Subject - Defending recent manufacture Remington Bolt Action Rifles. I read here and in many other places the complete and utter demise of accuracy and quality of recently manufactured Remington Rifles. I also have noticed a slight reduction in various aspects of the already not to "custom Rifle" like finishing aspects of the Remington 700's, 788's, 600's, 660's, Model 7's and such over the years. No big deal to me - I can bed actions (if need be!), adjust triggers and deal with most of Remingtons cost cutting situations.
But in fact if anything over the years I have noticed the accuracy of Remington Rifles not only staying commendably good but in fact accuracy is increasing with the years! I am not just talking about the many Model 40X's I have owned (and I presently own 7) but for all their Bolt Action Models. I presently own 24 Remington Bolt Actioned Rifles including several I have bought in the last 12 months. Accuracy with all these Rifles is completely acceptable to me and my Varminting and Hunting needs! It would be much to lengthy to illustrate the accuracy of all these Rifles to you interested parties. Let it stand that I am very happy with each and every Remington I own. I can not remember the last Remington I threw up my hands on and said nope I can not get this Rifle to shoot well enough for me! I can not say that for Ruger, Sako, Browning and several other brands of Rifles I have dealt with over the last 4 decades!
But, I am going to press my contenion with these latest Remington Bolt Action Rifles I have gathered in the last 12 months. Keep in mind I have no connection now or never in the past with the Remington Company.
This weeks Remington acquisition and todays resulting range test numbers have prompted my observation and particulars will follow: Remington 700 Varminter in 220 Swift with Leupold 8.5X25X40mm scope using NEW brass and a bullet I have never used in a handload before (Speer 52gr. HP/FB). This new Rifle gave me two 5 shot groups at 100 yards of .430" and .576"! These groups and some barrel breakin rounds were shot in blustery snow, 33 degrees temperature at noon and a quartering wind gusting to 10 MPH! I was thrilled with this performance accuracy wise and the extraction ejection features of the Rifle were fine also. First load tested - no further testing needed. I am sure on a calm day with fireformed brass this Remington will break .400" for 5 shots at 100 yards!
Last April I got my hands on a limited run Remington 700 VSS in caliber 17 Remington. This absolutely beautiful Rifle has a 26" heavy barrel and I used a silver Leupold 6.5X20 scope in Hart silver ring/bases to match the stainless barrel and action finish. This Rifle has shot only 4 five shot groups to date, including load testing! Thats right another first load test that shot well enough for my strict accuracy standards! All 4 groups were shot on the 17th of April last year in a snowstorm with steady 12 MPH winds (according to my wind gauge). The wind was coming from my back according to my loading log. The 4 groups in order that day were .469", .851", .413" and .598"! Again this was with new unfireformed brass! This Rifle is not only beautiful it is a Varmint killing machine! A trigger job has been the only "improvement"!
Also last year I bought a new in the box Remington 700 Classic in caliber 17 Remington at a Gun Show. I put a Leupold 4X12 AO scope on it and did a trigger job. The first load that I tried became the ONLY load I needed to try! Sound familiar? The 25 grain MEF Bergers shot 3 five shot groups of .562", .787" and .596" at 100 yards! My loading log shows excellent conditions that day and again this was done using new unfireformed Remington nickel brass!
This accuracy is entirely acceptable and impresive to me!
In February of this year I was finally able to get to the range with my new Remington 700 Classic in 221 Remington Fireball. I had installed a Leupold 4X12 Vari-XI on it, adjusted the trigger and headed for the range. First groups showed that no further load development was needed. The Nosler 40 gr. Ballistic Tips and Lil'Gun powder in new unfireformed brass and Federal 205M primers gave me three consecutive 5 shot groups of .753", .664" and .882" (4 of these last 5 shots were in .453") at 100 yards! Conditions were good with sporadic puffs of wind. I may do some more load checking of this load with fireformed brass this spring.
Last spring I bought second hand a Remington 700 VLS in caliber 260 Remington. This Rifle was in new unfired condition and I bought it from an acquaintance on the west coast that was having money problems. I did a trigger job on it and mounted a Leupold 6.5X20 scope on it. The first 5 shot group out of it after barrel break measured .451"! Load development ceased at that point! It shot the bullet I wanted at the speed I wanted and the Coyotes and Antelope in eastern Montana had better watch out for me this fall! The Nosler 100 gr. Ballistic Tips are just what I am looking for in a mild recoiling long range Varminter!
