REM 700 SPS RUM compared to WBY MKV Ultralight 300 WBY?

[JJMoody]

Buy a Savage....if the barrel wont do .5MOA spend $300 more and it will.[/QUOTE]


It'll shoot, but the things are soooo ugly......but it'll shoot?

 

[Predator 22]

I have to laugh at this. Any time there's a mention of Weatherby rifles you get Mudrunner spouting off about his "REALLY bad experience", in which he bought a rifle that was not very accurate. So he got a lemon, big freakin deal. Every company cranks out a lemon occasionally (I personally got a lemon from Cooper, but it doesn't mean their rifles suck). Weatherby rifles are significantly higher quality than the Remington SPS. I will admit that the heavy barreled Rems like the Sendero and 5Rs are a step up in quality, but those are also much heavier than the 2 guns being considered here, and double the price of the SPS. If the OP is asking about 7 lb guns I don't see much point in recommending a 9 lb gun.

The Weatherby will come with a high quality stock, very precise chamber, and a trigger that's crisp and easily tuned. The SPS gives you a plastic stock, sloppy chamber, and a trigger you'll probably want to replace. The barrel on the Wby is hand-lapped so you won't have to worry about fouling like you do on the cheap Remingtons. The Weatherby has an accuracy guarantee. These are both factory rifles but they are on opposite ends of the spectrum.

I have nothing against factory Remingtons. I own a Model Seven that I really like, but I understand it's limitations. When it shoots sub-moa I'm pleasantly surprised. With some bullets it won't shoot sub-moa and that's just life with a factory Remington. My 700 LSS performed exactly the same way until I had a decent barrel put on it.

If the goal is to reliably put 5 shots into 5" at 500 yards I think you'll need some luck to do it with the SPS. Some of them shoot well and others don't. They take more effort to find good loads for. With the Weatherby I would be confident the goal could be reached without too much effort.

While I do like Weatherby rifles I think they are a bit overpriced if you pay retail. They have a better fit and finish than the $1200 Remington heavy barreled guns, and a much better trigger, which for me puts them at about a $1600 gun.

If you drop the coin on a Weatherby you won't regret it. Look at both rifles in person if you get a chance and the differences will be pretty obvious.

The op didn't say 7lb gun, and didn't specify what model of gun. He said Remington vs. Weatherby.
To the op, go to your local gun store and find the gun you like, that fits you. If you can't get comfortable behind it you will probably have a hard time being consistent with it. I don't care for weatherby stock designs. They just don't fit me and it seems unnatural. There lower end guns use a Howa barreled action and I don't really care for them. Nothing wrong with them they just don't tickle my fancy and seem overall heavier or out of balance.
Never had any problems with my Remington's and you have endless amounts of upgrades possible. Mine have all shot very well with most being .75 or better and a few down in the .1-.25 range. But most of them have not been recent purchases and I have heard that Remington qc has been questionable in recent years.
Savage is another good option, especially if you are a diy type of person. Never have owned one but have shot a few and I will say I was surprised by how well they shot. But to me they are butt ugly and then some and look cheap to me.
The lower end Savage and Remington's both have cheap stocks that will need to be replaced. Not sure about the Weatherby?
Now my $.02. Spend a little bit more and get a 700 action, buy a barrel and have it fitted and a stock of your choice (used in the classifieds here to save $$) and for $1000-$1200 have a gun that has a very good chance if not a certainty to out shoot all the above mentioned rifles and has great aftermarket support for upgrades in the future.
Hope this answers some of your questions without the bias or bickering.

 

[Bravo 4]

The op didn't say 7lb gun, and didn't specify what model of gun. He said Remington vs. Weatherby.

Sorry predator not trying to bicker but he did specify what model, it's in the very thread title itself. Not trying to take up for anyone either but, given the two models mentioned, I can see how a light gun assumption was made.
Enjoyed the rest of your post, lots of merit to it.

 

[Predator 22]

Sorry predator not trying to bicker but he did specify what model, it's in the very thread title itself. Not trying to take up for anyone either but, given the two models mentioned, I can see how a light gun assumption was made.
Enjoyed the rest of your post, lots of merit to it.

You are correct. Thanks Bravo, don't know how I missed that. That is like comparing a Mustang to a Pinto.
If you are considering spending that kind of money you should definitely be building a rifle.

 

[el matador]

Spend a little bit more and get a 700 action, buy a barrel and have it fitted and a stock of your choice (used in the classifieds here to save $$) and for $1000-$1200 have a gun that has a very good chance if not a certainty to out shoot all the above mentioned rifles

If you are considering spending that kind of money you should definitely be building a rifle.

