Remington 700 quality

[Nimrod]

In my opinion, other than aftermarket parts availabiltiy, there is very little to recommend about the Remington 700 when they were being made with even a moderate level of quality. That time has long since passed and the quality of anything made in the last ten years is ****.

If you must use a 700 pattern, one would be much better served by starting with a custom action and purchasing quality parts to round out the package.

I have a 700 CDL made in '09, I have no complaints at all with this rifle and I am hard to please. I got the rifle because it was a great deal and I thought it was pretty, it happens to shoot very well also. When the factory barrel goes I'll screw a new one on and I'm sure I'll be happy with it too! It is a quality rifle in all respects.

Bob

 

[chas3stix]

I own three Remington firearms. 30'06 ADL,243 BDL and an XP-100 in 7mmBR. Would I buy another? Probably not. Other manufacturers have surpassed Remington's quality,selection and customer service.

 

[Mike 338]

I've had a number of Remington's and none shot very well. They've all needed something. Remington's "friends" with the military and gun writers and as such, enjoy a manufactured reputation. The aftermarket supply industry flourishes because it's necessary. It's about the same relationship as the old VW Bug and a JC Witney catalog. Lots of parts because you'll never be satisfied without fixing it.

It's only since the Internet that things have gotten better. The Consumer goes right around "lobbyist gun writers" and gives it to you straight in places like this here. I mean hey... if your going to fall for a flashy magazine ad over the reports of 100 people who own the product, you deserve to get stung. You saw what they did when they got their hands on Marlin Firearms. As soon as they bought Marlin, they virtually destroyed the lever action industry due to poor manufacturing.

You look back on this thread and there's people who just go out and replace the stock on a new rifle. Why would you do that unless it sucked? Would I buy a Remington... Well your not going to change the product without changing the people. It's a company that's broken and adrift with it's key focus on profitability. Remington left me, I didn't leave them. I'll be happy to purchase another when they've earned it and can maintain high quality over an extended period of time. For now, I can do much better elsewhere.

 

[Altiman94]

I have two Remington 700's and while I'm no rifle expert I do shoot them semi-regularly. Now that I'm preparing for an antelope trip I've been shooting the rifles more.

Rifle 1 (.30-06 BDL made in 1995) is a great rifle. My only grip is that the factory stock is not free-floated. I'm getting 1-1.25" accuracy @ 100 yards using factory Hornady ammo.

Rifle 2 (.243 ADL bought brand new in 2012) is a 'decent' gun. Same as above, it's not free-floated. The no-drop plate is kind of a pain for hunting and I'm getting 1.5-2" groups @ 100 yards. I haven't spent enough time developing a load for this gun....so testing is on-going.

Both rifles need to be bedded and free-floated. I guess for a $400 you can't expect much more than what I'm currently getting. I think some stock work will help them both tremendously for accuracy.

But for 'hunting accuracy' both would suffice very well. I'm just picky and want to see the holes touching @ 100y.

 

[Triple BB]

Modifying junk is nothing new. There will always be a segment of the market who has to upgrade everything. Go buy a new pickup it immediately needs new tires and a lift. Same with ATV's, motorcycles, etc., blah, blah, blah. A lot of it has more to do with perception and wanting something different than what everyone else has. And the internet is also now as much to blame for that as anything which I don't think is a bad thing. I tend to upgrade a lot of my junk because I can. When I bought a Rem 300 RUM 12 years ago, most had never heard of it. Almost before I had a box of shells through it the thing had a $1000 in upgrades. Overall. I'm happy with my Rem's, but that was the last one I've purchased, so can't comment quality...

 

[REDHEAD]

I'm with chas3stix, plenty of- as good or better gun Co.'s out there. I grew up thinking the were great , but they lied to us. MAKE SURE ITS POINTED IN A SAFE DIRECTION.

 

[338winmag]

My personal personal opinion and recent experience:
Weatherby Vanguard "Series 2"

I have broken in two of these so far and also own one (in addition to a Vanguard Series 1 with the horrible trigger but otherwise great super accurate rifle)

Here are my thoughts:
The Vanguard 2 has a fantastic match grade 2 stage trigger now. I compared this with someone that has a very expensive custom rifle. The Vanguard 2 series trigger is almost exactly comparable if not exactly the same!

