Getting a third shot flyer from a bedded Rem 700 XCR2 270 Winchester
Got me looking into the bedding with nothing out of the ordinary being found.
I recall trying to get this gun into another Remington stock before with no luck as the front screw wouldn't align with the hole, however this rifle is now properly bedded into a laminated stock and goes together nice.
Could this off center receiver hole cause the third shot flyer?
Tried to take a picture to illustrate this as best as I could.

Thanks in advance.

It is likely you are getting some weird stress from that. Entirely likely it could walk shots. That is a legitimate factory defect. I'd contact Remington and send them the photos. They will likely send you a pre-paid shipping box and you can return it. That should be replaced with a new barreled action courtesy of Remington.

Thanks metal, your post is gone but you were correct.
Crooked recoil lug
Bedded properly I wouldn’t think this would cause the flyer...

It is still a factory defect and I recommend having them fix it. If the lug bottom is in contact with the stock it can cause issues.

Send it in for certain...BUT...those groups could just mean you haven't hit the right powder/bullet/case/primer combo yet. I've been getting a lot of those lately from 6.5 Wby, 28 Nosler, 25-06, 6-284 and 17 Fb until I hit the right combo. 2 days ago I was about to change powder in my 25-06/100gr BT/RL22 but decided to try one more 1/2gr increase load and hit ~1/2" 125 yd group...tried another to be sure...samo-samo, .400" 3 shot group...nice triangles all shots almost touching...going UP another 1/2 gr opened the group to ~1.50s are indicative of barrel vibes not quite right...sometimes it's nothing more than changing primer brands to find that null point at the muzzle. I've had that "flier" precess around the two almost 270° using the same 3 benchrest prepped cases just to eliminate variables and from horizontal to vertical.

Check out all possibilities then it's just load workup.

I've had 5 very good Rems and two very BAD ones...off center chamber and crooked barrel threads...I usually replace the recoil lug with a side tapered one, pillar bed/bedding block and a few other odds and ends.

Good Hunting

Now that I think of this situation a bit more, another thing to check is to make sure the barrel is properly torqued up...

quote:

Originally posted by Dead Eye:
Thanks metal, your post is gone but you were correct.
Crooked recoil lug
Bedded properly I wouldn’t think this would cause the flyer...

Sorry about that, at first I thought it was just the lug but from the photos it does look like the hole is off so I deleted.

Yeah the pics are poor. Hard to tell. I had it in my hands and couldn't figure it out...

I had an ADL here in the shop a year or so ago that was just like that-front screw hole about 5-degrees off center. It was an old rifle that had seen very little use, looking almost new except for the cracked stock caused by the torque imparted into the stock by tightening the screws.

Dead Eye:

Picture looks fine to me and the bolt seems to be darn close to perfectly aligned with the center line of the trigger.

I don't have a gunsmith shop. But, that recoil lug can't possibly sit properly in the bedding.
How difficult is it to loosen the barrel & re-set the lug position?
If that isn't an option, can you taper the lug on the wide side to match the other side and also on the bottom to make it square and re-bed only where the metal was removed?

Aussie - Hambly-Clark's book on centerfire rifle accuracy (no affiliation here) has a chapter on bedding 700's for accuracy. He spent a lot of time and detail with regard to the lug area.
I can't imagine the off-center torque of the front screw making no difference at all in accuracy.
Again, I'm outside looking in and still learning at 63 years of age.

custombolt,

+1 on Bill Hambly Clark Jnr's book regarding bedding.

If my recollection of the book is correct group splitting is because the action has a choice of positions it can settle in after recoil therefore you've got a bedding problem.

The recoil lug being skewed might cause it to be stuck in the mortise and not settling back into it's correct position after each shot ........thereby cause two different bedding positions/group splitting.

I'd pull the barrel, get the recoil lug into correct alignment then check the bedding again.

Putting a dial indicator on it (like in Bill's book) may tell you a whole lot about your rifle's bedding.

Just my thoughts.

Remember free advice is usually worth everything you gave for it.

I don't agree with that book's conclusions. I have had barrels that split groups with bedding that was correct.
It was improperly heat treated barrels, not bedding. Not saying bedding won't do that too but that is not always the only cause.
Your recoil lug is just canted; very easy fix. Or, glass bed it as is and you will never notice it. Not saying that is, or isn't, the cause of your groups. The recoil lug should not bear on the bottom anyway, so your receiver doesn't know that it is canted. Glass bed it correctly, anyway whether you have the lug fixed or not.

twobobbwana:

This minor issue seemed like an easy fix by pulling the barrel and reposition the lug if it can be done without marring the barrel or any other finish.

Remove some material at the lug area to allow for the new position of the lug and bed locally in that area. Whether or not it will improve accuracy or not is not the only issue here. It needs to be done right. It seems to be so close to perfection.

I agree with Custom bolt, unless the rifle has iron sights which would be a problem..but don't think it does..Turn the barrel to straight or turn the recoil lug, either one should work it seems to me??? but havnt read the whole text.