# Goodbye AR hello Rem. 700



## The Rodney (Jul 25, 2011)

I sold my AR on GON Marketplace in one week.... awesome!  With that money and the money I hope to get selling the bulk ammo I had for it (also on GON Marketplace) I hope to get into a Remington 700 bull barrell .308.

For the gunsmiths.... with a bit of logic and a level can I mount my own scope?  Seems easy to the layperson, find the horizon and eye relief, then screw.  I'm a hands on guy and have mounted on .22 and my AR.  But honestly I don't want to muck it up.  If I go to a smithy how much to mount a scope?  I think those 700s come with holes tapped right?  Anyhow, you guys are a wealth of information, thanks.


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## sdions (Jul 25, 2011)

theyve already got the holes and i believe the base.  get some good rings and loctite it all down (i like purple loctite).  its alot easier with a boresight tool.


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## cmshoot (Jul 25, 2011)

I've mounted a thousand or so, the majority of them being on Sniper/Precision rifles.  I'm pretty picky about how I do it.  I see you're in Newton Co, I'm in Paulding Co, so I'm not real convenient to you.  If you want, you're welcome to come by my shop and I'll mount it up for you, explaining it as I go.

1. Degrease all the mounting holes in the receiver. I use denatured alcohol

2. I wipe a little oil on the receiver and the bottom of the base. This is to help prevent rust between the receiver and the base, Don't get the oil in the mounting holes that you already degreased.

3. Degrease the mounting screws and mount the base to the receiver. I use a little blue Loctite. Tighten the base to the rifle @ 15 inch/pounds. If you don't have a 15 in/lb torque wrench, then use the L-shaped wrench that comes with the mount. Insert the long end of the L into the mounting screws and grasp the short end with your thumb and index finger. Tighten as much as you comfortably can, that'll be roughly 15 in/lbs.

4. Figure out where you want the rings placed and mount the bottom halves to the base. I apply pressure to the rear of the bottom halves, pushing them so that the crossbolt is bearing against the front of the cross slot in the base. Torque to 65 in/lbs (this is what most of the "tactical" rings with the large mounting nut call for, check the directions that come with yours). You'll have to constantly check your eye relief with the scope sitting in the bottom halves to figure out where you want the rings. I like them spaced as far apart as possible. Also, I place the rings so the mounting bolts are on the opposite side of the ejection port. Keeps stuff out of the way of the port, where you will be working when you shoot.

(Right here is where you would lap the scope rings, if that's your plan)

5. Place the scope in the bottom halves, at your proper eye relief, place the top halves on and screw down loosely. You need to be able to rotate the scope. Also, I lay in the prone position when I obtain my eye relief.

6. Level the scope. I use a Wheeler Level-Level-Level from Midway. When you eyeball it, just throw it to your shoulder naturally, look at it for a few seconds and take it down. If you look at it too long, it will always look crooked. The leveler helps, but another tip that I have used before is to drive a nice, straight stake/pole into the ground (needs to be about 4'-5' long) and make sure it is straight by using a bubble level. You can compare your vertical stadia line to the stake/pole.

7. When you have the proper eye relief, and the reticle is level, start to tighten the screws that hold the ring halves together. You want to start out with an even gap on each side of the ring. I'm talking about the gap between the ring halves.

I start with the front ring. Looking at the top of the rings, with the rifle pointing away from you, I tighten the top right screw a 1/4 to 1/2 turn, then do the same for the bottom left screw. I repeat this over and over until they start to snug. Then I stop and check to see if the reticle is still level. If it isn't, loosen the screws and start back at step 6.

Once those 2 screws are finger tight, and the reticle is level, I then tighten the bottom right and top left screws on the same ring. Once they are snug, I torque all 4 to 15 in/lbs. Now check the reticle for levelness again. If it isn't level, go back to step 6.

If you have all 4 torqued and the reticle is still level, go to the back ring and start with step 7.

The oil in step 2 and the Loctite in step 3 are both optional. I have heard arguments both ways on these uses. It's always worked for me, so I still do it.

That's it.

You can start with the front or rear ring, and start with whatever side, top or bottom, that you want. I do it exactly the same every time, and have for nearly 20 years. Then I know that I don't leave out a step or something. Consistency. 