The Vanguard 2 all around quality is just remarkable. the asthetics, balance, bolt feel, 3 stage trigger among other incredible features.

Weatherby gaurantees it will shoot .99 or less at 100 yards. This is confirmed for both a 30-06 (165 gr) and a 7mm-08 (140 gr. and 120 gr custom load) Both shooting Wally World Federal $18.95 ammo and yup, always under 1". The 7mm-08 also shoots the Federal Fusion consistently at .88 at 100.

No I do not work for Weatherby. Yes I like my fellow hunters to get an incredible bang for their buck!! Most places selling them for approx $469.00+ tax. Personally I think they blow away the competition.

Thanks all for allowing me to state my personal opinion
338winmag

 

[Fred Ea]

I have been hunting and shooting all my life, reloading for rifles of many makes for the last 25+ years and almost all the "factory" rifles struggle to shoot moa or better without any work done to them. For the average person on a average salary can't afford to drop 3k to 4k on a custom rifle and another 1k to 3k on a fancy scope. So when it comes to the 700 action, it is as good as the rest of the factory guns that I have experience with. In order to get better results with any rifle, the action and bolt will need to be trued up, trigger job, action bedded, and barrel replaced or free floated etc. to obtain sometimes minimal results at best and that can be pricey at times. For someone like me, that is all you can do that is affordable to help with accuracy.
I have had the best results with Rem. 700's and the gunsmith I use likes the 700 better than any other factory actions out there. He did say that the older actions and barrels were better and had the best results with them in the past.
I think the gun companies are following suit as other companies are doing, as our country goes down the pipes, so does everything else and that is sad to see from what our country once was. For the wisdom of man is foolishness to God.
FE

 

[Mike 338]

I think the gun companies are following suit as other companies are doing, as our country goes down the pipes, so does everything else and that is sad to see from what our country once was. For the wisdom of man is foolishness to God.
FE

Amen-

Our country is so strong, it can only fail from within. You'd have to be blind not to see it happening in front of your eyes.

Weatherby's got the Vanguard2 that's guaranteed to shoot sub MOA (3-shots). I held one the other day. It's sorta heavy and not free floated but you can grow to love a rifle you can trust. Otherwise, get one of those Sako's on sale at Cabelas. Don't let buying a rifle from a socialist country bother you. In a few years, they'll look like staunch conservatives to us! At least you'll own something made from hands that are trying.

 

[highridge1]

Even with all the bashing the remington 700 is still the most proven rifle out there and the most copied action. Are they all perfect?? No . When you build way more rifles than anyone else there is going to be more with troubles than others. There's alot to like about a rifle action that is so simple and effective.

 

[Fred Ea]

Amen-

Our country is so strong, it can only fail from within. You'd have to be blind not to see it happening in front of your eyes.

Weatherby's got the Vanguard2 that's guaranteed to shoot sub MOA (3-shots). I held one the other day. It's sorta heavy and not free floated but you can grow to love a rifle you can trust. Otherwise, get one of those Sako's on sale at Cabelas. Don't let buying a rifle from a socialist country bother you. In a few years, they'll look like staunch conservatives to us! At least you'll own something made from hands that are trying.

The Vanguard is actually one rifle I have no experience with other than a cousin owning one in 30-06 that would shoot pretty good with anything you put through it. Does it have the "freebore" the mark 5's have?
FElightbulb

 

[Mike 338]

Even with all the bashing the remington 700 is still the most proven rifle out there and the most copied action. Are they all perfect?? No . When you build way more rifles than anyone else there is going to be more with troubles than others. There's alot to like about a rifle action that is so simple and effective.

Agreed. A beautiful design indeed but being on top is the worst reason to take your pedal off the gas pedal. Triggers like gravel, flimsy hollow stocks and poor accuracy are not an engineering design problem. That's corporate culture and it goes from the top all the way to the janitor. The idea that being the most successful should exempt them from producing high quality is counter intuitive. When was the last time you heard someone say "It'll be a cold day in hell before you pick up a Remington that wasn't a tack driver" or "You never find a Remington for sale cause nobody's willing to part with it".

