Old Remington 1100 12ga won’t fire

DDS · March 13, 2020, 06:20 PM

A buddy of mine died recently and his wife gave me his old shotgun. When I picked it up the barrel was not installed. Upon cleaning the gun up I installed the barrel. After dropping the bolt and disengaging the safety, the trigger failed to click, just trigger movement. What I did discover after removing/reinstalling the barrel was when I removed the forearm and pulled the barrel out slightly trigger activation resulted in the click. I presume the bolt is being held back from a fully forward position? Any troubleshooting advise would be appreciated.
Thanks, Dave

Pahoo · March 13, 2020, 06:44 PM

I'm not seeing the situation completely but have you dropped the trigger group out and see how it functions? Looks like yo sear isn't engaging. Just punch out those two receiver pins and drop out the group. I think you will find a video on YouTube, that will help. …

Quote:

A buddy of mine died recently and his wife gave me his old shotgun.

Wow, never thought I'd see the day that an 1100 would be called; "Old"

Be Safe !!!

Virginian · March 13, 2020, 07:21 PM

Check to see that the fore end and/or fore end support isn't binding on the action bars. Make sure the piston and piston seal are sliding freely into the barrel gas ring and are not holding back on the action bar sleeve.

DDS · March 13, 2020, 09:03 PM

Pahoo and Virginian,
Thanks for the suggestions. I’ll try both of them tomorrow.
Hopefully those tips will resolve my issue.
Thanks again, Dave

Drm50 · March 16, 2020, 06:52 PM

Part called Link that part of bolt assembly is a stamping. It rides against buffer spring in stock. The hammer has to ass through this to strike firing pin. If gunked or bent it will obstruct hammer from firing.

Pahoo · March 17, 2020, 11:01 AM

So many times when trouble-shooting a problem, I separate the trigger group, from the rest of the firearm. That assists me, in isolating the problem. On so many Semi-Autos, the only contact between the two, is the hammer, to firing pin contact. Dropping the trigger group on these Remingtons, is simple and straight forward. I take the same approach to the 10/22's and Ar's and so-on. ..

Be Safe !!!

Virginian · March 17, 2020, 01:31 PM

Note - he said when he moved the barrel forward, it did fire. That takes the trigger group well down the list of probable problems.

rc · March 17, 2020, 01:47 PM

Carefully punch the pins and remove the trigger group pulling from the rear. I can't remember if the magazine feed parts fall loose on an 1100 but the trigger group will come out as an assembly. With the barrel off and the forearm removed the gas system and bolt should slide out of the receiver to the front. Once the bolt is free from the receiver, clean out all the old sticky oil particularly in the bolt and trigger group. I think some fresh oil and you will be back in business. Old oil can create a sticky gummy sludge if it's left long enough. rc

DDS · March 22, 2020, 02:18 PM

I completely disassembled and cleaned everything well. I noticed carefully the orientation when I removed the rings and O ring. After reviewing Brownell’s tip on their orientation, I surmised that they were not properly oriented. These parts were the newer rings/seal design where the two metal rings snap in to each other. That is how I reinstalled them. Unfortunately, no luck. The gun was filthy and gummy so I thought that would take care of the problem. On one YouTube
Video the guy suggested, from his experience, if the O ring was replaced with one from a hardware/auto store they were too thick and could interfere with functioning related to the disconnector. Being a novice, I removed the O ring and reassembled to no avail.
As I had mentioned in my original post, when I remove the forearm and pull the barrel out slightly the hammer will drop. Maybe the loose barrel is incompatible? I also was given his slug barrel 870 (intact)with an extra barrel that I presume was for it. I took pics of the trigger assembly if that would help. I’ll have to figure out how to attach if wanted.
Thanks again! Dave

DDS · March 22, 2020, 02:34 PM

Here are a couple of pics.

Pahoo · March 22, 2020, 03:00 PM

DDS,
Here is what I'm seeing and thinking, all the way from Iowa;
Now that you have the trigger group out, study it just like you did in your previous reply. My swag on this is that the hammer and sear are not resetting/engaging and that is why the hammer falls when you pull the barrel. engage the safety and cock the hammer. With your finger blocking the hammer, disengage the safety and pull the trigger. Now, recock the hammer and see if it resets. Repeat this process and make sure your hammer engages the sear. Again, block the hammer when pulling the trigger. If the hammer resets, your trigger group, is not a problem….

Don't run out of fingers and;
Be Safe !!!

DDS · March 22, 2020, 04:49 PM

Pahoo,
Thanks again for your reply. I’m going to try what you recommend. Before doing so I wanted to clarify that when I cock and release the action, when I pull the trigger it moves but does not click. When I remove the forend an slightly pull the barrel out and THEN pull the trigger it fires. I just wanted to make sure that you knew the hammer didn’t drop until I pulled the trigger with the barrel repositioning. Could this have something to do with the disconnector and not being in full battery? Now to disassemble again!
BTW, I have run out of an index finger tip on some sharp a** edge inside the receiver

.

