Remington 552 Speedmaster

T

Texas Blues

New member
Bought a used Remington 552 speed master. Looked decent enough on the outside, 40 year old gun and all, a few dings and dents, no big deal at all. It worked fine, and the reason I wanted it was because it shoots the 22 shorts, long, and long rifle. Just wanted to give testament as to the quality of this gun. I took it apart to clean the trigger mech and bolt, this is what I found on the inside. I cant believe this thing worked as good as it did. Cleaned it up, and am very glad to own it. Thanks!
 

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A speedmster was the first gun I ever bought with my own money when I was 13, I think. Great gun, accurate, reliable, and i like that they shoot shorts too. I literally wore mine out with thousands of rounds and probably some improper cleaning when I was younger.
 
The Speedmaster is one of the best .22 semi-auto rifles money can buy, IMHO. I'm not sure why they aren't more popular (I guess because they are a bit overpriced these days). My father has one that's about 30 years old, and is still just as reliable and accurate as ever. Looks and feels SO much nicer than a Ruger, Marlin, Savage, etc.
 
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I wish I still had mine... I traded it off in a fit of "I need something else" :rolleyes:

It was a nice shooting rifle. I shot the higher velocity shorts with no problem. I tried some of the cb stuff, but it wouldn't cycle the action. They were vewwy, vewwy qwiet, though... :D
 
I rescued one a few years ago from a local shop that was about as nasty as that one. The poly finish on the butt stock was wearing off and I decided to refinish it with a neat little Birchwood Casey stock finish kit from the hardware store (oil finish). They use to offer a plain version with no checkering and that is what mine is:

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The 552 is the first rifle I ever shot. My dad still has it. When it came time to buy my own .22 I went with the Marlin 60. I still prefer the tube-fed and I owe that to the old 552. If they were priced in the same range I would have bought one. Maybe one of these days I can convince my pops to let me "borrow" it...
 
I have two 552 speedmasters. One is a newer bdl model I believe & the other is very plain. The second one mentioned is the worst looking rifle I own & the one I treasure the most of all. It belonged to my grandfather & rode a million miles in the truck with him through the years. The stock has a groove worn in it from all the miles riding in a gun rack. He finally stuck it off in a corner when it would no longer fire. He thought it was spent & gave it no mind. About a year before he passed away I found that old 552. I completely disassembled it and cleaned...and cleaned...and cleaned. It was quite the memorable day for me to show him his old rifle & tell him I'd put a hundred rounds through it without a hiccup.
I have a lot of guns that I am quite fond of but they don't mean anything compared to his old 552.
 
I bought one from a used gun dealer that was at least that dirty last year...but probably with more caked on lead around the action. Anyway, it was a horrible mess and had a lot of small dings and dents around the inner part of the action, but if felt so good when I held it that I had to at least try it.
Well, it fired 4 consecutive shots and into a pretty small group no less, so I bought it and cleaned it up...which took days. But much to my dismay, it doesn't actually work. The 4 shots in a row, that I fired before buying it, was a fluke of luck.

It seems the firing pin is worn out (too short) to reliably set off a round, it will fire a few, then misfire a few times, always leaving very small impressions in the rim (weather they go off or not). One of these days I will get around to tracking down a new firing pin, for the ugliest, but greatest feeling little rifle I own.
 
I've been "shopping" for a BDL Speedmaster for years. Lots are around on the auction sites. I'll probably get one in the fall. I have read a lot of comments that they tend to be jam-o-matics but I still like the looks. That is a sin to let that nice rifle get that filthy.
 
I've been "shopping" for a BDL Speedmaster for years. Lots are around on the auction sites. I'll probably get one in the fall. I have read a lot of comments that they tend to be jam-o-matics but I still like the looks. That is a sin to let that nice rifle get that filthy.
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I put good 22 through my Speed Master and have never, I repeat never had Jam-O-matic cross my mind. It's been flawless. Course I clean mine once in awhile.
 
I'll probably get one in the fall. I have read a lot of comments that they tend to be jam-o-matics but I still like the looks.
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"Jam-o-matic" is not a term I've ever heard when discussing a Speedmaster. My pops's had shot countess rounds and has been very reliable over the years. (And he doesn't even clean it that often.)
 
I jad a nice one.I gave it to my grandpa after he got too old to shoot anything bigger. When he died, someone stole it and I cant bring myself to buy another. Good little rifle.
 
I have a Speedmaster that I was going to trade on something else. It works very well and is very accurate, but for some reason, it will not shoot Hi-speed LR ammo anymore. If I shoot standard vel., or shorts or longs, it never jams, but with your regular hi-speed ammo that is what most have on sale, it will fire about 2 or 3, then illegaly shoot 2 or 3 then jam. I keep it clean. Any thoughts as to why it does this or how much it might be worth? Its is about 35 years old( I have had it 25yrs.) and is in good condition, a few dings, good blue yet.
 
Great little guns. I remember getting to shoot mine with my dad. I still have that gun and imagine it will be the first one my boys shoot when they get old enough to do so.
 
Got most of it cleaned up. Still need to spend some time on the back stock half. Got most or all of the mechs cleaned up. Also still need to pick out a few nooks and crannys of the trigger mech. The area where the front wood grip was covering the barrel was caked up too. A work in progress Thanks!
 

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Just avoid Remington 22LR ammo

I have read a lot of comments that they tend to be jam-o-matics but I still like the looks.
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I've had my 552 since 1989 and it's seen quite a bit of use over the years. The only jam-o-matic episodes I've had were with Remington 22LR ammo. Everything else I've fed it has been flawless.
 
Yeah, I'd have to say the 552 Speedmaster is SO RELIABLE you could take it into combat. I've never had a single problem with mine - and I bought it used. So filthy the fire-control group was black and furry from filth. Took hours to un-gunk it. Been great even before I cleaned it.

What I did was leave off the little square sheet-metal "floor" from the recvr so the soot doesn't build up. (Makes me wonder what my Henry lever .22 looks like inside...)
 
My Grandfather had one of those about as old as that one. It was one heck of a rifle that was accurate and tough. I wanted to get it after he passed away, but one of my uncles (which never shoots or hunts) ended up with it. What a waste. :mad:
 
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