Problem 700 SPS

[gohring3006]

My buddy has a .300 WinMag SPS that was 100% stock at the time, and with some load development, we had it shooting 178 AMax's into ½" cloverleafs @ 100 yards. Completely factory w/ the crappy X-Mark Pro trigger.

Not that they will all shoot like that, but just letting you know what they CAN do if you get a good one.

Also, like you said, you can never have too many rifles. And tinkering with it is what most people DON'T do, and then they gripe that it won't shoot with the very first load they try... It's a $550 rifle...It's not built to shoot sub-MOA. However, by purchasing that rifle, you always have a great platform to build off of, because you have your 700 action, and your bottom metal BDL setup, which are 2 of the key components for a custom build. All you will need from there is a trigger, barrel blank, and a good stock.

I look at all guns as projects. I buy them, and if they shoot, awesome! if they don't...Oh well, now I have an excuse to build a custom.

Don't just bed the recoil lug...Bed the whole action & the lug & don't forget to float the barrel. You will probably be best off to go ahead and buy a Bell & Carlson Medalist stock for it, which has the full-length aluminum bedding block in it. Then bed that stock. Stockey's sells them for about $265, and has them in a bunch of different color options. Some people don't like them because they're inexpensive, but I can tell you from first-hand experience they are EXCELLENT stocks for the money. And at that price, I really don't think you can beat them. Next level up is an HS Precision, but those will run you around $400.

All of my customs use hand-lapped, trued, and re-crowned factory Rem barrels (professionally worked & accurized by my smith), and they all shoot sub-½ MOA with developed handloads. If everyone wants to go buy $350-500 barrel blanks, go right ahead. That means more factory barrels out there for me. But until I run out of new factory barrels for $75-150, I'll keep doing what I'm doing.

I learned long ago that a little extra work can turn a factory rifle into a shooter u can often get them cheap because the previous owner thinks its junk gotta love hand lapping

 

[MudRunner2005]

I learned long ago that a little extra work can turn a factory rifle into a shooter u can often get them cheap because the previous owner thinks its junk gotta love hand lapping

Glad to see someone else who has taken the time to experiment with working-over a factory rifle to see what they get it to do, without just yanking the barrel and calling it a ***.

I have had rifles with aftermarket barrels. And all of the rifles I have now have worked factory barrels. Sure, you might can get that extra 1/8 MOA of accuracy out of it, but when I can buy a factory barrel for 1/4 of what a blank costs, why not give it a try to see if you can get it to shoot?

 

[gohring3006]

Glad to see someone else who has taken the time to experiment with working-over a factory rifle to see what they get it to do, without just yanking the barrel and calling it a ***.

I have had rifles with aftermarket barrels. And all of the rifles I have now have worked factory barrels. Sure, you might can get that extra 1/8 MOA of accuracy out of it, but when I can buy a factory barrel for 1/4 of what a blank costs, why not give it a try to see if you can get it to shoot?

9 times out of 10 it will shoot

 

[westcliffe01]

By the time you are done with your lipstick on a pig job, it would have been cheaper to start with a custom action and a custom barrel. Or else your smith does not charge what the rest of us have to pay ours... Anyway, there is only so much that lapping can do, if the dimensions are oversize, oval, irregular or there is material missing from lands, no amount of lapping is going to restore it. I also like my barrels 26" long and lapping followed by rechambering and re-crowning would leave a 26" barrel closer to 22 or 20".

There are videos on borescope inspections of Remington barrels in particular and I would not waste a moment or a dime on one when there is quality stuff to be had.

Worst of all, anyone who looks at it would still believe it is a Remington and thereby essentially worthless. This was a decision I faced with my Classic in 8x57 and I am glad I chose to trade it, since the Savage that I finally built with a custom Shilen barrel had a lot less invested in it and worked perfectly right off the bat and I was able to do all the work myself.

Being an enthusiast or a fanatic is all fine and well, but does not make financial sense.

All of my customs use hand-lapped, trued, and re-crowned factory Rem barrels (professionally worked & accurized by my smith), and they all shoot sub-½ MOA with developed handloads.

 

[gohring3006]

By the time you are done with your lipstick on a pig job, it would have been cheaper to start with a custom action and a custom barrel. Or else your smith does not charge what the rest of us have to pay ours... Anyway, there is only so much that lapping can do, if the dimensions are oversize, oval, irregular or there is material missing from lands, no amount of lapping is going to restore it. I also like my barrels 26" long and lapping followed by rechambering and re-crowning would leave a 26" barrel closer to 22 or 20".

There are videos on borescope inspections of Remington barrels in particular and I would not waste a moment or a dime on one when there is quality stuff to be had.

Worst of all, anyone who looks at it would still believe it is a Remington and thereby essentially worthless. This was a decision I faced with my Classic in 8x57 and I am glad I chose to trade it, since the Savage that I finally built with a custom Shilen barrel had a lot less invested in it and worked perfectly right off the bat and I was able to do all the work myself.

