Special purpose! Remington's workhorse Versa Max autoloader has two cool variants–Tactical and Waterfowl.

IT TOOK SERIOUS EFFORT, but I finally got the Versa Max to jam. I

was getting frustrated. Normally, I can get even the most reliable

autoloader to jam up with little difficulty, but this one had me

baffled. It fed three-inch and 31/2-inch shells without a hiccup. It

spit out 2%-inch (both target and high-base) loads, even some very old

handloads with funky crimps. I thought I had it with some very light

“youth load” slugs from Hastings–those shells have baffled

quite a few semiautos–but this one chewed them up and spat them out. I

could even mix up the magazine with the weirdest array of shotgun shells

you ever saw, and it ran right through them as if it could read my mind.

Well, it took another trip to the range, but I finally beat it. I

dug around one of my dad’s old shell boxes–the same place those

handloads came from. Dad’s been gone 12 years, and he probably

didn’t handload for at least a decade before that (and he was never

much good at loading shotshells anyway).

Lord knows where they came from, but I found a handful of 21/2-inch

British shells. Yep, that did the trick. Sort of. Amazingly, the Versa

Max would eject them every time, but it just couldn’t feed the

second extra-short shell. Actually, though, in order to win I had to

cheat, because nobody ever said the Versa Max could handle 2 1/2-inch

shells. It says right on the barrel “12 gauge 2%-to 3

1/2-inch,” and all those it can handle, in any order you want to

stack them. Funny thing is, the gun is so reliable that if I chambered a

2 1/2-inch shell, then fed a 2%-inch shell, it would feed just fine–it

just wouldn’t feed the second 2%-incher from the magazine.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

TACTICAL AND WATERFOWL

A good word for the Versa Max is “complete.” Remington

sent me two variations–the Versa Max Waterfowl in Mossy Oak Duck Blind

camo and the no-nonsense black Tactical version. The former came in a

nicely fitted green hardcase, and it was quite an outfit. In addition to

the basic shotgun, there were extended choke tubes and a wrench. The

tubes were IC, Modified, Full and Extra Full. In case of any confusion,

the Modified tube was marked “Over Decoys,” with constriction

of .009; the Full tube (.014) was marked “Pass Shooting.” The

Extra Full was marked “Turkey and Predator,” and the Improved

Cylinder wasn’t marked, so I guess I was supposed to figure out

what it was for all by myself.

The synthetic stock incorporates overmolded rubberized grip panels

on both fore-end and pistol grip, and has a rubber insert on top of the

comb. The Versa Max action manages recoil very well, but the cheek pad

helps a lot with heavy loads, and it’s interchangeable if you wish

to change the height of the comb. Traps in the case hold everything you

need to change length of pull, drop at comb, drop at heel and even cast:

inserts, a clever cast plate and, for ham-handed guys like me, very

clear instructions on how to adjust the stock. Fortunately, I’m

pretty much Joe Average. Most factory stocks, including this one, fit me

very well.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Also in the case is a trigger lock, a wrench for disassembling the

gas system and interchangeable Hi-Viz front bead inserts in red and

white (in case you prefer either color to the factory-installed green

bead). The case is lockable and sturdy enough to travel with, so you

pretty much get everything you need.

The other version, the Tactical, does not come cased, but is

equally complete with stock inserts, sight inserts, a Picatinny rail if

optical or red dot sights are preferred and two choke tubes: a

conventional Improved Cylinder and an extended “Tactical”

choke that doubles as a muzzlebrake. The Tactical also has a forward

barrel clamp Picatinny mount for lights and lasers. In both cases the

aftermarket options are up to you, but the guns are ready to go as they

come off the shelf and can easily be made to fit if stock modifications

are necessary.

THE SYSTEM

The Versa Max is a gas-operated shotgun, and this can be felt every

time you pull the trigger. All three-and 31/2-inch 12-gauge guns are a

handful with heavy loads, but the Versa Max gas system removes a lot of

the sting. It’s an altogether different system, giving the gun its

name. The gas ports are just ahead of the chamber, along with the

gas-operating twin pistons, which drive rearward to cycle the bolt.

