Remington 700 - 3 choices!

[coloradokevin]

Okay guys, I'll throw this one out here for all of you, and hope to come to some sort of a conclusion!

I'm in the market for a new bolt-action rifle in .300 Win Mag. I like the Remington 700 series, and have started looking at their product line-up. I'd like this rifle to be a great target gun primarily, but also want it to serve me well for elk hunting and the like. Although I'm not looking to compete, I'd like to start doing some long range recreational shooting with this gun (500-1,000yd range), and I want to start with the best rifle in my budget!

As such, I've narrowed my choices down to a few of the Remington rifles that have grabbed my attention:

Remington 700P

Remington 700 XCR Tactical Long Range

Remington 700 Sendero II


Do any of you know how these rifles compare to each other in terms of overall potential? In other words, if you were going to buy one of these rifles to use as a target gun, which would you be most likely to buy (and why)?



Here's what I've gathered so far:

Sendero is stainless, with a fluted barrel, and is popular with hunters. The 700P is the old standby for LE use, and has a decent reputation as a quality gun. The 700 XCR TLR is one I'm not really familiar with, and while it appears to be a new member of the 700 family, it still looks intriguing... I'm not sure I know much about the stock on the XCR TLR rifle, but I did kind of like that it comes with an adjustable trigger (apparently from their 40-X custom rifles). I'm actually quite intrigued by Remington's blurb on this XCR TLR rifle, but I haven't ever seen one or shot one!

I should also add a disclaimer in here, as I'm bound to hear this answer at some point or another: I can't afford to go with an expensive custom gun, given the prices I've seen in the past. I really don't want to spend any more than about $1,400 on the rifle itself, and would really prefer to come in around $1,000. Heck, I have to leave room in the budget for some nice glass and all too!

Any help you guys could provide with these models would be greatly appreciated! And, although I'm sort of partial to the 700's, I'd be willing to hear about any other great guns you guys have found for this purpose, within this budget!

 

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

Elk hunting in the mountains??

You won't be humpin any of those 10lb rifles for very long.

Might want to narrow your focus--or think about 2 guns.

 

[jerryrigger]

I'm looking to buy one of the same rifles as well, though i'm not looking very strongly at the sendero because for some reason i'm not a fan of stainless finish. I like everything about the XCR TLR except for the price tag, and for that reason im leaning a bit toward the 700P, and I'm also considering 7mm mag in addition to 300 mag if that is the rifle that i choose. I think if youre really looking to get a rifle for $1000 or thereabouts, which I am too, the 700P might be where its at. I've also considered getting a 700 sps and then adding to it over time with an aftermarket stock etc., but i really dont know if this would turn out to be more economical than (and as good as) a 700P or XCR. good luck in making your decision, and i would love to hear how it turns out!

 

[Shawnee]

Can't help with the "P" or the "XCR TLR" - I don't even see those on Remington's website.... only the XCR which appears to offer nothing extra of real value except a primo trigger.

My neighbor has Senderos in .25/06 and 7mm Mag. He also has a 700 VLS in .243 that he bought from me because it outshoots his Senderos by a notable margin - at least at 500yds. The largest caliber available in the VLS is .308 Winchester.

As another poster points out - none of those is a mountain/Elk rifle by any stretch of the imagination. You need a Remington Model Seven in 7mm/08 for that duty.

Good luck !

 

[atlanticfire]

Im a Savage guy but I had looked into the Remington 700 XCR Tactical Long Range rifle for bench shooting but got another rifle instead. Although it still nags in my head that I should try one. Don't know. . . . little expensive.

 

[earlthegoat2]

VTR mmmmmm

 

[Tarvis]

Remember, as Shawnee said, the Sendero is a heavy rifle. It was modeled after the "bean field" rifles that were primarily shot from a stand in the middle of a field at long ranges. I have a 700P in 300 winmag that is a beast for elk hunting. It pays off when the trigger is pulled (especially the muzzle brake I had installed) but if you plan on walking, you'd better do some training and get used to the weight. You could look at the LTR (light tactical rifle) to save some weight for hunting.

Practically speaking, you described two different rifles. A precision rifle is as heavy as possible for recoil and is as accurate as the budget allows. An elk rifle depends on the range you will likely shoot and should be on the lighter side of the spectrum. Practical accuracy for an elk rifle could be argued to be in the 1-2 moa area, once again dependent on range.

I say get a good elk rifle and use it for your long range shooting, then get another rifle down the road specifically for shooting ze gong.

 

[MCMXI]

Kevin, I think you've described the problem facing many shooters/hunters ... can you find one rifle that does everything ... and the answer is, probably not!! I have a Remington 700P in .300 Win Mag, a Remington 700 VSSF in.308 Win and a Remington 700 Alaskan Ti in .300 WSM for this very reason. I have the .300 Win Mag and .308 Win set up for long range target shooting with Kreiger MTU barrels, AI stocks, AI bipods, Leupold Mark 4 scopes etc and I'd never dream of lugging them around on an elk hunt. I bought the Alaskan Ti for that since it only weighs 6lb (without scope, rings, base, ammunition, sling). The XCR Tactical Long Range that you're considering is an outstanding rifle and it'd be my choice particularly if you'll be spending a lot more time at the range than in the mountains. It weighs 8-1/2 lbs in stock form so once you add a scope, rings, bases, ammunition and a sling you could easily be up over 10lb which may not sound like much until you've been lugging it around all day so keep that in mind. Anyway, of the three rifles that you listed, the XCR is the way to go and that's a rifle I'd like to own in the future. Oddly enough, the XCR Tactical Long Range is cheaper than the XCR Compact Tactical ... go figure.



