[Mylhouse]

I just picked up a used 700VS in .223 with the serial #C6886xxx (my guess is it was made in '97 or '98). The rifle is in great shape and the original owner said he has never had the stock off or messed with it other than shooting it.

That said, the barrel is NOT free floated. It has what looks to be the spiderweb H-S Precision stock, but the barrel is only floated from the where the barrel screws into the receiver until you get to the last two inches of the foreend. It almost appears as if the barrel is pointing downwards judging by how the front end of the stock is totally touching the barrel. I haven't shot it yet, so I don't know how it shoots.

Aren't Rem 700VS's supposed to be free floated from the factory?

Any insight is appreciated.

[Nero Steptoe]

Yep, they're supposed to be free-floated from the factory. In order to get any kind of reasonable accuracy, you're either going to have to adjust the trigger yourself, or have somebody else do it. Although my VS was free-floated, I opened up the barrel channel a little with a Dremel with flexible shaft and sanding drum.

The action screws should be torqued to 65 in/lbs. (Make sure that's IN/lbs.)

MY VS shoots in the 2's with my handloads.

[Mylhouse]

I just read on the Remington website that all VS models are free-floated. Now the question is why mine isn't....:(

[Nero Steptoe]

Could be that you could remove the action from the stock and reinstall it, using proper torque on the action screws and it would be free-floated. Probably wouldn't take too much work to remove the high spots if there's a problem with the stock.

[swifter]

On the HS Precision, about 6" of 3/4" dowel & some 80 grit sandpaper should open things up nicely. Take your time, and check your progress often. I like 2 thicknesses of card stock up to about a cartridge length from the action.:D

Tom

[Mylhouse]

Thanks Nero and swifter....

Hey, swifter, why are you grinning so much?:scrutiny:

[4v50 Gary]

Shoot it first before you sand.

[B27]

What Gary said. And shoot some fast strings to heat up the barrel and see what happens.

[hksw]

I've seen similar problems with recent OE HS stocks. The HS stock on my Win Mod 70 Stealth bought this year was simply not straight. Not straight at the butt, not straight at the channel. The barrel barely freefloated on one sheet of paper. No biggy with a one inch conduit and some 800 Emory cloth. It seems to me that the quality of HS stocks, at least for OE on stock rifles, is getting erratic nowadays from HS. This from my rifle and others I've picked up to examine. To compare, my older (early '90s) Mod 70 Varmint with HS is perfect. Equal space all around the barrel, straight as an arrow.

[YodaVader]

I owned a 700VS in .308 that was not completely free floated as well - a little sanding was all that was needed. I like the idea of a free floated heavy barrel. My .223 VLS (laminated stock) was not even close to being free floated - rifle shot lousy groups - after much sanding to open things up the rifle actually started shooting pretty good.

[Mylhouse]

I just noticed something else strange about the rifle:

On the right bolt locking lug, there is a thin groove cut through it that rides on a 'frame' rail inside of the receiver (the exact reverse of the Savage design). The groove looks like it is deeper than the rail is high. Looking in the groove, it looks like someone brazened or soldered a piece of copper in half the length of the groove to add some height to the groove. I'm guessing to make a tighter bolt fit in the receiver while cycling. I can see how the copper 'lump' has been worn down to a smooth, somewhat flat surface.

Is this how Remingtons come from the factory? Or did this guy do some garage gunsmithing?:confused:

[Mylhouse]

I haven't started handloading .223 yet, so I could only run some Winchester USA 5.56mm 55gr Q3131 ammo through it. I know, not technically .223 Rem ammo, but that's the best I had. Either that or some filthy South American crap.

Anyway, I got irregular triangle shaped 3-shot groups @ 100yds of 3.1", 2.3", 2.2", 2.0", and 1.6". HORRIBLE!

I'm going to try to mess with the stock and screws, as well as get my hands on some dies and a shellplate. I picked up some Federal GM205M primers and some 53gr Sierra Match King bullets, so I'm going to see if I can get this thing bugholing. If not, I'm cashing in my chips on this rifle and going with the tried, true and proven.....the Savage 10FP....in .223, of course. (Already have one in .308 that will do 1/2" or better when I'm on my game)

[YodaVader]

Well , don't write off the 700 yet. The ammo you were using certainly is not what I would use to gauge accuracy. With the right loads a 700 in .233 should perform very well. I would also float the barrel completely.

[hksw]

IMO, making a decision on the precision of the rifle from one factory load is not a good way of doing things. Particularly from a load that is not meant to deliver match grade groups. I would try a few other loads including match grade with varying bullet weights before even tinkering with the action or anything else. If you change too many things at once and find a good load, you might not be able to determine what it was that got you the good groups.

[B27]

My stock 700VS in .308 does this regularly with Black Hills Match...

http://www.fototime.com/3F026C274E97090/standard.jpg

The arrow points to a five shot group.
Your 700 should be capable of the same if running right.

[Mylhouse]

Yoda & hksw,

Point well taken.

Thanks for the pic, B27 and Yoda

[larryw]

My 223 VS also needed some stock sanding to get the barrel to float as it should. I did that before the first outing to the range.

I ran a bunch of different factory loads through it while waiting for the dies and got 2"-3" groups. Boy, I was an unhappy puppy.

Then I started working up some loads and now it shoots like this (http://www.dimark.com/shooting/223x18.jpg) (5 and 10 shot groups, all shot the same morning without cleaning).

Keep after it, these are good shooting guns.