hello everyone!
i have an old remington 721 in 30-06 that needs rebarreling. i havent felt comfortable hunting with it as it isnt consistant at the range and groups are only getting larger with same ammo that used to group well. i plan to use it for elk and mule deer at ranges of 300 to 450 yards. i am wondering if i should rebarrel it as a 30-06 or go with a .280 ackley. any thoughts?

Barrel might just need a good cleaning with copper solvent.

yup....not to say they don't exist.....I've never seen a 30-06 that is "Burned" out.

The likelihood that it needs a new barrel is very slim in my opinion.

Bedding and cleaning with copper solvents would be my first attempt.

So many folks look down the barrel from the muzzle to inspect riflig.....this isn't where the "burn" is found....it's immediately foreword of the chamber. Look to see if rifling still is sharp and visible from the chamber end.....a burned out barrel will show clear erosion several inches ahead of the chamber.

A rebarrel job will cost you as much as $500 or more by the time it is threaded, crowned, polished, and blued and new sights are installed.....one could find a very fine Howa/vanguard, M-70, M-700 on gunbroker for that.

BTW.....if you must rebarrel and want an ek rifle.....I'd opt to rebarrel to .30-06 or even the .338-06

very true. cleaning makes the rifle change point of impact by 10'' left or right and open up wider until fouled. when using an OAL gauge the 180 gr bullets don't contact the lands. is the rifle worth rebarreling/keeping? how many would just sell it and start over? local gunsmith said he would install the barrel for $65 with crown and flute for an additional $85, I just have to provide the barrel. douglas barrels are running around $315 and shaw are around $265. but as vapodog said

no arguments there. paid $325 OTD for the rifle in the first place.

If I were going to rebarrel it I would make it a 30-06 again.

I think the 721/722 are under rated. I have a couple and just rebarreled a 270 to a 30-06 mountain barrel. Check your stock, they can loosen up or get soft from oil. The dog knot makes them shift too from my experience but usually you can still get them to shoot 1-1/2" or better.

Another option is a take off barrel. Mine headspaced fine and indexed correctly and they are usually easy to come by one with low or no round count for $50.

The only problem with them is the extractor. They are as rare as hens teeth now and if it breaks you will need to either do an AR or Sako type or reface the bolt.

I gave $225 for my last one and will snag as many as I can for that money. Triggers are very good if clean.

Won't necessarily get your money back out of it but it will last another 60 years.

I'd send it out to the rebore folks for that.

They can clean out even the nastiest of copper fouling you might have.

Yep, just send to JES for a rebore to .338-06 and you're good to go.

Or be really cool and have it rebored to 35 Whelen.

I was in your same shoes. My grandfather's 721 had the first few inches of the throat burned. After cleaning thoroughly that area was dark, where the rest of the barrel was bright and the rifling still looked good.

I considered a 700 take off barrel, but wanted to keep the original barrel so ended up going with a re-bore.

I went 9.3x62, but if I were to do it again I'd go 338-06.

I could buy a new Thompson/Center Venture 30-06 on the local market from Gun Genie for less than $500. They aren't pretty but they are guaranteed by the manufacturer to shoot MOA of the box and they are durable enough to last a lifetime with proper maintenance.

T/C Venture 30-06, Gun Genie

You could get a new Rem 700 30-06 for about the same price, but it wouldn't be guaranteed to shoot MOA.

Remington 700ADL 30-06, Gun Genie

You can probably find similar prices where you live.

I would give it a good scrubbing first, then give it another chance at the range. If it still won't group, then my recommendation is to lose it and replace it.

The only reason that I would keep such a rifle is if it has sentimental value. I would keep a family heirloom but I wouldn't shoot it.

KC

I dont think a good 721 take off barrel in 30-06 would be hard to find

You can beat that price big time on the Venture

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/757853015 BIN of $287.99

338-06 rebore by JES sounds like a good option, less expensive than a re-barrel.

That should be a good round for stated use.

If it was mine, I'd glass the action and maybe free float vs full length bed.

