utility shotgun: Working with what I have

[plumberroy]

I had a plan for a utility shotgun A repeater since I have a couple singles that work as that . My first plan was find an old 870 wingmaster and an improved cylinder slug barrel and put a lefty safety in it . Alas I could not find one locally ,and older guns I want hands on before I put down cash. I have a lefty 870 express I shoot well. Left handed 870's come with one barrel option 28" vent rib remchoke. So my barrel is off being cut to 18 3/4 and the bead put back on and threaded for remchokes.
I have the mod. choke tube that come with it and an improved cylinder tube to try
This is as I said a utility gun, HD, critter in garden/chickens or to carry when I want a gun in the woods but not hunting a specific animal
Roy

 

[Fred Fuller]

That will work.

I would have gone with a touch more barrel for a genuine 'all purpose' utility gun (I think 21" is about right) but a little shorter isn't going to hurt.

 

[DaleCooper51]

I have a lefty Wingmaster that I picked up pretty cheap as it was on the LGS shelf for over a year. It would be nice if there was a bit more selection of barrels. The only thing that stopped me from cutting mine down was not being able to decide on a length. It took me long enough, that I stumbled across a 20" RS RC barrel on the ebay with a $69 Buy It Now and I did. I was leaning towards 23" to have it cut down, but with the second barrel, I had it opened to a Light Mod.

 

[plumberroy]

Used wingmasters are hard to come by here I looked for a while before deciding to cut my lefty down . I would have took a right handed gun and had the safety changed. if I could have found one. It would have given me a selection of available barrels
I went with 18 3/4 because I'm a little spoiled on short guns shooting singles I have a H&R 20 and a rossi 410 under 3ft oal . what little performance I loose going shorter on the barrel won't make a difference in my style of hunting
Roy

 

[plumberroy]

Barrel is back Steve Rose did an outstanding job on the work . I looks like a factory barrel finish wise Went to the club and run a few rounds through it this gun still takes remchokes
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[DaleCooper51]

That looks great.

Enjoy.

 

[Fred Fuller]

That looks good!

One thing about it, long as you are careful with it, that's a job you won't have to have done again.

Did you get him to extend the forcing cone while he had it?

 

[plumberroy]

That looks good!

One thing about it, long as you are careful with it, that's a job you won't have to have done again.

Did you get him to extend the forcing cone while he had it?

no I was going to and some stuff came up so I just had it shorten and chokes and bead put back on it

 

[bannockburn]

Looks sweet! I did the same thing years ago with a Remington Sportsman 12 (a Model 870 by any other name), and had a gunsmith cut the barrel back to 18+" and thread it for choke tubes. Great utility shotgun that I didn't have to worry about the finish all that much.

 

[Fred Fuller]

Experience shows the best bang for the buck in pattern improvement in shotgun barrels for buckshot is an extended, polished forcing cone. It's probably the best "accessory money" one can spend on a shotgun - even if it doesn't show at all on the outside.

 

[jakk280rem]

Is the lefty barrel proprietary to the lefty models only? Or will any 870 barrel work? I'm guessing the extractor notch is backwards.

 

[DaleCooper51]

Is the lefty barrel proprietary to the lefty models only? Or will any 870 barrel work? I'm guessing the extractor notch is backwards.

The LH will not fit a RH gun nor will a RH barrel fit on a LH gun. It is frustrating because there's only one LH barrel(28" matte finish) currently being manufactured.

 

[plumberroy]

The LH will not fit a RH gun nor will a RH barrel fit on a LH gun. It is frustrating because there's only one LH barrel(28" matte finish) currently being manufactured.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^what he said ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
And a lefty barrel cost all most as much as a right handed 870 when they run 870's on special . Rose action sports did it for me and did a outstanding job it looks like a factory barrel finish where he cut it
If any 870 barrel would work it would be wearing a smoothbore slug barrel with iron sights remington made alot of those with improved cylinder choke
Roy