Good deal or what?

[lovedogs]

This may not apply much to this sight but I just had to tell someone about it.

An older relative who I like pretty well is getting so he can't really use his guns anymore so I've been cleaning them up for him and helping him sell some of them. While doing so I asked if he had something I could buy from him to remember him by when he passed away. We looked through his collection and came up with an older ('71 vintage) Rem. 700 BDL in 7MM Rem. Mag. It looks pretty good. No rust. It cleaned up pretty nice. He claims it was a real shooter and he may just be telling the truth as it looks nice. It looks like it was carried more than it was shot. I'll probably refinish it. Don't like that shiny RKW finish. He let me have it for $200. Around here that's pretty cheap. We see them in gun shows for $400+. Even if it needed rebarreled that'd be a reasonable price. If it shoots like I think it will, it's a steal.

[lathesmith]

It's been many a year since I saw any Remington Model 700 go for $200. Enjoy!
lathesmith

[Lloyd Smale]

400 is a great deal on a bdl around here. 200 is a absolute steal!!

[quack1]

You can knock the shine off that finish by wet sanding with 400 grit or if you want it real dull 320 grit. Just be careful not to sand through the finish around any edges. Around here you would be lucky to find a beat-up M700 for $200. You going to shoot cast in it?

[S.R.Custom]

The 7mm Mag is one of my favorite cartridges of all time. With a good barrel and a solid rest, it'll shoot better than you can out to as far as you can see through the scope.

Owing to the cavernous case capacity and the high velocities and pressures at which it operates, the 7mm mag is pretty much a jacketed only proposition. Which is not a bad thing-- it fullfills its intended purpose, and it does it exceedingly well.

The 7mm is a very twist sensitive cartridge. There is a bullet weight that rifle will like, and it will like it waaay better than the rest. If I'm right, that 700 has a 9-1/4" twist, which means for hunting bullets it'll like 160 grain bullets. The match variety 160-168 grainers will be too long; anything heavier will be too long as well. For best accuracy, seat your bullets out far enough to just kiss the lands. As for powders, H4831SC for the heavy bullets, and 4350 for the lighter bullets (140-150 grains) work very well.

Here's a picture of yours truly behind the controls of his favorite 7mm at the Lewiston Boomer Shoot two years ago. It's a Savage action with a 30" full-bull Douglas 'XX' barrel. It launches 175 grainers at 3031 fps average, 11 fps ES, and with that loading, it'll hold 1/2 MOA at 700 yards. (That's as far as I've shot it on paper.) Enjoy...

http://www.salmonriverdesign.com/STUFF/boomer.jpg

[KCSO]

Sounds Like incest to me, thats a $400 gun for sure.

[lovedogs]

Well, fellas, I made a real good deal! I mounted a Nikon Pro Staff 3X9 BDC scope on this rifle and bought a box of factory Win. 150 gr. Power Points just to see how it might do. I can use the brass to start reloading and get a baseline for pressures and velocities. I was awestruck with the old gun. After some Chrony work and sight adjustments I shot a few 100 yd. groups. It was doing so well I decided to see just how good it'd do. I hunkered down tight on it and shot a five-shot group of .609 in. at 100 yds. And with factory ammo, no less! Unreal! I can't wait to make up some reloads for it. I guess sometimes a guy makes out good, huh?

[eka]

A great deal and a great shooter too. You must be living right.

Keith

[S.R.Custom]

After some Chrony work and sight adjustments I shot a few 100 yd. groups.

I'm curious... what kind of velocities were you getting?

[lovedogs]

SuperMag... I have only shot the factory load mentioned so far and it ran an average of 3050 FPS. In the distant past I owned two other 7's and neither of them shot up to vel. specs so I like the idea that this one seems to have a bbl. that shoots up to speed. I can't wait to try my favorite Hornady 139 gr. in it.

[Lucky Joe]

Holy smokes, 1/2 MOA at 700 yards. Supermag that's really sticking them in there.

[S.R.Custom]

LD-- Outstanding. Sounds like you have a really good barrel!

Joe-- That's no lie... Did it in August of '05. It's a rough-turned barrel--no machine work done to it except for installation, wich means it hasn't seen any stress since it's been rifled. The rifle weighs almost 25 pounds, and my gun-builder is a depressive perfectionist. Bullets are Sierra 175 gr MatchKings over too much H4831SC, all stuffed in meticulously prepped cases. Add that to a dead-still day on a high mountain plain where you're by yourself and you've got the time to concentrate and optimize/regulate your barrel temps (and your own nerves, lol), and you have all the necessary ingredients for some serious groups.

But I have to admit, that was when the barrel was new, and I've not been able to do it again since I was at the Boomer Shoot in '06 (where the pic was taken). I sent a LOT of ammo downrange in a hurry. I've not had a bore scope down it, but I think I burned the throat somewhat. But it's still Sub-MOA at those ranges. If it gets any worse, I'll have the barrel set-back... if I can convince my builder to get out of bed...