P.S. If you're going to spend significantly more time at the range then buy the best range gun you can afford. If you're going to spend significantly more time hunting then buy the best hunting rifle you can afford. That said, you really should aim towards a great target rifle AND a great hunting rifle so don't end up trying to buy one rifle that does both since it won't do either very well.

As for Remington 700 rifles ... you can always get a top quality barrel installed later along with an action job for about $800 which will give you a 1/2MOA rifle (or less) ... just a thought.

 

[coloradokevin]

I understand what you guys are saying about the weight factor. Precision rifles are certainly heavier than your standard mountain guns, and weight is nothing to scoff at when lugging the darn thing around for 12 hours in the bush!

My main reason for considering these three options is that I intend to spend 98% of my time target shooting this rifle, and only a small percentage of time hunting big-game with it.

The ultimate weight difference appears to be about 2.25lbs between the lightest available guns I've seen in this chambering (300 Win Mag), and the XCR TLR rifle that I'm really so intrigued by.

Remington's Alaska Ti weighs in at 6.25lbs in this caliber, and the XCR TLR weighs in at 8.5 lbs.

I'm back and forth on the weight issue, personally. As an avid backpacker, 2.25lbs is not completely insignificant, though it probably won't kill me.

As always, it is hard to find one gun to "do it all". Maybe that's why I own a couple dozen guns already?

 

[DRYHUMOR]

If you consider resale value, and at some point you will, get the 700P. Keep the box, without the box it's just another 700.

I've owned Sendero's and 700P's, though not in 300 Winmag. Both are reliable and accurate.

You may want to consider a used rifle, I've seen avg prices around $700.00 or so for both. That way, if it's not quite what you thought it would be, your not taking the hit off of a retail price.

 

[coloradokevin]

If you consider resale value, and at some point you will, get the 700P.

Dryhumor,

Any chance you could expand on that a bit? Is there some reason that the 700P is superior to the other two choices, or does it simply carry more resale value for the tacti-cool 700P bit?

These all seem like good rifles, but my greatest amount of confusion comes from figuring out the difference between the 700P and Remington's new XCR TLR. In so far as I can tell, they are two guns built for pretty much the exact same purpose.

The XCR TLR has Remington's new finish (which I know little about), and the adjustable 40X trigger. The 700P has a longer history in their product lines, and I haven't really heard bad things about it.

But, why did Remington develop the XCR TLR if it more or less fills the exact same role as the 700P? Granted a lot of manufacturers have come up with more than one way to accomplish a task, it just seems like Remington has two entirely different weapon lines for the same purpose:

The "Tactical" line-up, and the "Police" line-up.

 

[jerryrigger]

i'm not 100% sure on this, but i think some dealers wont/cant stock rifles with the name "police" attached to them. i think bass pro shops might be one, but they might not even be able to carry ones labeled "tactical." i'm also not entirely sure on this either, but i think it may also be harder in some states to get a rifle made for the remington LE line than a rifle in their standard production line. again, i am not sure about either of these reasons, and it could just be that remington has the ability to have 2 rifles in their lineup that share the same purpose, so they do, but it could also have something to do with one of the aforementioned reasons, which would make sense as well.

 

[Tarvis]

I believe the 700P's are harder to find because not all distributors have them. I don't know anything about store policy on rifle names, but Sportsmans Warehouse and Cabelas get their gun stuff from one distributor, so if that distributor doesn't have it, they can't get it. This is the reason small gun shops will have plenty of primers when SWH or Cabelas are out.

I can't tell you the specific attributes of the 700P, but it is marketed as an out of the box LE sniper rifle, so they are, or should be accurate. Snipercentral.com has a pretty good review of the 700P. Basically, you are buying a heavy barrel and a good stock, if you want to look at the basic differences.

 

[MCMXI]

These all seem like good rifles, but my greatest amount of confusion comes from figuring out the difference between the 700P and Remington's new XCR TLR. In so far as I can tell, they are two guns built for pretty much the exact same purpose.

The XCR TLR has Remington's new finish (which I know little about), and the adjustable 40X trigger. The 700P has a longer history in their product lines, and I haven't really heard bad things about it.

But, why did Remington develop the XCR TLR if it more or less fills the exact same role as the 700P? Granted a lot of manufacturers have come up with more than one way to accomplish a task, it just seems like Remington has two entirely different weapon lines for the same purpose:

Kevin, the XCR and 700P are different in MANY ways.

1. The XCR is stainless with a corrosion resistant coating whereas the 700P is not stainless but it does have a parkerized type finish.
2. The XCR has an adjustable trigger whereas the 700P doesn't.
3. The XCR has a fluted barrel whereas the 700P doesn't.
4. The XCR has a really nice B&C stock whereas the 700P stock is HORRIBLE (I never liked it from day one and that's one of the reasons I bought an AICS stock for it).
5. The XCR has a hinged floorplate magazine whereas the 700P has a detachable box magazine.

I'd call that quite a lot of differences between the two models.

 

[Kind of Blued]

I'm bookmarking this page for future use; specifically buying one of these rifles to go after the same elk.

Yum.

 

[a-sheepdog]

The Sendero is going to be heavy, but the accuracy from them is usually outstanding.

 

[glockman19]

I'd look a the Remington 700 VLS. It has a 26" heavy barrel that is bedded.

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

great target gun primarily

The Sendero II accomplishes that goal the best, IMO. But as mentioned, you'd be better off buying a dedicated heavy gun for long range, and another lighter gun for hunting. Good reason to buy an extra gun.