SmallCaliberCentral

I'm thinking about buying the above rifle. I have it in .243 and my brother has it in .223. My .243 shoots OK..1-2" groups (I'm working to make it better.) and my brother's .223 shoots great half inch groups Here's the dilemma, I have a .204 Ruger #1 that shoots 1" groups, but tends to overheat on a busy p-dog town and the groups grow. So, the question....am I going to do that much better with a Remington 700 VLS .204? I found one at a reasonable price and can mount a Bushnell 4200 Elite 6-24X on it. By the way, I really like these rifles and am less fond of the #1. Also, I do not want to put a bunch of money into the #1 to accurize it. So, your thoughts?

The heat is going to be a problem no matter the gun. Consider getting a 20 VarTarg. It dramatically has less barrel heating and almost the same velocity as a .204. Your cheapest route is to accurize the #1 and work up some reduced loads. If you are going to stay with the .204, you should consider a CZ with varmint barrel, I hear very good things. If you want a real good value, try a Howa. I have one in .204 and it does well. 1/2 inch grops.

I have a Rem. 700 VLS and am very pleased with it. All I did was adjust the trigger and take the bumps out of the forend barrel channel. Loaded with the Nosler 32. grain Varnmageddon and BLC(2) powder I shot a .169 group. All other bullets I've tried have shot 1" or less. I'd think you would be happy with the VLS.

I had one and it was a fine rifle after a little tweeking (trigger down to 1 1/2 lbs and cleaning up the barrel channel like broper did) but a good deal came along on a Cooper so I sold the Remington. Gary

Could you guys tell me what you have to do to "take out the bumps in the barrel"? I don't have many gunsmithing skills and my favorite gunsmith just closed his business due to health problems. Please let me know what you do. Tom

tbates wrote:Could you guys tell me what you have to do to "take out the bumps in the barrel"? I don't have many gunsmithing skills and my favorite gunsmith just closed his business due to health problems. Please let me know what you do. Tom

Tom, I usually just use a piece of steel round stock close to barrel diameter, wrap it with some 220-grit ~ sandpaper and take off the high spots. A wooden dowel, piece of broom handle, etc. works as well. Sand a bit at a time, check for barrel to stock clearence with a piece of paper or dollar bill, and be careful not to hit the sides of the channel, or you'll end up with a gross gap. No biggie, only takes a few minutes.

If you're working with wood, don't forget to seal the channel after getting it floated. HTH

Just make sure those "bumps in the barrel channel" aren't pressure points. Some Remingtons need them for accuracy...

I have 1 and am fairly pleased with it. It has been by fair the most finicky caliber/gun i have worked with, over 3 years of testing bullets and powders and still haven't settled on a load. I have 2 loads worked up now that a dime will cover a 5 shot group. Not exactly a tack driver compared to other makes judging from what I've read on this forum. Thats me shooting, maybe someone else could do better. Still tweaking them to hopefully tighten them up a bit and decide which 1 to load for ground hogs this year.

As far as the gun the only thing that has been done to it is the trigger has been lightened to 1 1/4lbs. I have a Nikon monarch 6.5-20 on it. I started a topic about it back in October to get some reloading help. Big thanks to the replies I got. Check it out might help in making your decision.

RowdyYates wrote:Just make sure those "bumps in the barrel channel" aren't pressure points. Some Remingtons need them for accuracy...

My VLTHSS (M700) had those, after they were removed (along with a bedding job) the rifle shot much better. But, I've heard some rifles likes the pressure point(s).

Those "bumps" are pressure points but from what I've read and been told, most guns shoot better without them. I used a dremel to do most of the sanding then sand paper to finish. Like RIO said, go slow and keep checking, I used the dollar bill to check. Mine shot better when I was finished.

I have been working on my .243 as a way of wrestling with the option of buying the .204. In the past my .243 only shot 1"-2" groups. I changed bullets from Hornady 55gr V-Max to Sierra 55gr BK. The difference was amazing. The Sierra shoot .6"-.5" groups. Now I'm going to work on smoothing out the barrel channel and see if I can do any better. So, am I ready to buy the .204? Well...maybe. Since then, at the Tulsa Gun Show, I had the chance to shoulder a Kimber 84M Longmaster .223 which is the twin to the 84M Varmint in .204. Have you ever had that experience where you pick up a gun and it's a perfect fit for you? That's the way the Kimber was for me. Now that rifle haunts me! I have to have it!! I'm kicking myself for not buying the .223. Oh well...the hunt continues. Thanks for your feedback.