A friend is going to Africa this month and is taking his brother's Remington Custom Shop rifle in 416 Rem Mag. The gun went to Africa once before as a backup and was shot a lot before the trip but not used during because it arrived in Africa with a bent scope tube.

The gun wouldn't feed blunt loads or flat nosed solids and was sent to Rem for correction. Remington sent it back saying it was fine. Still wouldn't feed those rounds though. My buddy got it going by himself by filing the feed lips a tiny bit. Probably the first gun he ever tried that on.

We shot about 75 rounds through it one day to get loads worked up and sighted in for North Fork softs, solid and cup points. He shot about that many sighting in a different scope and familiarizing himself with the rifle a second time. The gun shoots everything to the same POI and in little cloverleafs BUT...

He went last week for more practice and three rounds into it, he had a failure to fire. Very light primer strike, you could hear the difference. It got worse until the gun wouldn't work at all. Prior to sending it to Remington for the feed work it did the same thing and he found metal shavings in the bolt body. Cleaned it well and it went away that time.

So this time he opens the bolt and no crap inside. He put a shroud/striker assembly from another 700 in and it worked fine (dry firing). So off to the gunsmith for a last minute disassemby of the firing pin assembly and sure enough, it was full of machine shavings from the original manufacture of the rifle. It took two months and almost 200 rounds to dislodge it to the point it began binding the cocking piece inside the shroud.

The moral is: you never know what will bite you that you never expect. The crap in the bolt is an obvious factory cock-up but that happens now and then. The Custom Shop didn't fix the feed problem becasue they probably used the wrong ammo and no one including us thought to look inside the shroud of a ('til then) working rifle. So I guess the moral is leave nothing to chance and inspect EVERYTHING before you go on any hunt away form support, down to the last lock washer.

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Born a Bubba, not naturalized.

Yeah. Me, too...

TreggertateI have one thing to say about your problem!

.............Remington Mod 700 pushfeed junk!

This is their Custom shop work what do you think their off the shelf rifles are?

It wouldn't be my choice either, Mac. But i thought the tale worth telling so others might see the light!

I've had the same thing happen on other factory new firearms from other manufacturers. I always disassemble and clean any firearm new or used that I acquire. Just makes good sense to me. Too bad Remingtons don't work. If anyone has some they want to get rid of, send em to me!

In my youth I always thought that anyone with a real special problem with a rifle or shotgun took it to a recognized and reputable gunsmith (in those days they were located on back country roads -but, then, that's when dinosaurs roamed the earth) Sending a gun back to the manufacturer is like preferring auto dealer service over that reputed best mechanic in the area - so I'm not particularly sympathetic to bad problems with Remington -or any other gun manufacturer. Once the firearm is out of their shop, it's your baby from now on was a philosophy in my youth - and from what I read nowadays -should still be a way to go. Support your local gunsmith!

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.............Remington Mod 700 pushfeed junk!

Really? Is that what you think?

The model 700 AWR II is $3500 acording to David Petzal. As far as push feeds go you could buy a Sauer 202 for less than half that...

If I was having feeding problems with a particular bullet, I would have sent 4 or 5 dummy rounds to Remington made up as I would want to use them for them to see the problem. My guess is they tried the gun with the ammo they had in the remington store. I.E. Remington factory ammo. It is unrealistic to think that they would order and make up dummies for a 'boutique' bullet to do the testing. As far as the junk in the bolt, it happens! I always tear down and clean a new gun to be positive I will not have a problem ---- especially if DG hunting!

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.............Remington Mod 700 pushfeed junk!

Mac you are so full of yourself that it is pathetic!!! -- you should really go hunting sometime and get out of the house as opposed to hovering over yur computer writing this kind of crap!
G

Too bad that later generations want to solve gun problems by sending the gun back to the manufacturer - ever think about first sitting down and trying to work it out yourself? Perhaps next step- bring the gun to a good local gunsmith? I read posts on this site with contempt for the posters. They seem to have no experience with "fooling around" to see how to work it out. Instead, they panic and their first is - Send it back to the factory. (Saying that you spent umpteen dollars for the firearm isn't an argument - Once the piece is out of the manufacturer's shop -it's yours - or is that too diificult a concept for you as a gun owner?

A few more details:

1. The original owner was/is a full line Remington dealer and buys direct. He has a habit of sending malfunctioning products back to them for liability reasons and to service his substantial customer base. There are no good gunsmiths in the Rio Grande Valley right now; certainly none that have sufficient insurance to protect my friend's business interests.

