For many years the Model 700 has been the
backbone of Remington’s rifle line. The round action
and separate recoil lug are relatively easy to machine, and easy
to bed properly. The fast lock time and push-feed design also
contribute to the Model 700’s reputation for accuracy.
Remington has an enviable position in the realm of police and
military sniper rifles, serving all over the world with the US
Army, and all over our nation in the hands of police marksmen.
Likewise, the Model 700 Varmint rifle has served
varmint hunters and paper punchers well for many years. The 700
Varmint has always been capable of stellar accuracy when
properly mated to a good scope sight.
Remington has now introduced their VTR,
Varmint-Tactical Rifle, to serve the needs of both varmint
hunters and tactical shooters. It seems like a good marriage of
the two shooting disciplines, as in the hands of a groundhog
hunter or a police sniper, each are shooting varmints, but of a
different nature, and at greatly differing levels of importance.
In either case, the shooter is looking to make one precise shot,
absolutely right on target, every time. While some styles of
varmint shooting require a lot of shooting from one fixed
position, as in prairie dog shooting, many other types of
varmint hunting require the shooter to move about, sometimes
covering many acres in a day’s time. A ten pound varmint rifle
plus scope, mounts, bipod, and ammunition can be akin to
carrying a cross tie around by the end of the day, and for that
reason many varmint hunters prefer what has come to be called a
“walking varminter”, which is a lighter rifle, wearing a
barrel that is somewhat heavy, but not as heavy as that of a
bench gun or traditional varmint rifle.
Also, a police marksman or military sniper may
be required to cover a lot of ground in a little time to get
into position to make a quick, accurate shot. Many
“tactical” rifles are just too cumbersome and heavy. A
twenty-six inch bull barrel in a Choate or McMillan
stock can do good work when in position, but getting it there
can be quite a chore. For this reason many tactical shooters are
going with the shorter twenty-inch barrels to save weight.
The new Remington 700 VTR addresses the needs of
both the varmint hunter and police/military sniper. When I first
saw a picture of the VTR, the first thing that got my attention,
and that of most others who see the rifle, is the very
unorthodox triangular barrel profile. Remington does this to the
barrel to greatly reduce weight while preserving the rigidity of
a much heavier round barrel. Seems like a great idea to me, and
one that I have never seen before on a production rifle. The
barrel is twenty-two inches long, and has a muzzle brake
machined integral with the barrel. The barrel at the muzzle
measure .765 from triangle flat to point, and .825 from point to
point. This makes for a very stiff barrel, yet shaves a lot of
weight off the tube. With its lightweight plastic stock, the VTR
balances right at the front of the receiver after being fitted
with a scope and Harris bipod. The feel and handling
qualities are excellent, much better than that of a Remington
Sendero that I owned a couple of years ago. That thing was
beautifully accurate, but as I’ve stated before, it handled
like a pig on a shovel. The VTR handles like a rifle should. The
balance is right where the off hand grips the forearm, which,
like the pistol grip area, has a softer, stickier synthetic
rubber insert to facilitate a secure grip. The stock is a green
plastic, and the inserts a dull flat black. I like the way it
looks. The stock is pretty light weight, but trussed inside the
forearm for strength. The action is bolted to the stock in two
places; at the rear of the trigger guard and in front of the
magazine, and the “bottom metal” is made out of aluminum.
The magazine floorplate latch is inside the trigger guard, as is
the bolt release. The trigger pull on the sample rifle was very
crisp, with an excellent feel, but a bit heavier than I like at
just under four and one-quarter pounds. The bolt lift is ninety
degrees, and the bolt has two opposing locking lugs. The ejector
is a spring-loaded plunger, and the extractor is inset in the
bolt face, positioned near the right bolt lug. The bolt face
completely encircles the cartridge case head. The barrel,
action, bottom metal, and bolt are finished in a dull black. The
pistol grip wears a Remington “R” grip cap, and the
buttstock wears a black recoil pad. A sling swivel attachment is
located near the toe of the buttstock, and two more are on the
beavertail forearm, to mount both a sling and bipod.
The VTR tested here is chambered for the .308
Winchester cartridge, but it is also available chambered for the
.204 Ruger, the .223 Remington, and the .22-250 Remington
cartridges. Those are all excellent varmint cartridges, with the
.308 being the preferred choice for more serious applications.
Chambered for the .22-250 and .308, the VTR magazine holds four
cartridges, and it has a five-round capacity when chambered for
the two smaller cartridges. For accuracy testing I mounted my Leupold
Mark 4 8.5 to 25 power scope with the Tactical reticle. This is
one fine scope, and has proven its accuracy potential on several
rifles. It is a scope that I trust. I mounted the scope atop the
VTR using Leupold Rifleman bases and Warne detachable
rings. The Mark 4 also wears a set of Leupold flip-open aluminum
lens covers., has a 30mm tube, and side focus. It is the best
scope I’ve ever owned, and right at home on the 700 VTR.
I fired the VTR using Buffalo Bore Ultra
Match Sniper Ammunition. This stuff is loaded with 175 grain
Sierra Match King bullets, and is very accurate. For more
details on the ammo, look
at my recent review of it here.
Functioning was perfect in the 700 VTR, with the
cartridges feeding smoothly, firing, and ejecting without any
difficulty at all. Accuracy was superb. The VTR would group
three shots into one-half inch at 100 yards, all day long, and
would have likely done better with a better shooter on the
trigger. As stated earlier, I do better target work with a
lighter trigger pull, but in spite of that, the accuracy
performance of the VTR using the Buffalo Bore ammo was
excellent.
Shooting, and most importantly carrying, the new
VTR was a real pleasure. Recoil was very light, helped by the
muzzle brake I guess, but .308 recoil is not very punishing
anyway. At any rate, the .308 VTR is extremely easy on the
shoulder. The .308 Winchester is a very efficient cartridge, and
an excellent choice for such a versatile rifle. While advertised
as a varmint/tactical rifle, the VTR is also light and handy
enough to serve as a good all-around hunting rifle in the .308
chambering. It is balanced well, and would be a dandy deer rifle
that could also fill the role of hunting vermin such as
groundhogs and predators like coyote. In its more serious
intended role as a sniper type rifle, the VTR possesses all the
accuracy and reliability required of such a weapon, and has
handling qualities that are superior to most such “tactical”
rifles on the market.
I like the Model 700 VTR. There is a need for
such a versatile rifle. It could be a “one rifle” for many
purposes. Outfitted with a quality scope and bipod, it could
serve perfectly as a hunting rifle, a fighting rifle, and as a
paper-punching target gun, serving equally well for sportsmen,
police, military, and as a good solid rifle with which to defend
the homestead.
Check out the VTR and other Remington products
online at www.remington.com.
To order the Buffalo Bore ammunition, go to www.buffalobore.com.
For a look at the Mark 4 scope and other quality
Leupold optics, go to www.leupold.com.
To order Remington rifles online, go to www.galleryofguns.com.
Jeff Quinn
| To buy this gun online, go to: |
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When Jeff really wants maximum accuracy, he wants a
Leupold scope, such as this Mark 4 8.5 to 25 power with
Tactical reticle.
Quality, consistent ammunition is essential to
accuracy. Buffalo Bore's Ultra Match Grade will not let
you down!
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