DF

9.3x62 would be interesting. I think the next 721 i find may have to go to JES for a re-bore to that caliber.

I free floated my 721 in 270 and found it liked the forend pressure point better than free float. Easy enough to put back though. Some of them had some decent wood, albeit plain.

If re-barreling, would an aftermarket bolt be a good idea due to the 721 extraction issue?

That would up the cost a bit.

DF

Might want to check MV these days. When barrels start to wear, they slow down, generally speaking, which also means you are not likely in the sweet spot anymore.

I always chased MV to the sweet spots as our barrels aged on the ARs...

as what has been posted ,your barrel need`s cleaning. buy some sweet`s 7.62 solvent do what the directions tell you,also buy 2 new 30 caliber bronze brushes and scrub the heck out of that barrel. then take a bore scope and see if its clean should be only a steel shiny color ,if it shows a color kinda goldish more sweets over nite ,dry out again,more bore solvent on bronze bush and more scrubbing ,another good solvent is GM power tune engine cleaner buy it at GM garage.
the other thought is sell me that old 721 Remington and buy a new gun ? if your going to keep your gun stay with old reliable and easy to find ammo 30-06. good luck,Pete53

6.5 ai or 280 ai would be good

Where are you Slosaguy?

721 in 280ai. It’s the absolute best o6 based chamber period and no properly shot elk will ever escape.



It wears a NXS 3-15 now and is a favorite.

I was not aware that you can let 7.62 sweets soak in the barrel overnight these days. And didn't sweets always eat up the bore brushes as you scrubbed? Depositing so to speak IE you'll never get rid of blue color if using sweets with a metal bore brush.

Things may have changed over the years though. I"ve not used sweets in a long time.

Stubborn fouling, though there are other ways, was always hammered at by JB and a brush with tight patch to get it all eventually.

But lately, I"ve been convinced about plugging the bore and filling and leaving sit with something that would not assault the steel if left for a day or three.

I've never done an overnight with Sweets, always read that was a no-no, that it may etch the bore.

So, I would be cautious on that advice.

Dyna Bore Coating is a great option, but you gotta get the barrel really clean down to the bare steel.

I DBC my new barrels, even premium ones that may not need it. Can't hurt, may help.

Properly treated, the good ones just about don't foul, the lesser ones foul a lot less.

DF

I have my old 721 chambered in 270 that has been setting in the safe for several years, this was my first center fire rifle as a kid many, many tears ago. I inherited my Dad's 270 so I do not need two 270's, so I plan on re-barrelling the 721 with a 26" Light Varmint taper Remage barrel from Northland Supply, put it into a Stocky's stock and change out the trigger with a Trigger Tech from Northland Supply. Should be all in for under $800 and have a nice semi custom gun. Still debating the scope???

Nice rig FredIII.



Mine is an early 721 that was a rough 270 when i got it. Now it's an '06 mountain rifle type. Scary accurate for a do it yourself with a take off remington barrel.



Kempfeld did a great job on the bolt, knob wasn't what i expected and don't like it but that was my fault.

Just an M8 6x and talley's on top. Timney trigger too. It will be my son's when he grows into it in a couple years. Next one will be a 280 if I find another.

If you mentioned what stock, I missed it. Would like details.

DF

McMillan Mountaineer, GAP transition camo, 13" LOP. Stock from Rick, barrel off the 'fire. All up it weighs in around 6 3/4 lbs.

Nice.

DF

Never leave Sweets in the bore over night!!! Also use a nylon brush and a coated jag.

hmm... maybe sweets has not changed.

nylon brushes will not get carbon out of a barrel,and I have tried sweets on good barrels over night with no problem, if your scared too,> use G.M. parts cleaner but to get carbon out that barrel you will need a bronze brush and solvent. I have poured sweets in a glass bowl and set pieces of steel in the bowl for 24 hrs. and nothing happened, that must be a old wise tail

>> per James Sweet > it does say on my sweet`s bottle: harmless to steel

That looks really good. I really cannot see anything looking better than a 721 done right.

My 721’s current status.

Doesn't look like any 721 I'm familiar with...

