Im also a little tired of folks belittling 700 type actions as not being reliable enough for dangerous game. Nobody told the Army or Marines. When I was younger and only shot 700s I never knew what ejection problems were. It wasn't until spending $1500-$2000 for boutique rifles that I heard my first ping of brass banging a scope tube.
My first Sako, an 85 Bavarian in 6.5x55, is on it's way, and I pick it up on Friday. I'm crossing my fingers it won't have any ejection issues, especially since my Nightforce NXS has wide turrets.
It's funny how a single incident can really turn you off a company. When I went to buy a new bolt action this time, a Remington 700 didn't even cross my mind. My last Remington 700 I bought new a few years back was a LTR. On my first trip to the range with it, I was firing normally, in the prone position, closing the bolt and the bolt handle literally fell off in my hand. I don't mean that I jammed the bolt closed and it "popped off", I mean I gently closed the bolt to chamber a round and the handle literally fell off into my hand. The gun had never been dropped or damaged. The welding marks on both the bolt and handle looked horrible. I called Remington and the customer service rep called me a liar, and said I must have been smashing on the bolt handle with a hammer to get a too-hot case out. I asked to speak to his supervisor, and in the end they replaced the bolt and I sold the rifle. I'd way rather have an ejection issue than have a bolt handle fall off. At least the rifle will still fire with the first issue.
Now don't get me wrong, I know that the vast majority of the thousands of Remington 700's are great rifles. I got a fluke. I know that it's not logical to swear off them, or to think that they are crap. But logic aside, I can't help myself. I have a sour taste and would never buy another one. It could be the best shooting Remington 700 in the world, and every time I shot it I'd wonder if that was the day the bolt handle was going to fall off. All guns are mechanical devices, and you can get a bad one or a great one. Like I said, I'm hoping my new Sako 85 will be a great one. Time will tell.