None of these Rifles I have illustrated here needed any bedding or other common accuracy enhancing procedures. The only thing I did to them is a trigger job on each and used special care in not only lapping the rings but "bore sighting" the rings as well!
In addition to these recent Remington success stories I have several friends that have made purchases of Remington bolt guns this past year. All turned out fine and accuracy for them was very good to acceptable! Let me relay just one of them for you. My friend Mark and I shopped for a "truck gun" Varminter for him. We decided on a Remington 700 ADL (22" barrel as I recall) in a "cheap" fiberglass stock. We used Leupold mounts and rings and he chose a Leupold 4X12 scope. A trigger job was done on it also. Mark had no trouble in getting five shot groups at 100 yards under .400"! Not just an occasional group but consistently! I think we paid $345.00 for that Rifle. I think Mark is using the "blue bullets" (handloaded) in it! I have seen many many Varmint weight Rifles by other makers that could not perform that well!
I simply shake my head when I see folks berate Remington Rifles because in my experience I am totally satisfied with their accuracy and only slightly concerned about their quality!
The only Remington I have owned over the years that had any obvious problem was a Remington 700 PSS in 223 Remington that I bought in 1990. It will not reliably eject spent brass! It also had a factory recall on the trigger. As was explained to me in a letter and on the phone Remington had discovered a jobber supplying an internal part for the triggers the month it was manufactured had failed to meet agreed upon quality control! They wanted me to send the Rifle back at their expense and they would replace the trigger and ship it back to me also at their expense! I offered a different solution in that I would take the Rifle to a Remington authorized repair station and they would replace the trigger at my cost and send to them the trigger in question. The factory rep inquired why I would want to do that. I told him that the 700 Police Sniper Special was simply the most accurate out of the box Rifle I had ever seen! And I have seen a lot of them! That Rifle out of the box first load no barrel breakin (back then!) not even a trigger job shot 3 consecutive 5 shot groups at 100 yards of .362", .293" and an amazing .219er"! That Rifle was not going anywhere in the US Mail! It shoots as well to this day and the failure to eject problem (which would be simple to correct) is still there! These groups were shot using the Sierra 50 gr. Blitz bullet and Federal brass that had been once fired and scrounged off the range after having been shot in machine guns!
My back up Big Game Rifle these days is so accurate for a high itensity cartridge I am constantly amazed with it. Every fall my Remington 700 Classic in 7mm Remington Magnum shoots a three shot sight verification group at 100 yards of just above .500". This Rifle does this every year using a 4X12 Leupold scope and the wonderful Nosler 160 grain bullet. I refuse to fire 5 shot groups with this Rifle as I am very recoil sensitive and flinch prone after shooting longers strings with the big boomers.
I did not post this to start a flame fest and purposely have waited to post this after an appropriate time has passed to stay away from recent postings (time wise). My experiences after being relayed not wanting to being perceived as an attack on anyone. I simply shake my head at the occasional beration of Remington. Folks, I have seen my favorite all time Rifle manufacturer completely self destruct (Winchester in 1963!) and I pray that Remington will continue putting out a safe and accurate Rifle for a long time to come!
I do a lot of shooting and have for many decades. I see folks at the range using extremely poor range techniques (no wind flags, no proper Rifle supports, low powered scopes, dubious ammunition, rapid fire, over heated barrels etc etc etc!) and I often try and rationalize the Remington bashing to some short coming of the shooter. But this does not fly - if they have poor equipment or technique or no range flags then they are not going to have them when they shoot their Ruchesteravage Rifle either! I am just perplexed at my universal happiness with Remington having owned many many(100 of them at least!) of them and other peoples poor impressions! I guess that is what makes the world go round? But a statement regarding my happiness with Remington Bolt Guns will from time to time be made by me! That is, as long as they are putting out such pleasing friearms as they have been recently. I will be the first to speak up if I notice a significant diminishment in accuracy or quality of Remingtons Rifles. Remember folks the money we are spending on a typical Remington Bolt Gun today is really a pretty good value compared to "hand made" Rifles from the past (like a pre-64 Winchester Model 70 or an American made Weatherby or a Belgian made Browning or a Sako from the 60's or 70's!).
Meanwhile I am shaking my head from time to time!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Oh, C'mon, tell us how you really feel.

