I'm unfortunately known as the office "gun guy".  So it's common for people to come to me with questions about firearm-related stuff.  A buddy of mine came to me the other day with this:






It's a police trade-in from a local Sheriff's Office.  I'm not sure whether or not it's an 870P, because this is all the markings on the sideplate:







It's in rough enough shape, though, that I can well believe that it was passed around from deputy to deputy since it was born.  If I'm translating right, it's got a build date of December 1985 - can somebody correct me if I'm wrong?  The wood was beat to hell, the locking block and slide assembly were totally rusty, the barrel had so much carbon and plastic caked in it that I honestly couldn't tell if it was rusted or just filthy.  Even the extractor was rusty.

















My friend goes... "So... ya want it?"  The price was okay, so I did some mental calculations on how much crap I'd be in with the missus later on.  Yeah, I'll take it.  Funny thing... When I got it home, I ran some shells through it just to see.  At first, it wouldn't take more than one in the magazine.  It got all stuck when I tried to load the second round.  Once I got that freed up, I found out that it would feed and eject them slicker than grass through a goose.  It was stiff, but who wouldn't expect that with all the rust and other crap that had built up on it?  I left the bolt, pins, and miscellaneous metal parts soaking in some of Quib's secret OMS / gun oil mixture overnight.


The next evening, after I had gone to the store to buy a steel scrub brush and a brass scrub brush, I tackled the bad girl.  I won't lie here - it took me a good four hours of hard scrubbing and wiping down to get things right.  Heck, the barrel alone took me a half hour.  First I filled her up with foam and let her sit.  Then I scrubbed her out.  Then I did it all again.  Then I scrubbed for a good ten minutes with just a bronze brush.  In the end, I had to wrap a patch around the brush, soak the patch in Remoil good, and literally scrub back and forth for a couple minutes.  I changed the patches out four or five times, and here's how the barrel came out.  (There's still a little crap down near the chamber end, but I had to move on.)







Next was the bolt.  There was just a little bit of rusty crud on the bolt itself which cleaned up in short order.  The locking block and slide assembly... took a few minutes.  I almost got the Dremel and a little wire wheel out, but I figured that would be giving up too soon.  After about forty-five minutes, here's how they look:







I know, I know - could be better.  But time was short, and I had to move on.  Luckily, there was no rust at all on the firing pin or spring - I was surprised as all heck about that!  Likewise, there was no rust on the magazine spring.  I still scrubbed out the magazine tube and passed an oily patch down it, just to be on the safe side.  I remember well how it originally hung up on only one shell.  The tail ends of the action bars were completely covered in rust where they were in contact with the slide assembly - they cleaned up pretty well also, but I forgot to take before and after pics of them.  They ate up another twenty minutes though.  This is the parts bath that I had the bolt and trigger pack soaking in overnight.  That brown gooky stuff is what washed out of the parts - reminded me of cosmoline, only nowhere near as functional.  And yes, that is a bug floating in the solvent.  Must have washed out of the trigger pack.  







I'm still not sure what I want to do with the wood.  I want to strip it down and refinish it as close to factory original as possible.  I lack the proper tool to remove the handguard, though, and I don't want to screw it up.  maybe one day I'll get some Magpul plastic and a magazine extension, and tacticool it all out, but for now, it pleases me to have it just the way it is.  The deputies that owned it before I got it never took care of it - this much is obvious.  It gives me an odd sense of satisfaction to bring an old warhorse into the stable and brush her down well, give her a good home.    It's calming, in a way, to have her around.  I haven't named her yet, but I think I will.  Not all of my guns have names, but I think she deserves one.









Quick question:  Is she an 870P?  Or an 870 Express, all dolled up with Parkerized finish and walnut stock?  And the muzzle concerns me a bit - it's a little rough looking.  Kinda like it's been used to bust down somebody's door.  Am I concerned over nothing?

nice gage gun.

Good job on cleaning up that filthy thing. I dont know if its a 870p or not looks just like the ones that were carried here by the local LEO's. I see nothing wrong with the crown either.