2. I wasn't there so I cannot relay to the internet experts what efforts were made as to test ammunition. I guessed that they used spire points too but that didn't mean that nothing else was sent. What I do know is the other brother fixed it himself in ten minutes after the Custom Shop incorrectly said that they had.

3. This is a simple story for the benefit of anyone who can use it. We don't need to turn it into another AR pissing match between pontificators. Mac was being funny. Sort of. After these many years I got it, sorry y'all didn't.

After a few experiences I have learned that no new rifle goes to the field or range until I have taken it down to the last screw. MOST factory rifles have some problems.

I AM a Remington fan. Heck I like most all of the big manufacturers even those clunky CZs. I think you can find a clunker from every one of them once in a while.

I do like to tinker as Gerry mentioned......but the factory should stand behind what they sell and I would have sent it back also.

As far as the feeding issue goes....well.....thats another can of worms, I don't think we should expect every rifle ever made to feed every bullet that was ever made.

Just my .02 cents worth.

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As far as the feeding issue goes....well.....thats another can of worms, I don't think we should expect every rifle ever made to feed every bullet that was ever made.

Just my .02 cents worth.

I think that's a very fair statement for almost all factory rifles. I could even accept that in a $3500 factory custom rifle sold as dangerous-game ready because that could mean different things to different people.

What went wrong here was the factory took it back and said the problem had been corrected, rather than just saying the rifle met their spec and the rest was on the buyer.

After all, if they know that non-commercial ammo is shot in the gun then THEY have a liability problem for modifying their rifle to fit hand-loaded ammo. I just thought of that twist. A bit of a vicious circle, huh?

When you have a rifle you have no confidence in you need to sell it. I have had several. One failure when it is needed can get you in a bind in Africa. Sell it and get another one. You will doubt every shot you take with it.

jeez, $3500 for a rifle with issues? That much cash would buy you a real rifle. A CZ to be exact, and enough left over to send it to AHR and have it bullet proofed! Sadly, there does not seem to be much pride in product in the US today.

As an aside: can't wait to see what "improvements" Remington will make to the Dakota lineup.

Rich

I have an AWR custom shop rifle (300 WM) that initially gave me a lot of trouble.

I sent it to John Ricks and ever since getting it back it has been my most reliable rifle for plains game, caribou etc..

I would not hunt DG with it for several reasons...caliber, push feed and the past experience that it used to be unreliable and could be again. I would never trust it in a life or death situation.

It proved to me that the Remington Custom shop could have made it work right because John Ricks did. But the custom shop did not.

I will continue to use this rifle but would not buy another from the Remington Custom Shop.

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Originally posted by Woodmnctry:

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.............Remington Mod 700 pushfeed junk!

Mac you are so full of yourself that it is pathetic!!! -- you should really go hunting sometime and get out of the house as opposed to hovering over yur computer writing this kind of crap!
G

...........
Nothing like personal attacks!

If you think the Mod 700 Rem is a fine rifle that is your right! I think they are crap, and there is pleanty of history to back what I said, some of it from PERSONAL experience. The Rem 700 is a Wally-World piece of crap,and when the 700 comes from their so-called "CUSTOM SHOP" and is full of problems, some of them dangerous, and have at least on one occasion I'm aware of, caused a death, because of the poor design in the trigger & safety. Failer to extract because of broken Tin Can extractor. What do you think that says for their 700s sold at Wally-World?

You say I should get out of the house and go hunting! Well that, again shows you know little of which you speak. Son I probabbly did more hunting from the age of 6 yrs old till the age of 50 than you will have when you are 100 yrs old. I am 73 yrs old and have hunted with only a 4yr break since the age of six yrs. The break was for the Cancer treatments I have been under going for the last four years, and have another year to go, hopefully.

Speaking of being pathetic and of being full of one's self, that is one who makes personal attacks,because he is disagreed with, like in your post above,when you have no idea what you are talking about. Statements that might get you more than expected face to face.

I do hunt friend, and not just goaty old Colorado deer, and speaking of being on the computer, how did you find my post? Somebody who was on the computer tell you about it, and type your response for you?

......................Any rifle that is chambered for a cartridge that is to be used on dangerous game built on a Push feed action, and even worse one that fires when the safety is disengaged,but fails to fire when the trigger is pulled,or eject because of a tin extractor, especially if it comes from their CUSTOM SHOP is a piece of crap! It is, however, understandable that a rifle that can be bought for pennies, should be worth at least pennies, but not more. They are fine for deer hunting, but you damn sure better know where it is pointing when you take it off "SAFETY"!


Woodmnctry, if the Rem Mod 700 floats your canoe, then paddle it on down stream, with that canoe paddle you call a rifle!
............................................. BYE