Pahoo · March 22, 2020, 05:00 PM

DDS,
I saw that you dropped the trigger assy. and I was only addressing that, to make sure the hammer was engaging the sear and was released when you pulled the trigger. Once it passed this check, then you can be assured that the problem is not in the trigger group...

Be Safe !!!

DDS · March 22, 2020, 05:08 PM

Virginian · March 22, 2020, 06:21 PM

I think the bolt is not going forward fully into battery for some reason. Is the extractor seating well into the slot on the outside of the barrel ?

DDS · March 22, 2020, 08:28 PM

Thanks for the continued support guys. This is getting frustrating.
Pahoo: I removed the trigger assembly again and cocked the hammer and pulled the trigger 5 times slowly releasing the hammer. The hammer and sear are working properly.
Virginian: I checked previously about the ejector engagement and it is in the proper position. I checked again, it’s seems fine.
I’m going to review the schematic of the trigger assembly to make sure all components are where they are suppose to be
Thanks.

Virginian · March 23, 2020, 08:21 AM

When you pull the barrel forward with the fore end off, and the trigger then works, do the action bars move any with the barrel ?

Pahoo · March 23, 2020, 10:23 AM

Quote:

I’m going to review the schematic of the trigger assembly to make sure all components are where they are suppose to be

Good point !!!

Quote:

When you pull the barrel forward with the fore end off, and the trigger then works, do the action bars move any with the barrel ?

Another good/logical check. The action bars have always been a bit of a challenge for me, on the Remingtons ….

Be Safe !!!

DDS · March 23, 2020, 03:11 PM

When I remove the forend and pull the barrel out, since the bolt moves with the removal the action bars must be moving too. I took pics showing the position of the bolt when the forend is removed and trigger doesn’t drop hammer. Then is the pic of how far forward I need to pull out the barrel before the trigger meets resistance and drops the hammer. Another pic shows the piston/rings position when the forend is removed. Any other info/pics I can provide?
Have at it

smee78 · March 23, 2020, 08:14 PM

Are you sure its the correct barrel, could be from a newer or older model 1100 and does not fit this gun? Could be why it was not installed? I have two barrels for my 1100 Mod and Full choke, could your friend picked this barrel up and then found its not the correct year for his gun?

DDS · March 23, 2020, 09:45 PM

Smee78, thanks for the reply. I hade mentioned in post #9 that maybe it was an incorrect barrel. The reason the barrel wasn’t on was it would not fit in his closet safe installed. I was also given an 870 magnum with a slug barrel installed. There was also another extra short barrel with an adjustable choke.
On the 1100 the barrel I installed was a 30” full fixed choke with vent rib. I presumed that’s the shotgun it was intended for. It seats flush at the rib/receiver area. The other short barrel doesn’t have the long grooved “tang” area.
Thanks again.

Virginian · March 24, 2020, 12:20 AM

All 1100 barrels within gauge and series will interchange. I have a 1966 1100 Magnum with a new Steel Shot barrel, and a 1963 1100 wearing a new Target Contour barrel.

DanLee · March 25, 2020, 02:24 PM

In your pictures above, the operating handle does not appear to be all the way forward in its slot in the bolt. Check that the piston and seal are able to enter the gas collar freely. If they don't, the locking block will not enter its recess in the barrel tang and the gun will not fire.

DDS · March 26, 2020, 03:42 PM

DanLee, thanks for your post! I had pretty much given up for a few days until I read your post. I thought, “Ok, one more shot at this before I take it to a gunsmith”. I repositioned the bolt handle several times until I confirmed that it was as far forward as it could be. I then hand fit the ring/piston into the barrel collar and it seemed ok. I sprayed the collar up well and let it soak. I took a brush to it vigorously until everything was spotless. I then ran my finger inside and felt a slight bur which I smoothed up with saturated steel wool. I reinstalled the barrel and kept my fingers crossed. Voila, that did the trick!

I’d like to thank everyone for their great posts and continued help. I’m a lot more intimately familiar now with the functioning/maintenance of this 1100!

