Old Remington sniper

[xarmor]

Well I dug this one out of the back of the safe, its an old Remington 700. It is a .308 and was made in late 1966 I believe. Don't know its history, probably a parts gun but somebody went out of their way to put it all together. I believe the barrel is a Nam vet for sure. The rings are dated 1-66 and according to Remington the receiver was made in 1966, date codes on barrel indicate Aug of 66 I believe.. Originally it had a satin black Redfield on it.

[Sunray]

Scoping a heavy barreled Rem 700 doesn't make it a sniper's rifle. Then or now. They sure did use nice wood then though.

[xarmor]

Scoping a heavy barreled Rem 700 doesn't make it a sniper's rifle. Then or now. They sure did use nice wood then though.

Really? That is all Remington did when they built the M40 for the Corps and when they built the 1903a4. The M1D/C was basically a service grade rifle with a scope, and in Vietnam Winchesters had off the shelf scopes added and were fielded by snipers. Japs, Germans and Russians scoped a service rifle and had themselves a rifle that could be fielded by snipers. With the exception of the Springfield model 1941 that was built by the Corps, there were very few custom built sniper rifles fielded by the military in any number until the M40a1 came around. The M21 had some custom work also in the later days of Vietnam. Just my two cents.

[jmoore]

Looks like a super clean M40 stock as well. (Doesn't look like a sanded down ADL stock, but its hard to tell just from the one pic.) Wide swivel loops,too.

[xarmor]

Here are a few more pics.

[hagar in SC]

Scoping a heavy barreled Rem 700 doesn't make it a sniper's rifle. Then or now. They sure did use nice wood then though.

If they shot as well as my HB 22/250, I would say they did qualify.

Most modern rifles will outshoot by far the best sniper rifles from WW1 and WW2.

[kurtflys]

I like it.. How did it get the US marking??? Was it an issued gun?
Kurt

[jmoore]

Main problem: Its too nice for old marine kit. Drag it around and live w/ it outside in Florida monsoon weather for a few weeks and then it ought to look about right.

[Shooter5]

Very nice rig! How does it group? Does Remington offer factory letters? Its history would sure be neat to see.

[xarmor]

I have not been able to get any documentation from Remington yet, I guess I have not been able to get in touch witht the right person. It groups pretty good, with a std Redfield I shot groups right around 1" with 168 SBTHP (m852), some a little better and some a little worse. I only put the Green scope on for display. Anybody have a contact at Remington that may be able to help with the receiver history? Here are a couple more pics, the top one is the clipslot on this rifle.

[Bsully]

Not to pick at the rifle as it is a good representative build up, but the clip slotting is incorrect for an M40 or a 40x. The left hand rail is the wrong length as is the bevel. The eyebrow cuts are incorrect and the U.S. looks to be hand stamped. Probably started life as a commercial rifle. None the less a good build up and neat kit.

[chuckindenver]

not sure what your getting at, but all the first 1000 M40,s were standard M700 Remingtons, and only the first 200 had the stripper clip guide.
no M40,s were ever marked 40X..they were{are} marked 700.
not all US marked 700,s were military issued rifles, many were used by other Gov sources.
US Game and Fish in some states, FBI CIA, and some state police got them as well.
my source at Remington cant help with who it was issued to, but can tell if it was military or other..
contact Redstone Ars, for the info..they may or maynot be able to find the dispo, of that rifle.
mine was likely a Wy, Game and Fish rifle. and never saw combat..
mine is roll stamped U.S. PROPERTY above the serial number.
i watched another M40 sell 2 weeks ago that was hand stamped U.S. by the CMP.

[Bsully]

More than the first 200 were clip slotted. As a matter of fact all were clip slotted from the original contract to include the 600k serial numbered rifle just sold on CMP. There have been a few aborations that have shown up in publications with just a square cut out in the rear of the receiver but they are the exception to the rule if they are what they are said to be.

M40s are clip slotted the same way a 40x is clip slotted, hence the reference. No statement was made as to any marking only the clip slot and one would be identical to the other in that regard.

Have never seen a "US Property" roll stamped M40 but have seen the same on a 40x 22.

The rifles sold/ shipped to other sources were from later in the production run as the Marine Corps order was nearing its fullfilment. The were other agencies and departments the at ordered them concurently and in a few different configurations, to include a groupe to the Navy in ADL trim.

The rifle sold at the CMP was indeed roll stamped and is listed in the DOD central registry as an Air Force rifle.

[30cal_Fun]

M40 Style stock help

That is one of the most beautiful rifles I have ever set eyes on!
There are a lot of people with 5000 dollar match rifles, but to me, nothing beats the traditional look of parkerized steel and a walnut stock with an oil finish.

If you have (or can make) some more pictures of the rifle that would be great.

One question to everyone, I intend to buy a Remington (SPS Varmint) and put an m40 style stock on it, but I have a hard time finding a stock. (I can do the finishing myself)
It's not complicated, Monte Carlo cheek piece, no grip caps, no checkering, and a sporter style fore end, so basically an ADL stock with a BDL cut out. which was exactly what the original stocks where. but it's hard to find.

Numrich seems to have one, but is has no pictures and I have not been able to find anything else.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Take care, Louis

[jmoore]

There is a gent in PA that does them I believe, http://www.gunstockduplicating.com/duplication.html
give him a try.