consumer aluminum items for over 20 years. However, caution and common sense must be used: aluminum is a soft metal that easily corrodes with unprotected exposure to water. The aqueous-base and alkalinity of Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner can accelerate the corrosion process. Therefore, contact times for unprotected or unpainted aluminum surfaces should be kept as brief as the job will allow - never for more than 10 minutes. Large cleaning jobs should be conducted in smaller-area stages to achieve lower contact time. Rinsing after cleaning should always be extremely thorough - paying special attention to flush out cracks and crevices to remove all Simple Green� product residues. Unfinished, uncoated or unpainted aluminum cleaned with Simple Green products should receive some sort of protectant after cleaning to prevent oxidation.
======================

There are of course other options for degreasing aluminum components. Any number of products claim to be completely "aluminum safe." I use Simple Green because my gunsmith does, for the same purposes, in the same way. The AGI (gunsmith video) folks suggest it also.

Thanks for the note, Dfariswheel. It's best that people be fully informed and therefore aware of all the alternatives.

lpl

TheOldPro
February 11, 2009, 11:57 PM
Does the part about aluminum trigger plates apply to all 870's? I have a 1958 Remington 870 Wingmaster 12 gauge pump that may need cleaning any year now, as it has never been cleaned. If I hadn't carried it for 20 years into the marshes duck hunting it probably wouldn't need it now, but in case it does, I would like to know.

Lee Lapin
February 12, 2009, 08:09 PM
OldPro,

In recent years, Remington has been making trigger plates out of polymer (aka plastic). They started out in the Express guns but seem to be finding use in other marques as well.

Your 1958 vintage 870 will most likely have an aluminum trigger plate. A magnet will tell...

hth,

lpl