Don't get me wrong. They're not junk. The people making them just aren't up to the job of producing them.

 

[Mike 338]

The Vanguard is actually one rifle I have no experience with other than a cousin owning one in 30-06 that would shoot pretty good with anything you put through it. Does it have the "freebore" the mark 5's have?
FElightbulb

Don't know. I've called various companies with questions about their freebore. They're pretty tight lipped. Either they're afraid of being sued or the control over tolerances is so poor, they don't even know. Personally, I wouldn't care if freebore was an inch long so long as they could demonstrate that this was a key component why they have the most accurate rifles in the world. So far, no takers.

 

[Trickymissfit]

I have been hunting and shooting all my life, reloading for rifles of many makes for the last 25+ years and almost all the "factory" rifles struggle to shoot moa or better without any work done to them. For the average person on a average salary can't afford to drop 3k to 4k on a custom rifle and another 1k to 3k on a fancy scope. So when it comes to the 700 action, it is as good as the rest of the factory guns that I have experience with. In order to get better results with any rifle, the action and bolt will need to be trued up, trigger job, action bedded, and barrel replaced or free floated etc. to obtain sometimes minimal results at best and that can be pricey at times. For someone like me, that is all you can do that is affordable to help with accuracy.
I have had the best results with Rem. 700's and the gunsmith I use likes the 700 better than any other factory actions out there. He did say that the older actions and barrels were better and had the best results with them in the past.
I think the gun companies are following suit as other companies are doing, as our country goes down the pipes, so does everything else and that is sad to see from what our country once was. For the wisdom of man is foolishness to God.
FE

Brother inlaw bought one of the Savage 116's in 30-06 when they first came out. Has the factory trigger in it and bedding. Nothing has been changed other than adding a 3x-9x scope. He shoot 3/4" groups right out of the box with Federal Supremes (I think they were 165's). At the time he didn't reload, and didn't plan on reloading (he does now). With his reloads he is shooting low sixes, and every once in awhile a mid five group. Is this uncommon? I don't know as I've never shot a Savage in 30 caliber anything.

On the otherhand I have two 22-250's and owned another one at one time. All are Savages, and the worst groups were in the mid threes. The one I don't own anymore shot a few groups that were one ragged hole that measured just under .20". The one I replaced it with is not as good, but is still a high two's rifle if I do my part. I have a newer short action that started out in the low threes and is getting better all the time. I shot the older one enough that I lost the throat in it, and did a 3/4" barrel set back with a complete rebed.

Now I also own three Weatherbys in 30-06. Two are MK. V's, and the other is a 30 year old Vanguard. The Vanguard will shoot 150 thru 165's in the half inch range rather consistently. The one MK.V I've shot is a solid 3/4" rifle (the other is still a virgin). These rifles are as factory shipped, and both have Leupold scopes and Redfied bases and rings. I also own a Marlin MR7 in 30-06. It shoots sub inch groups with 165's, but the rifle is also kinda light in weight and not all that much fun to set down and shoot 180's and heavier stuff in. My MK. V. in 270 mag is a solid 3/4" rifle out of the box. I had another Remington 700 ADL in 30-06 that was a very good shooter (sub 3/4" groups), and also had a similar rifle in .270. It shot just as well, but these also were 30 year old guns.

My last two Remingtons are vastly different. One is a 541 with the heavy barrel and two screw action. Dosn't shoot all that well. Maybe 1" groups at 50 yards. I'm not knocking it as I don't know where the problem is yet. I have another 541 with the single screw action and light barrel that will shoot under an inch at 100 yards with the right ammo. (it's also close to 30 years old). Then I saw this 700VS in .223, and just had to have it. It was a rock solid 4.25" rifle with hand loads! I thought it was just me, and loaned it to a couple very well known bench rest shooters, who called me up to ask how I managed to get 4" groups? The barrel was so rough it tore up patches. The bolt seated on a burr that was over .06" tall! The chamber was cut at an angle and .007" off center. And there were major bedding issues. I rebuilt it from one end to the other, and ended up with a 20" barrel (lost about 75fps). It now shoot in the fours (as in .45"). I like the rifle, but also should have been in the trash can from the get go.
gary