Remington 700 or Browning A-Bolt?

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Bill2e

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I am getting ready to buy a .30-06.

Right now Gander has a Browning A-bolt Medallion & a Remington 700 BDL on the Shelf.


I like them both. They are similarly priced, probably both higher than I could get elsewhere but that is another story.

Which one and WHY? Also what should one expect to pay?

This will be a riffle to Shoot at the range & hunt deer (maybe Elk one day)

Thanks
 
I don't have much experience with the browning, but heard they are excellent rifles. A friend of mine usually gets around an inch from a bench.

If I was in your position, I would just pick the one the is most comfortable and looks the nicest. Both should be pretty accurate, but the 700 might have more accessories and aftermarket products.

For a new 700 I would expect to pay $650-$750 depending on the gun shop. If you don't mind used guns you can get a 700 much cheaper. (for me $450 for a BDL)
 
Remington 700 would be my choice. It is said that the 700 action is the 2nd best action on the market, 2nd of course to the Mauser 98 action. If it is a newer rifle it should have the X-mark pro trigger, which from my understanding is rather nice. Remington has also developed better quality controll in the making of their rifles. as for the browning, i have zero experience nor do I want any
 
remington 700 by far, almost all 700 can and should shoot under 1moa right out of the box, plus there is SO much more in terms of aftermarket upgrades and options available
 
I would say Remington 700 because it hasn't changed since creation. The Browning's get changed out from time to time. I just like something that stays the same.

But then, I would personally prefer a Mossberg 810...

Ash
 
From the ones I've owned, shot, and dozens of each I've spotted for as a range officer I've formed an opinion. The Browning will likely shoot better. I think the Browning is a better rifle in every respect. There's a reason there are so many fix's available for Remingtons. And you wouldn't believe the laundry list of things you need to do with a 700 to make it the sniper rifle everyone thinks they have. Remmy 700's earned an accuracy reputation decades ago that they no longer deserve IMO. I would not be the first person to say their quality control is not the best these days. I picked up a BDL last year and the barrel was polished but the reciever looks like it was tumbled. I looked at others and now they're all that way. Apparently it's too much work to polish the barelled reciever before bluing. Look at a 20 year old BDL and they look much better. The bluing and polishing is darker and deeper.

Today you will find most rifles shoot better from my experience. Everything about a how a 700 is built is for ease of manufacture. Round reciever, 3 pc bolt, washer for a recoil lug, etc.etc. I've never shot an A-bolt that wasn't a tack driver, light, and they point very naturally for me.

I'm sure some will disagree but I own more than one of each and it's my honest opinion. And as I mentioned earlier I spot for sighting in days at my local range for 3 yrs now. One thing I noticed the first day was that A-bolts are great shooters.
 
"Everything about a how a 700 is built is for ease of manufacture. Round reciever, 3 pc bolt, washer for a recoil lug, etc.etc. I've never shot an A-bolt that wasn't a tack driver, light, and they point very naturally for me."

The two sentences are not related at all. The recoil lug design has absolutely no effect on accuracy, nor does the round receiver nor 3 piece bolt. And the A-Bolt is an evolved design, evolved to make production easier, too. And, though I prefer Savage over either rifle, and prefer the Mossberg 810 over the Savage, the 700 remains quite an excellent rifle. How many police and military organizations use the Browning for a sniper's rifle? Yeah, that does not necessarily mean squat, I know.

In any case, the Browning is a fine rifle (if you want the original A-Bolt, get a Mossberg 800). Any hunter can rightfully be confident in their Browning rifle. The same, however, can be said of the Remington 700 (but then, it can also be said of the Savage, Howa, Ruger, SAKO, CZ, etc).

Ash
 
skinewmexico,

I'd say it's a toss up between A-bolts and Tikka's. I can't remember seeing either of the two that weren't surprisingly accurate. The Tikka may even have a slight edge but there are too many variables to be sure. The main variable is that each rifle I see has it's own shooter. I have no idea how good of a shooter these guys are. I base my opinions on averages. It's not uncommon to spot for 30-40 guns a day. After you see hundreds of guns shot off the same bench you start to see trends. I think it's an unbiased way to see how good things can shoot.

I'll have to throw Savage in there as another good shooter, but for some reason I don't see many of them at our range for sight-in days.
 
The two sentences are not related at all. The recoil lug design has absolutely no effect on accuracy, nor does the round receiver nor 3 piece bolt. And the A-Bolt is an evolved design, evolved to make production easier, too. And, though I prefer Savage over either rifle, and prefer the Mossberg 810 over the Savage, the 700 remains quite an excellent rifle. How many police and military organizations use the Browning for a sniper's rifle? Yeah, that does not necessarily mean squat, I know

I didn't say those things were effecting accuracy. I said the gun was designed for ease of manufacture, and I'm not the first to say it. Do you realize how much needs to be done to those 700's to be a viable sniper rifle. The 700 is so simple it's easy to work on IMO. That's why they are used by snipers. The 700 design lends itself well to modifications from gunsmiths. Anyone who owns both should dissasemble both rifles including the bolts and base opinions on that. Just my .02
 
One of the most accurate rifles that I`ve ever owned was a Browning A-Bolt that I bought in 1996 brand new for $500.00 Straight out of the box awsome. But, it was in a 7mm magnum caliber.
 
I am very quick to point out ease of manufacturing. But being easy to build does not make it less accurate. Being more expensive to build does not make it more accurate. In other words, the observation about ease of manufacturing is not in any way related to accuracy (except, perhaps, that the cheaper to make, the more expense could theoretically be put into accuracy to end up with, for the same price, a more accurate rifle).

Again, I like the A-Bolt, in either of its two generations, and probably would like the X-Bolt, too. But would probably go with the 700 because it is not an investment-cast receiver.

Ash
 
But would probably go with the 700 because it is not an investment-cast receiver
.


A-bolt recievers are machined from solid bar stock, not turned pipe like a 700. I was pointing out the weak points of the Remmy since Bill2e asked "which one and why". I was not trying to say these weaknesses were the reason the 700 was less accurate. I actually agree with you on that. Typically the simpler type of actions are more accurate.
 
I always liked the A-Bolts short 60 degree bolt throw. Quicker follow up shots, and I personally like the looks of em better. Nothing wrong with a 700 though.
 
I like the looks of the Remington better but like the A-bolt as well. My last Rem.700BDL-DM in 7mm/08 had the worst accuracy of any production rifle I've owned and that was after I had to dig dried cosmo out of it just to chamber a live round. Yes,I did buy it from W.. M... In the end it will boil down to YOUR personal preference.
 
But those elements mentioned are in no way weaknesses

In my opinion they are. In fact the practice of pinning the bolt handle is quite common since they are brazed on. Most benchrest and high end actions are machined with a flat bottom to resist torquing. And the recoil lug is one of the first things people upgrade when rebarelling a 700. On better guns the recoil lug is machined from the reciever, not a washer. That's not to say the 700 is junk, but I believe that many guns are built better. This is just my opinion so take it for that.
 
I own both and even thou my Remmy is a Sendero I would still recommend the Browning. Mine has shot one hole groups from a rest with factory loads (win supreme) and no work done. Browning actions are the nicest I have ever cycled, buttery smooth. And all though it is a small thing I have never cared for the white spacers between the butt plate and grip cap.
 
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