Remington, Savage, Ruger, Winchester, etc.etc. Have more money and power than I have among shooters, and I don't believe they need me to defend them.

I have several rifles. Nothing really high dollar. None hold benchrest standards. The Rem's that I have are very accurite. (except my US 1917) My Savage is just as accurite as any of my rifles. I have had and still have ejection problems with the Rem 700's on the rifles built around the 223 case only. I have seen several Savages with feed problems with factory ammo.

My point, however poorly displayed, is I think just about any factory rifle can shoot acceptable for most (obviously not all) hunters abilities. Even my Ruger 77 MkII JBelk and others made me notice the other rifle manufacturers. And I don't opine the Rems as highly as I used to. Dollar for dollar, I think there are better rifles available.

Nowadays, I look at rifles differently than I used to. I have different wants. I like good wood over black plastic, and steel over cheaper sustitutes. I guess I fall into the function, fit and finish crowd. I have a few rifles which are my most favorite hunting rifles. They are not my most accurite, but since I don't shoot benchrest matches and use them for shooting animals, they are more accurite than me in hunting situations.

However it's your money, buy and enjoy whatever pleases you. Just another one of my crazy opinions.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by VarmintGuy:
I'm glad someone is defending Rem. Tom

VG, Good post! Wonder why the most popular action to build off of is the 700? I like you have owned and still own a bunch of 700's. The only one that was really a pickle was a 6mm BDL back in 1977!! It was probably the prettiest gun I've ever owned! However I would have sworn that the stock was going to sprout leaves anyday! That was before the days of "synthetics" when you bedded all the way from the tang to the muzzle and we didn't know any better! I have yet to see a 700 Synthetic ADL in ANY calber that will not shoot under 1 inch@100 yards with a little load developement! As far as vintage guns go, I just aquired a .243 Wood stock VS this past Saturday (old Fluer-de-lis checkering) mint! and had a friends newer model 700 VS wood stock in .243 to test. Both shot 41 grains of Varget with 70 grain Nosler BT into the .3's! With no bedding or trigger work whatsoever. I also have 3 7mmMag ADL synthetics that will all do .6-.75@100 and my personal one will do .8@200! A 260 BDL stainless synthetic with 24 " barrel (14 year old daughters gun) that has done .345 using 40 grains of Varget and a 100 grain BT and a custom(wore the barrel out!!) 25-06 that will do under .4 with any bullet you want to shoot! Yes I like the 700's also! Have a new 22-250VLS with the black laminated stock that has not been shot yet(got it Saturday) but am expecting the .2's or .3's from it when I break it in! GHD

Ive owned quite a few rifles over the years.I dont remember a remington 700 that wouldnt shoot minute of angle at least most of the time.Not so for any other maker.I would guess if you bought 10 of each brand bolt guns,remington would have at least 8 that would shoot under an inch.In my expirence ,the other brands would be less.Some, far less.Some are lucky if any would.

