1979 Remington Wingmaster question

[xcxcal88]

I recently purchased a used wingmaster in great shape. The finish on the barrel and receiver is not the typical blued finish you see in these guns. More of a dull dark grey. I called Remington the check the serial number. The receiver is from 1978 and the barrel from 1979, which they said was common.

Can anyone tell me if Remington ever made them this way or if the gun was refinished or altered? The thing that worries me is that engraving on the receiver seems very faded, especially near the wingmaster section. Thanks for any help.

[Synchronizor]

There may have been a few special sporting 870s that had something other than the standard high-gloss bluing back in the days when every non-military 870 was a Wingmaster; but the fact that your shotgun's trigger plate and controls appear to have the same exact finish as the rest of the gun makes me suspect that this gun was refinished at some point. My guess would be some kind of paint or coating, as more traditional conversion coatings like Parkerizing wouldn't stick to the aluminum trigger plate.

As long as the gun functions properly, I wouldn't worry about it. If the finish isn't to your liking, you can always have the gun re-done.

[Passport]

Looks like cerakote to me