Remington 700 conversion to 7.62x54R

[10mmfan]

I recently picked up a Remington 700 that is pretty beat up but mechanically sound. The bore is pretty ugly so I am considering a new barrel in 7.62x54 Russian simply for cheaper ammo. I have never seen a 700 in this caliber. Also, I've never seen one chambered for any rimmed cartridge. If anyone has any info or gunsmith suggestions for this project idea I welcome all thoughts and suggestions.

 

[sloughfoot]

This is not a practical conversion. It is a total waste of time and energy. From the bolt face to the feed lips you will spend weeks trying to get it to work.

If you ever do get it to work.......

 

[flashpuppy]

Doesn't seem logical to me. Putting the rimmed cartridge issue (if there are any) aside for the moment. Rebarreling a 700 isn't a quick and easy job exactly. Not like an AR or even a Savage bolt gun. For most folks, a smith is involved. Add to that the barrel cost and whatever custom bolt costs will be. Poof! Cheap ammo prices are negated by the cost of the modifications. Why not just rebarrel into other common and cheaper rounds like .308 or .223? At least parts wouldn't be totally one-off customs.

 

[tradertator]

I've thought many times that a rifle like that would be sweet. However, getting a 700 action to accept a rimmed round is going to be a chore. If it was easy, Remington would have make one in 30-30 .

 

[1911ly]

Why? Just so you can shoot cheap corrosive surplus ammo threw it? Seems like a waste of a great 700! Go 30-06. Bang and cheap surplus if you must be cheap.

 

[fireball168]

There has been a guy advertising a P-14 on HoosierTopics for $300, that would be a piece of cake.


Although a 700 conversion doesn't look terribly difficult at first glance.

I've got nearly all the parts laying around to try it, will order a .310 barrel on Monday - sounds like fun.

 

[Ruffnek]

Just take that budget and put it into a Mosin if you want to shoot 54r.By the time you shell out the dough for the conversion(if possible) you could build a tack driving Mosin I would think.Just be sure to examine the bore and make sure it isn't shot out.Or you could get an original P/U Sniper,since they were selected for the designated marksmen for their higher quality to begin with.

 

[1911ly]

It just seems like it would be as practical as putting a VW engine in a caddy. But if it is a thing you want to do as a learning experience then I say go for it.

 

[BogWalker]

If you've got the cash and time anything is possible.

 

[tradertator]

Just take that budget and put it into a Mosin if you want to shoot 54r.By the time you shell out the dough for the conversion(if possible) you could build a tack driving Mosin I would think.Just be sure to examine the bore and make sure it isn't shot out.Or you could get an original P/U Sniper,since they were selected for the designated marksmen for their higher quality to begin with.

"tack driving" and "Mosin" should never be in the same sentence

 

[6mm Shoot]

Remington made a 788 bolt gun in 30-30. I also think they made a 30-30 run in there 700 classic model. It seems like fireball168 seems like he is willing and able to do the job.

 

[10mmfan]

Ya, I knew they had made the 788 in 30-30 but I don't have one to mutilate for this conversion. I do have a really rough 700 with a very pitted bore. A friend suggested the 788 too but I had never heard of the 700 classic being made in 3030. If that pans out it might help my idea and I thank you for the info. If this project looks like it's going to be crazy expensive or require to many one off custom parts I will probably just scrap the idea and sell the beater or rebarrel it in .280 Remington. Or maybe look for a 788 in 30-30 for a 7.62x54r project. Or could just order a new barrel for my encore but I do prefer repeating actions. But fireball168 does sound optimistic that its a reasonable idea so maybe some good can come out of this odd idea for a rifle.

 

[freekforge]

I say go for it. it sounds fun and like a good learning experience.

 

[hrearden]

There has been a guy advertising a P-14 on HoosierTopics for $300, that would be a piece of cake.


Although a 700 conversion doesn't look terribly difficult at first glance.

I've got nearly all the parts laying around to try it, will order a .310 barrel on Monday - sounds like fun.

A P14 for 300??!! Thats awesome! I havent seen a P14 in years!

 

[Clay]

"tack driving" and "Mosin" should never be in the same sentence

I've got a Mosin sniper that holds 1MOA with my dumb self behind the trigger and surplus ammo. Thats pretty decent!

 

[amafrank]

I don't see any problem with the idea itself but you need to find the right 700 with the correct bolt face to start with. Opening up the 308/30-06 bolt face is possible but why screw with something you don't need to? Find one of the WSM 700's or the ultra mags to start with. The magwell/feedlips will likely require less work to fit up and the bolt face won't need to be messed with. So I'm sure its possible but the reasoning you're using is kind of flawed....in my opinion. If you want to save money on ammo you're better off doing as others suggested and buying a Mosin. If you want to have an accurate longer range shooter than you will need to load your own to get the best out of it and it won't save you much in the way of money....if any. 54R can be very accurate as the Finns and Russians have shown in competitions. It might be worth doing up a 700 just to show that but only if you're willing to load ammo appropriate for the purpose. Using a short action 308 bolt faced rifle will end up costing you enough to make up for any ammo savings down the line....

Frank

 

[tradertator]

I've got a Mosin sniper that holds 1MOA with my dumb self behind the trigger and surplus ammo. Thats pretty decent!

That's not bad at all! I have a buddy that put a Timney trigger, laminate free float stock, bent the bolt, mounted the optic off of the receiver, and re-barreled it with one from a Czech UK59. It's a real shooter, but majority of Mosin's I've owned and shot over the years were minute of man, and that was being pretty generous. I'd love to have a PU if it shot like that, or even better, one of the new production MOLOT chrome lined ones.

 

[Horse]

My ex-PU is easily 2 MOA and 1-1.5 on a good day with most ammo.

They really are special old gals - still willing to impress.

 

[Ajax22]

Sorry for the late bump, but googeling brought me here.

The mad scientist and I got bored and converted a remmy 721 over to a 700 then rebarreled it with a .311 super heavy blank, added a mosin extractor and recut the bolt face.... feeds just fine, goes bang... still need to set it up for detachable mags but one step at a time.

[video=youtube;NDLVEtoDnhk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDLVEtoDnhk[/video]

 

[Cet2survivor]

Sorry for the late bump, but googeling brought me here.

The mad scientist and I got bored and converted a remmy 721 over to a 700 then rebarreled it with a .311 super heavy blank, added a mosin extractor and recut the bolt face.... feeds just fine, goes bang... still need to set it up for detachable mags but one step at a time.

[video=youtube;NDLVEtoDnhk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDLVEtoDnhk[/video]

wow that's really cool. Do you have a video of y'all shooting it? Any regrets with the project?