That sums it up right there. My first gun was an 870 and it was rusty right out of the box it never did cycle well even when clean. I have since gone to a Benelli M2 and I never looked back. But Remington did come out with a new 870 that has all the metal on the outside coated with a real tough plastic. It is not called an 870 but I think that it may be the same gun.

Here is the link to the new 870 it is called the 887
http://www.remington.com/products/firearms/shotguns/model_887/model_887.asp