According to the literature, the Versaport gas system “regulates

cycling pressure based on the length of the shell.” I figured it

was pretty smart because it beat me until I cheated and slipped in that

21/2-inch short. Seriously, though, the system works amazingly well.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

REMINGTON VERSA MAX

TYPE: Dual-piston gas operated

GAUGE: 12 (3 1/2-inch chamber)

CAPACITY: 3+1 (Waterfowl), 8+1 (Tactical)

CHOKES: Extended IC, M, F, EF (Water fowl), IC, Extended Tactical

(Tactical)

BARREL 28 in.

LENGTH: (Waterfowl), 22 in. (Tactical) OVERALL 49 15/16 in.

LENGTH: (Waterfowl), 43 15/16 in. (Tactical)

WEIGHT: 7.7 lbs. (Waterfowl), 7.75 (Tactical)

STOCK: Synthetic

SIGHTS: Vent-rib with Hi-Viz bead (Pica tinny receiver rail

supplied)

LENGTH OF PULL: 14 in.

FINISH: Mossy Oak Duck Blind (Water fowl), black (Tactical)

MSRP: $1,599 (Waterfowl), 51,399 (Tactical)

MAKER: Remington Arms www.remington.com

The velocity of the bolt, and thus the pressure applied, apparently

varies quite considerably depending on the shells. Long magnum hulls are

thrown twice as far as 2 3/4-inch target loads, but all empties eject

well clear, and in several hundred rounds fired, operation remained

absolutely flawless.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

The system is designed to function without frequent cleaning, but

cleaning is eventually required, and it’s quite simple. The barrel

is removed conventionally by removing the magazine cap and then the

fore-end, allowing the barrel to be slipped off forward. The gas

cylinders and pistons just ahead of the chamber are obvious, and

it’s equally obvious to take the hex wrench, unscrew the forward

portion and gas plugs, then the pistons slide out forward, from chamber

toward the muzzle.

Bolt removal is familiar, at least if you’re among the

millions who have owned one of the previous iterations of Remington gas

guns. With the bolt all the way forward, pull out the operating handle,

then slide the bolt out forward. This is a good exercise in

understanding how the gun works, because (after firing) you can readily

see where the pistons strike the heavy steel block below the bolt. By

the way, “heavy” is not an exaggeration. On my postal scales

the bolt assembly weighs just over a pound, and the bolt body is one

massive piece of steel. Once it gets moving it generates a lot of

inertia, which is, at least in part, why it’s able to digest such a

wide variety of loads.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

ATTENTION TO DETAIL

Remington offers four Versa Max models, all in 12 gauge (again, 2

3/4-inch to 31/2-inch), all with synthetic stocks. There’s the

Versa Max Synthetic in gray synthetic stock, the RealTree AP HD and the

Water-fowl. These are 28-inch-barrel shotguns intended primarily for

hunting, although the gun handles plenty well enough for at least casual

sporting clays, accessorized as described. Then there’s the

brand-new Tactical, a 22-inch-barrel gun with black synthetic stock,

eight-round extended magazine and accessories as described.

But, as they say on those infomercials–wait, there’s more.

The Versa Max has quite a few little touches that help make it, well,

versatile. On all versions the safety button–located behind the

triggerguard–is oversize, allowing goof-proof operation with gloves,

and the triggerguard itself is also oversize to allow shooting with

gloves. The loading port is also generous. Like so many of us, I’ve

used bottom-loading tubular-magazine shotguns all my life, but I’ve

never felt that cramming in shells was either fast or smooth. But it is

with the Versa Max; the follower is under very light spring pressure,

which combines with the loading port to make throwing in shells fast and

painless. Barrels are hammer-forged with the bores nickel plated, with

nickel plating or Teflon coating on internal parts to enhance corrosion

resistance.

The synthetic stocks all have an integral sling swivel stud in the

butt. The sporting models have the forward sling swivel stud on the

magazine cap, while the Tactical has the forward sling swivel stud on

the left side of the Picatinny barrel clamp. Obviously, you don’t

have to use it if you don’t want to, but if you’re carrying

decoys into the marshes and woods and, hopefully, decoys and birds on

the way out, a sling is mighty handy.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Aside from the extended magazine, Tactical choke and Picatinny

options, there are a few other differences with the Tactical. Intended

for use in 3-Gun competition as well as law enforcement, it has a

ventilated rib with Hi-Viz bead. The Picatinny receiver rail is supplied

separately, so you don’t have to install it if you don’t want

to, but all Versa Max receivers are drilled and tapped, so the options

are there. The Tactical retains the oversize safety and triggerguard,

but also adds an oversize operating handle and oversize bolt release for

fast and foolproof operation.