Thanks.  Oh, and... Pro-tip #1.  After you've torn something like this down, spent a few hours cleaning her up and then put her all back together again, do NOT get pissed if you're cleaning all the sodden newspaper off your work bench and you find a small piece of metal that looks suspiciously like an extractor, sitting right next to the extractor plunger.  Just be happy you didn't throw them away by accident.  And when you tear it down again to install said extractor, do NOT get in a hurry and accidentally slip, launching the plunger against the back wall where it falls down behind your work bench, causing you to spend several minutes on hands and knees looking for it.

These are Bad Things to do.  Patience rules the day when dealing with extractors and plungers.  I'm just sayin'.

very nice gun. i dig the older stuff.

The bolt carrier doubles as a action tube nut wrench

LOL well I am sure just about all of us have done something similar, I have been known to launch a spring or too.

I read that, but it didn't seem to fit very well, and I didn't want to crank down hard enough on the vise to really lock it into place.  I tried to get it with a spread pair of needle nose, and with the bolt carrier, and it just didn't seem to want to budge.  In a way, I don't mind it.  I was thinking - who knows how many guys clutched onto this old girl in time of need?  How many deputies did she give comfort to when they needed courage?  How often was she relied upon when things got really dark and stormy?

When you think about it that way, I'm okay with her just the way she is.

I have an old 870P circa about the same time and I think the grooved, wood hand guard was OE on the "P".

I'm pretty certain it's a P.  If it was an express or a wing master it would say it on there.





Plus, you say the action is slick, if it was an express it'd be all ratchety.





Cyl barrel and all metal parts is another tip off for a P.

You called it a warhorse; that should be its name.

You can call remington and they will tell you what if it is a P model or not. I've read that the early P models weren't marked as such, just built to those specs. Does it have the anti-jam tab upgrade on the lifter? If not, you might want to change that out. Either way, you have a great gun.

She really looks nice.  Cleaned up real good !

It doesn't have the anti-jam cut out on the carrier.  I've never even heard of it until just now.  I don't think I've ever had any issues with not getting a shell up in the magazine far enough before.

Nice!  I like the wood.

Good job.  I wouldn't change a thing!  

Sure looks like a police model. I have three older (pre 92 I think) ones that DO NOT say police on the side but remington verified they were. Think there was an X or M in the SN in a certain spot that designated it. Then the wood and sling attachments scream police model.

I love them all beat up like that. Sexy beasts.

That is the correct forearm for a "P".  I've had several, and thay all had that exact same handguard.

I was thinking of either "Mabel" or maybe "Alice".  


I kinda like "Alice".  Reminds me of my dream wife, Milla Jovovich...

Nice find and clean-up.

FYI - a quicker way to clean barrels like that is to wrap some scotchbrite around a shotgun brass cleaning brush & rod - - don't use the handle, take the opposite end and use a variable speed hand drill to spin the rod and brush - use some lube and cleaner - comes out shiny except very deep pits.  Only takes a few minutes this way.

Don't you dare fuck that thing up by tacticool-ing it.  That is a beautiful piece of machinery that has beauty marks and stories to tell.  Leave it just the way it is.  

I agree with above it should be named WARHORSE.

THAT THING IS BEAUTIFUL

Dream wife?????

I'd name it kate. After my dream... Kate upton!

Awesome!

Do Not Put Plastic Furniture On Warhorse!

I wonder if you do need to refinish it to keep the rust from returning? Cerakote?

If I named her Kate, it would be because of the character Evangeline Lilly played on "Lost."  

But I've had a serious crush on Milla Jovovich since "Fifth Element."

I'm planning on just leaving it alone.  There was very little actual surface rust on the exterior - only a light frosting on the action bars.  I've been trying to picture how many times she was used in the rain, and just thrown back into a deputy's trunk without being dried out inside.  I figure that's where all the interior rust came from.  I'm going to keep her oiled up and she should be good to go, long after I pass on.

Great shotgun. I would refinish the wood and keep any rust at bay with oil and 0000 steel wool. Don't ruin the look of that old beast with plastic anything!

definitely no plastic.  That wood comes out nice with a refinish.  I stripped mine and just used BLO on it for a lighter finish.

That forend  screams "P" model, as does the front sight.  Never seen an Express with either of those.  Check to see if it has the flex tab system to prevent the "Remington Jam", if not install it and go shoot it.

Rob