remington sps rebuild help

[hglucky13]

what's up guys,
i got a couple of questions, i have a remington sps i bought a couple of years ago in 7mm rem mag. i installed a vx-111 3.5-10x40 on it with leupold rings. i want to make this an all around long range gun. i have found that the stock is a p.o.s. so the thought is to put on something like this
Boyds' Jon R. Sundra Classic Riflestock Pepper Gray Laminate Remington 700 ADL, SPS, BDL & CDL - Special Purchase!
and then get a steel bed bedding kit from brownells. the barrel only has about a 150 rounds through it. so i am planning on leaving it for now and just shooting it till it goes out then trying my hand at installing a new one later.
so i am wondering if this sounds like a solid plan? or should i just sell and start over?
can i open up that stock up later if i put a thicker contour barrel on it?
should i put pillars in it?
is there other products that are prefered by people in the know, i just happened to find these items from browsing these pages.
i am a newbie to gunsmithing, but i prefer to do things myself when i can.
when this is all done i want to paint the whole gun camo with something like aluma-hyde 2. so i am curious if anyone has any experience with this or any other similar product.
i am not trying to make a pretty gun i just want to make an accurate everyday use gun without breaking the bank.
thanx
alan

 

[James Jones]

A good laminated stock is a huge improvement over the junk Rem put on them , Bedding the gun is the best thing to do , though some rifles shoot good without bedding the vast majority benifit from a good bedding job. I persoanly piller bed all the guns I do as I feel its just one less thing to worry about later.
Boyds stock are fairly decient fit and finish from the factory , anothe roption would be a composite , Bell&Carlson Medilest is a great stock for the money as its built very much like the HS Precision.

Not sure what your wanting to spend on this venture but if you plan to build the gun up later then I'd suggest getting a good stock now this way its one less thing to look at later.

Joel Russo offers some awsome stock in Laminated wood , that would be my first choice if wood is what you want

 

[hglucky13]

thanx james for the ideas on stocks.
really i am not too concerned with cost other than i don't want to waste money that i don't have to. if something is really worth it i am willling to spend money on it. i am really interested in trying to make as accurate of a gun as i can, doing as much of the work as i am capable of. that being said i am not wealthy by any means, and large costs have to be planned for. that's why i started with an sps and didn't get a custom surgeon rifle like i wanted
i haven't committed to either wood or composite 100% yet. i am kinda partial to laminated wood, only because i think it might be a little more quiet compared to composite. i am not so concerned with the beauty of the stock because i want to paint the whole gun camo. so it seems like a waste to buy a really pretty stock only to over it with spray paint.
thanx
alan

 

[timl]

I agree, it is a waste to buy a nice laminate then spray paint it. The Bell and Carlson stocks seem to be getting more popular. Check out stockysstocks.com, they have a pretty big selection, lots of them ready to ship.

 

[hglucky13]

so i found this stock on stocky's
Bell & Carlson A1 Style Remington 700 Light Tactical Short Action Rifle Stocks
and the original one i was looking at from stocky's
Boyds' Jon R. Sundra Classic Riflestock Pepper Gray Laminate Remington 700 ADL, SPS, BDL & CDL - Special Purchase!
so if i consider the laminate with the bedding kit plus camo paint it comes to very near the cost of the composite already camo'ed with a bedding block already installed.
so now i am wondering a couple of things. i wonder which set-up would be intrinsically more accurate. i also wonder how much of a problem having a large gap around the barrel would be. since i plan on keeping my current barrel till i shoot it out. and the bell and carlson stock is made for a thicker barrel.other than visually what kind of problems could i anticipate having a larger than normal gap around the stock.
also besides my own idea of what a good camo looks like i wonder if me painting the whole gun spray camo is better camo than a stock pattern and leaving the barrel and scope black. does it really matter?
thanx
alan
p.s. thanx for putting up with my rambling, i could go on forever. i just love to hash out every aspect before i throw money at things

 

[ICANHITHIMMAN]

If money is no issue get a manners if you want wood get a Russo

 