Stay safe

! Dave

March 13, 2020, 06:20 PM	#1
DDS Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 1999 Posts: 101	Old Remington 1100 12ga won’t fire A buddy of mine died recently and his wife gave me his old shotgun. When I picked it up the barrel was not installed. Upon cleaning the gun up I installed the barrel. After dropping the bolt and disengaging the safety, the trigger failed to click, just trigger movement. What I did discover after removing/reinstalling the barrel was when I removed the forearm and pulled the barrel out slightly trigger activation resulted in the click. I presume the bolt is being held back from a fully forward position? Any troubleshooting advise would be appreciated. Thanks, Dave

March 13, 2020, 07:21 PM	#3
Virginian Senior Member Join Date: February 11, 2012 Location: Williamsburg, Va. Posts: 1,528	Check to see that the fore end and/or fore end support isn't binding on the action bars. Make sure the piston and piston seal are sliding freely into the barrel gas ring and are not holding back on the action bar sleeve. __________________ What could have happened... did.

March 17, 2020, 11:01 AM	#6
Pahoo Senior Member Join Date: February 16, 2006 Location: IOWA Posts: 8,783	Time for a separation So many times when trouble-shooting a problem, I separate the trigger group, from the rest of the firearm. That assists me, in isolating the problem. On so many Semi-Autos, the only contact between the two, is the hammer, to firing pin contact. Dropping the trigger group on these Remingtons, is simple and straight forward. I take the same approach to the 10/22's and Ar's and so-on. .. Be Safe !!! __________________ 'Fundamental truths' are easy to recognize because they are verified daily through simple observation and thus, require no testing.

March 17, 2020, 01:31 PM	#7
Virginian Senior Member Join Date: February 11, 2012 Location: Williamsburg, Va. Posts: 1,528	Note - he said when he moved the barrel forward, it did fire. That takes the trigger group well down the list of probable problems. __________________ What could have happened... did.

March 22, 2020, 03:00 PM	#11
Pahoo Senior Member Join Date: February 16, 2006 Location: IOWA Posts: 8,783	Check hammer and sear engagement DDS, Here is what I'm seeing and thinking, all the way from Iowa; Now that you have the trigger group out, study it just like you did in your previous reply. My swag on this is that the hammer and sear are not resetting/engaging and that is why the hammer falls when you pull the barrel. engage the safety and cock the hammer. With your finger blocking the hammer, disengage the safety and pull the trigger. Now, recock the hammer and see if it resets. Repeat this process and make sure your hammer engages the sear. Again, block the hammer when pulling the trigger. If the hammer resets, your trigger group, is not a problem…. Don't run out of fingers and; Be Safe !!! __________________ 'Fundamental truths' are easy to recognize because they are verified daily through simple observation and thus, require no testing.

March 13, 2020, 09:03 PM	#4
DDS Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 1999 Posts: 101	Pahoo and Virginian, Thanks for the suggestions. I’ll try both of them tomorrow. Hopefully those tips will resolve my issue. Thanks again, Dave

March 16, 2020, 06:52 PM	#5
Drm50 Senior Member Join Date: November 10, 2014 Posts: 1,381	Part called Link that part of bolt assembly is a stamping. It rides against buffer spring in stock. The hammer has to ass through this to strike firing pin. If gunked or bent it will obstruct hammer from firing.

March 17, 2020, 01:47 PM	#8
rc Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 2001 Location: CA Posts: 1,767	Carefully punch the pins and remove the trigger group pulling from the rear. I can't remember if the magazine feed parts fall loose on an 1100 but the trigger group will come out as an assembly. With the barrel off and the forearm removed the gas system and bolt should slide out of the receiver to the front. Once the bolt is free from the receiver, clean out all the old sticky oil particularly in the bolt and trigger group. I think some fresh oil and you will be back in business. Old oil can create a sticky gummy sludge if it's left long enough. rc

March 22, 2020, 02:18 PM	#9
DDS Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 1999 Posts: 101	I completely disassembled and cleaned everything well. I noticed carefully the orientation when I removed the rings and O ring. After reviewing Brownell’s tip on their orientation, I surmised that they were not properly oriented. These parts were the newer rings/seal design where the two metal rings snap in to each other. That is how I reinstalled them. Unfortunately, no luck. The gun was filthy and gummy so I thought that would take care of the problem. On one YouTube Video the guy suggested, from his experience, if the O ring was replaced with one from a hardware/auto store they were too thick and could interfere with functioning related to the disconnector. Being a novice, I removed the O ring and reassembled to no avail. As I had mentioned in my original post, when I remove the forearm and pull the barrel out slightly the hammer will drop. Maybe the loose barrel is incompatible? I also was given his slug barrel 870 (intact)with an extra barrel that I presume was for it. I took pics of the trigger assembly if that would help. I’ll have to figure out how to attach if wanted. Thanks again! Dave

March 22, 2020, 04:49 PM	#12
DDS Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 1999 Posts: 101	Pahoo, Thanks again for your reply. I’m going to try what you recommend. Before doing so I wanted to clarify that when I cock and release the action, when I pull the trigger it moves but does not click. When I remove the forend an slightly pull the barrel out and THEN pull the trigger it fires. I just wanted to make sure that you knew the hammer didn’t drop until I pulled the trigger with the barrel repositioning. Could this have something to do with the disconnector and not being in full battery? Now to disassemble again! BTW, I have run out of an index finger tip on some sharp a** edge inside the receiver .

