A nearby gun store has an old Remington 512 Sportmaster with the tubular magazine for sale. The stock has some scratches but no cracks. The steel all looks good with no rust. Bore looks good. Didn't check the trigger.
No grooves for scope and has not been drilled.
They want $175 for it.
How good or bad a price is that?
Imo, a little high. Offer $125, see what they say. Mine was bought new in 1964 or 1965.
It mostly depends on how bad you want it. If your description is accurate and you want it, I don't think the price is too far out of line. Obviously, the less you have to pay the better but if I wanted it I probably would buy it and just enjoy it. Those old Remingtons and Winchesters are GREAT rifles and given the younger generation's propensity to have to have "tacticool" plastic carp, these older guns are quite readily available at reasonable prices. In my estimation $175 is reasonable, although $150 would be nicer.
I follow the older 22 rifles rather closely. I missed out on a lot of these rifles due to being a poor boy (lots of love and family values, just no money) in my youth so I'm trying to make up for lost time.It really has to be pretty bad to be selling for less than $150. Heck, a REM 514 single shot on good condition will run from $150 to $200 plus shipping and dealer charges. I know because I just bought one in good +/- condition, not too long ago and by the time all the costs were added up it was $150 and change.
Go for it!
When it's time to fight, you fight like you are the third monkey on the ramp to Noah's Ark.... and brother, it's STARTING TO RAIN!!
I agree that $175 is a bit high for a Remington 512.
However, if you can get that price down closer to $100, you can get yourself a solid .22 rifle.
The Remington 500 series .22 rimfire rifles were workhorses. Some of the 500 series rifles were target grade rifles and some were economy class rimfire rifles but they all had very good barrels. Remington cut a lot of corners on the lower end 500 series rifles (lots of stamped steel parts, mediocre stocks, no embellishment, etc. ) but they put a lot of value into the barrels. They used good steel, the barrels were not "economy" barrels even if the rest of the rifle was. The Remington 500 series held a lot of value.
Look it over and pay particular attention to the barrel. Good crisp, undamaged crown. Sharp, rifling with no pitting. Good clean chamber - chances are good that it will shoot well with the right ammunition. I've seen more than one old sad looking Remington 500 series rifle that would hold a tight group all day, every day.
If the barrel looks good, it's worth taking a chance on one.
Well, I went back to the gun shop. They have a shooting range in back so I asked to try it out and check for function. They said sure, go ahead.
I had no place to sit so I leaned against the wall of the shooting lane to help steady myself. I fired a 5 shot group at 15 yards to get an idea where it shot. Group about the size of a dime.
Okay. So far, so good.
I backed the target up to 25 yards and fired ten there. Group smaller than a quarter but bigger than a nickel. I consider that great for old eyes with iron sights.
I haven't fired a rifle with open sights for probably a decade and really wasn't expecting much. Grouping like that was much better than I was expecting.
I offered them $150 and they took it. Now I have to wait three days before I can pick it up.
It will be interesting to try it from a good solid rest and see what it(and me) is capable of.
I had one like this when I was in my teens and foolishly let it get away. It was like hugging an old friend to shoot it.
You did the right thing. A 511 sold locally for $195 in very good condition. They are better than your average modern . 22 rifle by a mile. My dad and my brothers could hit pecans with Dads 511; we all learned on it!
They were inexpensive but not cheap!
The factory sights are OK for young eyes but the rifles are generally capable of better accuracy than the factory sights can deliver. There are two options to improve the sights:
1. Mount a scope on the rifle. This may require drilling and tapping for bases. A good fixed 4 power scope is all it needs.
2. Acquire a receiver mounted peep sight, drill & tap the receiver for that sight.
Both of those routes will drive the cost of the complete rifle up a bit but they will both yield excellent results. And of course, neither of those projects needs to occur overnight.