Groundhog Devastation: The local sporting goods store here in Dillon, Montana has one of those VERY attractive new style Varminters with the black laminate stock and the stainless action and barrel. I handled it again yesterday but the only thing keeping me from buying it was the fact I am again broke!
I do not know if I emphasized it enough but this run of absolutely amazing easy load development with my recent Remingtons I attribute mostly to Remington but I have also taken great pains in the last several years to "painstakingly" align, mount, lap, center and boresight my quality scopes, mounts and rings. Next I carefully choose and investigate bullets and powders and use only components recommended to me by people and publications I trust for load development. This has saved me lots of time, money and aggravation. The last five years I have lived in Montana and finding windless range time has incresed in difficulty by a factor of 3 or 4 for me as opposed to my "protected" range out in my home town of Seattle, Washington.
Wind flags, Hart benchrest with wedged in Rifle forearm, correctly adjusted trigger, correct barrel break in, proper barrel cleaning, plenty of scope power, quality components, extreme care in scope mounting, always firing from a cool (not hot) barrel and firing only when the Rifle is in the exact same position and hold as the last shot have greatly simplified my load development! Bringing it to the point of "being a snap"!
Another brand name case in point. I am a great admirer and follower of the Ruger #1 Rifles. Over the years I have owned at least 20 of them. About 5 years ago I simply changed my philosophy towards them! Here's how I deal with them now. First I only buy Ruger #1's that have very pleasing wood in the caliber I am interested in (this greatly enhances resale when need be). Then I carefully handle and break them in. If the Ruger #1 in question does not show the promise of accuracy after trying 12 to 15 different loads I sell it! No more monkeying with forearm modifications, triggers, screw torque, washers etc etc etc. I simply sell the well cared for Rifle, take the $50.00 to $75.00 loss and move on. I have Ruger #1-B's now that all look and shoot well and no long term headaches for me and #1's anymore! I presently own Ruger #1-B's in 22 Hornet, 218 Bee, 22-250, 243 Win. and 6mm Rem.
Long live Americas oldest Gunmaker! Remington!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

GHD: I forgot to add this in regards to your older style Remington VS in 243Winchester. There is a growing demand for these older Rifles at Gun Shows and Gun Shops (in the west anyway!). They are highly sought after and prized. Two recent examples: I just returned from a Gun Show & Gun Shop tour of Washington and Oregon. At the huge Portland, Oregon Gunshow at the Exposition Center there was a cream puff of a Remington Varminter with the wood stock and Fluer de Lis style checkering. It was in caliber 22-250 Remington! I looked it over and was somewhat taken aback at the asking price! $600.00! Now that is at least twice if not three times its original cost! I spoke with the owner respectfully and quietly and gathered intel on the gun. It was in nearly new condition and the bolt face showed very little shooting indeed. My inspection of the chamber, leades and rifling with my Siebert bore inspection tool showed no flaws or wear at all. Continued conversation with the owner gave me this impression - he knew the price was high but Varmint seasn was starting soon, the accuracy of these older Rifles (in his opinion) was superior to whats available these days and he was just going to sit on it and wait patiently to make his profit! Late Sunday afternoon the Rifle was gone! I have no idea what it sold for but it was one of the MOST inspected Rifles at that show! I would GLADLY have paid him $450.00 for it! Try and do that with your Savage in 20 years (sell it for much more than you paid for it!). My friend Louie last fall bought a similar vintage Remington 700 Varminter in 222 Remington at a Gun Show in Centralia, Washington. He paid right around $300.00 for it! He took it home mounted a Lyman 20X scope on it and the resulting range work and accuracy shocked him! Truly a super value for him. I would have paid $450.00 for that Rifle in that condition as well.
My Remington 700 Varminter from that era in 222 Remington is only brought out on special occassions anymore. Like teaching children to Varmint Hunt and shoot! A very special Rifle indeed! Its best 5 shot group to date (using Varmint bullets and a Varmint style scope) is .218"! Why the Remington company ever stopped manufacturing that Rifle in ALL their bolt action Models is beyond me! I also have a factory stock Remington 40X-BR model in 222 Remington. Using Varmint style bullets and a scope I use for Varmint Hunting over the years I have shot many splendid groups when sight verifying prior to Varmint Safaris. Several of these five shot 100 yard groups were in the 1"s! Great Rifle, great caliber, consistant performance and easy load development with this rig also according to my loading log.
If it wasn't for this miserable cold/flu thing I have I would take my new Remington 700 Fireball Classic out and harvest a peck of Ground Squirrels this afternoon! They are OUT!
I personally think the new Varmint line from Remington shoot as well or better (CERTAINLY not worse!) than the old wood stocked models and they now all come with 26" barrels! For my many and varied Varminting uses this is an improvement. Free velocity and more sighting stability (mass) under field conditions is a big plus in my mind.
Shooting out a 260 remington barrel! Right on! Let the lead fly! Great caliber this the more I see of it! Another atta boy for Remington (standardizing the 260 cartridge!).
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

