Which rifle?

S

SomeGuyThatHunts

Inactive
Just had a basement flood and gave over my damaged Remington 700 BDL-DM, in .300 Win Mag, today. The insurance company has given me the money to replace it and will give me the depreciation after I show them the receipt for the new one. The problem is that the DBL in .300 win mag has been discontinued by Remington. They also don't make a DBL with a DM (detachable mag) anymore. I was wondering about replacing it with the Tikka Varmint instead. http://www.tikka.fi/t3models.php?varmintss

Here is why: I am not much of shooter besides maybe 4 rounds a year for hunting (1 or 2 rounds to zero and 1 or 2 rounds on the hunt if I am lucky.) I have shot the Tikka Lite and it's not so much that it kicks, but that the barrel rise makes me feel like I don't have the same control I do when I shoot the 700.

Also, while monitoring my 11 yo's internet use I noticed that she has taken an interest in long range shooting of all things. She goes through vids of sniper rifles, ballistic charts, and she has even looked up local long range shooting competitions. I take my kid's shooting every so often to teach them safety and control, so maybe she really liked it.

Like I said, I am not much of a gun guy so I don't want to run an expensive build for a target rifle. Tikka makes claims that their Varmint can act as a bench shooter; and after trying Tikka I really like the build quality.

The cons of getting the Tikka: I miss my 700, I have had it for 12 years and there is an empty space in my heart now that I've given it to the salvage company. The Tikka is also a bit more than a 700, maybe 100 dollars at most. I prefer a real wood stock and Tikka doesn't offer that unless I get their Hunter. It's almost half a pound heavier than the 700. I didn't mind hauling the 700 around because I am a bigger fella, about 210 lbs and almost 6'2" so the weight never really bothered me; but I have just crossed into my thirties and I wonder if the weight will get to me eventually. Am I going to notice the half pound?

Anyways... I was going to get some air rifles and plan to take her to an Appleseed Clinic. Would the Tikka work when moving up to center fire and competition? Will the extra half pound be bad when going hunting? I prefer the .300 win mag because it's the first center fire I acquired besides my Mini-14, so I don't want to change to a different caliber after hunting with this for so long.
 
What was your basement flooded with and for how long that it sent a Rem 700 to the junkyard? Saltwater after a hurricane?
 
If you sign up with Gunbroker and watch it for a while, you are likely to find a 700 just like the one you are giving up.
 
The basement was flooded with raw sewage. There is rust coming out of the barrel and all through the muzzle break. The walnut in the stock was saturated. The salvage company is going to clean it up, replace the barrel and sell it at auction. They gave me the option to buy it back at a damaged valuation and then I could keep the money that the insurance company paid me minus the depreciation. Should I do that and just do the restoration myself? It's not to hard to refinish a wood stock. I am not sure how much it costs to replace a barrel...
 
How long was the rifle submerged? If it wasn't months it might be worth it to give the barrel and action a thorough cleaning and see if it cleans up. If it cleans up see if accuracy was hurt and go from there. Lots of rifles during war time have spent time in horrible scenarios and work fine today.

Boyd stocks sells several for as low as $100 if you can't get it clean.
 
Dang that sucks. If the rifle had some sentimantality to me I would buy it back and do the restoration. Probably would just replace the stock with a new one, and re-barrell it it rest was in good condition. Then I would buy my daughter a a CZ trainer in .22 LR or something similar and let her shoot to her hearts content and then worry about moving up later.
 
If the BUY BACK isn't to high. Buy it back. Clean it up as best you can. Oil up everything inside & out for the time being. Let its stock sit outside all summer to air if need be. {But not in direct sun light.} About the only thing that may give you operational trouble is its trigger. But its trigger works is quite easy to remove. (2-pins.) Spray it well with WD-40 or Soak it in a appropriate cleaner and pressure air blow for its cleaning. As for instructions on how to remove your trigger correctly. Check out Timney Triggers web site and use its removal & re-mounting instructions.
Scope is sealed likely no damage there. Its best to remove the scopes Base Mounts and Open Barrel Sight Ramps front & rear. If the barrel shows a little surface rust. Simply scrub the hell out of it with a red brass bristled bore brush. {having a mediocre case of pitted rust.} The barrel might not shoot a 1000 yards accurately. But for 2-3- 400 yards it should be spot on yet I would think. Frankly: I doubt the rifle is a total write off. Just a little miss treated in a wet basement is all. If you haven't the time to do yourself. Take it to a (good) gunsmith tell him what happened and let him resolve the rifles cleaning. Honestly I myself wouldn't part ways with my 300 (if I had one that is) Hopefully you still have time to Buy it back sir.
 
I would do some research and just go with a new rifle. If the stock was saturated and swelled on your old gun, it will take more than just a refinish job. The swelling may have weakened the stock also. There might be water stains so deep that there would be no removing. I doubt if you could ever get the sewer smell completely out. Even after 11 years, firing only 4 shots a year means you will not have a long period of adjustment familiarizing yourself with a new gun. Secondly at your young age, a new gun will probably last you your whole hunting career. You would have a new rifle and not a salvaged one to do it with. I don't know what it is you hunt, but the little amount of practice and shooting tells me deer. You do not need that much gun for deer, thus a lighter gun in a lesser caliber will produce less recoil and not need a muzzle break. Thirdly, IMHO, for a young girl, the .300 Win mag would not be a pleasant gun at the range. If you really are looking for a dual purpose gun for you and her, than a lesser caliber in a lighter gun would be IMHO, more ideal.
 
I know 11 year olds. Bring her into the loop and make the new gun a father/daughter thing. My 12 ye old loves to shop but not for guns. Consider yourself lucky for her interest.
She goes shooting with me occasionally shooting a .22 but does not have the passion.
Have fun picking out a new gun!
 
Maybe you should get a caliber your daughter might enjoy without recoil being a concern. 243 Winchester is a great deer caliber that doesn't kick much. I don't think very highly of 223/5.56 beyond targets or varmints, but, supposedly, there are some factory loads for it designed with deer in mind. I prefer a 270 Winchester or 30-'06, myself, and currently having a great appreciation for the 30-30 Winchester. But all of those kick more than a 243. As a handloader,I would actually prefer a 6mm Remington over the 243. But they are almost the same, and the advantage goes to the 243 if you don't reload. For starting a new shooter on targets and general practice, the 22LR rimfire is a must have...... Even for the rest of us too.
 
Thank you everyone for your feedback. I decided to buy it back at the damaged valuation of 200. I am either going to rebuild and just have my daughter stick with a pellet gun (air rifle) until .22 starts reappearing in my area. I have a little Marlin and a 10/22 she can train with. Again, I appreciate all of the advice.
 
$200 that's not bad. Did you ever figure out what the insurance company is going to give you after depreciation?

Oddly enough do you have any pictures of the rifle to show damage?
 
If you buy it back, take the opportunity to get a great synthetic stock. The scope may be okay, but the barrel is suspect at this point.

A new high-quality barrel may set you back about $500 installed, but can be a significant time factor. Stainless might be a good idea, as it won't need to be blued.

It took several months to get mine shipped and installed locally, but maybe if you sent it to one of the barrel companies that do installations, and get a promise date, it might be best. I wouldn't send it to Rem, but that's me.
 
200 bucks? If it holds that much sentimental value to you, buy it back. I would swap the barrel if needed and install a better trigger and try to save the stock. But this is a great chance for you to build up a highly custom rig that you may want to shoot a lot more. Better look out for your 11y/o. She'll be wanting a pink 10/22 soon lol. I'm building one for my niece right now and plan on giving it to here when she's 7 (she's 5 right now).
 
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