So I got this 1958 870 Wingmaster and a bunch of clues, but they aren't adding up...

[Detailed Firearms]

Greetings, I just purchased a Remington 870 Wingmaster from an auction of a private collection. A lot of noteworthy guns, well out of my price range. But this 870 looked great.

It has a Pachmayr Presentation Grip that shows production in Los Angeles, their earlier factory. It also has a pre-Surefire Laser Products Corp weapon light forend with the original 3v incandescent bulb (and a period Duracell battery that has a clear plastic case, never seen anything like it). The barrel has a date code of "PE," and is a 20" cylinder choke. It all matched up for me as a mid-80s build.

But I couldn't find anything about the serial number of the receiver. All of the online guides tell me there's a 2 letter prefix, but this gun is only numbers with a "V" at the end (which matches the barrel's cartridge markings.

So, I emailed remarms.com and they quickly got back to me and I read the barrel date codes wrong. "PE" is the date code, but it's not 1984... it is 1958. Wow. This thing is pristine, but wait... it has a bead on the barrel, but Remington didn't have a 20" barrel in 1958, did they? Would that indicate custom, or "customized"?

I've attached pictures of the barrel markings. Do they say anything to y'all? What about the two dimples that are on the bottom of the barrel, do they indicate anything?

Any help is appreciated, this is exciting!

[Mainspring]

Remington offered a Riot version from the beginning, the 20" Cyl barrel matches that description. The Pachmayr and Surefire were most likely added at a much later date.

[Detailed Firearms]

Interesting, is there a way to determine whether the barrel end is factory or has been cut down? It has a ball sight mounted (what looks like) properly, and the muzzle doesn't look like it's been modified, but I don't know exactly what to look for.

[Mainspring]

The CYL marked choke is probably the bigger clue. That choke is used on short barrels, I don't think it was ever offered on a full length barrel. While a barrel could be shortened after it left the factory trying to replicate the appearance of a factory barrel is rarely done, there is no need or advantage. There is not enough value to create a fake for added value. The barrel is marked CYL, if that was not the original choke then the original choke marking would have to be removed and signs would be visible. A common method to mark an altered choke is to stamp a couple XX over the original marking and stamp the new designation to the side or underneath.