Real advantages of a Marine Magnum?

[YankeeZulu]

I got a buddy who's retiring on his sailboat soon and is looking at a Marine Mag as one of his defense weapons. Is there any real advantage of the Marine finish over a parkerized or blued one in a marine environment, especially if the SG is well maintained?

(Apologies if this has been brought up in here before.)

[Synchronizor]

Parkerizing or oxide finishes need to be kept oiled to best protect the underlying metal. This adds to the gun's required maintenance, and you have to take the gun apart to get to some parts with oil. The advantage with the nickel plating is that it doesn't need oil or some other after-finish. The Marine Magnum models also have special internals that are plated or otherwise more corrosion-resistant. If you go through Remington's parts price list, you'll see that pretty much every component has a separate Marine Magnum version. This, I think, is a bigger deal than the outside finish; some external rust on the receiver or barrel really isn't going to compromise the function of the gun, but rusted internals can cause more serious problems.

I wouldn't consider the Marine Magnum a necessity for harsh conditions, pretty much any 870 should stand up fine if it's taken care of. But if your friend wants something that needs a minimum level of care in a salt-water environment and is willing to spend a little extra for it, the Marine Magnum would be a good choice.

[sven]

I wouldn`t count 100% on the brittle electroless nickel finish. I had once a new almost unfired 870 marine magnum that nickel began to flake off in the barrel extension notch where the bolt lug mates. If salt water gets in a hidden spot like this unnoticed, rust will rise. Inside the barrel were also some bare spots, and chrome lining would be much more tougher.

[YankeeZulu]

I wouldn`t count 100% on the brittle electroless nickel finish. I had once a new almost unfired 870 marine magnum that nickel began to flake off in the barrel extension notch where the bolt lug mates. If salt water gets in a hidden spot like this unnoticed, rust will rise. Inside the barrel were also some bare spots, and chrome lining would be much more tougher.

Wouldn't a good soak(like Ballistol) prevent this?

[sven]

Lubricating a 870 marine would give you the same amount of job done if it were parkerized. There are many armed forces using parkerized police versions on sea duty, but a nickel finish is a better choice when someone just leaves it on a boat without care.