Here's what my semi-custom Rem 700 cost:

Donor rifle, stainless, with good laminated stock: $700
Pac-Nor super match SS barrel, fluted: $445
Action truing/chambering: $300
Shipping: $30
Trigger tuning/pillar bedding: Did them myself ($40 materials, 4 hours labor)

Total price for a budget semi-custom: $1515

This is for a gun with a heavy laminated stock and factory trigger. If you want a fiberglass stock with bedding block like the Weatherby has, and a trigger on par with the Weatherby, you can add another $200-300. So you're at $1700-1800 plus a whole bunch of leg work to find a gunsmith, locate a donor rifle, buy a trigger, stock, barrel, and maybe bottom metal. If you have a bunch of spare time to do all this legwork, and don't mind waiting several months for the work to be completed, this is a good way to go. Time = money, and the time required to build a semi-custom is significant.

You can find donor rifles for a bit cheaper than $700 but most of them are going to be blued actions with crappy stocks. Buy one of those for $450, pay $300-400 for a good stock, and another $100-150 for bluing or cerakoting the rebarreled rifle - you've spent even more than I did. You can also forego the fluting to save $125 but the Weatherby rifle is fluted. To get a magnum rifle down under 7 lbs you'd want the fluting.

You could build one for under $1200 if you are a gunsmith and don't include the price of your own labor. Since a gunsmith would not be asking about factory rifles I would say your advice in this thread is useless and inaccurate.

 

[el matador]

It'll shoot, but the things are soooo ugly......but it'll shoot?

Exactly how I feel about Savage! They do seem to shoot well but they feel so cheap and nasty when I pick one up. I can't bring myself to own one.

 

[Deleted member 46119]

The challenge with these sorts of threads is that:

1) we loose the original poster with the first page or two. Our rhetoric about what is good, what is bad and the negativity of those who feel burned turns them away.

2) in our blindness (not everyone), we fail to provide factual information about how each firearm is constructed, what materials are used, what standards the company believes in.

Focus on helping the requester.

 

[qwerty11]

The challenge with these sorts of threads is that:

1) we loose the original poster with the first page or two. Our rhetoric about what is good, what is bad and the negativity of those who feel burned turns them away.

2) in our blindness (not everyone), we fail to provide factual information about how each firearm is constructed, what materials are used, what standards the company believes in.

Focus on helping the requester.

OP is still around!

The assumption is correct; I am wanting a 7lb gun. This gun will be used on hunts that will require me to do a great deal of walking. Also, while I would love nothing more than to build a rifle and go through the trial and error, I currently do not have the time.

 

[el matador]

Remington does have a couple other guns you might take a look at before making up your mind.

The 700 Mountain SS comes with a nice stock and is really light, but not available in 300 magnum. I've thought about picking up one of these in .280 Remington and if it doesn't shoot straight I could simply rebarrel.

Their new 700 American Wilderness Rifle might be right up your alley. It comes in 300 Win Mag, has an aftermarket stock, black cerakote finish, and the barrel has the 5R rifling. I don't know if these barrels are the same quality as the 5R barrels on their Milspec rifles or not.

Either of these guns would cost around $900 and might shoot well enough to get you by. Or it may not, and you'd have the option to spend $600-700 to have a new match-grade barrel installed. Then you'd have a tack driver for sure.

I still like the Weatherby idea, especially if you can find a deal on one. Grab a Gun has them for $1715 shipped which is not bad. Whatever you choose let us know how it works out.

 

[Rich Coyle]

I have no experience with a short enough barrel .300 mag to weigh 7 lb including a scope. It seems to me the velocity would be the same as a .30-06. You can certainly get a Weatherby Mark V six lug .30-06 that will come in at 7 lb with a scope.

 

[el matador]

Mostly 26" barrels on these guns. One thing that has not been discussed...I believe the Weatherby comes with a muzzle brake. It may be optional or it may come standard on certain calibers, so you may want to confirm this before ordering one. Any of the 300 magnums are going to recoil quite a bit in a lighter rifle so a brake would be a nice thing to have.

 

[Dosh]

OP is still around!

The assumption is correct; I am wanting a 7lb gun. This gun will be used on hunts that will require me to do a great deal of walking. Also, while I would love nothing more than to build a rifle and go through the trial and error, I currently do not have the time.

q-11, I sincerely hope you find the rifle that suits you, so many choices!
Good luck

 

[Barrelnut]

Between the 2, I'd get the Weatherby, it has a sub MOA guarantee.
The 300 Weatherby Mag will kick like a mule. It does not come with a brake. The barrel maybe to thin to install a brake. Specs say the barrel is 28" long! I would get the Weatherby Ultralight in 300 Win Mag, if that would fit your circumstances. The 300 Win Mag barrel is 24" long. It would be much more manageable, kick less and be just as deadly on game, unless you are shooting extreme distances.

 

[el matador]

Specs say the barrel is 28" long!

That would be a 26" barrel with 2" Accubrake.