# Remington 700 ADL accuracy (in stock form)



## fullmetalone

I was at scheels the other day, and they had a deal on Rem 700 ADL's in any caliber for 400$. They also came with cheap scopes on them. I thought, why the heck not. So i bought one in .243,22in barrel, and brought it home. The scope and rings that were on it looked pretty cheap, so i replaced them with some nicer rings, and another scope that i had that i knew held zero. After getting everything on and tightened to spec, i took it out and shot it. Any skipping all the crap.

I am shooting Hornady Custom 100gr BTSP. I was getting about 2inch groups at 100. Is this all the rifle is capable of in its current configuration? I have alot of trigger time on my other 700 (SPS Tac. in .308) and can make shapes on the paper its so good. I have noticed that the trigger on this is quite tough, and the stock is pretty garbage, riding the barrel the whole way down. I would like to be able to at least shoot 1MOA with it. Does the trigger being rough, and the stock riding the barrel make that huge of a difference? I gave the rifle ample time to cool between shots, with it being the sporter barrel and all. Is there a different weight of bullet that works better for this rifle and barrel length? Not that i think 2inch is BAD but, was just expecting closer to my SPS at 100yds.


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## spentwings

A 700 ADL should give you at least 1MOA or close to it especially in .243 cal.
I have an old .243 ADL that shoots 85-100 gr bullets equally well but Speer 105 gr not so good.
Hand loading is the easiest way to find a load your rifle likes, otherwise you may have to try several different brands of factory.
The 700 used to have a really nice fully adjustable trigger but as the guy in the link suggests,,, that may no longer be the case.
http://www.quarterbore.com/library/arti ... igger.html


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## fullmetalone

Mine came with the X-mark trigger. But it says it is only adjustable by a gunsmith. I like my triggers fairly light.


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## spentwings

Remington has liability concerns. The reason they coat the screw heads with epoxy is to discourage home adjustment.
Believe me, if you can follow written instructions you can do it as I did with the ADL and a 700 BDL Varmint Special I once had.
But if you're close to gunsmith,,, by all means have him do it.
BTW,,,never heard of an X-mark PRO.


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## fullmetalone

sorry, i took a couple things that i was reading about and put them together. You are right. X-mark. If you have a link to how to adjust it, i'd appreciate it.


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## spentwings

Apparently the X-mark PRO is a fairly recent replacement for the 700 trigger I'm familiar with.
If anything, adjustment appears to be more straightforward with only one screw involved. Wonder how they compare in quality? :lol: 
Here's a link for the X-mark. Please let me know how you like the trigger once it's lightened.
http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/ ... ger-37572/


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## fullmetalone

Cleaned it really good and took it back out. Shooting 1MOA now. Trigger is still a bear though. Gotta try that adjustment.


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## barebackjack

The x-mark and x-mark pro triggers do not hold a candle to the original 3-screw design trigger.

Im a Rem fan, but these new triggers are inferior in quality to compared to old.

They CAN be tweaked and improved upon, but they cannot be made as crisp and clean as the old 3-screw, not without some judiscious stone work on the guts. Ive worked on a few, and have yet to be able to get one safely into the 2-lb range just using the adjustment screws. And there is always a bit of creep. Never had any issues like this with the old design.

Id have someone familiar with them touch it up, and if its still not to your liking pick up a L-1 aftermarket from Rifle Basix.


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## fullmetalone

Haven't heard of the L-1 but i'll look into it. Everyone seems to go with Timney triggers it seems. I was hoping this would loosen up with use. I am only 15 rounds into the rifle, but it doesn't seem to be getting any better.


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## KurtR

Timney and dont look back. best purchase i have ever made. Got rid of that xmark what a disapointing piece of junk


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## huntin1

Get a decent trigger, skim bed the action in the stock and free float the barrel. If you aren't comfortable with doing any of this yourself, find a competent gunsmith and have it done. Remington 700's are good shooters, it's just tough to find one that will do it right from the box, without a bit of tweaking.

huntin1


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## fullmetalone

Timney ordered, at your advice ^. With the stock, is it better to do a bedding job on it, or to just go with one of the off the shelf replacements. B&C seems to be a nice stock with the full aluminum bedding.. I looked at the hogue, but it seemed a little flimsy to me in the fore-end? The rifle will spend some time on a bipod..


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## huntin1

Well personally, I'd go with a new stock, the B&C with the alum bedding block is a nice stock, but I'd still skim bed it. That's just me though. Drop it into that stock and I'm sure it would be a better setup than the factory stock.

huntin1


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## Leonten

I have 2 ADL's & 2 BDL's. All 4 shoot extremely well, my 30/06 (ADL) is a tack driver!!!! 1/4" groups are the norm. And I've had many, many 1 hole groups. The first time my wife shot it at the range she had 1 hole after 3 shots, then she noticed everyone had stopped shooting and was watching her target. It made her nervous & she flinched, missed by 1/4", her 5th shot was back in the same hole. I bought that rifle in the mid '70's and the only modification I had done was have the gunsmith lighten the trigger to 2 1/2" lbs. As I was working up the first load for it, with each 1/2 grain increase in powder the group shrunk, until I worked up to a maximum load. To my surprise, the maximum load is the most accurate. I've never shot factory ammo from it so I have no idea how accurate it is with the factory fodder. I did have a custom gun with a Timney trigger, you'll like it.


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## fullmetalone

Would it be accurate to say that your classic Rem 700's are probably better rifles than my newer one? Overall?


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## spentwings

It'd be accurate to say they have a great trigger. :wink:

Speaking of an ADL in 30-06, bought one new when a box of Rem ammo was only $9.99.
Scant records from that time suggest I couldn't do better than 1.5 MOA at a 100. Load development consisted of
only three powders and the 150gr SP Hornady.
In retrospect, using the factory set trigger and shooting over the hood of a pickup,,,that wasn't to bad.


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## fullmetalone

interesting! what would the approximate time period be for that? i wouldn't know as i am only a quarter century old.


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## spentwings

I think '85' or 6. The rifle was around $280 something,,,in today's dollars?


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## Sasha and Abby

huntin1 said:


> Get a decent trigger, skim bed the action in the stock and free float the barrel. If you aren't comfortable with doing any of this yourself, find a competent gunsmith and have it done. Remington 700's are good shooters, it's just tough to find one that will do it right from the box, without a bit of tweaking.
> huntin1


THIS is exactly what I'd suggest... when you get it back, it should shoot LIGHTS OUT. You might have to try a couple od different ammo types to see what it likes.


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## Habitat Hugger

Timney. I have them on all my tack drivers. Except one Savage in 7mm 8. This one shot half inch out of the box with the cheap scope it came with. Got lucky I guess. Now if I could just get the magazine to feed reliably.....


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