Long-ish Range Capable Factory Rifle Suggestions (7mm Rem Mag)

[MedServ60Driver]

I'm about at my wits end trying to get an older Remington 700 7mm Rem Mag to shoot. It's bedded into an HS Precision stock, has been looked over by a gunsmith, and nonetheless I can't get it to consistently shoot sub MOA with factory ammo nor hand loads. I have considered the fact that it could be me, but I get more than acceptable performance from many other guns and thus don't think it's just a case of me not being able to shoot.

In light of this, I am idly considering options for factory rifles. If I do pull the trigger on this, I'd like to buy it in February or March to have the summer to practice and develop a hand load.

My goal for this rifle is shooting out to 1000. I DO NOT plan to shoot that far at game, but I do want that accuracy for hobby purposes.

The stated purpose for this rifle is big game (elk size and larger) hunting out to 600 or so yards from a solid prone position, and practice oriented towards same. I chase elk every year in CO, and would also like to eventually expand into caribou and others.

This rifle will be topped with a Leupold VX-5HD 3-15x44 w/ HTMR that I already have.

Criteria I'm looking at:
- 7mm Rem Mag chambering (also open to 6.5 PRC and .300 Win Mag, but I'm already set up for 7 RM)
- 24-26" barrel, threaded for muzzle brake (if it already has one, even better)
- Under 9# preferred (for under 10# with scope and loaded mag)
- Factory adjustable trigger
- Synthetic stock
- Weather resistant finish (Cerakote, SS, etc)
- Remington 700 footprint/accessory compatibility desirable but not required by any means

I'm willing to spend up to about $2000 on this for the right, never buy again gun, but will of course consider something significantly lower cost. I also haven't ruled out rebarreling and restocking the current gun.

Some options I am considering:

Bergara Premier Highlander or Approach:

Premier Highlander Rifle - Bergara USA

Think of our Premier Series as an extension of our Custom Series, but with standardized features for greater efficiencies in parts production and assembly - providing near custom performance at prices that are affordable to serious shooters.

www.bergara.online

Premier Approach Rifle - Bergara USA

Think of our Premier Series as an extension of our Custom Series, but with standardized features for greater efficiencies in parts production and assembly - providing near custom performance at prices that are affordable to serious shooters.

www.bergara.online

Browning X-Bolt Hells Canyon LR McMillan

X-Bolt Hell's Canyon Long Range McMillan

Long range bolt-action hunting rifle with premium McMillan Game Scout stock in A-TACS AU Camo, Cerakote Burnt Bronze finish on barreled action. Fluted barrel. Includes Recoil Hawg muzzle brake.

www.browning.com

I have a few hunting partners who use Browning X-Bolts, and I've been impressed with what I've seen. In light of that, that rifle in particular has my attention.

With that said, I am all ears to others as well.

Thoughts and discussion are greatly appreciated!

 

[260madman]

Rebarrel it with a Criterion Remage 8” twist.

 

[Rob5589]

Stay with 7RM, new barrel 8-9 twist, have it chambered to space off the shoulder.

 

[packer58]

Yep, with a $2,000 budget I'd be building off that action for sure.

 

[Hucker]

I recently bought a Browning HC LR (not McMillan) in 7mmRM. Did the tedious break-in: shoot/clean x 20 shots, shoot/clean 2 rds x 5, then shoot/clean 5 rds x 2. Clean, then shoot fouling shot. My 15 y.o. and I shot 5 rds at 200 yds using the crappy Wally World ammo and our group, combined, was way under MOA. I was shocked. My last two rounds were approximately 1/4”. Since we were doing break-in, I did not have my calipers to measure the group. I hope the Hornady Precision 162gr ELD-X shoots this well. If it does, I have found my forever elk gun! Worst case scenario, I know the gun likes the $22/box Winchester junk. Ha!

 

[rickjames80]

I had a similar issue with a M70 a couple years ago. I tried new stock, bedding, barrel swap, multiple 160gr/powder combos with no luck getting under 1.5 MOA. Then one day I tried 175gr interlocks and now under MOA.

 

[hereinaz]

Do you shoot sub moa with other magnums?

Does the magnum rifle fit you?

As recoil increases, form matters even more.

 

[452b264]

I would put a new barrel on it, chambered in 7 mm Rem. Maybe a #3?
Trigger Tech special and your good to go.