After you get the sighting system where you want it; the next step is to find what ammunition the rifle likes. You never know what an individual .22 rifle will like but I would suggest starting with standard velocity target ammunition. Remington target ammo with the light blue stripe on the box flap works particularly well and may be a good place to start.
The entire process is an adventure and well worth the time.
Good Luck !
Last edited by Petrol & Powder; 01-08-2020 at 07:28 AM.
The later 511 clip and 512 tube magazine bolt rifles were grooved for Weaver Tip-Off scope mounts. Some earlier ones drilled and tapped for Lyman receiver sight. Good guns.
The ENEMY is listening.
HE wants to know what YOU know.
Keep it to yourself.
I am going to get some new glasses soon. My plan for this rifle is to work with the factory sights and try to get back to shooting well with open sights.
I know my eyes aren't as young as they once were but I want to see how close I can come to what I used to do.
I inherited my father's 511. It is in very poor condition but will still shoot. I will need to see just how well.
I may try to find a 510 and complete the series.
I understand there is a model 513 match rifle but I don't want to spend that much money as the seem to be very cashy.
You will like it Taz , any of those rifles in excellent condition and priced under two hundred bucks is likely going to be a deal .
Jack
Buy it cheap and stack it deep , you may need it !
Black Rifles Matter
Taz,
I have 2 . The 1st. I bought @ a gun show in the early '80's (not from a vendor.....just someone that attended to sell the gun). I paid $75.00 which I felt even then to be a fantastic price. The 2nd. is a 512P in perfect condition bought in the '90s for $350.00 that I thought then & now to be a fair price (the "P" models are few & far between). Both guns are very accurate (my 511 is also). I gave a 521T to my son & I have another 521T project gun that I hope will look like a 513S someday.
I think you got a great rifle for $150.00.
Enjoy it (I'm also looking for a 510).
Henry
Last edited by oldhenry; 01-11-2020 at 03:17 AM.
My fovorite of the series is the the 513S with a Weaver J2.5 scope and sling.
My cousin gave me one('50 ish) before he jumped on a boat to Inchon.
He survived most of the mayhem and I later('75 ish) bought another one to give back to him.
The whole series does not have a wart though.
Thanks for stirring up good memories.
Alas, around 1988 Springfield Sporters had some 513 Sporters for sale when I was young married broke. $300 and worth it but didn't have $300. I restored a 510 for my grandson to learn the old ways with. I love my 581 Remington, but the 510 thru 513 series were Remington's best bolt .22 rifles. Ever.
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The rifle got home today. It will be a while before I can take it to the range. We have some nasty ice and snow coming in for the nest couple of days.
Good time to clean it! Maybe consider your options concerning a receiver mounted peep sight or a scope. Gather up a selection of ammunition for testing, maybe create some targets and a log to record those results?
And of course - post some pictures !
Ice and snow = tin cans from the back porch with Colibris or CB ammo! Or in the house with a suitable backstop.....
+1 on pics
I have a 512. It came to me in pretty shoddy condition. Split and rotton stock, Bolt worn, trigger sear broken and bolt stop broken by the broken trigger sear ... Oh yes, barrel bent to at the end of the fore-end which I only realized some time later. Bought a new bolt and new sear (which broke first time I used it so I repaired both). Wonderfully accurate with a scope mounted (base glued on). I became club champ with that rifle. We were shooting up to 100 yds then we went olympic 100 m. Groups opened up!
Much later I fitted a suppressor and man did it shoot poorly! Turned out the last bit of the bore was badly worn and the misaligned baffles let me know. I chopped off the end bit of barrel and made a better suppressor. Accuracy restored.
Rest In Peace My Son (01/06/1986 - 14/01/2014)
''Assume everything that moves is a human before identifying as otherwise''
Kind of rifle I would have had no problem peeling off $150 for if it was in decent shape. I like those old Remington .22s. Have several, all are pretty good shooters. I like the single shots because they seldom have any feeding issues..
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