Remington 700 sps problems

Phil_Schmidt

Phil_Schmidt

New member
Anyone else who owns this model having problems? A budy bought one brand new and it's only worth about a 2 inch group at 100yds. Tried a different scope, Different shooters, Different ammo, Handloads and factory. Thing simply wont shoot.

Not looking for other potential problems here as we've tried everything.

Just wondering if there are any other SPS owners out there who are getting good groups, Or if this has been a consistant issue with that model.
 
2inch group is petty much up to Remington standards. I had a sps chambered in 243 that would shoot 3inch groups. Having said that I have Remington sps Varmint in 22-250 that shoots under a inch with just about anything I put through it. I think it is hit and miss with a Rem.
 
My guess would be the cheesy stock and bedding probs. Easy to fix........

If you actually "tried everything" you would have found the problem. Just a thought.
 
Last edited:
my sporter barreled SPS 17FB will do better than that at 300 yards!!!

Has it ever shot good? I think you may have a bedding issue, or a bad or dirty barrel. Have you tried cleaning it, and I mean clean? How hard is it to clean up? What does it look like when you look down a clean barrel? Do you see "chatter" marks with your naked eye?

I'd get yourself a can of Outers foaming bore cleaner, shoot it down the barrel (from action out the muzzle), let it stand in a corner, muzzle down on a rag and see what happens. If after a half hour, the crud coming out is a little blue, chances are it's not copper fouling. If it's a LOT blue, hit her again, then re-check. You may need to scrub with a NYLON brush after you shoot the foam in, before you patch out. Get it good and clean, then take it out and try it again.

If that doesn't help and you don't see "chatter marks", it's probably not a fouled barrel. It may be your bedding, or something binding in the stock. Take the action out of the stock and make sure it's not "rubbing" at any one spot (like the mag box). Make sure the bolt isn't touching the stock when closed. Re-torque the action screws to about 45 INCH/pounds. Loosen both, then re-tighten the front first, just a little more than snug, then the rear, just snug.

These are a few quick and easy things to check before you go messing with things and void your warranty.

I had a 700 in 300 Win mag that wouldn't do better than 3". Looking down the barrel, you could definitely see chatter marks, rifling was not smooth, and it would copper foul badly. Ended up sending it back to Rem. after I did all of the above. Not sure what they did (lapped barrel maybe?) but I got the same gun/barrel back, without any chatter marks in it. It shoots bugholes now. If you can't figure it out, you can always sell it or send it back to Rem for them to take a look at it.

Good luck

Charlie
 
My 308 SPS went from shooting 2 inch groups @ 100yds to 1 inch by replacing the plastic stock with an HS precision. I bought it from Repete used for a good price. My wife's 204 SPS benefitted from a B&C medalist stock too. I think most agree that the plastic stock isn't the best.
 
i have the sps tactical and it shot better then that out of the box. factory ammo it will shoot a inch or so group. handloads all touchin or one hole groups.it still has the cheap stock on it .
 
I have a SPS ( Youth Model I have short arms
cursing.gif
)in .243 Win. that shoots 1" groups easily @ 100 yds. I hand load for it But I did have to take and sand the very end of the barrel chanel to make it free float before I got it to shoot better than 1" groups.

Others have given you GREAT advice on cleaning ECT.

It likes Nosler 80 Gr. Ballistic tips.

DAB
 

No problems here with my SPS. Started with a cheap scope out of the box and shot 1 1/2" groups. Put on quality glass and now shoots 3/4" @ 100 yds with the same factory ammo, no other changes.

Only you can decide where to go from here. Cleaning is cheap and so is a bedding job if you are up to it.

That said, I'll never forget the $200 Ruger 77 I had...it was a beauty. I bet I spent $600 on powder, bullets, primers and building loads to get it to shoot...never did worth a hoot. Should'a gotten rid of it when I first started scratching my head over its pityful accuracy.

Silvertp
 
I have a 700 SPS Tactical (.223) with a HS stock and it will consistently give me 1.25" groups at 200 yards with my loads (60gr V-Max)... I don't have any idea what it would have done with the factory stock, but I'm a believer in the HS...

The trigger is adjusted to the lightest setting and I have some quality glass on it..

If you generally like the rifle, then I'd suggest a stock change before getting rid of it..
 
make sure your scope bolted down nicey nice....
if its a x-mark trigger should be awsome out the box..
see what ammo good for your twist rate!
 
I had the same problem with an sps stainless 22-250. Tried 13 different loads, 5 of which were handloads. Best group ever was about 1.5 but 2-3 inch groups were standard for that gun. Had trigger work done, barrel floated,etc. Finally looked over with bore scope, and found huge step in the throat of the chamber. sent it back to Remington. They sent it back with nothing changed other than the trigger moved back to factory setting, along with a 3 shot 1 3/4 in group and the statement that that was acceptable accuracy from a 22-250. I sold it, bought an A bolt that will shoot .5inch with one of the handloads I tried in the remmy, and haven't looked back. Won't ever buy a gun from big green again.
 
Remington is a hot topic, I've got s good one, but it's a gamble. From what I have seen I would say that most of their problems are barrel related. Ruff, poorly chambered or not chambered at all.
Fire lapping may help but who knows.
 
If it is a brand new gun I would call Remingtion. I have a friend that had an SPS 870 that would not hold a pattern after tring many different loads. Remington had them send it back to them. As far as my self i have had several 700 one in an SPS Varmit in a 204 and 1/2 group was the norm for me.
 
If you've looked over all other obvious check points (scope mounts, clean barrel, proper ammo for twist, etc...), I'd bet the stock is the issue. Seen this more than once with the cheap plastic stock. If its a new gun, I would give remington a call before I spend the money on a bedding job or new stock.
 
Originally Posted By: pahntr760Every Remington I have ever shot was SUB-MOA. EVERY
ONE!!


Same thing here....never had a Remington that wouldn't shoot. Sometimes, we blame the gun, when it's not the gun at all, but the person shooting it. Not all shooters have the same ablity, and sometimes poor shooting can be the result of a bad rest, or a bad hold.
 
Originally Posted By: 405 winRemington is a hot topic, I've got s good one, but it's a gamble. From what I have seen I would say that most of their problems are barrel related. Ruff, poorly chambered or not chambered at all.
Fire lapping may help but who knows.

...."or not chambered at all"..??

How do you test the accuracy of a rifle that is not chambered...?

Just curious....

-BCB
 
Neighbor has a SpS with the plastic stock, we did a trigger job and it shoots 5/8" loads with hand loads, smaller at times.

What kind of bags you shoot off of,front and rear, wind on the day you shoot, how hot you shoot the barrel, cleaning techniques, etc and make a huge difference.
 
Back
Top