Forgot there's a Gunsmithing/Armory section. Originally posted in Precision Rifle section...

Good morning guys, hope everyone is doing well. I have a nice stainless Remington Model 7 in 243 from back in the mid-90s. Great little gun, but never liked the pencil thin barrel. Therefore, I want to rebarrel it to a 6.5 Creedmoor as I have several guns in various 6.5 calibers and I'm setup for reloading it all.

I'm looking at using one of the Criterion pre-fit Rem/Age barrels from James at Northland Shooters Supply. However, I have some questions that I hope you can clear up for me. They are:

1. Am I correct in that the shank size and threading are the same on Rem Model 700 barrels as on the Rem Model 7 barrel? (my research indicates yes, but more confirmation is welcome)

2. Can a Rem Model 700 action wrench be used on the Model 7, or would I have to fabricate a custom wrench for the Model 7? (I have the Northland action wrench and could get their taper lock system to locate the recoil lug on the wrench, but I do not have access to a 700 action to measure where the front action screw is in relation to the end of the receiver)

3. What about the bolt and bolt head, are they cross compatible if the Model 700 barrel itself will thread into the Model 7 receiver? Or are there issues with the sizing of the bolt head being slightly different between the 700 and 7? (Again, if I had a 700 to measure I would, but I don't)

4. If this sounds like an idea that will not work, then what are other options for rebarreling the Model 7 to a heavier barrel?

I really like the Rem/Age idea as I'm primarily a Savage shooter and have swapped many barrels myself and changed calibers on guns, but never worked on any Remingtons. Plus, I'm a DIY kind of guy who wants to further increase my knowledge in working on guns, continue to build up my vast array of tools for working on various guns, etc.

If any of you could help answer these questions it'd be much appreciated. Again, research shows that some on other forums have done the Rem/Age swap on a Model 7, but details were few and far between and the posts were old.

Thanks,

Mike

I agree, and that's yet another thing I hope to find out. I know it's doable based on reading about and seeing other rifles it's been done to, but I want to know if it's "savage barrel swap" easy or "lathe required" easy.

I was hoping there would be more posts by now, but I guess folks have not done many of the Rem/Age swaps on here

Roger that. So I'm guessing these guys doing Rem/Age swaps onto 700s or 7s aren't just swapping barrels like a savage can. They're legit blueprinting and then just doing the swap for the convienence of being able to swap barrel later?

I agree. So is there any way you think I can determine if the pre-fit Model 700 barrels will work on my Model 7? I know they'll thread in, but I guess I'm unsure of how I can verify bolt specifics in terms of how the cuts in the pre-fit barrel might match up to the Model 7 bolt.

And like I said, if I had a Model 700 to measure I would...but I don't

Some have the receiver face squared up, some don't.  There are several instances of both shooting lasers.

I had my receiver face squared to the raceway and my raceway reamed to 0.705 as suggested.  The receiver I bought did not include a bolt so I had one ordered from PTG...thankfully that turned out well.   This is all for a 700 though with all Remage components bought from NSS.  Have you spoken to McGowen, McRees, Northland Shooters Supply, etc. yet?

Cool thanks Aero...I sent you an email



And I have spoken to James at NSS last week. I've dealt with him before on Savage barrels and was pleased. I sent him an email asking if the pre-fit 700 barrels would thread into a Model 7 receiver and a few other questions, and all I got via reply was that the barrels are only for 700s and 783s depending on which you order.

So I replied back and then called him, but he was still leery of it. He mentioned some things that have been mentioned here, but he acted like he'd never seen it done to a Model 7 before and even mentioned if I ordered from him for this (after talking to him about it), that he'd mark my order stating it was for a Model 7 swap and that I assume all risk and couldn't return anything if it didn't work.

I still want to try contacting McGowen and even Criterion directly, and also I'm going to talk to my local gunsmith that I use for barrel threading who does tons of 700 builds and get his thoughts (he's been out of town recently though)

Just spoke with Dan at McGowen and he said it should be doable.

I also spoke to my gunsmith yesterday when I picked up a barrel he threaded, and he said it should also be doable, but that you are sort of at the mercy of how tight the factory receiver/bolt is vs. an action and bolt that are properly machined to each other and the barrel

I've got a coworker who is going to let me get measurements on his Model 700 SPS Tactical in 308 (gun was purchased last year) just to see how the bolt dimensions compare in terms of the lugs, ring, etc.

I measured the coworker's Model 700 chambered in 308 and using two different digital calipers and taking multiple measurements/averages, the bolt features on the head are identical.

So I believe it will work

Good info, thanks for that Aero.

And yes I'd go with one of the 1/4" precision ground NSS recoil lugs