About to dive in

[Flea]

Going to take the plunge and buy my first shotgun this week. I'm looking at the Riot-Gun trade-ins that Bud's has on sale. Remington 870 4+1 with 20" barrel, Speedfeed stock, rifle sights.

Anything I should look for in particular on a used Remington 870?

 

[Fred Fuller]

For an LE trade-in, not much chance it's been Bubba'ed. So that shouldn't be a worry. Check the ejector spring housing that's riveted to the inside of the receiver across from the ejection port) for looseness (not likely it will be, cop guns get ridden around a lot more than they get shot). Check the magazine tube for uneven finish wear indicating dents, bends or other damage, both with the bolt open and the bolt closed- that is, forearm forward and forearm back.

Don't worry a whole lot about external finish on either wood or metal, look for mechanical problems first and foremost, even though there likely won't be any. LE trade-ins should be reasonably clean and easy to inspect and not the grunge-o-rama you get with some used pumpguns.

Good luck and happy shopping,

lpl

 

[Dave McCracken]

Good choice.

Look for obvious damage, rust and wear. Wear's not that crucial, 870s do not wear out in a single lifetime.

After ensuring it's empty, hold the slide release down and pump it slowly. Note any serious hangups or hesitations.

Then clean it and go shooting.

HTH...