SLR15 LAW ENFORCEMENT SHOTGUN ARMORER COURSE
When: March 20-21, 2019
Where: Brandon, Mississippi (Jackson)
We conducted a 2-day (16-hour) Law Enforcement Shotgun Armorer Course in Brandon MS. This course was coordinated and hosted by the Mississippi Department of Corrections. This was our first time teaching at this location, and we look forward to many more. The training room offered plenty of table space, decent lighting, and they had large projection system that allowed us to show some powerpoint & detailed pics of the weapons systems and parts, especially when looking at finer detail things like machining, stress cracks & wear.
This class was a mix of Law Enforcement Officers from all over Mississippi.
Shotguns present in this course were a mix of Remington 870's, Mossberg 500/590's. Officers bring shotguns to work on, and we always recommend that Officers bring shotguns that are not working correctly or broken, as we look at this as a learning opportunity to figure out what is not working correctly, and Officers can make repairs onsite to get them back into working condition. There were no Benelli shotguns in this class, so we offered the ones we brought, but nobody was interested in messing with them.
We started with an introduction of all present. Everyone was supplied with a course manual, inspection forms, and supplier lists of where to obtain parts, tools and accessories. We supplied every student with their own set of basic tools that are necessary to do most of the general work on the shotguns. Everyone was introduced and supplied with Slip2000 "EWL" Extreme Weapons Lubricant and #725 Cleaner Degreaser.
We showed our procedure of a series of checks that we use to make sure everything is working correctly, and why we use this series of checks. Everyone was taught a hands on session of the eight cycles of function on the shotguns. From there we broke the same eight cycles down further in greater detail.
We went through the proper way to remove barrels from each type of shotgun. With the barrels removed, they were inspected, in this class I think every barrel was heavily fouled. The fouling inside the barrel is generally plastic from the shot wadding, mixed with powder and shot residue. Everyone was shown that they needed to clean the chamber and bore, as these are different diameters and require different brushes. They were also shown all the other hidden areas of the barrel that need to be kept clean for proper functioning of the bolt assembly and barrel to receiver fit for lock up etc. Also shown were a multitude of tools, brushes, and jags for cleaning the barrel. Everyone with fouled barrels were allowed to clean them, as a hands on session of trying the different methods and tools shows what works better. Everyone was supplied with Slip2000 #725 Cleaner/Degreaser, Slip2000 Piston Parts & Choke Tube Cleaner, which help to cut through the fouling rather quickly. After a short session of barrel cleaning, the fouling was removed.
Barrels were inspected for damage, stress, missing parts etc. We also showed the differences between old and new styles of Remington 870 retaining cap designs, and showed why these shouldn't be intermixed.
Note: There were three 870's that were missing the spring & detent which locks the barrel onto the magazine tube via that retaining cap. They were supplied the new parts, the proper punch, and made the repairs.
Next we showed how to remove the bolt assemblies from each of the different weapon systems. Everyone learned that the Mossberg system is more involved when compared to the Remington. We showed how the bolts assemblies, slides, action bar assemblies, integrate together. Bolts were disassembled and reassembled, and inspections were done, showing where debris and corrosion is found, and why we recommend that certain things be inspected and cleaned on a regular basis. Students were introduced to splined pins, and shown the proper way to remove and install them. The 870's were inspected for old versus new parts, the difference in era's of 870 parts, and shown a hands on difference of forged vs MIM (metal injection molded) parts and why we recommend using the forged parts on police 870's. The 500/590 bolts were disassembled, and people were shown the changes in eras of these parts, and that there is a difference in the right & left extractor assemblies and why.
Magazine tubes and their internals were gone through. When we allow people to clean the magazine tubes using a magazine tube brush, it’s always amazing to see how much crud comes out, and IMHO the magazine tube should be scrubbed clean of debris on a regular basis. Magazine springs were covered, and there were a few students that had sporting shotgun springs, of which were replaced with heavier springs. Students were also shown why we recommend tactical magazine tube followers over the stock cup shaped ones. No magazine tubes were found to be bent or damaged, but we covered repair and replacement.
Note: Several of the 870's present had broken magazine tube springs. This generally happens when someone abuses the gun when putting it back together, and pinches or bends the spring. They were supplied with new Wolff springs.
Day-2 started with a review of day-1. We then moved into forend assembles, stocks receivers and trigger groups. Forend assemblies (action bar assemblies) were taken apart using the proper wrenches, then the forends were inspected, action bars inspected, and things were reassembled and indexed correctly. It was shown how the action bars have a timing that controls the shell latches, and if the action bars are damaged or bent that the timing could be off. We also showed variations and evolution changes in the forends.
Note: There were 8 shotguns with loose forends. There were all brought to class due to having binding cycling issues, and/or feeding issues where no shells or multiple shells were coming out of the magazine tube. Once everyone properly indexed and tightened the action bars and forend assemblies down, all of these shotguns worked properly.
We removed the butt stocks. Once removed, we showed the different bolts and washers that are used. Stocks were inspected for cracks, and all made sure they had stock bearing plates and were shown their importance. We went through stock repair on wood and synthetic stocks, to include alterations. Receivers were inspected where stocks mount to, and replacement and repair was covered.