My 700 BDLSS with the J-lock and all in 300RUM with 150 Partitions at over 3650 will make most varmint rigs jealous.

Varmint Guy, The old 243 is definitely a keeper! My first real varmint gun was a 22-250 BDL Varmint Special back in 1975. It would shoot like nothing I had ever owned before! Sold it back in 1985 or so. I wore the barrel out on a BDL 222Magnum that I bought from and old guy at the local gas station one day when he was mad because he couldn't find ammo! I only had about 500 pieces of brass because I had put together a 6x47 using an old 722 action and had shot a little BR while in college. The original 222Mag action now has a 40X barrel and stock and is undoubedly the most accurate piece of machinery for varmints I've ever owned!!! When ever this rain stops and the wind slows to under 20mph I'll get around to breaking in that new 22-250! The 25-06 is a 700 action with a 26 inch #4 contour Shilen barrel, Borden Rimrock stock, Sako extractor and teflon coated. It shoots also! I like you love my Remingtons! GHD

Montdoug: I also am following the tragic case of the dead youngster. This situation is a web or a maze of circumstances and as one who owns and trusts my Remington's to a certain extent I was and am curious about the situation. I again have no agenda one way or another with Remingtons I just want to understand their safety or lack there of.
The father of the child in question requested an audience at the sportsmans association to which I have been a member since moving to Montana. The local paper had a small announcement of the pending fathers presentation at our monthly meeting. This audience was approximately 4 months after the tragic accident! The father was of course granted permission to address our association and the meeting was attended by more people than any meeting before or since. Not only were our members there but non members and to my later discovery a dubious member of the press. Unannounced!
Immediately prior to the fathers presentation the president of our association stood up and made an announcement! The father would not be discussing or answering questions in regards to the handling of the Remington Rifle in question "concerning safe handling or the direction of the Rifles pointing at the moment it went off"! I should have walked out then! Was an agenda about to unfold? What was going on? Much later I thought about this and could only come up with my own conclusions about why the father was there. I will keep those conclusions to myself as I have since making them. The local paper and the postcard I received that announces our meetings stated the father would speak in regards to safety issues imposed by the use of Remington bolt action Rifles and the safety thereon! No mention in the paper or on the postcard of the exclusion of discussing any other safety issues! The father made his tearful at times presentation to the tearful (I at several times was rendered to tears!) at times audience. The presentation went along and at one point the father and an assistant were able to make a Remington 700 long action ADL Rifle fire upon closure of the bolt! This firing without touching the trigger was only demonstrated after the rifle had been manipulated with a knife blade in the area of the trigger! After the fathers presentation I tried to make that Rifle "slam fire" myself (no knife tip manipulation in the area of the trigger by me) and it would not "slam fire" for me!
During the fathers presentation he opened up for questions and after sometime I gathered my composure temporarily and asked him directly if in fact he and his lawyer and a represetative of the Remington Company and their lawyer had gone to the Sheriffs Office where the Rifle was held for evidence and while there no one was able to make that Rifle fire without intentionally pulling the trigger! The father evaded answering my question. I told the father I was in possession of correspondence that in fact stated that very scenario had occurred! The father WOULD NOT answer my question or followup questions (asked at times through tears) whether anyone there that day could make that Remington Rifle slam fire! He would not answer my at least twice repeated specific question! I finally asked him that I as a father of 4 children and having taught 3 of them to Hunt with Remington Bolt actions what I should now do with the numerous Remingtons I owned and ones I had bought for my children? He did answer this question first time asked and without any "dancing" - "remove the unsafe triggers on all your Remington bolt Rifles and replace them with a $100.00 aftermarket trigger"! I left that meeting with very mixed emotions and questions regarding this "presentation"!
Some time later I was accosted and condemned via private E-mail by the unannounced "emmisary" from our "unbiased" press who had attended our meeting.
