New Bolt Gun

[NYpsycho]

I am going to buy a new bolt gun, i want it mainly for woodchucks and yotes, might use it on deer if i feel like it but i got a spring field m1a for them. I have decided on a .243, and have been lookin at a couple different guns,  Remington sps varmint and savage 12FV varminter.
I really like the look of the sps a lot, and ppl have real good things to say about them so that's the one i want to go with, its just that the only other Remington 700 i ever had was a 700 sendaro sf in 7mm Remington ultra mag, i bought it brand new, scoped it with a 4.5-14x42 monarch and went through 7 boxes of ammo at 40 dollars a box, then sold it because it wouldn't do better than 4 inch groups at 200. so now i have a slight fear of 700's. i wish i could get them to send me a target with it guaranteeing sub moa. What do you guys think about this matter?

[jmayton]

Don't count on a guarantee from either one.  But both should do the job just fine.  Sorry, I'm not a lot of help.  I think between the two, it's more about ergonomics and aesthetics....that's about it.  Get the one that "feels" right.

[DalesCarpentry]

I had a Remington 700 SPS Varmint 243 that shot better than great. I say get it and don't look back. Here is a target I shot at 300 yards with that rifle. Below is the rifle I shot that group with also. Dale

[mcwoodduck]

I'd get it in 308.
for three reasons.
1 huge selection of ammo to find a round that will give you the MOA  you want
2 you can use the 125 grain reduced recoil rounds for your varmint needs.  and 150 to 180 for deer or other
3 you can use the same ammo in either rifle.
308 is a very versitle round and can be used from Varmints to big game.

[cipher]

Hi,
I went in to my favorite gunshop Wednesday looking for a lefthanded bolt action rifle.  I hoped for a 243 because I already reload for that caliber.  Sam said I two - a 243 and a 375 Ruger.  Happy day!  The 243 is a Remington 700 SPS Varmint with a 26 inch barrel.  Hmmm...  I bought it and took it to the range the next day with some of the ammunition that I had loaded for my 243 single shot H&R. 

After I got the scope where it was close with some factory ammo, I tried out some homebrew:  36 grains Varget with an 85 grain Speer BTSP topper.  The first group at 100 yards was about the size of a quarter!  I was trying progressively larger loads with the same bullet and got the same results with 38 grains of Varget!

Am I happy?  Would I buy it again?

BIG YES!

[charles p]

See that you are a second class gunnersmate.  Navy or Coast Guard?

[Graybeard]

You can pretty well depend on ANY Remington Varmint rifle shooting groups well under an inch at 100 yards for five shots and once you find a load it likes that you'll see most groups closer to the 0.5" than a full inch. I've owned many of them and not a single one ever failed to do this to date.

[ms]

Get a Remington then a savage Most custom rifles are build off Remington actions. Savage makes a good rifle too.

[NYpsycho]

I think that the 700 in 7mm RUM must have just been a lemon, just a fluke. i tried 2 different scopes on it and took it to a gunsmith multiple times. so i guess i shouldent judge all there 700's based on that 1 gun.  Dale, u are the reason i want a sps, i saw some stuff u wrote about urs in a different post, thats y i started looking at them, i hope mine turns out to be as good as urs, i think i might save up the big buks for a nice leapold this time, i usually go with nikon, but i really want a leapold.

[mrbigtexan]

hey nypscho, i don't believe the leupolds have anything on the nikon. plus the nikon is cheaper.