Nice rig.

DF

If using the factory stock, you will need to custom profile a new 721 barrel.

Sweets darn sure eats brass jags and brushes.
I about damn near wore the barrel of my 7 mag trying to get it clean.
I used sweets, then an overnight soak with Hoppes, followed by brushing.
Another shot of sweets always brought out green. Repeat, repeat, for days.


Finally realized the brush and jag mixed with Sweets was causing the green.
Who knows how long the gun had been clean.

Cool, I guess all those competitive shooters and military guys were wrong all those years.

Carbon comes out with abrasives... JB is just fine for that.

its funny how some try to help ,some are just negative on their keyboards.hope you solve your barrel problem cleaning it may help as simple as that ? maybe not you may need a new barrel ,whatever but just get another simple 30-06 to hunt with.

I think it might be alright to leave it overnight in a bunx barrel.

I likes dem bunxes, got a few...

No overnight Sweets in mine...

In fact, I have Sweets, haven't used it in years. To me there are better products.

Hate to sound like a broken record, but DBC solves a lot of these fouling problems before they occur.

DF

My understanding is that with any ammonia based copper solvent that the damage is done if you let it dry in the bore. This is when etching occurs as the ammonia mixes with oxygen and becomes corrosive (ammonium oxide? not sure). If you plug your barrel and fill it with Sweets or whatever this does not occur. But I have never had to do this and don't want to test it on a good barrel. An old Military or factory barrel that I was about to give up on anyway I would do this as a last resort.

hello everyone,
Just an update on the 721 project; sent the rifle off to ER Shaw to be rebarreled in 270 win with a 24 inch stainless fluted barrel. Decided to go with a 270 win because of CA's dumb ammo law that no longer allows citizens to order ammo online and figured 270 would be easier to find ammo in store. Next step is to order a new stock. Does anyone know if it will drop into a standard 700 stock? I am curious about Boyds but am curious about the gap for the barrel nut with a standard barrel. Do I need to order an adl platform or 721? Or better off doing a bdl conversion?

Action will fit a standard LA Remington stock. You may have to adjust the barrel channel. You will need an ADL mag box, spring and action screws to go that route. BDL is more costly but I like it better. 721 bottom metal and hardware may fit a BDL stock and would still give you a blind mag but the option to upgrade later, I don't have a LA BDL stock to try it on tho.

You may also need to releive the bolt handle slot as the 721 handle is not swept like the 700. Also may need to relieve the trigger inlet.

Would like to hear your reasoning

DF

JES converted a 1951 721 in .30-06 to 9,3x62M for me...

I am extremely happy with his work and the accuracy of the rifle... https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/12399422

9,3M is a fantastic caliber... relatively flat, mild recoil and hit like a sledge hammer.

A couple of things:

I've burned out more than one 30-06 barrel, but I shoot a lot: a 30-06 721 I have is on it's 4th barrel. It has been my experience. that carbon build up will more likely affect accuracy than copper build up, but that being said. If you're going to clean the barrel clean it well, before giving up on it.

I'd try:

JB Bore cleaner on a tight patch around a bronze brush.

Then I'd use a foaming cleaner until the patches have nothing but blue on them.

Then I'd clean with an oil based ammonia cleaner or any ammonia cleaner if you are going to stick with it until clean. One often recommend is Montana extreme, though the smell is poignant, will clean the barrel well after the carbon is out. There are several different ammonia cleaners and I use three or four (Butch's, Sweets, Montana Extreme, & ?). So far I don't see much difference in their performance. If you use an oil based ammonia cleaner you don't need to worry about leaving it in the barrel, evidently. If I stop cleaning a barrel for say a period of time such as an hour or more (sometimes I don't know when I'll be back to cleaning it), I put a couple of patches of oil down the barrel.

When I cleaned my rifle barrels in preparation for Dyna Bore treatment, I was surprised how much copper I had removed out of some rifle barrels that shot well (and thus I didn't worry about cleaning).

Finally any 700 barrel will fit a 721 action. A new take off 30-06 700 barrel can be found for $50.