[hglucky13]

i guess i should rewrite this. money is a factor. i mean i don't mind spending it where it will be most helpful for the accuracy of the gun. but i want to spend it only where i have to . i will probably have to sell some of my homemade spearguns in order to be able to justify this project so i want it to be well spent money. i really like those manner stocks, i just wonder if they are really necessary for what i want out of a gun.
would i be better off getting a stock for $200 less and using the difference towards a better barrel ,or blueprinting? or are the difference in the top of the line stocks and the middle of the road stocks really that crucial. that is what i don't know. if the concensus is that i will regret spending less on a stock than i will plan accordingly. i don't want to do it twice.but i am not looking to spend an extra $300 just to spend it. you know what i mean
i would like to have a gun that i can get sub m.o.a. out of and use for an all-around gun . i am gonna use this rifle for deer,bear,and elk in northern idaho and montana. with a preference for backcountry hunting. i enjoy being out in the field for days on end.
i anticipate using the h@ll out if this gun, and as said before i don't really care how pretty it is.( i actually think a homemade camo job is the best looking anyway)
thanx
alan
ps i just read this post and i sound like a total pain in the a@# don't i. just trying to solve the age old problem of what is best for the money i guess. i can sit and talk about this stuff all day ( if my wife would let me)
later

 

[timl]

I personally like Mcmillan stocks, simply because of the marble pattern. Are they worth an extra $2-300? For the average guy, probably not. Here is my two cents on your issue--it sounds like you plan on using this rifle quite a bit, so get a good stock that will last forever. If you are planning on painting the rifle, don't buy a laminate. If you just want a camo stock, then find a pattern that you like from Bell and Carlson, Manners, Mcmillan, or HS. Mcmillan has "internet specials" on their site, maybe they have one you could use. As far as having a gap in the barrel channel--it will look strange, but it shouldn't hurt anything. Don't worry about all the questions--if someone doesn't like it then they shouldn't be reading it!

 

[bookworm]

I'm keenly interested in this thread, as I also have a Rem 700 SPS in a stainless barrel (300 WM). I bought it a couple years ago before I started getting interested in long range shooting.

My main application is similar to the original post...mostly elk, but also deer and bear. I'd like to be able to not hesitate on a 600 yd shot and be able to stretch out to 800 if the conditions are right. I'm hoping that the current rifle I have is adequate w/o major upgrade expenses.

Most of the chatter on this thread is about a new stock. What does a new stock buy you? Do they free float the barrel and bed the action? Or is that something else that also needs to be done? Trigger adjust is an easy one.

What else can we do to accurize our SPS in a reasonable cost range?

And...once we do these things will we have an moa rifle (or even better) on our hands?

Thanks in advance for any input to keep this thread going.

 

[timl]

My main reason for replacing a factory stock is to make the rifle "mine". I really don't like straight factory guns. Most likely your barrel will be free floated if you replace the stock. It can be bedded, but it might not be necessary. I think the most important steps in making a factory rifle more accurate are--trigger adjustment and a good scope. Then try different handloads or factory ammo. If it won't shoot, then you can start looking at the stock/bedding and everything else. The reason I say this is I had an SPS in 223, and it shot great with Black Hills ammo. My brother has one in 25-06, it also shoots great with factory ammo.

 

[J E Custom]

Look at the varmint laminate stocks @ stockystocks that way you can get a stock
that can be opened up if you decide later to go to a heavy barrel.

I have composit stocks but like the laminated stocks better because of the feel and sound
deadening ,also they don't make noise when walking through brush if you touch something.

Just my 2 cents
J E CUSTOM

 

[hglucky13]

i looked all over the internet the past few days and i can't seem to find a better deal for what i am looking for than this
Boyds' Jon R. Sundra Classic Riflestock Pepper Gray Laminate Remington 700 ADL, SPS, BDL & CDL - Special Purchase!
so i think this is the route i am gonna go.
as far a s bedding does it really matter what kind. i looked at a couple of styles @ brownells. is their a preference?
later
alan

 

[J E Custom]

i looked all over the internet the past few days and i can't seem to find a better deal for what i am looking for than this
Boyds' Jon R. Sundra Classic Riflestock Pepper Gray Laminate Remington 700 ADL, SPS, BDL & CDL - Special Purchase!
so i think this is the route i am gonna go.
as far a s bedding does it really matter what kind. i looked at a couple of styles @ brownells. is their a preference?
later
alan

I like the steel bed kit best.

J E CUSTOM

 

[trueblue]

hglucky13,
If money is a concern, get a Hogue stock w/full bedding block for $200.00 and your ready to go.It has a nice vetical grip, better than a factory stock. The hogue stock also has a nice rubber feel to it which is easy to hold on to if hunting in bad conditions. I have 2 Manners stocks, and think they are great, but I also have a hogue stock on a rifle that shoots 1/2 MOA to 600 yards. You could also skim coat the stock w/ Devcon steel puddy, just as an extra step in accuracy. With the money you save , you could get a custom barrel later if needed.