Being an enthusiast or a fanatic is all fine and well, but does not make financial sense.

how about u spend ur dollars on all ur custom crap and I'll hand lap my barrels myself not by a smith bed the recoil lug and develope a good load I'll still have enough money to buy another rifle to play with while u wonder why u got 3000 dollars in a rifle I could out shoot u with my tv veture I promise it doesn't wear lipstick it wears a bushnell

 

[gohring3006]

how about u spend ur dollars on all ur custom crap and I'll hand lap my barrels myself not by a smith bed the recoil lug and develope a good load I'll still have enough money to buy another rifle to play with while u wonder why u got 3000 dollars in a rifle I could out shoot u with my tc veture I promise it doesn't wear lipstick it wears a Bushnell /QUOTE]

 

[gohring3006]

how about u spend ur dollars on all ur custom crap and I'll hand lap my barrels myself not by a smith bed the recoil lug and develope a good load I'll still have enough money to buy another rifle to play with while u wonder why u got 3000 dollars in a rifle I could out shoot u with my tv veture I promise it doesn't wear lipstick it wears a bushnell

sorry I meant TC VENTURE

 

[westcliffe01]

I think you misunderstand. My 8x57 build for example: $286 Savage model 110 in 270 Win. $340 Shilen select match 8x57 barrel, varmint contour. $60 NSS nut and recoil lug. $30 Go gauge Total build = $715.

Less that what I had in my factory Remington 8x57 Classic that could not group better than 3MOA (5 in factory form). That was before I added a $100 Shilen trigger and a $190 Boyds stock and then it was a 3MOA gun. So the Rem was at $750+$190+$100 = $1040. Now at that point to spend $350 on a blank and potentially $500+ to get said barrel fitted I would have been at $1890. I traded it for a semi custom Savage 308 that already had a Shilen barrel fitted.

Getting rid of the Remington saved me a lot of money and I got an excellent shooting Savage without any monkey business.

 

[gohring3006]

I think you misunderstand. My 8x57 build for example: $286 Savage model 110 in 270 Win. $340 Shilen select match 8x57 barrel, varmint contour. $60 NSS nut and recoil lug. $30 Go gauge Total build = $715.

Less that what I had in my factory Remington 8x57 Classic that could not group better than 3MOA (5 in factory form). That was before I added a $100 Shilen trigger and a $190 Boyds stock and then it was a 3MOA gun. So the Rem was at $750+$190+$100 = $1040. Now at that point to spend $350 on a blank and potentially $500+ to get said barrel fitted I would have been at $1890. I traded it for a semi custom Savage 308 that already had a Shilen barrel fitted.

Getting rid of the Remington saved me a lot of money and I got an excellent shooting Savage without any monkey business.

500$ for the sps 10$ for lapping compound 3$for bedding compound 8 for a six pack Michelob light =1moa

 

[westcliffe01]

This is not a race to the bottom. It is clear that to build a rifle that shoots 1MOA requires less effort and precision than one that shoots 1/2 MOA or 1/4 MOA. Every rifle I have built will shoot 1/2 MOA and my 308 is a 1/4 MOA rifle. I have owned an SPS in 223 and I know what they are and the classic was no SPS and SHOULD have been a decent rifle, but was not. It was not priced like an SPS and absolutely needed a trigger and stock upgrade.

There are more people that buy $700+ Remington rifles and are disappointed with them than people buying $500 SPS rifles who are not satisfied with minute of pie plate at sight in time in early Nov. I have seen them at the range and know what the level of expectation typically is.

 

[gohring3006]

your right about the 1moa rifle I guess I would have to add the timney trigger and blueprint the action that sucks that means I would get to tinker some more in my shop with another six pack of mic light

 

[gohring3006]

you probably have a nice set of rifles im just saying u don't have to go to extremes to get a rifle to shoot good enough to take game at ranges most people shoot but you give me a month to work on a savage axis I'll get it to 1/2 moa with just a little bit of effort and determination

 

[MudRunner2005]

By the time you are done with your lipstick on a pig job, it would have been cheaper to start with a custom action and a custom barrel. Or else your smith does not charge what the rest of us have to pay ours... Anyway, there is only so much that lapping can do, if the dimensions are oversize, oval, irregular or there is material missing from lands, no amount of lapping is going to restore it. I also like my barrels 26" long and lapping followed by rechambering and re-crowning would leave a 26" barrel closer to 22 or 20".

There are videos on borescope inspections of Remington barrels in particular and I would not waste a moment or a dime on one when there is quality stuff to be had.

Worst of all, anyone who looks at it would still believe it is a Remington and thereby essentially worthless. This was a decision I faced with my Classic in 8x57 and I am glad I chose to trade it, since the Savage that I finally built with a custom Shilen barrel had a lot less invested in it and worked perfectly right off the bat and I was able to do all the work myself.

Being an enthusiast or a fanatic is all fine and well, but does not make financial sense.

I can't tell you what my smith charges me...That's between he and I. And I'd about guarantee you it's not what most people pay at other places.

 

[Swamplord]

Mudd

I have two blued Rem 700 26" 300 RUM barrels if ya want, one is brand new never fired, came off a new Rem 700
the other has less than 20 rounds through it by original owner,
I never bothered to shoot either one as the barrels were yanked off on the day of purchase
$100 plus USPS shipping for both