March 22, 2020, 05:00 PM	#13
Pahoo Senior Member Join Date: February 16, 2006 Location: IOWA Posts: 8,783	Only addressng the trigger group !!! DDS, I saw that you dropped the trigger assy. and I was only addressing that, to make sure the hammer was engaging the sear and was released when you pulled the trigger. Once it passed this check, then you can be assured that the problem is not in the trigger group... Be Safe !!! __________________ 'Fundamental truths' are easy to recognize because they are verified daily through simple observation and thus, require no testing. Last edited by Pahoo; March 24, 2020 at 06:50 PM.

March 22, 2020, 05:08 PM	#14
DDS Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 1999 Posts: 101

March 22, 2020, 06:21 PM	#15
Virginian Senior Member Join Date: February 11, 2012 Location: Williamsburg, Va. Posts: 1,528	I think the bolt is not going forward fully into battery for some reason. Is the extractor seating well into the slot on the outside of the barrel ? __________________ What could have happened... did.

March 22, 2020, 08:28 PM	#16
DDS Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 1999 Posts: 101	Thanks for the continued support guys. This is getting frustrating. Pahoo: I removed the trigger assembly again and cocked the hammer and pulled the trigger 5 times slowly releasing the hammer. The hammer and sear are working properly. Virginian: I checked previously about the ejector engagement and it is in the proper position. I checked again, it’s seems fine. I’m going to review the schematic of the trigger assembly to make sure all components are where they are suppose to be Thanks.

March 23, 2020, 08:21 AM	#17
Virginian Senior Member Join Date: February 11, 2012 Location: Williamsburg, Va. Posts: 1,528	When you pull the barrel forward with the fore end off, and the trigger then works, do the action bars move any with the barrel ? __________________ What could have happened... did.

March 23, 2020, 08:14 PM	#20
smee78 Senior Member Join Date: July 14, 2008 Location: South Carolina Posts: 2,918	Are you sure its the correct barrel, could be from a newer or older model 1100 and does not fit this gun? Could be why it was not installed? I have two barrels for my 1100 Mod and Full choke, could your friend picked this barrel up and then found its not the correct year for his gun? __________________ We know exactly where one cow with Mad-cow-disease is located, among the millions and millions of cows in America, but we haven't got a clue where thousands of illegal immigrants and terrorists are

March 23, 2020, 09:45 PM	#21
DDS Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 1999 Posts: 101	Wrong barrel?? Smee78, thanks for the reply. I hade mentioned in post #9 that maybe it was an incorrect barrel. The reason the barrel wasn’t on was it would not fit in his closet safe installed. I was also given an 870 magnum with a slug barrel installed. There was also another extra short barrel with an adjustable choke. On the 1100 the barrel I installed was a 30” full fixed choke with vent rib. I presumed that’s the shotgun it was intended for. It seats flush at the rib/receiver area. The other short barrel doesn’t have the long grooved “tang” area. Thanks again.

March 24, 2020, 12:20 AM	#22
Virginian Senior Member Join Date: February 11, 2012 Location: Williamsburg, Va. Posts: 1,528	All 1100 barrels within gauge and series will interchange. I have a 1966 1100 Magnum with a new Steel Shot barrel, and a 1963 1100 wearing a new Target Contour barrel. __________________ What could have happened... did.

March 25, 2020, 02:24 PM	#23
DanLee Junior Member Join Date: March 1, 2018 Posts: 13	In your pictures above, the operating handle does not appear to be all the way forward in its slot in the bolt. Check that the piston and seal are able to enter the gas collar freely. If they don't, the locking block will not enter its recess in the barrel tang and the gun will not fire.

March 26, 2020, 03:42 PM	#24
DDS Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 1999 Posts: 101	That did it! DanLee, thanks for your post! I had pretty much given up for a few days until I read your post. I thought, “Ok, one more shot at this before I take it to a gunsmith”. I repositioned the bolt handle several times until I confirmed that it was as far forward as it could be. I then hand fit the ring/piston into the barrel collar and it seemed ok. I sprayed the collar up well and let it soak. I took a brush to it vigorously until everything was spotless. I then ran my finger inside and felt a slight bur which I smoothed up with saturated steel wool. I reinstalled the barrel and kept my fingers crossed. Voila, that did the trick! I’d like to thank everyone for their great posts and continued help. I’m a lot more intimately familiar now with the functioning/maintenance of this 1100! Stay safe ! Dave