This past Friday, Saturday and Sunday I had the great privilege and unbounded fun filled opportunity to attend the Wisdom, Montana Gunshow! I have been to this little show (100 tables) probably 20 times over the years but this year I decided to rent a table ($33.00).
I had a lot of odds and ends laying around that needed to find new homes and I had a little mad money already that I wanted to add to.
I sold knives, brass, ammunition, traps, a pistol (that I made $70.00 on!), a loading press, books, and a host of other things! I also bought a Remington 700 BDL (300 Winchester Magnum) with a Leupold scope on it. I took it home Friday night cleaned it up and turned around and sold it the next day for a $75.00 profit.
All this effort and manuevering was, OF COURSE, in an attempt to gather more money for my upcoming Varmint Rifle project to be built on my recently acquired XP-100 action!
Well things were on track til I get wind of a Montanan in need of money - wanting to sell his new Varminter! It seems this spring he had bought a new Remington 700 VLS Rifle in caliber 22-250. He then mounted a Leupold 6.5x20 scope on it in Leupold rings and bases.
Nifty rig this one and on my initial inspection I felt that it may have been unfired! The owner mentioned though that he had fired it to the tune of 20 times and then his luck went south - financially! I felt bad for him.
He wanted $850.00 for the set up.
Some time later after he had shopped it around a little, I ended up paying $700.00 for it. I was happy with that price for that Rifle in that condition. VERY HAPPY!
Anyway today I took the Rifle to my favorite range and shot some Varmint ammo through it.
I used ammo from two other 22-250 Varminters that I have. In other words this ammo was not "made" for this Rifle.
I got the Rifle on paper first shot and then adjusted the scope to center. Then I carefully fired a 5 shot group at 100 yards with the first ammo. The group turned out to measure .542" and then the next 5 shot group came in at .503" with different ammo!
I was thrilled with this performance and the "nagging" feeling that I get in my gut whenever I buy a used Varmint Rifle was relieved! I call that feeling in my gut my "accuracy worry cramps". I get it every time I start wheeling and dealing on a Varmint Rifle! I am sure it is "psycho sematic" (sp. ?). I have learned to live with this affliction - but I have never been able to prevent it from recurring!
I plan on using the 12 pieces of brass I shot today, again tomorrow. I think I will try some Berger 52 gr. bullets in tomorrows testing!
Oh, I forgot to mention that I did a trigger job on the Rifle and that turned out just wonderful. And whoever had mounted the scope had removed all four action screws when they only needed to remove three to accomodate the Leupold one piece base. The rear action screw hole was "empty" and begging to gather dust and grit. So I removed the scope and added an action screw to solve that minor ditty!
While the scope was off I checked the rings for absolute perpindicularness (is that word?) to the centerline of the barrel. I set them correctly (they were close but not perfect) and then I lapped the rings for good measure and remounted the scope and bore sighted it!
I have just had the best run of good luck with Remingtons over the last 8 -10 years! I have not had to bed any of the MANY Rifles I have bought nor play with the crowns or anything along those lines! In addition the load development of all these Rifles I have come by in that time period has been very easy and often first loads were fine for my uses and expectations.
This new Rifle has again made me just as happy as a big clam!
Only sad note for the day was a young Fox had been run over by a car (yesterday) on the road that leads to my friends private Rifle range! I scraped him off the pavement and kicked him into the ditch. My friend and I were so excited to see a Fox family denning in his field just beyond and to the right of his 100 yard target butt. There were 4 Kits in this den earlier this spring. I did not seen anyone above ground at the den site. Mother Foxes often move their young to new dens after a couple of months in one spot so I was not really expecting to see them there today anyway.
The Fox were hit really hard by the mange here in our area 2 winters ago. They were virtually wiped out in that winter! We were so happy to see them coming back into the area this spring.
I took along my Ruger 77/17V in caliber 17 HMR. My friends pasture that runs along the Rifle range is full of Ground Squirrels. I shot 2 clips (18 rounds) at them and got about 15. I tried for a double but only got one with my first shot (I always try and wait for a double when getting going from a new Gopher set up spot - as they are not as wary until they hear the first shot!). I did get a double on about my fifth shot though. That made my day.
The Ground Squirrels will be going underground in a few days to begin their summer hibernation (estivation).
Saw lots of game on the early morning trip to my "windproof" range which is 17 miles each way from my house. Lots of Ospreys out "fishing" on the Beaverhead! I also saw both Golden and Bald Eagles along with lots of Antelope and Whitetailed Deer. I only saw a couple Mule Deer but I did pass three herds of Buffalo (semi-domesticated) and they were well worth slowing for as the young of the year were a bright rust red in color with the morning sun shining on them! I also saw a Muskrat building its nest up. Lots of noisey Sand Hill Cranes in all the fields - they appeared to be teaching their young how to Hunt for Grasshoppers! They walk around in the fields (both cultivated and wild short grass fields) hunched over and every once in a while they snatch a Grasshopper out of the grass. I always like to see a Moose in the morning to make my day but none were spotted today.
Maybe tomorrow?
I will let you know how the "once fired" (in the new Rifle anyway) brass and the 52 gr. Bergers work out!
Long live Remington!
Long live Montana!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Varmint guy,

I just sold my vssf 22/250 to get my vls .243......my 22/250 shot great but I was not happy with the feel of the stainless action. My new rem chrome .243 is finished so much better than my 22/250 you would not think the same company made it

Glad to here you happy with your 22/250.....now I need to get a pair of vsf's in 22/250 and .308 to go with the .243 & Rum .300

Glad to hear your 700 VLS 22-250 shoots just as good as mine. All I did was lighten the trigger and with my sweet load the smallest it has shot was .3 and the biggest just a tad over .5. I liked it so much I am now thinking about getting another one in 243.