Also, I lap all my scope rings before mounting the scope.  If you decide to do that, here ya go:

1. Apply the lapping compound to the lap and the bottom halves of the rings.

2. Install the top halves of the rings. I make sure that I have an even gap on both sides between the tops and bottoms of the rings. I want to snug the tops down enough that I can just work the lap.

You'll want to mark the top halves of the rings so that if you ever take them off, you can get them back on exactly as they were. You'll want to keep them not only as front and rear, but also keep them oriented in the same manner (i.e., the front of the front, the front of the back). I do this by filing 1 small nick in the front of the top half of the front ring and 2 small nicks in the front of the top half of the rear ring. Now, if I take them off at a later date I can easily keep them oriented properly when I re-install.

3. Work the lap back and forth, and in a twisting motion. Only work it for about 30 seconds on the first go 'round. Remove the lap and wipe all the lapping compound of the rings (I use denatured alcohol) so that you can check for contact. Don't try to get 100% contact. Every time I've seen someone get 100% contact they end up removing too much metal from the rings, ruining them, and good rings ain't cheap. I usually go for about 75 to 90% contact.

If you haven't achieved the proper contact on the first cycle, start again at Step 1 and repeat until you do.

4. Once you get proper contact, remove the top halves and insure that you get all the lapping compound off your rings, you don't want to grind it into your scope. If they're steel rings, I'll hit the freshly lapped surfaces with some OxphoBlue from Brownell's.

5. Go back to the scope mounting instructions and mount your scope. Viola!


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## River Rambler (Jul 25, 2011)

After seeing a Remington 700 fail repeatedly in Alaska on a bear hunt, I'll never buy their product again. Too many better guns out there for the same price...or less.


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## stevetarget (Jul 26, 2011)

River Rambler said:


> After seeing a Remington 700 fail repeatedly in Alaska on a bear hunt, I'll never buy their product again. Too many better guns out there for the same price...or less.



Give me a break. Most problems with a 700 are user caused. Ie poor maintenance. I can't think of a single rifle in the same price point that is better. I'm just saying...


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## dawg2 (Jul 26, 2011)

River Rambler said:


> After seeing a Remington 700 fail repeatedly in Alaska on a bear hunt, I'll never buy their product again. Too many better guns out there for the same price...or less.



How did it repeatedly fail?  

To the OP: It i snot difficult to mount your own scope.  cmshoot gave about the best instructions you can get for the process.


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## Hammack (Jul 26, 2011)

stevetarget said:


> Give me a break. Most problems with a 700 are user caused. Ie poor maintenance. I can't think of a single rifle in the same price point that is better. I'm just saying...



Agreed, The 700 is about as good as it gets in that price range.  Look at the vast majority of customs and see what action is used more, or what action has been copied the most.  I'm a Winchester man, but the 700 is about as good as it gets.


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## ASH556 (Jul 26, 2011)

River Rambler said:


> After seeing a Remington 700 fail repeatedly in Alaska on a bear hunt, I'll never buy their product again. Too many better guns out there for the same price...or less.



Lemme guess, you lubed the firing pin channel with a high-temp grease.  Doesn't work too well in low-temps does it?  Saw a guy do the same thing with a Kimber.  It's not the arrow, it's the indian.


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## The Rodney (Jul 27, 2011)

Wow... so putting on a scope at teh highest levels can be a real crafty endevour.  I think I will let a pro mount it.... may be going by your shop sir to see it done right.

Yeah, I read about Rem. 700 issues but they did seem to be operator induced.  I give a new gun the once over, function check, then charge it and slam the buttstock into the ground very hard.  No pin drop... I'm game.  

My AR was fun I just want to try a .308.  360 rds of 5.56mm in the closet collecting dust, maybe I can find a magician to turn it all into .308!


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## Paddle (Aug 18, 2011)

My son and I got the Remington 700 acc sd in 308 and we like them a lot. Both are good shooting rifles. 

 The end of the barrel is threaded from the factory so you can order a muzzle brake, install it yourself for target practice then remove it for hunting. That way you won't have to worry about some jack leg hack of a gunsmith messing up your rifle!!

 Here's a link to the Remington site:

http://www.remington.com/products/firearms/centerfire/model-700/model-700-sps-tactical-aac-sd.aspx


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