Remington 700 mountain or LSS… any known issues?

I’m contemplating over a few options on a dream rifle. I’ve always wanted one of these in 270win, and there just happens to be a few options floating around right now. Date of Manufacture dates from early 90’s to mid 2000’s. I’m just wondering if anyone out there is familiar with them. Experience? Reliable source? I have one friend with one and he says he’ll never part with it. MY only hesitation is my other considerations. Would you choose a Tikka Roughtech Ember, a Weatherby Vanguard S2 Talon, or go with that eye appealing Remington 700 Mountain/LSS?

Remington 700. Take the stock off and sand the speed bump out to float the barrel and shoot with confidence. Maybe a timney drop in trigger.

I just bought a tikka in 22-250. The stock is coming off and getting a bell and Carlson. I don’t like detachable mags on bolt guns. I lose case oal and it’s something easily lost or misplaced. The trigger is pretty good. The barrel however is as accurate as I am for sure but I noticed it’s slow. I’m losing about 100 fps compared to my kreiger barrel 22-250. Both 1:8 twist.

Wait you said mountain Rifle. Shoot it first before floating the barrel. Those thin barrels sometimes shoot better with some pressure on them

ajw wrote:

I just bought a tikka in 22-250. The stock is coming off and getting a bell and Carlson. I don’t like detachable mags on bolt guns.

I’d gladly take that Tikka magazine off your hands. PM me if we can make a deal.

I have a 1993 stainless Remington mountain rifle. I put a Remington custom shop KS stock on it and had to lay some tape down at the end of the barrel channel to get a little pressure. It shoots lights out. I have a leaupold 2.5-8 on it and all up with sling I have a sub 7lb rifle

So, if I tally all this together, a Remington 700 Mountain LSS is not worth the money as is? They’re already pricey, being a discontinued rifle, with factory laminated stocks at least. I don’t want to drop for one and need to change stocks or barrels or the trigger. I do want it to reach out and touch a pronghorn but if it’s not suited to do this as a stock rifle, I might as well go with one of the other two. If I have to tweak ’em, at least I saved a few hundred bucks initially. Know what I mean?

Here’s my thought process:

I have a Weatherby Lazerguard S2 in 308. Trigger breaks at 2.1lbs with absolutely no creep, from the factory. It shoots 7 of the 9 brands I’ve placed in the chamber accurately, with 5 of those 7 giving me sub M.O.A., the other two inside 1 1/4″ M.O.A. I like it. I’m satisfied with the product. Thus, I’m not opposed to owning another higher-grade Vanguard.

I have 2 Tikkas, one a Roughtech. Again, I’m happy with the way they shoot. They’re a little pickier across the brands, but when you find the right one, it’s sub 1/2″ on 3-shot groups, sub 3/4″ on 5 shot groups. Cold barrel, first round shots, dead on the dime @100yds.

I have confidence in these brands because of what they’re like out of the box. If the Remington is not going to match that experience, then I’d rather get a better performer than a more expensive, prettier classic.

I do appreciate the feedback, I just want to make sure I understand what you’re saying.

You don’t need to change a thing. I love Remington mountain rifles.

I never said change the stock nor the trigger but you can easily do so. That’s why I like Remingtons – the ability to customize easily with untold amounts of aftermarket parts for them.

In fact if you don’t buy that old mountain rifle please send me the link (grin)

stillakid2 wrote:

So, if I tally all this together, a Remington 700 Mountain LSS is not worth the money as is?

My opinion on the 700s in general is that they are overpriced for what they are. Despite the decline of Remington, there are still a lot of people who won’t shoot anything BUT a 700. Not that there aren’t good reasons for owning a Remington 700, but IMO the prices of used 700s in general is significantly above their stock performance level.

Both Tikka and Weatherby at the very least do what the Reminging does or they may even do it better than the Remington (as stock) will do it, depending on the rifle and the age.

If you were getting a deal on the Remington, it would be one thing. But as I said, paying full-whack used prices for a 700 does not make sense to me in this day and age considering the out of box quality of other rifles out there.

If you have to tweak the rifle on top of that with aftermarket parts, then it’s a no-brainer.

And before I get savaged by all the Remington fans out there, I’m not saying Remington 700s were or are bad rifles. I own Remingtons, I’ve shot Remingtons. But the rifle landscape has changed significantly since Remington and Winchester ruled the roost and everything else was an also-ran. IMO it’s foolish not to take into account the many fine rifles that are now available and look at the performance per $ spent when making the decision.

From personal experience and comments from others, I have never known anyone to have a rem 700 that shot poorly.

If this is your true dream rifle that you’ve always wanted then I say go for it and don’t look back. I know a few guns I have on my wish list aren’t the “best bang for the buck” or best deals. But I don’t care about that. I want them and that’s all that matters. One mans beater gun is another mans safe queen. So who are we to tell you what you want? lol. Buy it and let us know how she shoots. I don’t see their resale value going down anytime soon. So you always have that going for you.

I don’t know if the OP intends to buy a brand new one or a used one, but something to be aware of is that the triggers in various model 700 rifles were faulty from 2006 – 2014. There was a class action lawsuit over this against Remington because dozens of people were actually killed when the rifle would fire without pulling the trigger. Hundreds of people were also injured. As part of the settlement, Remington offered to replace the trigger on all affected models. I believe it was the X-Mark Pro Trigger.

I own a model 700 myself and this caught my attention big time when the rumor first came out. I own a 2007 version of a model 700 and took it into an authorized gunsmith to have the trigger replaced at no charge. I did not experience an issue before I had the trigger replaced (or after), but the idea of a high powered rifle firing on accident scared the crap out of me.

All of them that I’m looking at are pre-recall models.

It’s a “dream rifle” because once upon a time, it would have been the coolest thing the safe, to me at least. I saw a 7mmRemMag in “nutmeg” topped with a silver Leupold VX-II. I had no need for the caliber at the time and the stock was cracked, or else I probably would’ve dropped the $775 for it. Between the scope and the rifle, I knew it carried value, had a solid reputation, and I loved the look of that combination. It’s been lurking in the background of my mind ever since.

Famous Grouse recognizes my dilemma, and I think his reasoning is exactly why I’m hesitant. I believe it’ll hold value but they seem to have hit a wall. Many aren’t selling very quickly, a sign of economics and/or market saturation. Not that I want to turn it, but I have had beautiful/more expensive guns that didn’t match up to the performance of something more cost effective. Those are bad days, and if that is what happened, I would let it go. Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained. I’m just attracted to multiple items and it’s messing with my head… and I can’t afford all 3 to see which I like best!

That would be the most fun though!

AJW, thanks for the clarification!

And thanks guys… y’all have valid points!

Well, thanks to a fluke set of circumstances, I managed to score a Remington 700 LSS for about the original, over-the-counter price! Un… real! Hopefully, I’ll be slapping a scope on it and finding out what she likes to spit real soon!
Thanks again for your thoughts and considerations guys!