Worn out Rem. 710 still groups tight

[gamestalker]

I was just thinking about a Remington model 710 I bought new in like 2004 or so, it's now been reintroduced as the 770. I bought this rifle new in like 2004 I think, put a Leupold 3.5x10 VX-III on it, and it shot 1/2" and better, right out of the box, and definitely had the ability to shoot better than me. BTW, this is a 7MM RM.


Over the course of time, and a good 8-10 thousand full pressure published load, high velocity loads later, it now barely shoots 3000 fps with the same load that originally ran right at around 3200 fps.. But the odd thing is, this rifle still shoots one ragged 5 shot group at 100 yds., isn't that interesting. I have a pretty darn nice custom M98, Douglas barrel that my old 710 will out shoot on it's worst day.

Just to give you some idea of how much wear it has developed, I can drop a .277" bullet straight down muzzle, and it falls straight through to the receiver. I can't get a .277" bullet to fit my other 7 mag barrels, or those of my friends, without having to lightly tap them in, and then they have to be tapped back out.

I just thought some others might appreciate how odd and interesting this is. Those original 710's came with a 3 stage jewel trigger, button rifled and crowned, and the lugs actually lock into the barrel, rather than the receiver, which has always been interesting concept to me.

The down side, the bolt shroud broke within the first couple thousand rounds, and the magazine release broke off. I tried to get another bolt shroud, but Remington told me they don't make a replacement, I would have to buy the entire bolt body assembly, minus the bolt head, which has the lugs of course.. I ended up just jury rigging the shroud and mag release, but it still shoots as good as ever.

Anyone else had such great accuracy with this black sheep rifle?

GS

 

[godale]

dont think you will get many people to defend that rifle. as i have said in other forums they are accurate and hit where you aim. however just like the 770 of today for the money spent there are better choices to make. i have a friend who just bought a 770 in 30-06 for 200.00. not a bad deal new around here they are 359.00 so i go back to my statement about price.the key is that you enjoy it.

 

[Cemetery21]

I've had the same experience with several varmint rifle barrels. The throat erodes and velocities drop, but accuracy remains...for awhile. At some point, they will start spraying bullets and that seems to happen all at once. A buddy had two that went bonkers on prairie dog trips (different trips). Both had been shooting great, just 200 fps or more slower.
On mine, I either set the barrel back or replace it when I lose over 100 fps.
Now, I'm talking .22 centerfire and smaller. I don't have much experience with larger bores.

 

[gamestalker]

No doubt, they are a throw away rifle. I don't think you can set the barrel back on them, reason being, the lug recess's are in the barrel, not the receiver. So once the throat has eroded, the only possible fix would be replacing the barrel, which wouldn't be very practical considering the design, IMO.

GS

 

[Average Hunter]

I know this is a lil bit late as I'm just starting to use the Internet for things like this, but yes, my 710 in 270 is still accurate for some reason. I reload H4831sc 58.5gr behind a 130gr Hornady sst using CCI Large Rifle primers and can still get groups around 1" at 100 yds. Maybe it was the regular cleanings it had I'm not too sure. Not my most prized rifle but it was my first hunting rifle I bought. Paired it with a Nikon Pro-staff a little while ago and when I'm heading out for a deer hunt I'm confident on where it will hit at what distance. Been doing a fair bit of reading on how everybody is bashing the old 710 and yes it's not the best bang for your buck out there for sure. At the time though when I barely had two dimes to rub together I thought it was pretty good. These cheaper rifles are kinda like guitars, people will bash your epiphone because it isn't as fancy as their les Paul customs but they will still sound as good as the person playing it, just as this rifle will still keep putting meat on my table for my family, it doesn't look like a high end weatherby by any means, it was never meant to, it was designed for a guy who had minimal funds but still wanted to feed his family. I have a browning, a weatherby, and a prized sako that is a tack driver at 400+yds and when the weather is miserable and rainy and I know I'm going to be rough on whatever I'm packing through the brush I take my old faithful 710. Yup, still accurate for a cheaper gun, still does what it has to.

 

[Jackal]

I know of one 710 thats sitting at the bottom of a lake....

 

[mshootnit]

All the 710 fans, I have a stellar milsurp that might catch your eye.. its called the carcano...

 

[CarJunkieLS1]

I had bought a 770 in .270 a few years ago, I got it on clearance for around $150 I couldn't pass it up. I thought lets just see how accurate I can get the cheap rifle. I sadly never got the chance. It had a 7lb trigger that felt like sandpaper the bolt would fall out the back of the receiver if I tilted the rifle barrel up, with the bolt handle raised. The clamshell stock cracked after only firing 50 rounds or so. Then before the barrel reached 200 rounds the barrel started to come loose of the reciever, the barrel is press fit into the receiver and not threaded. I took that hunk of junk and cut it into a 3 pieces. I use a piece of the barrel as a cheater bar

The Rem 770 is hands down the biggest piece of crap Remington has ever made and I wouldn't have one if it was given to me.

 

[MAKster]

After 8-10 thousand 7mm rounds down the barrel you have definitely gotten your money's worth out of that rifle. Not worth the cost to replace the barrel. Buy another complete rifle and carry on.