It still needs a little cosmetic stuff here and there, but it's functional and that's what I call "done". The rest is just icing at this point.
The history: About a year ago, a friend gave me an 870 Express receiver. Took me forever to get around to even starting this project, mostly because I had others, but now I've got all the parts in one place, and that place is inside or on the receiver!
Has some rust pitting on the right side of the receiver, so I need to draw-file flat and then put something on it to keep rust out. I'd like to Duracoat the whole sucker in tan or dark earth (more likely a combination of the two), but like I said - icing. Plans also include taller sights, possibly just a tall bead setup with a Picatinny rail on the receiver, though I'd like to go ghost ring.
Oh, you noticed the shiny bolt? Yeah, accidentally got a Marine Magnum bolt, so it's covered in electroless nickel. I think it looks OK (but don't care much) and I know that there's at least one part on the gun won't rust. Also, look close at the left side shot and you should be able to see where I reshaped the fore end to clear the side saddle. I cut it back, then took a rotary tool with a sanding drum and rounded everything, took the rest of the roughness off it with a Scotch Brite pad. Almost looks like it was made that way, till you get close enough to see the sanding drum marks I didn't spend enough time (and probably won't) polishing out with the Scotch Brite.
Most other parts are standard 870 stuff: 20" improved cylinder choke barrel (IIRC, I ordered a Mossberg-produced barrel because it was only $120) with 3" chamber (though I doubt I'll ever bother shooting 3" in it), Remington trigger assembly with an aluminum trigger guard, and Remington +3 extension. Aftermarket stuff is TacStar 6 round sidesaddle and a Knoxx Spec-Ops stock (the recoil reducing one). It works well, but gives you a pretty high cheek weld. But it's worth it to have that shotgun kick turned into a shove. You still get full recoil energy, you just get it spread out over more time.
Capacity is 7+1 (which means reduced recoil 00B lets me put 72 pellets on target in somewhere around 3 seconds).
So far, very happy with my shotgun, having just got the last part for it and put it together Friday and tested it today. Everything works as it should, the cheaper S&B buck patterned tighter and more uniformly than Remington, slugs went point of aim, the action is typical Remington smoooooooothness (part of that might be the grease I applied) and it didn't turn into a bomb when I pulled the trigger (always important on a project gun).
I can't believe I'd gone this long without owning a shotgun. I grew up with shotguns. My first gun was a shotgun at age 14. Feels good having a scattergun in the house again. She's not pretty on the outside, with a mix of blued, parkerized, textured aluminum, plastic and rust pits... but it works great and I'm more than pleased with myself.
Total build cost was right around what a base model 870 would run new. And might as well call this new, since everything except the receiver is brand new.
The history: About a year ago, a friend gave me an 870 Express receiver. Took me forever to get around to even starting this project, mostly because I had others, but now I've got all the parts in one place, and that place is inside or on the receiver!
Has some rust pitting on the right side of the receiver, so I need to draw-file flat and then put something on it to keep rust out. I'd like to Duracoat the whole sucker in tan or dark earth (more likely a combination of the two), but like I said - icing. Plans also include taller sights, possibly just a tall bead setup with a Picatinny rail on the receiver, though I'd like to go ghost ring.
Oh, you noticed the shiny bolt? Yeah, accidentally got a Marine Magnum bolt, so it's covered in electroless nickel. I think it looks OK (but don't care much) and I know that there's at least one part on the gun won't rust. Also, look close at the left side shot and you should be able to see where I reshaped the fore end to clear the side saddle. I cut it back, then took a rotary tool with a sanding drum and rounded everything, took the rest of the roughness off it with a Scotch Brite pad. Almost looks like it was made that way, till you get close enough to see the sanding drum marks I didn't spend enough time (and probably won't) polishing out with the Scotch Brite.
Most other parts are standard 870 stuff: 20" improved cylinder choke barrel (IIRC, I ordered a Mossberg-produced barrel because it was only $120) with 3" chamber (though I doubt I'll ever bother shooting 3" in it), Remington trigger assembly with an aluminum trigger guard, and Remington +3 extension. Aftermarket stuff is TacStar 6 round sidesaddle and a Knoxx Spec-Ops stock (the recoil reducing one). It works well, but gives you a pretty high cheek weld. But it's worth it to have that shotgun kick turned into a shove. You still get full recoil energy, you just get it spread out over more time.
Capacity is 7+1 (which means reduced recoil 00B lets me put 72 pellets on target in somewhere around 3 seconds).
So far, very happy with my shotgun, having just got the last part for it and put it together Friday and tested it today. Everything works as it should, the cheaper S&B buck patterned tighter and more uniformly than Remington, slugs went point of aim, the action is typical Remington smoooooooothness (part of that might be the grease I applied) and it didn't turn into a bomb when I pulled the trigger (always important on a project gun).
I can't believe I'd gone this long without owning a shotgun. I grew up with shotguns. My first gun was a shotgun at age 14. Feels good having a scattergun in the house again. She's not pretty on the outside, with a mix of blued, parkerized, textured aluminum, plastic and rust pits... but it works great and I'm more than pleased with myself.
Total build cost was right around what a base model 870 would run new. And might as well call this new, since everything except the receiver is brand new.
