The Remington Gen 2 rifle is built for extreme accuracy, and in this it delivers. My test rifle was topped with an EOTech Vudu 5-25x50 scope and equipped with a Silent Legion SL-3- suppressor. Photo: Bob Robb
Back in my early beginnings as a gun and hunting writer in the late 1970s, there was a quiet debate about which bolt-action rifle was the strongest and most accurate: the Winchester Model 70, with its control-feed design, or the Remington Model 700, featuring its rotating bolt with two forward dual-opposed lugs.
Of course both are excellent rifle actions but — while most of my colleagues favored the Model 70 — I was always drawn to the Remington 700 series.
The Model 700, introduced in 1962, was an improvement over the Model 721 and 722, which were introduced back in 1948. I think I was drawn initially to the 700 because of the success of the M40 sniper rifle, adopted by the U.S. Marine Corps in 1966. This M40 saw lots of combat use during the Vietnam War. I figured, if it was good enough for those guys, why would it not also make a superb hunting rifle? And later, both the U.S. Army’s M24 Sniper Weapon System and the Marine Corps’ M40 sniper rifle were built around the Model 700 action.
About Remington Gen 2 Rifle's 5-R Rifling
Remington Gen 2 rifles are built off the Model 700 action, but also feature barrels built much the same way as the barrels for the M24 SWS rifles are built.
The barrels are cold hammer forged and feature 5-R rifling, which increases barrel life expectancy, accuracy and creates less fouling and bullet deformation over time. Here there are five lands as opposed to the normal 6 land configuration found in standard sporting rifles. The more traditional lands are squared off at a 90 degree angle to the groove, but the lands incorporated in Gen 2 rifles are tapered at 110 degrees. This has been shown to produce less bullet deformation. Additionally, none of the lands are directly across from one another.
The Gen 2 comes right from the factory with a threaded barrel for those who wish to add a suppressor. The threads are protected by an screw-on end cap.
The result? Less barrel fouling and better accuracy.
Field Test
I carried a Gen 2 rifle chambered in .300 Win. Mag. on a November elk and mule deer hunt in Montana. My rifle was topped with an EOTech Vudu 5-25x50 riflescope and equipped with a Silent Legion SL-30 suppressor. Prior to the hunt I spent some range time trying to find a load the rifle really liked. You know the drill. Try shooting several different factory loads until you find the one that gives you the best combination of accuracy with the type of hunting bullet you want to use, and roll with it.
This can take a lot of time with a finicky rifle, right? So when I shot the Gen 2 in the above configuration using four different factory loads featuring 180-grain bullets — my all-around preference in a .300 Win. Mag. — I was floored.
Shooting off a Champion Premium Shooting Rest, three of the loads — Remington HTP Copper, Barnes VOR-TX (featuring the Barnes tipped TSX bullet) and Remington Premier Scirocco Bonded — produced 3-shot, 100-yard groups measuring right at one-half inch. Three groups in a row saw the VOR-TX load put the first two shots touching each other, with the third about a quarter-inch off. Truthfully, I could not believe it. I chose the VOR-TX load for my hunt, and made two one-shot kills. You can read the field test for the VOR-TX here or read about the Montana hunt here.
In addition to the Model 700 action and 5-R rifled barrel, Gen 2 rifles feature a black Cerakote finish for additional protection against the elements; a tactical bolt knob for quick bolt work, even when wearing bulky gloves; six longitudinal LTR-style flutes to reduce barrel weight and increase heat dissipation; a H.S. Precision composite stock with black webbing that features full-length aluminum bedding blocks for enhanced stability and shot-to-shot consistency; dual front swivel stud system for convenient mounting of bi-pod and sling; a X-Mark Pro externally-adjustable trigger; and it comes suppressor ready with 5/8x24 threads, if you choose to go that route.
The Gen 2 trigger is crisp and clean, with an easy-to-access adjustment screw located on the trigger itself.
It’s available in .308 with either 20- or 24-inch barrel, and 6.5 Creedmoor and .300 Win. Mag. with a 24-inch barrel. MSRP starts at $1250.
For more information see them at your local Remington dealer or go here.
