Remington model 700 .243 - HELP

[BrewMonkey]

Hey All,

I have been lurking for a while and finally registered. I have seen many posts from links from rimfirecentral.com and ar15.com.

My problem is this: I bought a Remington .243 ADL Youth for my daughter so she can start hunting with me. I bought the last one WalMart had by me for only $325 NIB. I have tried to sight this rifle in but the poi changes. I swapped the scope from my 1972 30-06 BDL and bought new Burris steel rings and base, but it just won't shoot like it should. Is there some kind of barrel break-in period? Should I just shoot another few boxes of ammo through it? I have only shot it about 40 disappointing times. I am just not sure why it is not a tack driver "out of the box". Deer season is fast approaching and I need this rifle to shoot.

I would greatly welcome some suggestions.

BrewMonkey

 

[ArmyAviator]

Certainly atypical.

Brother, you've got something loose. The fixed construct of a bolt action rifle nearly assures acceptable accuracy out of the box. How much is the POI roaming?

Check the stock (frame) bolt; recheck your rings; inspect the bolt as nearly immovably tight when forward and locked. Beyond that, I'd have the bore scoped just to insure some defect was not overlooked; then, I'd contact Remington.

I am confident that I've offered nothing beyond what you already know; replied only because I sense the frustration.

--Bryant

 

[Tarvis]

We need to know how big your groups are, what type and weight bullets you are shooting and what the twist is on the rifle among other things. You could have a screwed up crown, but I get the feeling it probably isn't totally the rifle. If you're shooting the proper weight bullets for the twist in the barrel, the crown is good and you're shooting from sand bags or something equally sturdy, it could be your scope mounts but I doubt it, assuming they were properly torqued or installed by a professional.

You should break in your rifle, but not breaking it in won't make it shoot wild groups at 100 yards.

My vote is the crown.

Edit to include: I don't know how you are sighting this thing in, but the best way to do it IMHO is shoot a 3-5 shot group at 100 yards, measure (not guess) the distance from the center of the group to your POA and adjust the scope the proper number of clicks and re-shoot your group. It's not a very good idea to shoot once and start cranking; not that you were, just making an observation.

 

[Stump Water]

Check everything ArmyA mentioned. Especially the scope/rings.

Once upon a time I had an ADL in .270 that couldn't keep 'em on a paper plate at 100 yds. no matter what I did or what I loaded. Upon disassembly I discovered the barrel/action was wedged (for lack of a better word) into the stock. I got out the round rasp & files and free floated the barrel. Shazam!

 

[BrewMonkey]

I checked the rings and they weren't super tight, so I did torque them down some more. I am shooting 100 grain Remington and the last box was Winchester, same wt. The group size was 2 1/2". Twist - Not sure. I was shooting about 85 yards at my deer club. I have to admit that the table I shot from wasn't the most stable. I am going to a local range tomorrow and shoot the rest of the Winchester and I'll pick up a box of Federal 100 gr power shocks. Additionally, I'll clean the living crap out of the barrel tonight. Perhaps I overreacted by posting this. Thanks for the replies!

 

[rantingredneck]

I was having the same problem as you with a .243 ADL I bought at walmart last year. This is not the youth version but the synthetic stocked version with sights. I tried two different scopes and various tightenings and loosenings of stock screws. Finally I decided to free float the barrel (sanded out the barrel channel with sandpaper around a dowel) all the way back to the action. 700 ADL's are pressure bedded with two pressure posts near the tip of the stock.

My groups now look like this:

5 shots Rem Express Corelokt 100 gr ammo 100 yds.

 

[BrewMonkey]

Now that's what I expect. I have the synthetic stock also and it is indeed not floated. As for barrel break-in: what's involved?

 

[rantingredneck]

As far as i'm concerned just shoot the darn thing (you'll get varying opinions on that though and I'm far from an expert).