After taking him to task via a private E-mail to him for writing a biased news article concerning "the recall of all Remington triggers by the Remington company". (There has not been a recall of all Remington triggers of course - to my knowledge anyway). (There has been offered AT OWNERS EXPENSE an upgrade, for some old style ADL triggers/safeties if I understand that situation correctly.) The "reporter" stated he knew who I was and I had been disrespectful and mean to the father in question and that he had been at the meeting of the Beaverhead County Outdoors Association the night of the fathers presentation. I wrote back to that spineless bastard then and there and demanded an apology from him immediately and repeatedly and will do so again today but the spineless bastard is in cyberspace hiding! And he has repeatedly refused to apologize to me for his statement that I was "being insensitive to the berieved father during the meeting"! I went purposely to the officers of the association and asked them if in any way I had been insensitive to the father? They all stated no! Absolutely no! I then asked several attendees of the meeting the same question and I got the same answer. No I had not been disrespectful to the father. I then redemanded an apology from the spineless bastard reporter for his privately communicated slander to me. He refused. I told that coward that I had delivered death messages to parents in person for 29 years in a professional capacity and at times of parental loss words must be chosen and spoken carefully and without any inkling of insensitivity. I had never received anything but praise for that difficult duty! I declared to that lawnfudge like human if he could relay ONE disrespectful or insensitive word I spoke to that father at that meeting I would go in person to that father and apologize in person to him and to the scumbag of a reporter. He of course would not AND could not relay any such word, phrase or attitude I displayed! I again demanded an apology and none was forthcoming. A piss poor excuse for a man he is!
At the time of the association meeting with the father I did not form the conclusion I have now formed regarding this tragic situation. After much more investigation and review - I think Remington triggers/safeties when handled SAFELY and shown the proper amount of trust (none what so ever) and Remington Rifles when handled SAFELY (including the Remington Rifle being held for evidence by the Sheriffs office) are in effect "safe". Let no person reading this posting (and any prior statements I have made publicly regarding this tragic loss of the youngster) think for one moment I have any annymosity what so ever for the parents of this child! I do not! They are humble devout people that have suffered a tragic loss! Indeed I would instantly give my life no questions asked if I could just trade it for that childs life OR to replay the mothers handling of that Rifle for that instant.
Sad situation this is all around but after the fact what are we to do? I think we should have a fair and balanced PUBLIC demonstration of that Rifles ability or inability to fire without the trigger being pulled!
From time to time I hear of Remingtons that discharge without the trigger being pulled. I have owned a LOT of Remingtons and expect to own a lot more. None of the ones I have owned have ever discharged without the trigger being pulled! I have tired to find one that will and have not been able to. If I ever do find one that fires by itself the first thing I will check is to see if the trigger has been adjusted incorrectly! The report regarding the test by the father and his representative and the people from Remington did not address this aspect of the Rifles condition. Whether or not it had the trigger adjusted after leaving the factory. The father did state that the Rifle had been purchased second hand. But until a reason for that Remington Rifle not being made to discharge without the trigger being pulled - in front of the Sheriff and the four others I will have to make the evidentiary conclusion that the trigger on that Rifle does work as designed! Perhaps another safety issue came into play on that tragic day?
I have only one Remington Rifle with the new J-lock on it. That Rifle is a Remington 700 Classic Model in caliber 221 Remington Fireball. It is the short action and they (Remington 700 Short Actions) previously were known for their extremely fast lock time. I have read three technical articles regarding this new J-lock Rifle (the 221 Fireball version) and along with mine they all gave very commendable accuracy but no mention of diminished lock time with this new J-lock style bolt shroud. I am not that technical a person but I do admit the ultra-fast locktime is one good selling point for Remingtons. Especially the short action Varmint Hunting 700's I own so many of. But I think the part of the bolt shroud that houses the J-lock system does not move with the forward movement of the firing pin! I am gonna give a wild opinion here and say the lock time is the same with the new J-lock bolt shroud as with the older style bolt shrud. If there is a diffence I bet it is not more than just a couple milliseconds. It would be interesting to know!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

