Do Remington make a decent rifle ?

[mountain varminter]

I've had three 700's 17 rem,204 ruger and my 243win bdl custom delux they shot sub moa but these are the older ones I am a big Remington fan but would I buy a new one for my next rifle NO ! My next rifle 260 rem or 7 mm08 will be a tikka ,I did have a Cz in 6.5x55 a absolute unbelievable shooter so Cz a better choice than Remington just my opinion mind you and my fathers best of luck Steve

[baldie]

I've just bought a batch of new remington 700 actions from the states. They are blued and have the latest trigger.

 

What instantly struck me was they now carry the scannable thumbrint and its blatantly obvious they must have some new machinery. These are the finest remington actions I have ever had my hands on. The bolts are far tighter in the raceways than any I,ve ever seen .

 

I,ve had one in the lathe this morning to blueprint it, and basically it didn't need it. I won't be doing the rest.

 

If this sort of Quality makes it onto their finished guns, it will be a leap forward.

[SWShooter]

I've just bought a batch of new remington 700 actions from the states. They are blued and have the latest trigger.

 

What instantly struck me was they now carry the scannable thumbrint and its blatantly obvious they must have some new machinery. These are the finest remington actions I have ever had my hands on. The bolts are far tighter in the raceways than any I,ve ever seen .

 

I,ve had one in the lathe this morning to blueprint it, and basically it didn't need it. I won't be doing the rest.

 

If this sort of Quality makes it onto their finished guns, it will be a leap forward.

So you are saying current production rifles are not so good ?

[baldie]

There is nothing wrong with current production rifles. If you want a cheap, built down to a price gun, buy an SPS. If you want a better quality gun, then a 5R or a PSS.These are almost twice the price.

 

Remington are being squeezed just like any other manufacturer, and suffer here, price wise, because they are not european. A very cheap gun in the US. Without a doubt they are building to a price. Gone are the days of the lovely Varmints, etc...folk won't pay for them.

[SWShooter]

There is nothing wrong with current production rifles. If you want a cheap, built down to a price gun, buy an SPS. If you want a better quality gun, then a 5R or a PSS.These are almost twice the price.

 

Remington are being squeezed just like any other manufacturer, and suffer here, price wise, because they are not european. A very cheap gun in the US. Without a doubt they are building to a price. Gone are the days of the lovely Varmints, etc...folk won't pay for them.

 

Thats what I suspected , I guess prices for a good one were getting close to the price of a custom/semi customs, whats import duty , around 8% ? plus VAT? then of course export / import licenses ,but apart from the import duty its the same for anything else out of Europe? licensing admin at both ends and secure transportation required.

[CameronWilson]

It has taken me years to realise that the only way you can buy success in shooting is to spend all your money on ammo and range time.

[bradders]

It has taken me years to realise that the only way you can buy success in shooting is to spend all your money on ammo and range time.

 

Absolutely

[SWShooter]

It has taken me years to realise that the only way you can buy success in shooting is to spend all your money on ammo and range time.

 

Along with a rifle that's better than the shooter

[gbal]

Cameron, while I'm all for effective practice-that might include coaching,otherwise range time can just reinforce poor shooting, you reaslly need more balance-I'll assume your bought ammo is the best available,or at the very least better than your shooting. But you also need a good rifle-aand scope etc.

 

Mark-likewise,though as absolute accuracy requirements reduce,absolute equipment requirements redudce a bit too. Would you expect David Tubb to shoot the same scores as he does with his prefered gear if he was shooting some indiffernt black rilfe (there must be one that isn't perfect)-well,we know the answer alreadysince Tubb has shot a number of rifles and gets better with each,and gets worse if he reverts.....

 

What is involved are at least two major class of factors:the absolute precision potential of the manufactured components -rifle,escpeciallly barrel,scope,ammo- (the reason the best custom rifles shoot better than factory rifles) and accuracy ( the ability to extract that intrinsic potential precision and put it on target-and that has a major human shooter skill component,and is assisted by top rate mechanical/manufactured components-scope,trigger,stock fit to the shooter etc.

 

All the 'mechanical precision' components can be bought,as can top reloading equipment etc;some aspects of shooter skill can be developed-and some can be bought (quality coaching,wind reading skill,though there is no guarantee).

