Hello, from Beaverton, OR

[TonyBen]

Hello! My name is Tony. I'm from Oregon.

My specialty is M14 rifles. I'm a self-taught M14/M1A hobbyist/gunsmith. I like to tinker with my guns. Most of my guns are personalized in some way, from M14's to AR's, to Browning Buckmarks and home-built Savages.

Here's my latest creation, 100% assembled by me from individual parts...


Here's a Savage I overhauled and bedded myself...



Since there was no YouTube database on M14's, I created one...
https://www.youtube.com/user/tonyben3/videos

I gained enough of a following that people started asking me to work on their guns, so earlier this year I got my Type-01 FFL. Since then, I've been taking in customer M14 kits to assemble.

Anyways, I have always loved the Remington 870. I have my father's old 870 wingmaster with a 30" barrel from around 1974. It's had a broken ejector spring for decades and it still works. I really have to replace that soon sometime.

I just scored an 870 Magnum online in mint condition from the 80's. I'm looking to convert one of them to a nice home defense or tactical shotgun. I like using premium parts in my builds, so I'll be asking you guys what parts to look at for a super-reliable boom stick.


Tony.

[Synchronizor]

Welcome to the forum.

M14/M1As are cool; they were always kind of overshadowed by the M1 Garand since it had its WWII service going for it, but I always liked the M14 better. Feels like it has the same classic style of the M1 Garand, but with some more modern features. I probably wouldn't pick it over some more modern pieces if I needed a battle rifle to take to war, but I still wouldn't mind owning one someday. I'll definitely be checking out your channel.

As for your 870, by the mid-to-late 1980s, 870s had most of the design updates that you'd want in a reliable defensive shotgun. If it has a new-style action, that gun is probably pretty much good to go for HD. If it's from earlier in the '80s though, you might be missing the flex-tab action update, which I would strongly recommend. It's pretty easy to tell if your parts are new-style or old-style though:

[TonyBen]

Thanks for the info, and that's a nice YouTube page you have there! I'll be sure to watch and learn.

Looking forward to getting to know these platforms better.

Tony.