pike slayer Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 So after finally jumping through all the hoops i finally got my PAL and did my hunting course, i was in the market to buy a gun. i was looking for a new one. i planned on doing partridge hunting with some possible rabbit hunting. i wanted a little more power then just a .410 but not a 12g so i was looking for 20g shotguns. i was looking through forums and doing research and everyone cant seem to get enough of the remington 870s and priced right i decided thats what i'd get. I spoke with my grandpa and i told him what i'd been up to and that i was gonna buy a gun. he told me he had one and that he'd give it to me. and i was like great probably some odd ball from 1922 and you cant find any ammo for itanymore haha. he went home and checked out what he had and he called me and he said it was a remington 20g pump action and it had been sitting in his closet for about 20years! what are the odds of that??? So the other night i went over and transfered everything over. He had told me it was my great grandfathers gun and when he died he got his hands on it but never used it. the thing is in almost perfect condition, it is the wingmaster model. i had called remingtion and gave them the serial number and they said it was made in 1954. its great to get something past down and i plan on taking extremely good care of it(im bad for breaking things) this gun is not gonna go anywhere but get past down to my kids or grandkids someday. i plan on taking it out and shotting it tomorrow to check the patterns before i take a shot at a bird. anything i should look over before firing considering its been sitting for so long? everything looks very clean. watch out this weekend partridge, i'm coming for ya! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisK Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Beautiful shot gun wd..I'm sure it will serve you well. Cheers !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boatman Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 That's great. A friend gave me my first shot gun - a 1926 Model 12 Winchester 12 gauge. It was bought new by his father. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigdritchie Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 I've owned a couple of 870s. Wonderful gun that will give you years and years of use with even the most minimal care. Congrats - having that history behind it just makes the gun that much sweeter. Let us know how you make out with the birds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushart Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Li'l Tip Don't discount a 12 ga for grouse or bunnies---That's all I use----shells are way cheaper too Bushart Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave524 Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Very nice, I have both a 12 and 20 870, Dad has been using the same one since 1952 in 12 gauge. They are basically unchanged since than, he got a new slug barrel in the 90's, it fit , I am pretty sure that is still the case. One thing to check with yours is to make sure the magazine is still plugged for only 2 shells, hate to see you get inadvertently caught on that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucG Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 (edited) Good for you! I'm in the market for a new shotgun too. Just make sure you give it a good cleaning and oiling. You can pickup a cleaning kit at canadian tire or walmart. Have fun hunting! Edited September 30, 2009 by LucG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioFisherman Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 LOL now that`s a shotgun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NAW Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Nice little gun you got there. That'l make a nice gun to pass down to the kids one day. You may want to wear a pair of safety glasses the first couple times you shoot it. My dad gave me his old Remington 1100 autoloader. It hadn’t been fired in 25 years when I got my hands on it. I remember the first time I shot the gun. I wore my safety glasses, and brought a buddy along with me. We where both a little nervous before the gun was fired for the first time. We were worried the gun would malfunction, or blow apart (not likely). My buddy was standing behind me, and to the right. When I fired the gun for the first time, the discharged shell casing flew out of the chamber, and headed straight for my buddies head. He thought the gun blew up, and pieces of it where flying at his head You should have heard him scream I thought he had been shot or something! Good luck ,and happy hunting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steel28 Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Congrats! I'm doing one stop course for PAL and Hunting next week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricoboxing Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 those wingmasters are suppose to be way better then the express versions they make now. nice going!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anders Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Congrats on the gun!!! Im sure you will have fun hunting with that. I dont use shotguns very oftern, im a .22 man for grouse and rabbits, but the odd time that we do pull the gauge out...its fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pike slayer Posted September 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 thanks everyone!! i am a bit nervous about shooting for the first time seeing i how its been sitting for so long. and ya i wouldnt rule out a 12g but as a beginner and without the greatest shot theres a good chance i'd blow the birds to pieces. i'm heading up to aubery falls for the weekend for some hunting and fishing so there should be a report on its way next week! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redneck666 Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 nice gun man! me and my buddy might take the circle around 556 out through bruce mines this weekend for birds. good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fang Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 get yourself a couple snap caps for this gauge (plastic hulls) and run them through a couple times. This'll get everything moving again before you put a live shell in. Very sweet shotgun and I must say kind of a sought after piece with us that like the old stuff. Would love to see a clearer picture of the wood. The old guns have some of the best wood grain character. I've been searching for an older 20G myself but have my heart set on an old browning auto 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigdritchie Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 those wingmasters are suppose to be way better then the express versions they make now. nice going!! Yes and no - apart from external finish, the metal parts are absolutely identical and completely interchangeable. Wingmaster gets polished, blued metalwork where the Express guns have a matt crinkle finish. The big difference is in the stock. The wood on a Wingmaster is oiled American Walnut, where wood stocks on 870 Express guns are made from beech, which has been stained to resemble walnut. Wingmaster stock has fine-cut checkering, where the Express has a stamped grip pattern. Depending on the age of the Wingmaster, there may also be very minor differences in the bead sight and barrel rib. Current 870 Express models are also sold a synthetic stock. Not as pretty as the wood on a Wingmaster, but perhaps more resistant to scrapes, scratches and water damage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy Bob Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 The Wingmaster is MUCH better gun than the 870 Express that is now sold.....there are "Light" Wingmasters out there as my cousin had one in a 20 gauge.....the non lights take different barrels if you want to add one. When Remington built your Wingmaster it was a blued finish........now the 870 Experess has a parkerized finished and it's not as good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misfish Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Unless I missed it,I would have it looked at by a gunsmith or a person that has much experince with guns.Like you said,it,s old and has not been fired in some years. Like fang said aswell. Plastic caps before live loads. Little thing like a fireing pin breaking could happen. Check the stock for cracks. Other then that,sweet piece of machinery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUSTER Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 NEW 870 express havent being doing to well , but the older wingmaster's are top notch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pike slayer Posted September 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 ya good idea with the plastics hulls, i didnt know such a thing existed. im suppose to go with my buddy peter tonight and hes been around guns his whole life with a grandfather being a gun collector and him owning over 67 guns himself. hes suppose to show me how to clean it and proper maintenance on it but still gonna worry firing the first couple shells Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aplumma Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Since the gun was free why not go ahead and treat yourself to a good lookin over by a gunsmith. He can check the bore and see what choke is if any is in the gun. He can also check the trigger and other parts for wear and lub it up for a fraction of what a new one would have cost you. When you fire it you should shoot it from the hip in a safe area to keep any injury if it malfunctions but after the gunsmith I would not be worried about issues. Art Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sinker Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Thats a SWEET little 20ga. you have there. I would LOVE to have that in my cabinet!!! That gun will outlast you and your kids, and thier kids! I've had a few shotguns in my time, but all I shoot is my trusty 'ole 870!! S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjsa Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Good deal, nice gun. Don't own one myself, I use either a 410 or my Ruger 10/22LR carbine for birds and rabbits. Probably not an issue with it not being fired for so long, just learn how to properly give it a good cleaning and oiling before firing it off after so long. I got lucky and scored a Winchester 94 lever action 30-30(like the ones in the John Wayne and other cowboy movies) from my uncle, and it had not been fired for over 40 yrs. He wanted to pass it down to his son, but my cousin was not interested in taking up hunting, then has suffered from MS. So, before the gun registry came into effect, he gave it to me and I registered it as mine(which it is legally). I cleaned and lubed it up, bought some ammo, and had a fun time sighting it in for deer hunting. Haven't actually shot a deer with it yet though, but hopefully sometime soon, usually just bring my Remington 7400 semi-auto 30-06, as we quite often moose and deer hunt on the same day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misfish Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 I got lucky and scored a Winchester 94 lever action 30-30 DROOL ,PLS, post a pic,so I can pin it up.LOL Sweet piece of iron Tom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fang Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 (edited) MS maybe I'll treat ya to some pics of my Dads (left it to me) real old Winchester 1892 in 25.20 caliber. Only shoot probably 1 box in it's whole life Serial number on it is 5 digit. I've been trying to date it but not much reliable info edit! funny how things pop up when you go looking again. popped in the serial number to a new website and it says gun was made in 1895 very cool!!! Edited October 1, 2009 by Fang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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