Remington 700 Alpha 1 review

[Bob Wright]

I'll move this article here in "general discussions".
Any opinion?

New Remington Alpha 1, M700

New rifle line review for Big Green. Maybe they are changing after all. https://internationalsportsman.com/remington-alpha-1-new-model-700-from-remington/

www.longrangehunting.com

 

[comfisherman]

I'm excited but not yet hopeful. It's remingtons take on what appears to be an upsuzed fieldcraft. Ag stock, tt trigger and a decent twist on a flat top round round action. All very cool.... but a tough nut to crack depending on where the price lands. The 700 semi premium clone market is pretty flush with options. Wile I hate the feel of Christensen stocks (my hands are a mite large so I tend opposite most) the Mesa lands at 1200, where would that put a alpha one? Above that the list of semi custom in almost any flavor you want 700ish is to long to keep.

Was at a high volume shop in south central Alaska picking up my wife's new pistol on my last leg home. They have some of the blued plastic 308/6.5 manbun adls that are languishing. On the rack were at least a dozen 700 clones in various forms all with their own following. What was missing were basic stainless bolt guns. He joked that the first stainless 700 that shows up he'll text me a picture of because it will be sold as soon as it clears the box. Above the axis, American, and savage lines not much existis in that space. A stainless 700 , sps or model seven commands a decent price online. Will the alpha holds its own in the premium line as the economy shrinks and the free money train slows..... I dunno.

I'd sure love a few big green model seven with the right twist... I'd take one in 204, 223, 243 and maybe a 300 wsm for fun....

 

[Bob Wright]

Remington will have to earn it. Looks like they are trying. But they need a sub 1k price point to generate a renewed interest.
We'll know by October but that is late for many hunting seasons.

 

[2 the Plug]

Well, we're at mid to late October and I still haven't heard them release the rifle. I can certainly find the inflated pricing on the old models they are rolling on on GunBroker but a 700 SPS is a 700 SPS, Remington 2.0 or the new RemArms, they appear to be the same rifles.
I'm excited to see the price on the Alpha 1. If it sub $1500 they may have a chance, but if it's closer to 2k, I just don't see enough without some sub MOA groupings or a guarantee that is going to bring the people back. At 2k I'm probably looking on here for a semi custom before I'm running to RemArms.
….but I still want to shoot one and I really want the Model 7 stainless in 6.5cm and 300WSM with a fast twist and threaded option, like the HS Precision stock one but with a better barrel, still needs to be under 1k in my opinion

 

[comfisherman]

I concur that the field of mid taper round top 700 clones near 2000 is a stiff competition segment. If they land under 1500 with an ag stock and a decent twist barrel it will be in the mix. Christensen mesa lands in the 1200 range. But with a stock more tiered with bell and carlson than ag, and for me one of the worst fitting stocks on the market.

The alpha in any trim moves the needle very little for me. A resurrected seven would get my money in a hurry.

Howa minis don't make it stateside in stainless, the fieldcraft is but a fond distant memory. Kimber has gone budget with the hunter and hasn't shipped a new montana/Adirondack in more than 2 years and hasn't made a 223 in almost ten. The seven is gone, as is the 527 albeit never offered in stainless. The market is flush on 700 clones in every configuration possible, we need a good mini/compact action for the 308 and smaller cartridges. Some day someone will make something like that and I'll be in for 3.... maybe more.

 

[2 the Plug]

I concur that the field of mid taper round top 700 clones near 2000 is a stiff competition segment. If they land under 1500 with an ag stock and a decent twist barrel it will be in the mix. Christensen mesa lands in the 1200 range. But with a stock more tiered with bell and carlson than ag, and for me one of the worst fitting stocks on the market.

The alpha in any trim moves the needle very little for me. A resurrected seven would get my money in a hurry.

Howa minis don't make it stateside in stainless, the fieldcraft is but a fond distant memory. Kimber has gone budget with the hunter and hasn't shipped a new montana/Adirondack in more than 2 years and hasn't made a 223 in almost ten. The seven is gone, as is the 527 albeit never offered in stainless. The market is flush on 700 clones in every configuration possible, we need a good mini/compact action for the 308 and smaller cartridges. Some day someone will make something like that and I'll be in for 3.... maybe more.

I completely agree! I love my Model 7 308 16.5", such a handy cannon. I liked it so much I found a model 7 243 Predator for my son. Love that fluted barrel. But neither are stainless and I'll be darned if I'm paying $1500 for the stainless 6.5cm model 7 that I want.
When I start thinking $1500 plus I start thinking I should just save for a Cooper.

 

[2 the Plug]

@comfisherman
There is a nice stainless model seven on GunBroker now for $899 but it's a 6mm Rem and I don't reload. That would be a gem if ammo was easier to come by.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/952413105

 

[comfisherman]

They usually end up around 1300, then "if you give a mouse a cookie" kicks in. Serviceable stock, some barrel work replacement for a proper twist.... then that x mark trigger starts looking like a trigger tech. Doesn't take long for it to be a 1300$ compact action and mag box. Back when they were 679.... in fall of 2019 it was an easy pull to swallow less so now.

Defiance will eventually get caught up and let retail orders in, the anti short is a seven clone. Maybe I'll be brave again and play ptg roulette with some bottom metal.

Circling back to the alpha 1, the 700 platform took off so well the original is ironically one of the lagging contenders of the 700 world. The platform won so solidly its made a market for actions that aren't it. Fieldcraft, kimber 84, cz 527, remington seven etc now command a premium. Re organize big green could have pushed into that space with a seven reboot. Sadly the market seems to like to dogpile what was really successful at shot show 2 years ago.

 

[2 the Plug]

You are right. The model 700 and the 870 are two of the most reproduced firearms the world over. So many bolt actions and pump actions based on those designs. Probably 2nd to only the Browning Hi Power and its gazillion knock offs.