We then moved into trigger groups, starting with the Remington 870, followed by the Mossberg. Everyone was shown how the entire trigger groups work, what can be disassembled and what cannot due to availability of parts, inspections, maintenance, mechanical safeties, changes in designs, Police/Military models vs sporting models, and how the carrier integrates during cycling. We also showed common mistakes that people make with trigger groups, the problems in function, and how to correct any issues. After trigger groups were put back together, we showed how the carriers integrate, how the slides with action bars work, and how/why the lock forward cycle works.
Note: One Officer brought a Remington 870 that had a bent carrier. The carrier was bent downward approximately 3/4". The story as to how it happened is that a fail to eject had occurred when someone short stroked the action, causing a fail to eject, and a new live round was released from the magazine tube, and as the shooter cycled the action forward the empty casing that wasn't ejected was pushed back into the chamber as the action locked into battery, yet the new live round was still sitting on top of the carrier and was now wedged under the slide/bolt assembly, causing the action to be jammed up. The Captain no knowing how to get things unstuck, took a screwdriver and pried down on the carrier, and bent it down so he was able to then get the screwdriver onto the live shell and push it back into the magazine tube, while damaging things to the point the gun had to be taken out of service. We gave him a new carrier assembly, and he replaced the bent one, getting things back into working order. This is a lesson of why we have the opinion that if you don't know what you re doing, then either seek out the correct information, or get it t someone who does what they are doing, and stay in your own lane of traffic.
Shell Latches on the Remington system was next. We covered proper staking and why, how they get damaged or misaligned, and their replacement. We demonstrated, and then allowed people to use several different staking tools that we brought.
The next thing we covered was the ejector systems. We showed the 4 piece system of the 870, 2 piece system of the Mossberg. We covered how these are replaced, tuned, and proper inspections, showing several variations of tools and methods of how to perform repair & replacement.
The end of the day was a review, followed by all shotguns being reassembled, then inspected and gauged to make sure everything was in spec and ready to go back into service.
Here is a brief overview of what is covered:
Headspace and wear inspections
Action and function
Barrel inspections
Fore-end assembly & action bars
Bolt assembly (extraction & spring, firing pin, retractor spring, flexitab cuts)
Ejector inspection, repair & replacement
Slide assembly inspection
Stem adjustments
Hook Space
Magazine spring, retainer & followers
Shell latches, inspections, adjustment & replacement
Custom accessories & enhancements
Maintenance
CY6
Greg Sullivan "Sully"
SLR15 Rifles
TheDefensiveEdge.com
(763) 712-0123
When: March 20-21, 2019
Where: Brandon, Mississippi (Jackson)
We conducted a 2-day (16-hour) Law Enforcement Shotgun Armorer Course in Brandon MS. This course was coordinated and hosted by the Mississippi Department of Corrections. This was our first time teaching at this location, and we look forward to many more. The training room offered plenty of table space, decent lighting, and they had large projection system that allowed us to show some powerpoint & detailed pics of the weapons systems and parts, especially when looking at finer detail things like machining, stress cracks & wear.
This class was a mix of Law Enforcement Officers from all over Mississippi.
Shotguns present in this course were a mix of Remington 870's, Mossberg 500/590's. Officers bring shotguns to work on, and we always recommend that Officers bring shotguns that are not working correctly or broken, as we look at this as a learning opportunity to figure out what is not working correctly, and Officers can make repairs onsite to get them back into working condition. There were no Benelli shotguns in this class, so we offered the ones we brought, but nobody was interested in messing with them.
We started with an introduction of all present. Everyone was supplied with a course manual, inspection forms, and supplier lists of where to obtain parts, tools and accessories. We supplied every student with their own set of basic tools that are necessary to do most of the general work on the shotguns. Everyone was introduced and supplied with Slip2000 "EWL" Extreme Weapons Lubricant and #725 Cleaner Degreaser.
We showed our procedure of a series of checks that we use to make sure everything is working correctly, and why we use this series of checks. Everyone was taught a hands on session of the eight cycles of function on the shotguns. From there we broke the same eight cycles down further in greater detail.
We went through the proper way to remove barrels from each type of shotgun. With the barrels removed, they were inspected, in this class I think every barrel was heavily fouled. The fouling inside the barrel is generally plastic from the shot wadding, mixed with powder and shot residue. Everyone was shown that they needed to clean the chamber and bore, as these are different diameters and require different brushes. They were also shown all the other hidden areas of the barrel that need to be kept clean for proper functioning of the bolt assembly and barrel to receiver fit for lock up etc. Also shown were a multitude of tools, brushes, and jags for cleaning the barrel. Everyone with fouled barrels were allowed to clean them, as a hands on session of trying the different methods and tools shows what works better. Everyone was supplied with Slip2000 #725 Cleaner/Degreaser, Slip2000 Piston Parts & Choke Tube Cleaner, which help to cut through the fouling rather quickly. After a short session of barrel cleaning, the fouling was removed.
Barrels were inspected for damage, stress, missing parts etc. We also showed the differences between old and new styles of Remington 870 retaining cap designs, and showed why these shouldn't be intermixed.
