Rem 700 VTR Better Accuracy - First Upgrade?

[PhoReal]

I have a Remington 700 VTR in .223, and love it. Got it dialed in shooting groups in the 1-moa to 0.5-moa range. It's stock and has a 3-9x Redfield scope.

I've been reading around, and still wondering, what's your guys' opinion on the best first upgrade for my rifle? Trigger, stock, or optic?

The Remington factory trigger has been adjusted to be an easy pull, the stock has no modifications, and optic like I said is a 3-9x Redfied scope.

[ar15barrels]

All 3.

[ExtremeX]

First question is what do you want to do with this rifle? Target shooting? Groups, longer range target, hunting?

You say got it dialed in... what does that mean? You found ammo that shoots well or you make your own?

If its the latter, then go for a nicer optic for the application you want... if its not, then none of the above, go spend that cash on a single stage reloading setup and some good dies and make even better ammo.

A trigger like a Timney 510 isn't a spendy purchase, but if you are happy with the stock trigger, then keep running it. Trigger is something I did out of the box, and the scope I bought even before the rifle...

Out of everything I've spent my money on, nothing has given me more mileage than hand loading my own ammo, and a solid optic with good tracking and then glass.

[duckman1]

Any improvements going forward will be incremental, what is your goal?

[PhoReal]

First question is what do you want to do with this rifle? Target shooting? Groups, longer range target, hunting?

You say got it dialed in... what does that mean? You found ammo that shoots well or you make your own?

I wanna go for tight groups. Will be primarily for target shooting at the range.

By dialed in I meant I adjusted the stock trigger to have a lighter pull, found some ammo that shoots really well, and dialed in my scope so I can hit about a 1-inch target dot at 100 yards, and group 1-moa or less.

I don't currently have plans to handload, lacking the time and space for it, but am saving my brass for that day down the line. But for now, handloads are out of the question.

In the near-er future, would like to see how I can push accuracy at longer ranges than 100 yards. Been limited to 100 yards max at my local ranges without being a member. I live in the Bay Area, and haven't made the trek to the Sac Valley range or DLM land ... yet

But for the immediate time, looking to get as tight groups as I can at 100 yards at the range on the bench. Already have a bag setup I really like, and not interested in a sled.

[ExtremeX]

What ammo are you using?

If tight groups is the name of the game then hand loading ammo almost becomes mandatory. I never consistently broke better than 1 to 3/4 MOA without handloads in my rifle.

The stock helps me a lot, but I felt it was more from an ergonomics standpoint. Being comfortable and having the rifle setup correctly also helped ME do a better job.

The trigger can make a big difference but it just depends on the person. I have a Timney 510 and a 501T... For just shooting groups, I love my 501T which is about a 6 ounce pull weight.

You don't need a high dollar optic to shoot groups at the range at 100 yards, but I would personally want more magnification. If you know you wont be using it for anything else, you can stick with a SFP optic and save a few bucks. In addition to that, FFP scopes generally have a thicker reticle subtension so some may even favor SFP for that application.

[NorCalFocus]

If your really getting 1/2 MOA groups consitantly with a factory VTR, why would you change anything at all?

1-3/4MOA is about what you can expect with a factory Remington. 1/2 or less MOA is usally done with aftermarket barrels, bolt and action truing and hand loads.

Now to answer your question, yes all three of those need to be done. If I had to put em in order, I would do the stock first, the scope second, and trigger last. To do it right, you'll also want to bed the action to the stock as well. As X said, a higher power scope with a fine reticle is really needed to target shoot.

I'd also start saving for reloading equipment. The 55 grain bullets (I assume) your shooting now, will really open up at 300 yards and beyond.

[PhoReal]

I'd also start saving for reloading equipment. The 55 grain bullets (I assume) your shooting now, will really open up at 300 yards and beyond.

Yup, shooting 55 grain. Tested all kinds, 62g, 69g, even up to 75g (barrel couldn't stabilize past 70). Found a factory 55g that's awesome, so sticking with that.

Thanks for the tips and advice everyone,

[ExtremeX]

1:9 twist Remington should do fine with 75gr bullets... I had a 20" SPS tactical that did a wonderful job with Hornady 75gr BTHP (not AMAX) bullets, but I did drive them pretty hard. That was my preferred bullet weight for really throwing them out there, but for 100 yards groups, it was hard to beat the Hornady 68gr BTHP with a mid level load. It just shot really tight.

Remember that its not just the bullet weight, but the length of the projectile and velocity that also matters when it comes to gyroscopic stability.

[AlexKintner]

My 700 SPS Tactical in 223 was a bit of a dog with every factory ammo I tried, even after a new trigger and B&C stock. Even "match" ammo. It didn't really shine until I started hand loading and ran a bunch of different bullets through ladder tests. I have found that nothing beats 25 grains of H335 behind a 50 grain VMax. My advice is if it shoots that good is to buy lots of ammo.

[PhoReal]

My advice is if it shoots that good is to buy lots of ammo.

On my way there Ammo mail order is pretty awesome.

I've been ordering from LAX Ammo based on their prices, service, and its CA based. Their new site has some issues, and wouldn't accept an offer code a few weeks back. But I emailed them about it, and they rebated my card for the difference. Pretty good service.

[Monster]

Unfortunately for that gun it will take all three.

[LynnJr]

If your going to shoot targets only get a stock with a flat forend so the gun rests flat in your front bag. McMillan makes a Hunter Benchrest Stock that is 2-1/4 inches wide. They make all kinds of stocks that are for 3 inch front bags.
What that type of stock does is to allow you to let go of the gun in the bags without it moving. That allows you to shoot free recoil or any other method you might choose.

On the optics to shoot small you need to aim small. The higher magnification scopes help you aim at a very small aiming point rather than covering up a one inch circle. If a scope is out of the budget try bracketing your crosshairs by putting several "L" on the backside of a target and align the crosshairs on the "L".

On the trigger the lighter the pull weight the less likely you are to jerk the gun off of your point of aim by pulling on a tough trigger.
Jewell Benchrest triggers come without a bolt release or safety for around $170 and are set to around two ounces.
The advantage to the Jewell is it is a snap to install. You push the two 1/8 inch trigger pins out add the trigger and tap the pins back into place.
Most other brands require slave pins to hold everything together while your installing them. One slip and parts go flying.

[ar15barrels]

The advantage to the Jewell is it is a snap to install. You push the two 1/8 inch trigger pins out add the trigger and tap the pins back into place.
Most other brands require slave pins to hold everything together while your installing them. One slip and parts go flying.

All timney triggers for the last couple years are also trouble-free install as all the innards are pinned into place without the need for slave pins anymore.



You can see the sear retainer pin right above the sear viewing window in the picture above.

[thegamettt]

I was right were you were and also said I wouldn't hand load. That changed like less than a week later.

Upgrade all 3, glass then stock, then trigger since you said you're fine with the trigger.

.5 moa is quite impressive for out of the box.