 

[Megastink]

Literally anything Savage.

 

[CApighunter]

I would put a new barrel on it, chambered in 7 mm Rem. Maybe a #3?
Trigger Tech special and your good to go.

Yep, do this^^^ I’d do an 8 twist #3 or fluted #4/5
$350 for a good blank and another $300ish for a smith to install. $120 for a basic triggertech and you’re set.

 

[Mr Drysdale]

If you have not, clean the pi$$ out of it. I bought a used Howa 1500 7RM a few years back that would not group within a softball at 100 yards with any ammunition. I ran some CR10 through it and it was deep blue. It took three nights to get all the copper out of it. THEN it was a sub MOA with just about any ammunition.

 

[Firestone]

Man i would rebarrel it and possibly a new trigger. I have that same set up with a 26in Lilja and the thing shoots lights out. Its the most accurate gun i own and have reloaded for by far

 

[mt100gr.]

What scope do you have on your current rifle? Are you 100% sure that it is 100% reliable?

 

[gumbl3]

I had the same problem with a 700 7mag... I ripped the barrel out and sent it off and waiting on a 257 roy to come back... that thing would not group no matter what, too thin of a barrel is my guess

 

[Southforkguy]

Find a good OLDER Weatherby Vanguard, mine shoots like a dream

 

[Flyjunky]

If you're 100% positive that scope is working correctly than I would rebarrel it, as others have suggested. If you've had the same scope on it the whole time and haven't tried a different scope that is known to work correctly, I would start there before dumping any money on an upgrade.

The other thing that was mentioned above was cleaning the piss out of it. While you were going through all the different ammo trying to find one that shoots did you by chance go from solid copper to others or vice-versa without cleaning?

 

[Flightmurse]

Bighorn origin LA- 850
Proof prefit barrel- 480
stock of your choosing?
and a triggertech special- 190

Should leave you with 450+ left over for a stock depending on how fancy you want to get. You can 100% throw this together in your basement or garage and change calibers down the road if you get bored with the 7mm rem mag.

 

[MedServ60Driver]

Thanks for the input everyone. To answer questions, and also provide an update:

- I don't have much much trigger time behind magnums, but with the muzzle brake recoil is quite mild. I am genuinely not concerned about my form, though there is always room for improvement
- I have cleaned the barrel thoroughly with a copper solvent
- The rifle wears a Nightforce SHV 4-14x50, and this is the 3rd scope I've had on it

NOW, for an update:

Following the advice of a hunting partner, I took out all the action screws and re-torqued everything. Torqueing the front action screw down first, I got everything as close to 65 in lbs as I could using a FAT wrench. I then hit the range again. The results were somewhat surprising:
- Winchester Supreme X 150gr Power Point (by far the cheapest ammo): .5" cold barrel, .75" hot barrel
- Winchester factory loaded 168gr Accubond LR's: 1.2" or so
- Federal Premium 160gr Partitions: 1.75"
- HSM Berger 168's: 1.5"
- Norma Professional Hunter 156gr Oryx: 1.25"

Maybe this gun just likes the lighter bullets? I allowed the barrel 2-4 min to cool between each shot, so I don't think a hot barrel is the culprit. I'd prefer to run heavier bullets, but for my goals it may not really matter.

Thoughts?

 

[Outdoorsman12b]

I have had good luck with holding with going all in in front action screw first as well on plastic stocks but a bedded stock should really not matter.

I didn’t see in the thread where you stated how much bigger your groups were before so hard to gauge what improvement your recognizing. Something I have found in my 7 mag with a 9.5 twist is it does not like the long skinny high BC shaped bullets. So a 150 silvertip might shoot great out of it but a 155 terminal ascent is not great. In theory the twist should stabilize up to a 168 grain but that the shape has definitely had a big impact on accuracy. The bullet stability calculator on Berger’s website kind of put it together for me when I looked at my log of what ammo shot well and poor. Maybe this is what you are experiencing as well.

If it is the good news is with the powder behind a 7 mag should be pretty lethal with most bullet styles within your target range of 600 yards once you find an accurate offering. You may just end up shooting a bullet that is not optimal for making hits at 1000.

 

[Brittereiser]

I would recommend a Tikka, about $800, and make a couple upgrades.
New stock, $600 (I just put an AG stock on a Tikka)
New barrel with 1:8 twist, $400-$900 (steel vs CF)