Note: There were three 870's that were missing the spring & detent which locks the barrel onto the magazine tube via that retaining cap. They were supplied the new parts, the proper punch, and made the repairs.
Next we showed how to remove the bolt assemblies from each of the different weapon systems. Everyone learned that the Mossberg system is more involved when compared to the Remington. We showed how the bolts assemblies, slides, action bar assemblies, integrate together. Bolts were disassembled and reassembled, and inspections were done, showing where debris and corrosion is found, and why we recommend that certain things be inspected and cleaned on a regular basis. Students were introduced to splined pins, and shown the proper way to remove and install them. The 870's were inspected for old versus new parts, the difference in era's of 870 parts, and shown a hands on difference of forged vs MIM (metal injection molded) parts and why we recommend using the forged parts on police 870's. The 500/590 bolts were disassembled, and people were shown the changes in eras of these parts, and that there is a difference in the right & left extractor assemblies and why.
Magazine tubes and their internals were gone through. When we allow people to clean the magazine tubes using a magazine tube brush, it’s always amazing to see how much crud comes out, and IMHO the magazine tube should be scrubbed clean of debris on a regular basis. Magazine springs were covered, and there were a few students that had sporting shotgun springs, of which were replaced with heavier springs. Students were also shown why we recommend tactical magazine tube followers over the stock cup shaped ones. No magazine tubes were found to be bent or damaged, but we covered repair and replacement.
Note: Several of the 870's present had broken magazine tube springs. This generally happens when someone abuses the gun when putting it back together, and pinches or bends the spring. They were supplied with new Wolff springs.
Day-2 started with a review of day-1. We then moved into forend assembles, stocks receivers and trigger groups. Forend assemblies (action bar assemblies) were taken apart using the proper wrenches, then the forends were inspected, action bars inspected, and things were reassembled and indexed correctly. It was shown how the action bars have a timing that controls the shell latches, and if the action bars are damaged or bent that the timing could be off. We also showed variations and evolution changes in the forends.
Note: There were 8 shotguns with loose forends. There were all brought to class due to having binding cycling issues, and/or feeding issues where no shells or multiple shells were coming out of the magazine tube. Once everyone properly indexed and tightened the action bars and forend assemblies down, all of these shotguns worked properly.
We removed the butt stocks. Once removed, we showed the different bolts and washers that are used. Stocks were inspected for cracks, and all made sure they had stock bearing plates and were shown their importance. We went through stock repair on wood and synthetic stocks, to include alterations. Receivers were inspected where stocks mount to, and replacement and repair was covered.
We then moved into trigger groups, starting with the Remington 870, followed by the Mossberg. Everyone was shown how the entire trigger groups work, what can be disassembled and what cannot due to availability of parts, inspections, maintenance, mechanical safeties, changes in designs, Police/Military models vs sporting models, and how the carrier integrates during cycling. We also showed common mistakes that people make with trigger groups, the problems in function, and how to correct any issues. After trigger groups were put back together, we showed how the carriers integrate, how the slides with action bars work, and how/why the lock forward cycle works.
Note: One Officer brought a Remington 870 that had a bent carrier. The carrier was bent downward approximately 3/4". The story as to how it happened is that a fail to eject had occurred when someone short stroked the action, causing a fail to eject, and a new live round was released from the magazine tube, and as the shooter cycled the action forward the empty casing that wasn't ejected was pushed back into the chamber as the action locked into battery, yet the new live round was still sitting on top of the carrier and was now wedged under the slide/bolt assembly, causing the action to be jammed up. The Captain no knowing how to get things unstuck, took a screwdriver and pried down on the carrier, and bent it down so he was able to then get the screwdriver onto the live shell and push it back into the magazine tube, while damaging things to the point the gun had to be taken out of service. We gave him a new carrier assembly, and he replaced the bent one, getting things back into working order. This is a lesson of why we have the opinion that if you don't know what you re doing, then either seek out the correct information, or get it t someone who does what they are doing, and stay in your own lane of traffic.
Shell Latches on the Remington system was next. We covered proper staking and why, how they get damaged or misaligned, and their replacement. We demonstrated, and then allowed people to use several different staking tools that we brought.
The next thing we covered was the ejector systems. We showed the 4 piece system of the 870, 2 piece system of the Mossberg. We covered how these are replaced, tuned, and proper inspections, showing several variations of tools and methods of how to perform repair & replacement.
The end of the day was a review, followed by all shotguns being reassembled, then inspected and gauged to make sure everything was in spec and ready to go back into service.
Here is a brief overview of what is covered:
Headspace and wear inspections
Action and function
Barrel inspections
Fore-end assembly & action bars
Bolt assembly (extraction & spring, firing pin, retractor spring, flexitab cuts)
Ejector inspection, repair & replacement
Slide assembly inspection
Stem adjustments
Hook Space
Magazine spring, retainer & followers
Shell latches, inspections, adjustment & replacement
Custom accessories & enhancements
Maintenance
CY6
Greg Sullivan "Sully"
SLR15 Rifles
TheDefensiveEdge.com
(763) 712-0123