View Full Version : Rem 700 marrs cases and bullets

May 7, 2009, 02:21 AM
Gun in question is a Remington 700 ADL .243 Win.

As rounds get cycled through the gun, I find marrs, scratches, whatever you want to call them on the brass cases, some of them pretty deep as far as Im concerned. I also see marks on the bullet too on occasion.

Best I can tell its from the rounds rubbing on the magazine "lips" as the rounds as fed, and the bolt raking across the top of the next round as it chambers the current one.

I have taken it to a gunsmith in the past, and he claimed it was perfectly normal, and proceeded to do his best to make me feel like any idiot because I didnt understand why steel rubbing against brass leaves marks on the brass.

Im still convinced its not normal for there to be marks on the cartridges, especially the bullets simply from running them through the gun. Only other similar bolt guns Ive got experience with are a Browning A-bolt and a Marlin 25N and neither of them leave marks on the cartridges.

Any ideas?

May 7, 2009, 12:21 PM
It is entirely normal for a push-feed rifle with a plunger ejector (like your Remington 700) to scratch the brass and/or bullet when the cartridge is cycled through the action.

What is not entirely normal is a business owner (your gunsmith) making his customer feel like an idiot.

May 8, 2009, 12:32 AM
Well...thanks for clearing that up. I guess the A-bolt is completely different? Its a much smoother action I know that much, and does nothing similar to the cases.

Yeah his customer service was pretty sub-par. He said "you brought this in a week ago, told the other person here you were having feeding problems is that right?"

Then he proceeds to take the 2-3 rounds I had given him, loads the gun, and quickly cycles them all out onto the floor and with a pretty arrogant tone is like "what exactly is wrong with that?"

It was pretty frustrating after driving nearly an hour just to get there. Theres no gunsmiths nearby that I can find.

May 8, 2009, 03:14 AM
Littlehoov: Even giving him the benifit of the doubt, there is no excuse for that sort of treatment. Even with your rifle being fully functional, he should have addressed your concerns and given you an estimate of what it would take to "fix" it.
Some careful polishing will take care of most the areas that are scratching your brass. These areas have machine marks and sharp edges that can be smoothed out.
I've noticed that guns bought at the "Mart" stores are quite a bit rougher than ones bought from normal dealers. I think cost cutting measures are the reason the actions aren't polished as well a they should be.

James K
May 8, 2009, 10:31 PM
From the factory the Remington 700s often have sharp edges. A few minutes work with fine emery paper or emery paste will work wonders. (Make sure to clean the rifle thoroughly after using emery paste; the best way is to remove the stock and slosh the receiver in a tank of cleaning oil.)


May 9, 2009, 12:06 PM
Is it possible to sand those edges down effectively without disassembling the gun?

It doesnt really look like it to me, theres not much room in there with the bolt open, or even removed, plus the gun is scoped to boot.

If I disassemble the gun, will it have to be re-zeroed?

James K
May 9, 2009, 06:11 PM
You can remove the bolt and polish it without any more disassembly of the rifle, but I would remove the scope and stock and just work with the action. Don't get emery paste in the bolt (or in the barrel/chamber), just dabs on the outside of the bolt, then work the bolt back and forth, opening and closing it. You are only polishing, you will not remove enough metal to cause the bolt to wobble or have headspace problems. Then you can smooth the receiver rails to remove any burrs or sharp surfaces.

Go easy, and I think you will have a much nicer action.


May 9, 2009, 10:34 PM
It's not normal for rem. BDL 700 30/06 mine is smooth as a babby's bottom :D