[kev]

Perhaps someone here can give me some advice?

I have a Remington Model 700 mountain rifle chambered in 280 / 7mm express, the rifle is about 12 years old. Up until last year, the rifle shot great. I was able to make 3/4 - 1 inch groups at 100 yards. For hunting east Texas whitetail deer at 75 - 100 yards that kind of group is fine with me.

Last year the rifle started shooting strange. One round would hit almost 2 feet to the right, the next round would hit almost 2 feet high. It was if the rifle was shooting in a circle. Some of the advice I was told "your scope rings are loose, tighten them up" - so I made sure the scope rings were tight, which they were.

Then I went out and bought a new scope. Its only a $100 bushnell, but the rifle is still shooting about 2 feet off at 100 yards.

I do not know what else to try. So far I have shot 2 boxes of ammo trying to get the rifle sighted in, and it keeps hitting about 2 feet (24 inches) off. One shot hits usually to the right and then the next round hits straight up.

For 10 years this rifle has shot straight and narrow. During that time my rifle and I have taken about a dozen deer. Last year a round hit high and cut the deers spine, dropping it in its tracks. Instead taking the chance of wounding a deer, I have to get this problem fixed.

Until the problem is resolved, I will have to use a Marlin 336 in 30-30 - which is a fine rifle by its own standing.

Any suggestions?????

 

[jfountain2]

Copied this from another forum. Don't know if this would help or not.

Reasons for Bedding an action and free floating the barrel.
By Bart Bobbitt



Examining the difference between a stock without epoxy bedding and one
with epoxy bedding for the same barreled action, we note that when the
epoxy bedded stock is used groups (scores?) are excellent. But when
the plain stock is used, scores (groups?) are horrible. Even when the
same ammo is used. So, there must be a reason. There is Bedding.

When a rifle fires, its barreled action whips and vibrates all over
the place in every direction and various magnitudes. Such physical
trauma results in the receiver finally settling down in a microscopically
different place after each shot. After which it now gets to start
the vibrating and whipping all over again when the next shot is fired.

But that microscopically different starting point causes the barreled
action to take off in a different direction and magnitude than before
when the next shot is fired. This just repeats for each and every shot.

As the muzzle points in random places for each shot due to these whips
and vibrations, it will point at a different place relative to the line
of sight for each shot. That is what causes groups (accuracy) to be
less than what makes smiley faces. Barrel weight doesn't reduce this
situation. Neither does handloads with extremely low velocity standard
deviations. It is further aggravated by out-of-square bolt faces and
locking lugs not making full contact. If the barrel touches part of
the forend, that adds another accuracy-degrading element to an already
bad situation. And the best cases, primers, powder and bullets so
darned perfectly assembled won't help either. If the barreled action
doesn't start from the same place for each shot, the bullets won't end
up in the same place later.

So, if the barreled action can be somehow returned to exactly the same
place in the stock for each and every shot, the magnitude of those
barrel whips and vibrations will be greatly reduced, if not practically
eliminated. Then the only thing left is normal barreled action vibrations
at their resonant frequency, but this can't be eliminated although it
has virtually no effect on accuracy. Epoxy bedding was and is the
solution.

With the proper epoxy material being a near zero-tolerance fit to the
receiver, there's no room for the receiver to move around in from shot
to shot. Clearance between the receiver and the epoxy is .0001-in. or
less. That tolerance is at all places around the receiver. With
the correct torque on the stock screws, that receiver will go back to
the same position with the same tension so darned repeatable from shot
to shot that the accuracy is the equal of a barrel clamped in a machine
rest with just the action hanging on the back end.

Benchresters moved one step further some years ago. After expoxy bedding
their receivers, they removed the barreled action, roughed up the bedding
surface and the receiver, then glued the stock to the receiver. That
made sure the barreled action started its high-on-the-Richter-Scale moves
from exactly the same place, plus it eliminated the need to check the
stock screw torque a few times during the shooting day.

If one does not reduce the physical variables their own body has as part
of the complete shooting system, they may be large enough to mask any
improvements that have been made to the rifle and/or ammo to make the
mechanical parts of the system a flawless performer. Sometimes, that
does happen.

