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Old 05-20-2012, 11:55 AM
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The S&W 3000 versus the Remington 870 Wingmaster The S&W 3000 versus the Remington 870 Wingmaster The S&W 3000 versus the Remington 870 Wingmaster  
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Default The S&W 3000 versus the Remington 870 Wingmaster

Kissing cousins? - The Remington 870 Wingmaster (top) and the Smith & Wesson 3000.



I recently had my examples of each of these out and for the first time put them next to one another for a close comparison.

If you're not familiar with the Smith & Wesson Model 3000, this model dates to the 1980's, and to put it politely, was "inspired" by the Remington 870 Wingmaster. It's not a slavish copy, but there can be no doubt about whose market share it was intended to pare.

Let's get a couple of other inconvenient truths out of the way while we're at it. The 3000 was in production for just a few years, and is exceedingly unlikely to ever be making a comeback. It was made in Japan for rather than by S&W. The 870, on the other hand, is an all-American classic that continues to be one of the most popular shotguns ever.

Still, I can't help but look at each and think that this S&W venture didn't deserve a better fate.

The fit and finish of both the 3000 and 870 are first rate. The machining, polish, and bluing of the metal surfaces on each cannot be faulted The walnut stocks and forends of either are of a good grade, with high gloss coatings that are indistiguishable from the other . The 870 sports a fancy "fleur-de-lis" pattern of checkering, but this is impressed. The 3000's plainer (but not at all unattractive) style is actually cut, so advantage to S&W on that count. I like the 3000's logo pistol grip cap and slightly larger forend better, too.

Another area in which I give the nod to the S&W product is with regard to interchangeable chokes. There's nothing particularly wrong with Rem-chokes, other than they're proprietary. The 3000's supplied chokes on the other hand, were clones of the Win-choke design, and with that system, the Mossberg flush style chokes may also be used.

Another small thing that I appreciate on the S&W is the mid bead, which you generally won't find on Remingtons.

All in all, the Smith & Wesson 3000 and the Remington 870 Wingmaster are comparable in any significant measure of quality, utility, feel, and operation. You couldn't go wrong with either, unless the issue of future parts availability is of concern to you. But if you're simply putting one gun up against the other, from the standpoint of the various detail differences, I actually prefer the S&W. And when your standard is a legend like the 870, that's saying a lot.
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File Type: jpg 3000 ad.JPG (273.3 KB, 195 views)
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Old 05-22-2012, 10:56 PM
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The S&W 3000 versus the Remington 870 Wingmaster The S&W 3000 versus the Remington 870 Wingmaster The S&W 3000 versus the Remington 870 Wingmaster The S&W 3000 versus the Remington 870 Wingmaster The S&W 3000 versus the Remington 870 Wingmaster  
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I've got several 870 riot guns and one S&W 3000 riot gun. Sitting across the room you can't tell them apart, except for the front stock. I've hunted with 870's all my life and shooting the 3000 is not much different. I'm not much into the mechanics of the two and haven't used the 3000 enough to form an opinion on which is better. I got the 3000 because it was there, I like riot guns, and I didn't have one. There is no logo on my riot 3000 stock even though ther is on on the rubber butt plate. I got a chance to see some of the new Smith shotguns that are made in Turkey. They appear high quality but I wouldn't pay what they are asking for them.
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Old 05-24-2012, 10:05 AM
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Default The S&W 1000M versus the Remington 1100

Lookalikes - The Remington 1100 (top) and the Smith & Wesson 1000M


I have subsequently put my Smith & Wesson 1000M and Remington 1100 alongside each other, and came to the conclusion that I could've written virtually all the same things regarding that comparison, too (country of origin, quality of finish, type of checkering, mid bead, et cetera).

There are a few additional comments, though, that specifically pertain to these autoloaders. With the Smith and Wesson, as I understand it only the version chambered for magnum (3") shells got you a steel instead of an alloy receiver (I am supposing the later 1000 Super 12 also was all steel, but as I've never seen one, I can't say for certain). The standard 1100, on the other hand, even with its steel construction and shooting lighter loads, nevertheless suffers from the lack of a recoil pad. I also find the 1100's dual surface loading gate a bit fussy, while the 1000M's is simple and straightforward. Finally, the gas piston system of the 1000M strikes me as more sophisticated than that of the Remington, but of course how such in practice makes for more or less reliability and durability can always be debated. In any event, my impression is that the 1000 is considerably less a derivative of the 1100 (despite their similarity in appearance) than the 3000 is of the 870.
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