No breakin on mine other than that. I've fired maybe 80 rounds total from it so far. 20 since floating the barrel of which you are looking at the last 5.

 

[Sunray]

"...I have tried to sight this rifle in but the poi changes..." Loose screws. Either the action screws or, more likely, the scope mounts and rings. The stock touching the barrel, at some spot over its length, will do it. As will an unstable rest and changing ammo every time you shoot. 2.5" is fine for deer hunting, but move out to 100. Any 85 grain or up bullet will do as long as it's not a varmint bullet. Most heavy bullets are not.
In any case, you cannot sight in for your daughter. She has to do it for herself and practice with the ammo she'll be using for the hunt. You really need to try as many brands and bullet weights as you can to find the ammo the rifle shoots best. Then have your daughter sight in and practice shooting, off hand, at 100 yards at a 9" pie plate until she can hit it every time. If she cant' or won't practice, she shouldn't be hunting.
The ADL was discontinued in 2004. In .243, the rifling is 1 in 9 1/8.

 

[Omnivore]

You're being pretty stingy with your information here. You've given us a group size that translates to about three inches at 100 yards. In itself not a "problem" but you haven't said how much the POI has been changing. I would hardly call a 3" group out of a new rifle, having tried only one load, a "wandering POI". From the face of it, I'd say you're probably OK. Be sure to try several different loads, of different bullet weights, and see what works best. It helps to start out knowing what bullet weight your barrel twist is designed to stabilize, but a little experimentation will find it anyway.

I agree- the person who's going to be using the rifle needs to be the one to do the final (after you've settled on a load) zeroing. She should be out there firing the thing, learning how to handle it, throughout this whole process as well.

FYI: (or "for your perspective" FYP) The military requirement for a rack-grade M-14 (which to this day is a highly regarded rifle) was that it of course be accurate enough for the job. They required firing tests of every so-many rifles be conducted, using standard military ball ammo. The five-shot group size they required translates to about 6 inches at 100 yards-- no larger.

 

[NCsmitty]

Does the POI change as the barrel heats up? I doubt that it's anything to do with barrel break in but I would recommend cleaning the bore after a few rounds to start. Have you removed the action from the stock yet?

NCsmitty

 

[whiskey]

Ask someone else at the range to shoot 3 shots with your gun. See what they get. If there 3 shots are nice and tight, then you know the problem.

I have a Remington 700 SPS youth in .243 and it shoots very well with the Remington 100gr. Good luck.

 

[rangerruck]

you have got to try the plain boxes of remmy, feddy, and winny , first, and then if you can find some sellier # Bellot, and some prvi, that would be good as well.
also, most factory rifles, are meant to shoot the 90-100 grain bullets the best.if you are shooting 85 grains or less, it may not like them.
I also agree, take it out of the stock, put back in, and check the free float, then while at the range, as you are heating it up, recheck the freefloat, and see if you don't have all new sticking points, that will need to be sanded out.

 

[nathan]

I got a NIB like yours from Budsgunshop two weeks ago and it shoot 3/4 inch grp with Winchester Power Point 100 gr. Yours should be good as well. Good luck.

 

[cliffy]

What Brand & Model .243 did you purchase?

Give some rifle details, so I may help out. A .243 Winchester should be inherently accurate. What scope did you mount? Objective lens diameter and ring height and what brand rings and mount will all help. 100+ grain .243 bullets punch hard in recoil. A daughter of slight stature would truly appreciate 85 to 90 grain bullets to begin with. Some bullets offer far more downrange accuracy and power than perceived by one's shoulder. Flinching is a poor way to start hunting or target-shooting. Barrel length and rifling-twist may help us determine the best-of-the-best for your daughter. cliffy, the not so smart as I often sound, but always eager to assist.

 

[Ridgerunner665]

My son has the exact same gun as you...its a tack driver.

How hot did you get the barrel?

Wait 5 minutes between shots and clean the barrel after every 10 rounds for the first 50 rounds.