 

[OldFart]

Kev

Is the barrel free floated? Is the stock wood or composite? If you have a wood stock it could have "warped" slightly after all this time. Take a dollar bill and see if you can slip it between the barrel and stock all the way down the barrel. If it won't go then free floating it may help.

Are the action screws tight? Sometimes we forget to check some of the obvious things. I've had a couple boomers that would loosen the action screws after just a couple of shots.

You said you checked the scope rings but how about the bases? These also can work loose over the years.

I don't know your cleaning routine but it's possible that a copper buildup may be hampering accuracy also (although I haven't seen copper buildup cause that deviation).

Check the crown. Its also possible the crown may have been damaged.

If all else fails you may have to send her to me!! I will be more than happy to check her out maybe for an extended period!!! I may even be a nice guy and send her back!!!!

Hope you find the problem soon. Its always nice to hunt with your favorite rifle.

 

[jfountain2]

Kev,
I posted a copy of your post here on another forum I am on and will post the reply's as they come in. So far this is all thats been posted...

I had a similiar problem with my Mountain Rifle in .257 Roberts. While not as major a shift, mine would shoot 2 in. to the right then the next shot would be dead on and back and forth, I agonized over it for a year. Got the same advise on scope and mounts and pressure point in stock and so on. I finally fixed the problem when I got a bore scope and looked really closely in the barrel. You wouldn't imagine what I saw. I did two things to fix it. First, I got some CR-10 and got a load of copper out of the barrel. Next, I took it to a competent gunsmith and had the barrel lapped. The other thing you have to be really careful about with these rifles is not to push on or touch the barrel when you shoot them. The barrel lug was not real tight in the stock so I took a piece of plastic and shimmed the lug with it. After all this, the gun is back to putting 5 in an inch at 100 yards. You really have to keep these barrels clean. You also might want to consider a couple of other things as well. Get some Blue Wonder foaming bore cleaner and clean it with that. I have also plugged the barrel and filled it with Shooters Choice and let it set for half a day or so to really get the crud out of it.
Try this and see if it doesn't improve your shooting.

Also, make sure the guard screws are torqued properly, or at least tight.

 

[junglecrawler]

Kev, are you maintaining proper stockwield, eye relief and parallax adjustment?

 

[knothead]

Check ur crown and action screws

 

[danpauselius]

Crown was my first though as well but I would think it would toss the bullet in the same direction each time it was shot.

 

[illinoisgunguy]

something is loose to throw rounds like that....

 

[kajunman1]

Any body use or move your gun around? If so, no telling what happened to it. They definitely would not volunteer any kind of accident.

 

[wile_thang]

I believe illinoisgunguy is on the right track here. If the rifle has been shooting fine for over 10 years, then just up and starts shooting that bad, something is probably loose, like the action screws as has already been mentioned.
Have you had it to a gunsmith yet?

 

[test]

Run a bore brush through the barrel a bunch I mean brush it till you are wore out. If that does not help and you have done all the stock bedding it could be the round you are shooting which is ???? Sometimes a change in ammo will affect a rifle if you sighted it in with Federal 185 and you switched to Federal 150 or even some other round. My 300 Win mag will shoot 220 grain fine but if I put 185 even the pro hunter stuff in it it wanders all over the place like the barrel is loose. back to the 220 grain and right on the money. Lost a beautiful bull elk my first season with this rifle for that reason and at 50 yds I was bummed I was sure I had bumped it or one of my buddies messed with the scope to mess with my head. The range told the story to every ones amazement 16" low to the left. I went for the heart shot and that was just enough to miss the bull on the run hr must have jumped a little just as I squeezed the shot off and it went under him. That sucker jumped in the air seven feet straight up and was gone. But really what are you shooting ???

 

[THUMPER_338]

what type of stock do you have. wooden stocks have been known to stretch down the long axis of the receiver/barrel. this will put pressure agaibst the receiver/barrel threade bending the rifle at the barrel threads.

 

[THUMPER_338]

maybe i can help kev. what stock is it wearing and its condition. 65 inch lbs on crown and receiver bolts. check the rail on the receiver, are they down the axis of the receiver. checking the receiver to stock matting is the most odivious thing. ok