THE SWING OF THINGS

The Versa Max is not a lightweight shot-gun–no 3 1/2-inch 12-gauge

should be–but it’s also not that heavy. Sporting models weigh 7.7

pounds. On the Tactical, the longer magazine tube acts as a tradeoff

against the shorter barrel, so the weight is about the same at 7%

pounds. Handling characteristics are amazingly good; the shotgun is

lively and responsive. In the case of the Tactical model, once again the

longer and heavier magazine makes up for the shorter barrel, and it also

swings very smoothly. While the majority of the shooting we did was with

target loads, we fired several magazines of heavy loads just to get the

feel of it. The feel wasn’t bad at all. I wouldn’t want to

shoot sporting clays all day long with magnum loads, but it wasn’t

as bad as I expected. With target loads, well, the Versa Max really does

kick like a 20 gauge.

One thing I did in reverse order: I should have taken the guns to

the pattern board before trying to break some clays. Because of the way

the stock fits me, I assumed a six o’clock hold. So the Versa Max

got its revenge for the way I tricked it. It actually shoots very much

dead-on, as both waterfowl and tactical shotguns should, so I undershot

some targets before I figured it out. The Pro Bore chokes provide dense,

even patterns in the waterfowl gun, and the Tactical choke is designed

to optimize performance with always-finicky buckshot.

My old friend Kyler Hamann, one of our local outfitters, is such an

obsessive shotgunner that he built his own five-stand course so

he’d always have a place to practice. So on a blistering afternoon

we repaired to the Parkfield Valley to see how the guns shot. Again,

these are not sporting clays guns, but they shot very well, both of

them. The Waterfowl gun was extremely responsive, pointing well and

handling extremely well. One thing I quickly learned: Practice makes

perfect. I’ve known Kyler most of 20 years, and there might have

been a time when I could beat him with a shotgun, but those days are

over. He handled both shotguns like a champ, while I missed some birds I

shouldn’t have.

But here’s something very interesting. Kyler is a big guy,

half again my size, much taller with longer arms. He probably needed at

least one of the stock inserts to make the guns fit. He shot them just

fine the way they were, but he actually shot the Tactical just as well

as the Waterfowl version. Despite the short barrel–which probably seems

a lot shorter if you’re well over six feet tall, as opposed to

five-nine–he agreed with me that the gun handled extremely well and was

easy to swing. It was the first time either of us had shot clay targets

with an extended-magazine shotgun, but clearly there’s something

there, with the added weight forward making up for the abbreviated

barrel. With aerial targets becoming a part of many shotgun events, this

is probably of interest to the growing number of 3-Gun shooters.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Of course, the Tactical was fast and smooth on stationary targets

as well, and we both noted how easy it was to load. Technically, the

Waterfowl is better suited to what we were doing, and for flying targets

it certainly suited me better. As I said, at first I was undershooting

targets, but once I figured out where it was patterning I got on them

pretty well. It comes up fast, and handling qualities are exceptional.

As far as functioning goes, the Versa Max is just plain awesome.

Regardless of what loads we stuffed in these guns, they digested them

just fine. We had no stoppages, no problems, despite an eclectic array

of shells. And when we pointed the guns correctly, they broke targets.

When the birds didn’t break, it wasn’t the fault of the

shotguns. Whether birds, bad guys or those nasty steel plates, I’m

sure these two will do just as well for their intended purposes. Which,

after all, is about all you can ask of a shotgun.

Remington has a long and illustrious history with autoloading

shotguns, fully a century now. Both the Model 1100 and 11-87 remain in

the Remington line, so the Versa Max is not a replacement (yet). But it

is significantly different–a very clever design that takes

Remington’s autoloading heritage one step further. The Versa Max is

not inexpensive as autoloading shotguns go, but it’s not in the

stratosphere either. It’s a lot of gun for the money.

via Special purpose! Remington's workhorse Versa Max autoloader has two cool variants–Tactical and Waterfowl.
by John Button