Well - its a KEEPER!
I took the new (to me) Remington 700 VLS in 22-250 out again this morning in the rather stillish air.
I tried two loadings both using the Berger 52 gr. MEF bullets - one loading used the not often used by me H 414 powder. It was a stout but under maximum load and for some reason it shot this Berger bullet into a horizontally dispersed 5 shot group at 100 yards measuring 1.113"! The vertical dispersion of this load was a much more tolerable .668"! Puzzling this! The conditions were near excellent?
Next then, I tried the same bullet at a loading that is supposed to give approximately the same F.P.S. (speed) and this load REALLY perked up! This load used good'ole IMR 4064 powder and dispersed the 5 bullets (again horizontally) but measuring only .498" there at 100 yards!
This is plenty good enough for me and I will now load up 100 of these Bergers for an upcoming Prairie Dog Safari! Got to break in the new Varminter on real live game ASAP!
That brings up an interesting (to me) question though!
I did not have my Oehler Chronograph along today, but like I said these two loads are supposed to be churning along at about the same speed and using the same bullet and the same primer - just a different powder! This load is supposed to be producing about 3,700 FPS from a 26" barrel!
Why do you think there is this significant difference in group size there at 100 yards?
I have noticed this phenomenon in the past (over the last 4 decades!) and can never really grasp why on some occassions the same bullet at the same speed (similar speed would be more accurate!) but pushed by different powders -sometimes produces these notably different groups sizes.
Any ideas out there on this situation?
Long live Remington!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

VG,

your like me I got a .412" group from my new .243 rem 700 (was a vls but added a hs stock) and that was good enough to me now I need to try it out on rabbits.......on 25x anyway I could see wobbles so I feel that load will go even better, but it is well within a foxes head

Good work with the 22/250 !!

VarmintGuy, it has to do with pressure curves and barrel harmonics. Some powders have sharper pressure curves and they are timed differently, etc. etc.

I was schooled on this by someone with lots of experience and degrees, and he said there is no easy way to tell how a given load will respond in every rifle.
That's why the factories shoot so much when doing load developement.

Shooting lots is FUN however...

Oh, by the way, try some of the "interchangable" powders, IMR3130-XMR3130 for example and you will see they yield different results.
Even sometimes different batches of the same powder are a little different.

Flippy: You are most certainly right in your contentions. I am just really astounded by the "proof" of your "pudding" that I witnessed first hand today.
I mean that 1.113" group was no fluke. I had great conditions and the trigger on my Rifle is set at about 32 ounces! And the Hart rest and sand bag set up I had was rock steady! I am certain the H 414 load was doing something just as you describe and whipping out of the barrel or getting "destabilized" somehow by the pressure of this powders combustion.
Like my friend Steve says to me all the time "handloading causes questions".

PC: Wishing you continued good things with your new Remington! Watch out Rabbits "down under"!

Long live Remington!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

VG, Some like it "fast". Some like it"slow". End result, about the same velocity and another dead varmint!!! Just for S&G, try 40 grains of Win 760 and the 52 grain match bullets(you pick the brand) and let me know how it does!!! You on't want to hear about the telephone call I got about an X100R in .204 and it's problems!!! And I got blamed for it because they heard "from some varmint hunter up near Callaway that the .204 was the cat's meow"!!! It is!!! If you shoot a Savage VLP!!! Or even a Model 7!! I do have one of the X-100R's to break in for a guy in .204!! Bet I can get it right!!! GHD

Groundhog devastation: I am man enough to take the good and the BAD - when it comes to Remingtons!
Fill me in please on the problematic XR-100. If it truly is a problem child it will be the first one I have heard "bad" about.
Let her fly!
I think I have some W 760 and will give that a try also. Thanks for the load info.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

I'm still doing load development with my Remington VLS in 6mm Rem. I really like the rifle, but boy is it a heavy rascal!
So far my best has been the Sierra 70gr. HPBT pushed along by IMR4895 39.6grs. It groups .397" (5 at 100yds).
Using the Sierra 85gr. HPBT and IMR4895 37.9grs. I can get .461". For the heavier 100gr bullets I switch to Rel-19 and IMR4831. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

VG, I will let you know of the problems I find(if any) with the XR-100(I'm betting it was a gunsmith I know giving me a ration of s...!!!)
Cal, Try 39.0 grains of Varget and the 87 grain VMAXS in your VLS 6mm! Not the fastest load in town but will probably shoot pretty darn good! And if that don't work, bump it up to 50.0 grains of Reloader 19 and give that one a whirl!!! GHD PS(VG, there will probably be anothe new Remington in the GHD safe by the weekend!!! Will keep you in suspense till after the testing!!)

hey VG I'm not sure which law you broke but I'm sure there's some law against making money at a gunshow. You are actually supposed to lose money but gain new toys.

Hello GHD,

I'll give that load a go. I'm still in the load development stage. The gunsmith who works on my rifles said he couldn't get the trigger below 3lbs. which to me is a bit heavy. Apparently Remington has made some changes to their triggers. All in all I'm quite happy with the rifle. Now if I can find a golf cart to lug that heavy sucker around the woodchuck fields I'll be okay. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

"Cal" take that remington trigger out and put in a Jewell like I did with a 1 pound trigger pull it breaks clean and I cant feel any creep or travel.

Good luck