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Thread: The Remington 788

  1. #81
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    alamogunr, it won't disappoint you I'd be willing to bet. I never met a 788 that wouldn't group MOA at least.

  2. #82
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texas by God View Post
    alamogunr, it won't disappoint you I'd be willing to bet. I never met a 788 that wouldn't group MOA at least.
    Yep, I agree, Texas by God. My two 788s aren't even real picky about boolits either. I've shot MOA groups with at least two different boolits, the 311291 and the Lee 151 that I cast mostly for my AKs. About the only boolit that my "main" 788 didn't like was, surprisingly, the 31141.

    Now that I'm retired with a 200 yd. range in my backyard, I need to revisit that 31141 issue. Mine likes velocity to stay < 1800-1900 fps. Treetop
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  3. #83
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    This 788 with a Weaver Quik point from 1972 will be at the range today.
    The Weaver Quik point was the grandfather of the Red dot we have today except it requires no batteries.

    It is a friend's rifle that is near and dear to her heart as her hubby passed away before he got it back together for her.
    My friend/gunsmith was kind enough to put it back together for her.






  4. #84
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    They are pretty accurate but real cheaply made. About the only reason to have one is because you bought it long ago, or are nostalgic. The price they want for them isn't worth it. But whatever makes you happy is what works.
    Lotta people die in bed: Dangerous place to be!

  5. #85
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    True story , the Model 788 was marketed as an inexpensive alternative to the more expensive Model 700 I believe.
    That said, once I dialed this 788 in with the grandfather of Red Dot scopes today (weaver Qwik) it grouped very nicely. 2"MOA at 100 yards.

  6. #86
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    True, they have steel stamped parts but only the safety tab, rear sight faux base, and buttplate were plastic. They filled the niche the Savage Axis and Ruger American and others do today. Those are cheaply made too. Give me the 788.

  7. #87
    Boolit Master Jack Stanley's Avatar
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    And if Remington would start production on the 788 today I bet they'd still be selling nicely . Plus there would be a real good reason to chamber them in .44 magnum again

    Jack
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  8. #88
    Boolit Grand Master In Remembrance Four Fingers of Death's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jack Stanley View Post
    And if Remington would start production on the 788 today I bet they'd still be selling nicely . Plus there would be a real good reason to chamber them in .44 magnum again

    Jack
    Yonks ago, I was in my (then) LGS and the Remington rep came in and announced the 788 was to be discontinued. He stated that there was nothing wrong with the 788 and that they sold well, but those sales were felt to be mainly at the expense of Remington 700 sales.
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  9. #89
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    One has to remember that the 700 always had a significant price advantage over its competition, the pre-64 Winchester M70. The 788 would have been serious competition for the 700. And all the derogotory comments heard about 788's from the 700 purists were the same comments made about the 700 by M70 purists. It is the same today, just pick your favorites.

    I like my 700's but I am quite happy I have my 788 .30-30 as well.
    Last edited by oldblinddog; 09-19-2017 at 09:29 PM.
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  10. #90
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    Quote Originally Posted by Four Fingers of Death View Post
    He stated that there was nothing wrong with the 788 and that they sold well, but those sales were felt to be mainly at the expense of Remington 700 sales.
    I know of at least one instance where that was true, me! For 4 years, during the 70s, I was a poor tool & die maker apprentice with a new bride (the current and only, Mrs. Treetop) and very little money. At the time, the model 788 was considerably cheaper than the model 700 and that was all I knew about when I bought my first one.

    My BIL owned a model 700 in .30-06 and we were both avid reloaders and boolit casters. It didn't take us long to notice that both of us shot tighter groups with my 788 than we did with 700. The difference was so noticeable that my BIL bought a brand new 788 and it shot right along side mine, accuracy wise.

    We did find out also that when shooting J-words, we got signs of high pressure at lower than max loadings, so we just happily used our 788s for cast boolit shooters. I'm sure that the premature high pressure signs (cases stuck in the chamber) were due to the rear locking lugs. Treetop
    "Treetop"
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  11. #91
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    And the 788 kick started the popularity of the 22-250 and the 7mm-08 BECAUSE it was affordable.

    Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

  12. #92
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    Quote Originally Posted by Four Fingers of Death View Post
    Yonks ago, I was in my (then) LGS and the Remington rep came in and announced the 788 was to be discontinued. He stated that there was nothing wrong with the 788 and that they sold well, but those sales were felt to be mainly at the expense of Remington 700 sales.
    There's a fine line between offering a less expensive gun that keeps your frugal customers from straying to another company vs. competing with yourself. Initially the 788 cost less to make than the 700 but as time went on that gap narrowed and eventually Remington must have decided that it wasn't worth it.

  13. #93
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    In 1973 I didn't own a 22 centerfire rifle but wanted one. The 788 was a good opportunity to get started in this area as it was affordable and carried a reputation for tight groups. A local shop had several (new) in .223 so I handed the clerk a $100 bill. He handed me the rifle and enough change for a burger, fries and milkshake on the way home. I had been handloading about 3 years by then and this rifle gave me the confidence to expand that activity. The rifle liked every load I fed into it and became my go-to answer for the groundhog control problem. Still have that rifle. It has been joined by a .222 and later by a .243 that are still here. Earlier this year I saw a 7mm/08 in a local store and looked it over. There was a spot inside the barrel that I could not determine to be dust, debris, rust, or something else. I set it back in the rack and returned to that store a week later ready to wipe down the bore for a second look. The rifle was gone! Rats! Foiled again.

  14. #94
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    Thin Man- now you know. Grab the 788 when you see it because someone else who KNOWS will grab it! This happened to me at a gun show with a Walnut 30-30! Ten minutes after I set it back on the table it was gone forever. I came back with plastic in hand and my explanation to the wife all planned out for nought.

  15. #95
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    Quote Originally Posted by Thin Man View Post
    returned to that store a week later ready to wipe down the bore for a second look. The rifle was gone! Rats! Foiled again.
    I just ask them to give the barrel a wipe. Every gunshop I have ever asked have a really ratty looking cleaning rod with a brush that's on it's last legs behind the counter. Good enough to move a dust spec or bit of crud anyway. If it is still there after that it would be rust, so thank you, no.
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  16. #96
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    One reason the 788 was so accurate was the short barrel. It was also a reason many scoffed at it since 24" barrels were the 'high velocity' kings. Trouble was the long thin barrels only liked certain loads so it took a while to get one to shoot good. The 788 that I had (7mm-08) shot just about every load within 1 moa.

    I also got the 788 due to cost. The problem is that if they come out with a lower cost rifle some people will choose it over the flagship model 700. The corporate question will be, can they draw in people from Savage and Mossberg to buy a less expensive rifle or will they lose more sales from the 700 series.

  17. #97
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    Quote Originally Posted by charlie b View Post

    ............. The problem is that if they come out with a lower cost rifle some people will choose it over the flagship model 700. The corporate question will be, can they draw in people from Savage and Mossberg to buy a less expensive rifle or will they lose more sales from the 700 series.
    /\ This is precisely the problem from a corporate point of view.
    If you're the manufacturer do you want to provide your customers with a less expensive option so that they will buy from you and not from a competitor?
    The risk is that you will then sell fewer of your more expensive items. In other words, Do you want to compete with yourself ?

    If you sell enough of the lower end products with a small profit margin you will make money. But there's a tipping point when competing with yourself becomes a losing game. That's exactly what happened with Remington. As manufacturing costs of the 788 inched upward the small profit margin got even smaller. At the same time the market for the 788 also got smaller. Items with small profit margins only make money when the sales volume is high.

  18. #98
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    Some years ago there were many speculations for the reason that 788s gave tight groups. At that time the consensus of opinion was lock time. This was a relatively new term to me so I started the google-foo search and learned about lock time as a general topic, then searched for the reported lock time for current production rifles. The information that came back from that search supported the claim that 788s were faster than a hiccup. There were very few rifles with a faster lock time, current or previous, than the 788. Now, whether that is the foundation for tight groups can still be debated. In either event the rifle's lock time apparently did little to hurt its group sizes.

  19. #99
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    A buddy of mine had a 788 in .243 with an 18" barrel. Most folks would say the caliber was too small and the barrel was too short, etc.. All I know is, it would stack bullets at 100 yards with ease and he killed many deer, and never needed more than one shot. Even though I find them ugly, I've been a fan since seeing his in action. I just wish I had bought the ones I passed up when they were around more......and cheaper.

  20. #100
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    The cross section of the 788 has a high section modules, this makes the 788 action a very stiff action with regard to bending of the action. The stiff action also AIDS in the accuracy capacity of the 788.

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