The 870 Wingmaster Project Part 1

I acquired another shotgun....this one a Remington 870. I had never owned an 870 (but had wanted one for years) and in a short time I ended up with two of them....

The gun came to me in pieces, but it looks like everything is there.

The first step was to identify what I had.
The prefix on the serial number dates the gun to 1968-1974 and the date code on the barrel (assuming it is the original barrel) dates the barrel to 1974, so I can be pretty sure it was made in 1974. The barrel is 28" with a modified choke and the gun takes 12 gauge, 2 3/4" shells, magazine capacity is four without the plug.

The next step was to assemble the gun and make sure all the parts are present and accounted for, which they were. I tested it with some dummy shells and it loaded, cycled and ejected them just fine.

Here is what it looks like in one piece

The stock sits a little proud of the receiver, we will address it by sanding the metal first, getting it close to perfect, then sand the wood to match.
 

One of the few parts I could find missing was the brass bead sight, which can be had for just a few dollars

I will need to remove and reblue the grip cap screw, this also goes for the butt plate screws.

Next step was to fire the gun with live ammo. I had a couple extra misc shells in my range box, so I used them to test the gun, they both went off as they were supposed to, the dimple in the primers look good.

There are a few different ways I can finish this gun. I could restore the wood and steel to make it to look original:

I could make it into a Police Wingmaster by adding hardwood stocks and extended magazine and a matte finish

  
I could go tactical with it

I could also make it into a Post Apocalyptic looking weapon, it already has the neglected finish

Stay tuned