Got remington 700 problems!!

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bjones870

New member
Ok, so this morning I got a Remington 700 .308. It was beautiful in the box, weighted awesomely. Then I tried to rack the bolt. It was the roughest, most gritty bolt I've EVER tried to use. It was terrible. Then I lubed it, oiled it, the whole nine yards. It's a little better, but no where near 700 quality. What's the deal? Does it need break in? More lube? What? Ive had a 700 before, it was 1,000 times better. Help PLEASE!!
 
My 700 SPS Buckmasters was silky smooth right out of the box. But before I buy a rifle I check these things out. I'd take it back to the dealer and demand a different one.
 
Man, that's a bummer!

What model is it? BDL? CDL? SPS? You might try taking the bolt out and seeing what you can find inside the action. Does it feel rough to your finger?

It will probably get better as it's broken in, but I doubt it will get anwhere near the silky smoothness we expect from our older 700s without some help from someone who can polish them. That's just my guess, I've never had this problem before.

Pictures are never a bad thing.
 
You can best remove grit by using a dry old toothbrush inside the action. You might want to use 000 steel wool or very fine grit emery paper on rough action spots and on the bolt.

Use a thin layer of gun grease on bolt surfaces instead of oil.
 
I looked all inside the chamber, breech, everything, and I can't find a single thing wrong. It's the SPS, 24", black with grey accents. It's a gorgeous gun, the bolt is terrible on it though. My dad got it for me for Christmas, so I never got to hold it until we were at the house haha. Like I said, my old 700 was so smooth it basically chambered itself haha. He got it from a local pawn shop, and ordered it
from Remington. I hope they can fix it, or order me a new one. I don't know what to expect, I'm just super bummed. Merry Christmas to you guys! Thanks for helping.
 
My 700 has a slightly Parkerized matte texture on the bolt which makes it feel rough. I say it doesn't matter a damn. I don't sit there swiping the bolt back and forth, that's not what it was designed for. Put some decent grease on the rails like Tetra and call it good. I don't consider it a Rem 700 problem.

I have a Howa 1500 which had a bolt finished like a mirror and was slippery smooth to swipe. It is now rubbed from use and shows rotation wear.

Both these guns shoot very small groups.

Bolts are not supposed to work like pistons in cylinders they are bolts and as long as they lock that's all I need.

-SS-
 
I would relax, clean out the packing grease, oil it and work it (the bolt) a bit. Any new (or like new) gun I ever got is stiff. Levers, bolts, falling blocks, etc., they all have metal rubbing on metal, and need time to break in. They take TIME to break in. Take it out and shoot a few boxes through it. And as already mentioned, if it locks up tight and shoots accurate... who cares if it's a bit stiff? We are talking about bolt action rifles here, not front door locks or brake pedals.
 
It is the lowest priced 700 they make...

EDIT: The SPS stock should be all black. Sure it isn't used?
 
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SPS bolt

My SPS Varmint has a rough bolt throw too. Isn't a big deal. Just kind of a "fit and finish" issue. Compared to the Savage, CZ, Ruger, and Winchester the action just feels "unfinished."

As advised, clean and lubricate and go shoot. The issue for most shooters is: How does that thing shoot?

If it shoots good, forget it. If not, try the usual "tune up" routine.
 
Colorado Redneck

Hey Colorado Redneck,

As you might guess I am new here. So could you point out references or tell me what the tune up routine is for a Remington 700.

I ask because I am buying the SPS version pretty soon.
 
Mine was a little rough starting out; parkerized parts. It'll smooth out after a couple hundred rounds. No worries; you're group sizes will more than make up for it IMO. :) Merry Christmas!
 
There is usually no "tune up" needed. Took mine out of the box, cleaned it, set the adjustable trigger to 3 lbs., mounted and bore sighted the scope and went to the range. Three shot 3/4" or less groups at 100 yards. I think there's guys that say to glass bed them, do a trigger job or replace it, and on and on. Maybe some need it but mine sure didn't.
 
Here's a picture of the rifle:
model-700-sps.aspx


Idk how to post pictures, hopefully that link works. But the part on the forend and the part right behind the trigger, that looks like little "cut outs" in the stock, are grey. They're black on Remington's website. Did I ever get an SPS? What's the deal? The bolt is terrible, if you don't push it PERFECTLY straight when you go to chamber, it hangs up and wont move at all. My brothers $330 mossberg is twice as good as this 549.99 rifle. What's up? I'm starting to doubt this is even an SPS.
 
It sounds to me like Remington quaility control let one slip through they should have sent back. I'd take it back, Remington has always done me right in these cases. I picked up an SPS in 7mm Rem Mag and did not have any problem with it, bolt works very smoothly.
 
I'm going to relate a story. I knew a guy at work years ago who had a Federal Firearms License and he ordered a Remington 700 BDL 7mm Mag for me. I know he didn't order it right from Remington but from someplace else. The gun came in and the first thing I noticed was the blueing on the bolt handle looked brown! Terrible. Then when I fired it it wouldn't group worth a damn and would only chamber Winchester ammo and NOT Remington! I took a fired case, rotated it 90º and it would not re-chamber. It had an out-of-round chamber! This was in the 70's and it was junk. He was a small time dealer so I just traded it. I think there are places that get ahold of factory second rifles and sell them cheap. And I think that's what happened in this case. I'll bet the store didn't order this rifle from Remington. My two cents worth.
 
I'd send it back to Remington. My sps was a little grittier than my dads early 80s adl. But after a couple hundred rounds they are almost identical. By a little gritty, I mean you could just barely notice the difference and I chalk this up to the parkerization or whatever.
Merry Chritmas.
 
Your pic just comes up as a ? on my phone.

Does it look new?

No scratches?

No visible wear and tear?

No offense to anyone, but the few pawn brokers I have dealt with have been some shady characters.

And I think that's what happened in this case. I'll bet the store didn't order this rifle from Remington. My two cents worth.
Click to expand...
Yeah, when the gun store orders a gun, they order from another middle man, which orders large quantities of guns from the manufacturers, that sit in a warehouse until a gun shop orders them.
 
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Its that rough as a cob finish they use...

Take some red ScotchBrite to it....the bolt body, not the lugs...also to the bolt raceway (where the bolt slides back and forth through the action)

Its just one of the many "gone cheap" gripes against Remington...
 
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