Are Remington 597's Good Guns?

[Mr. Loud Guns]

I have been thinking about buying a Remington 597 but I am not sure if they are any good or not.

 

[Moonclip]

My one example had a terrible trigger pull and some internal plastic part broke. While it has some design features I prefer over the Ruger 10/22 do yourself a favor and get a Ruger or if cost is a factor a Marlin 60 will do. Over 3 million made can't be wrong.

 

[Black Majik]

From what I've read, they're cheap guns.

Stick with the Marlin rifles for 22's.

Kinda like the bolt action counterpart of the 710

 

[Bridger]

I got one for my girlfriend so she would stop stealing my .22 to plink with! It's been a decent gun, a bit picky about ammo and has a cycling issue every now and then if the mags get too dirty, but for the first 3000 rounds or so through it there was no problem.

When the mags and gun is kept clean it runs pretty well, I've seen 10/22s have the same issues with cycling as well and I suppose that's just the nature of rimfire semi-autos.

We put the volquartsen target hammer in it recently and it really helped trigger pull. The gun is also pretty accurate, but there was a second problem now. The rear sight keeps coming loose and we never got around to loctiting it. I suppose that's more of an issue caused by adjustment and lack of loctite than the gun. Somehow I convinced her a peep rear sight was a good idea and we will be putting one of those on in a few days.

 

[Bridger]

Oh yeah, and apparently the magazines always were the weak point for the gun. My girlfriend's came with one plastic magazine and we bought a bunch of newer metal ones. Haven't really had any problems with either, but other people have had otherwise.

It seems to be one of those guns though that more people have problems with than good stories, and I suppose my girlfriend and I have been fairly lucky.

 

[Kharn]

I've got one, only had problems with Winchester ammo (it loves Remington Golden bullets in the bulk pack) and the plastic mags. Upgrade to metal mags (should be standard now), buy ammo it likes and its a joy to shoot.

Kharn

 

[texasguy]

I like the fact that its last shot bolt hold open, but it seems like the whole gun feels like plastic, and the lack of aftermarket parts like the 10/22

 

[Mr. Loud Guns]

Thanks for the advice but after reading alot about it I think I am going to get either a marlin or a henry, they just seem like a better gun. I know rugers are good guns but so many people have them they are kinda booring, no offense to the millions of people who swear by ruger

 

[texasguy]

get a henry, you wont be disappointed

 

[GunGoBoom]

I think I am going to get either a marlin or a henry

I think you're onto something there! My Henry H003 and Marlin 60 are the only rimfires I have that are in the same class of accuracy as my brother's CZ 452, which is known to be one of the best .22 models around, save cooper/anschutz/kimber, etc. I've heard much more bad than good about the 597 in the last few years.

 

[c_yeager]

My experience is that its a poorly made gun with low quality parts. Even next to a 10/22 it feels cheap. I will say that it was a fairly accurate gun. If it were priced at $60 it MIGHT be a decent bargain. For any more than that you are better off with a 10/22 or a CZ if you want a bolt gun.

 

[Ifishsum]

I've got a 10/22, a 597 standard and a 597 LS-HB (all pretty much stock) and when I take my boys out shooting, it seems that no one wants to get stuck with the 10/22! I don't see what's not to like about the Remmy - dual guide rods, last shot hold-open, easier magazine ejection and built in bolt buffer. Both of my 597s feel more substantial to me than the Ruger, at least in factory trim.

I would probably trade the 10/22 for another 597 if the opportunity arose. But then I'd be robbing myself of the opportunity to spend $300+ on the Ruger to make it into something useful. That's one advantage for the 10/22.