Is The 597 Still A POS?

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huduguru

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I'm thinking of getting a .22 rifle and prefer the feel of the 597
over the 10/22 and Marlin offerings. I also noticed they have factory
high caps available for them. I remember reading nothing but bad about
them when they came out. Has Remington got the bugs out of them finally?
Do they have any weak points inherent in the design?
 
Ive got an early one ive had for a long tine and ive had no problems with it. accuracy, reliability (with certain mags) and durability is great. Ive also got a 10/22 and model 60, both of which are nice, but the 597 feals better.
 
+1 LoonWulf. Not sure where or what you read about the 597, but we have one of the early ones and it's been nothing but awesome - great accuracy, great reliability and feels like a solid gun all around. It's been 100% with 10-round factory mags but the high-cap we bought (can't remember if it was factory or aftermarket) leaves something to be desired - it has plastic feed lips, doesn't fit well and jams on average once every other round. So, take that as you will.
 
I had a 597 chambered in .22WMR that I was overall fairly satisfied with. The only gripes I had were the cheesy-zebra-80's-plastic-toy-gun magazines (though they worked fine while I had it) and fairly stiff trigger pull. I believe I had a single failure to feed in the 400-500 rounds I put through it, within the first 50 round box.
Accuracy, while decent as it was, could have been significantly improved I believe by a lighter trigger.
I had originally planned on mounting a scope, but felt the trigger would need work first.

I found someone who was willing to customize/improve it more than I and traded it for something I thought I would get more use out of (a unissued M48A I think, which I still have). However, I really don't have any strong words against it; it was a solid rifle outside the disappointing magazine material.

By the time I traded, metal magazines had become widely available.
 
I like them just fine. A couple of other Appleseed instructors I know have some of them that they use as loaner rifles at events, and they don't seem to have too much trouble getting through a 4-500 round count weekend event.
 
I have never had any feed problems with my 597. Anything from subsonics to hypervelocity works. Came new with the "circle 10" mag. Also feeds perfectly from the factory 25 rounders. The action is very simple and easy to clean.

Mine has seemed to lead up the barrel though and isn't as accurate as my Marlins.
 
The 597 is a great rifle. I read some bad reviews on them and everyone kept recommending a 10/22 but I went the 597 route. The 10rd mag definitely sucks but I got a few 30 rounders and they work great. You have to break in the springs with 20 rounds, shoot them then I was able to get the full 30 in them.

I have shot Federal 550, Champion, thunderbolts and the Federal lightening without any hiccups. I only have about 500 rounds through the rifle but I plan to try a few other brands to see if I have any problems.

Its cheaper than the 10/22 and mags can be found cheap. If you are into accessorizing your rifle than maybe you would want to look at the 10/22 but if you are looking for an accurate rifle out of the box then look at the 597.

Just my two cents.
 
I've had my 597 for about 8 years now. It came with a fixed power scope on it for $129.00 from Gander Mountain. I've shot a quite a few rounds through mine and it has exceeded my expectations. The only problem I have had with it is when I tried to put 10 rounds in the standard sized magazine, the spring couldn't take it and it would cause the last round to hang up and not feed properly. I now only load 8 rounds in the other magazines and have never had a problem. I took it to a small bore rifle competition about 4 years ago where you had to shoot steel silouhette targets at 25, 50, 75, and a 100 yards. You had to shoot 20 targets in 5 minutes time. I was consistently getting 17's and 18's out of 20. There were people there with $3,000+ rifles that were getting 18's, 19's and an occasional perfect 20 out of 20. For my $129 597 to compete with big money guns...well I was impressed with what my $129 bought me. In my opinion it's a good gun.
 
Have both the 597 and 522. Neither are a POS. 597 is the better of the 2. Accurate, reliable, and inexpensive. Great .22.

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I have the predecessor like mac66 mentions, the 522 viper. It was and still is a pos. The magazines are worth more than the gun itself.
 
i bought the 597 from walmart about 2 weeks ago. absolutey the best .22 ive ever owned. i was hooked after the first hundred rounds. i had no failures and it is as accurate or more than any of the marlins or rugers i had. the marlin model 25 was definitely my shooter until i got this one. i mounted sling studs on it and a 3x9x40 scope and it is perfect. i can even use it behind the house shooting cb shorts. it will shoot the shorts but i load about 4 in the clip fire, cycle the bolt, and fire again. the walmart version comes with the camo stock and i was able to pick it up for $177 and remington is offering a $25 mail in rebate from their website. i cant say enough about this rifle i think it has a home for life. remington has definitely worked out the bugs on these. hope everybody has as good of results as i have.
 
I also say the 597 that I bought was a POS. Right out the box it jammed. I bought a new clip and it got worse. I sent it back to Remington twice and they said all it needed was cleaning. I took that as that they would not honor the one year warranty and I was stuck with a lemon. They owe me $180. Soon as I got it back it jammed again. I'm surprised they would put their name on a POS like that.
 
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My dad has one and it is terrible. It has the absolute worst trigger i have ever had the misfortune to squeeze, and the magazine has to be slapped in pretty hard or it wont seat.
 
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