 

What is clear is that just spending range time and banging away with so so ammo,in a so so rifle,won't in itself be the best route to fulfilling one's potential-unless 'so-so' is your goal; and may well be somewhat counter productive,as poor habits might be reinforced,and the equipment may not be consistently capable of indicating shooter error,separate from component 'error'(you don't know why you missed!)

 

It may be fun,you might feel you are doing the right thing,and so on,but the more high level accuracy (smaller the target) is critical,the more all the factors above come into play-and interact.

 

It may well be that improved precision becomes close to asymptotic-the returns for another £2k more on a scope may become diminishing in terms of score improvement (again interacts with the precision/accuracy demands of your shooting,and what other competitors achieve), so most of us reach a point of diminished returns for investment,but the principle holds til then-you need good gear (purchaseable) and good skill (not entirely purchaseable).

 

Analogies are often misleading,but Lewis Hamilton would not be current world champion if driving some of the cars in the tail end of the constructors championship. Probably too,for the lesser drivers if transferred to the top cars-but that is less clear...some have the potential-indeed most future champions start that way,but of course improve en route....

Outstanding shotgun shooters make the same point-whether Edwardian top game shots or curent clay masters,they have excellent equipment,tailor fitted individually,and lots of quality coaching/practice.

 

Getting the right cartridge will make a more positive impact on long range scores than most other 'practice' type effects,with the possible exception of wind reading-and the right cartridge changes.....at the higher levels....cf 'equipment race"-purchase or perish! (in podium terms).

 

So,equipment is very much in the equation,as well as developing the skills to use it. Good shooting-it isn't luck,though good genes may help,nor is success simply bought,but there is no cheap podium either!

 

gbal

[Grum87]

Pleased to report my second Remington shoots very nicely, and he bolt handle hasn't come off in my hand Trigger could do with adjusting.....is that allowed

[drum]

My own experience with Remington over the last five years has been very negative. One lss mountain rifle that wouldn't put 5 bullets on an a5 sized piece of paper. Spent a small fortune on powder and bullets, ended up accepting it was a waste of time so got it re barreled, blue printed etc and now it's very accurate. Though not really a Remington anymore. My girlfriend bought a sps tactical that would discharge when you worked the bolt. It only did this when the magazine was full. Not part of the recall serial numbers so dealer didn't want to know. Put a new trigger on it and all is fine now. Am I saying all Remington are bad? Of course not I've owned plenty of good ones over the years. Would I buy another? Nope.

[maximus otter]

My girlfriend bought a sps tactical that would discharge when you worked the bolt. It only did this when the magazine was full. Not part of the recall serial numbers so dealer didn't want to know.

 

Are you telling us that she/you just let that lie?

 

Had it happened to me, I would now own Remington Ltd.

 

maximus otter

[drum]

The problem was that you could never replicate the problem in the shop. It only happened when the magazine was full. When the bolt picked up the top bullet and went into battery it would fire. It was fine with 3 bullets in the magazine. Turned out the tmh was warped on one side. I had a spare rem trigger so just swapped them over. Not an ideal conclusion I agree by any means.

[Scrumbag]

I think the question is "Do Remington MAKE a decent rifle" It seems to me the company made decent rifles in the past but does not do so any more...

[SWShooter]

I think the question is "Do Remington MAKE a decent rifle" It seems to me the company made decent rifles in the past but does not do so any more...

That`s exactly what I asked ,I've no axe to grind or dislike of Remmy , I have an 870, I was considering one for stalking and did a bit of research , tales of recalls for dangerous triggers , bolt handles falling off , inaccuracy etc got me wondering so I asked the question here , my conclusion seems to be like yours .

If you want a good Remmy today make sure it comes via a decent rifle smith.

[Chris-NZ]

Further to Dave's comment about the latest batch of blued Rems being better built (than the immediately previous ones), I mentioned this to my mate who's the gunsmith for NZ Hunter. They buy batches of plain 700s, mainly stainless, just for the action and discard the rest. The action then undergoes truing.

 

His comment about the latest batch of eight he got within the last month was they were just as on the piss as any from the last few years. Unless the UK is getting special treatment from Rem, he says they're no better than what he's had to deal with in the last few years.