The 30-06 with premium bullets will be good for anything on this side of the world. Unless you want something different stay with the 30-06. It certainly would be one of the two cartridges I'd consider if I were only to have one rifle for game. The 280 would be on that list too, maybe even the gay cartridge, which I will not mention - reputation, you know.

SOB won't let me click on it, says cannot be found.

I've got a 722 in 300 Savage that was my first big game rifle, and will proably ly never part with it. That being said, i don't think I'd ever spend the money to re barrel it either. It still shoots good and kills deer as well as it always did, but they have a couple of problems, number one being the extractor, never had one break but if they do they are next to impossible to fined replacements. I never really liked the Sako or AR conversations and they can expensive. Thye next problem is the large drop in the stock at the heel. These rifles were made when open sights were popular, with the extensive drop it is hard to get good cheek weld with even low ring mounts. These are great old guns but IMHO you'd be better off buying a used Remington 700 or Winchester Model 70. I have picked up a couple of older Mod 70 Win push feeds in the plastic stock for a song. Paid $275.00 for my last 30 06 and 299.00 for a 270 WSM Turkey Fed Rifle. Both are great shooters after a good cleaning and free floating the barrel The 270 WSM shoots 3/4" or less all day long. Scope up the 30 06 weighs 8 pounds 1 OZ. I think this is the way to go as both are very solid rifles, can't be beat for the $

I've got a 722 in 300 Savage that was my first big game rifle, and will proably ly never part with it. That being said, i don't think I'd ever spend the money to re barrel it either. It still shoots good and kills deer as well as it always did, but they have a couple of problems, number one being the extractor, never had one break but if they do they are next to impossible to fined replacements. I never really liked the Sako or AR conversations and they can expensive. The next problem is the large drop in the stock at the comb and heel. These rifles were made when open sights were popular, with the extensive drop it is hard to get good cheek weld with even low ring mounts. These are great old guns but IMHO you'd be better off buying a used Remington 700 or Winchester Model 70. I have picked up a couple of older Mod 70 Win push feeds in the plastic stock for a song. Paid $275.00 for my last 30 06 and 299.00 for a 270 WSM Turkey Fed Rifle. Both are great shooters after a good cleaning and free floating the barrel The 270 WSM shoots 3/4" or less all day long. Scope up the 30 06 weighs 8 pounds 1 OZ. I think this is the way to go as both are very solid rifles, can't be beat for the $. The old push feds were cheaper guns and not bought by many serious shooters, so many are sighted in and hunted once a year spending their lives with few rounds fired so are in very good condition.

Fine cartridge covers most bases and usually very accurate.

So its been a while since I updated this thread. This project is 90% complete. I ended up sending my gun to E.R. Shaw to have rebarreled in .270 win. They put on a contour #1 stainless with highlighted flutes. While they were at it I had them blue print and true the action. It's mated in a Boyd's Prairie Hunter gray laminate stock. I got it back a few months ago months ago and worked up a few loads. It seems to like 130 gr. Barnes TTSX with 54.1 gr of RL17. Finally took it out on a hunt last month and all I can say is month well spent so far. All that's left is bolt fluting and upgrading the optics.

Looks great! What did the weight come to?

My reasoning is that I'm a recoil pansy. I load 250 grain Accubonds at 2600 fps. They give me a headache.

Your rifle came out looking very nice. It's accurate, too. I have two Shaw barrels on Savage Axis actions, and they are fine shooters.

While perusing my new Sierra #6 loading manual there is some phenomenal velocities with this old timer with two new powders. CFE223 and 2000-MR. 26 inch test barrel and Sierra's 225 SBT shows 2900 FPS WOW that is some horsepower. Sierra's #5 manual shows only 2700 with then available powders. I turned back to the 338 WM and it shows 2800 FPS with a 225 Sierra bullet from a 25 inch barrel.

I have never used either one of those powders but they must be really dense as the loads show 70+ grains. I will have to dust off my Whelen and see if they will work for me. These loads make the Whelen a non belted magnum.