im considering buying a model 700 SPS stainless in .308. i own a walnut/blued tikka which i do like but lately i seem to reach for my old 700 .270 more when i hunt. also wanting something in stainless. has the quality on the Remingtons really gone down lately? i got my 270 back in the late 90's and ive never had any issues and its shoots great. just curious about the newer ones. obviously i plan on immediately replacing the stock and probably trigger

Picked up a Remington 700 SPS in 308 last year from my LGS. I bought it right before closing and did not look the rifle over closely before laying down my cash. When I got home I removed the bolt and was getting ready to clean it when I noticed the front of the bolt had a crack in it. Not sure how it passed through QC but it did. LGS took care of me and replaced it with a new one the next day.

The replacement worked fine but was not as accurate as I had hoped a 308 would be. The kicker was when a friend came over and we both shot circles around it with his new Ruger American in 30-06.

Here is a pic of the bolt as it came out of the brand new 700.

If that is brand new, it looks like the LGS or someone else used it before it was brand new. The bolt face is showing quite a bit of brass accumulation from cartridges.

Wasn't to happy with the last SPS I bought. Handled a a Mountain SS last week at my LGS, the bolt was hard to lift, very hard, the other Mountain SS I handled was fine.

Nope, the rifle was brand new. If it was used Remington sent it to the LGS that way. I watched the clerk cut the box open so the problem was with Remington QC, not the local store.

My brother bought a SPS Varmint in 308. It shoots right with my 308 5r Mil Spec. I just bought an ADL in 7 Rem Mag I hope to have time to shoot this weekend but the trigger adjusted to just under 3 pounds and the bolt lugs appear to be making even contact so I'm optimistic.

Ive bought had a dozen of them, and have been happy with them all. Granted, I bought them as donors and 'modified' them, but i used a number of the original barrels, and have no complaints.

The triggers sucked though,and were all replaced before shooting.

Try as I might, I cannot see a crack on that bolt face....enlighten me!

All of mine so far have had the triggers replaced with Timneys. I'll see how this X Mark works out but in the past if I could get one adjusted to a decent weight it never felt consistent.

I've been happy with mine. The trigger sucked and I took a chance with a spring from Ernie the Gunsmith, so far so good. They are $6.95 and worth ever penny.

Nothing in factory rifles comes directly from the manufacturer to your LGS. They all go through a distributorship where your LGS gets them from.

+1

I was Remington's biggest fan for the best value in rifles and out-of-the-box accuracy. My first centerfire was an ADL in 270. Piled game up with that gun. Still one of my most accurate, customs included. Then I boycotted Remington for quite a few years. The reason I tried Tikka was because of Remington's seemingly endless recalls. When Remington came out with an 8 twist 260, I caved and tried one. The post-recall trigger was easily worked down to 2.5 pounds, and the gun loves accubonds. Once I determined the gun was a keeper, I bedded it in a McSwirly and had it cerekoted. It has become one of my favorites.

The metal begins to rust once the clouds start to form, fyi.

Would be happy to enlighten you! Not the bolt face but the leading edge of the bolt(one of the "3 rings of steel") at about the 10 o'clock position.

The local gun store sent all their 700's back to Remington for the trigger recall. This one was one of the first rifles that they received back. The distributor was not involved in the recall process.

Thanks. But the old eyes still aren't picking it up. Maybe I 'had to be there'....

Crack is from 9 to 10 o'clock following the curve of the bolt. Helps to pull the pic and then enlarge but once seen, is never unseen.

I see where you mean. I just checked one of mine...it doesn't have that curved "V" shaped thingy

the last couple sps stainless 700's I bought were not very good. eventually replaced everything but the action and re-barreled that one twice, and still unacceptable accuracy, so it is getting replaced with a stiller action and a third barrel, and nothing but the bottom metal is left from the original.

that miserable thing has cost me a lot of money...

the other one I just traded towards something else, no point in throwing good money after bad any more.

I do own 2 respectable 700's but they are older.

and I do rub elbows with a lot of competitive rifle shooters who have provided a lot of help trying to get the two suspects to shoot like they should be able to.

man i hate to hear that. starting to think about looking at something else now. maybe a ruger. hate that remingtons qc has gone downhill. my 90s ADL .270 is a great shooter and my fav rifle

There is a bright spot in an arc just inside of the crack, I bet that is where it hit when it was dropped.

I have purchased two in the last year, one in 7MM-08 and the other in 260 Remington. They are my most accurate rifles. Both will put three round under a quarter at 100 yards. Neither has had a mechanical issue of any kind. I don't think it matters much what the brand or model number is, if enough rifles are produced a flaw will get by every once in awhile. That is not representative of all or even a large portion of units produced. I have noticed that every once in a while someone will post about a "bad" rifle on this forum and then imply that all are like that. I always wonder who the expert is when that happens.

it has been very discouraging to say the least...

handled a used one yesterday at gun store. wasnt impressed. the stainless barrel left alot to be desired. rifle seemed a bit heavy also.

Ernie's spring is a game changer. My trigger now sits safely at just under three pounds.