[ 04-11-2003, 04:13: Message edited by: VarmintGuy ]

GroundHogDevastation: Your post reminds me of a couple of Rifles I owned and just did not appreciate at the time their accuracy. One was a Remington 722 in 222 Remington and I owned another in 222 Remington Magnum! I was into trading Guns back when I owned those two and thought making a fast $20.00 bill was more important than anything! I shot the 222 a lot but not that much for the 222 Magnum. They both shot so sweetly! A fool such as I!
I do now own a fully customized 222 Remington Magnum on a Sako action and it shoots as well as it looks and it looks great!
My fondness for the 6X47 cartridge was forever sealed when I bought a factory stock Remington 40XB-BRKS in that caliber in 1994. It flat shoots consistantly and incredibly well! I had been trying for a couple of years back then to get a 6mm BR in that Model Rifle but the 6X47 was all I could find. I am very thankful I bought it! It is a Varmint killing machine! A pleasure to shoot, easy on brass and does pretty well on a high plains windy day for Prairie Dogs way out there! Love that 6X47!
Speaking of wind I will trade you some incessant wind for that rain you have down there! We are in drought still here in SW Montana (the fifth year in a row now!). I have only been to the range once in the last three weeks due to wind. And I probably should not have shot that day as the wind was gusty and rarely anywhere near still! I hope the rain quits for ya and you can get out and enjoy your Rifles!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

My Dad ordered a new 40X 222 about 3 years ago.Remington really messed up his order.What he got was a Brand New 40X Single Shot Action completly customized in 222 Magnum.They offered him 3000$ back for it but he wasnt selling.

My best group with that gun with the Jewel trigger and 36XBR scope with 52 Bergers and 335 was .085!!!!!

Montdoug: I am sure this is the same tragic incident. And your reflection of the incident with you wife exactly parallels an incident I witnessed. The police officer involved was literally in shock as he replayed the handling of a firearm he was not to familiar with and it discharged again! Two AD's (accidental discharges) in less than two minutes! Luckily no person was hurt in that incident! Among the 2,000 or so police officers I worked with over 29 years I know of about 30 incidents where officers accidently shot themselves, accidently shot their partners and in one case a child accidently shot her father with a pistol he was wearing concealed!
Your reminder to shoot safe should be repeated often and loudly by all the rest of us!

To Mr.Big: Oh how I would like to have that 40X 222 Magnum that belongs to your Dad! I have yet to break below the 1's with my 6X47 but it has a Varmint scope on it! (See how quick I can think up excuses for my shooting!). Take care of that one and don't let it get away!

Lets all rededicate our commitment to think safe and be safe while shooting!

Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Varmint Guy,evidently they built the gun for a Rem executive and shipped Dad the wrong gun.When he recieved shipment of the gun the box was marked 222 Rem.it had 222 Rem Mag stamped on the bbl.Dad called the custom shop and they told him it wasnt possible because they hadnt chambered the Mag in years.He had the chamber cast and it IS the 222 Mag.About a month latter they told him to take the gun back to where he got it and they would send him the right gun.He declined.About a month after that they tried to buy it back.It now resides in a well secured 1100 lbs American Security Safe.

if you flip the saftey off on any gun with your finger on the trigger it will go boom.

I would like to say Rem,700,s are the only gun to buy. I too own a bunch,Two safes worth. A few years back the winchester heavey varmit cought my eye, so I bought one in a 22-250. It never really shot any good, I sent it out to be accurized, again it never shot every load tryed all over one one inch. After shooting about five hundred dollers of bullets and poweders down its tube I sent it Gordery Gritters, now this gun is a one holer. Again all the rem, I have owned never gave me that much trouble.