Looking for advice/buyer's tip for Remington 700

Long story but I had a Rem 700 in 308 that finished up at 19.5 inches in 308 Winchester. Shot great out to 600 meters. Not good after that as velocity dropped off I presume to sub-sonic. Loading with a mid speed powder and had super accuracy.
 
What's the attraction towards an ultra short barrel? More muzzle blast, poor balance, lower velocity are proven downsides. What's the upside? Standard bolt action rifles come with 22" barrels for a good reason. I have four .308 rifles. One with 20" barrel, two with 22" barrels and one with 24" barrel. The 22" barrels are "just right" for me - of course your needs may be different, but you asked for advice ...
 
Maybe because the OP is like me at 6'4" and walks through the woods. I would hate having ANOTHER 4" of barrel sticking out of my pack, snagging branches and catching radio signals.

The velocity argument is moot when you're hunting within 200y.
 
Incomplete powder burn before the bullet exits the rifle typically.

I have two friends with 2" barreled guns , both Remingtons in 308.
Both regularly shoot well past 500 meters and one takes his out to 1,000 meters on a regular basis .
The one is shooting hand loaded 165 grain bullet but the other quite often uses Federal Gold Medal 165 grain Match factory stuff.
Cat
 
I hunt grouse and rabbits with 28" barrel shotguns, and would not go shorter than 26" for that purpose - because of handling properties while shooting, which is more important to me than "handiness' while carrying. A similar equation exists for rifles. Too short and they are wonderful to carry but crappy to shoot.
 
My 700 has, I think, a 22” barrel. This is the way it came and has never been a hinderance. I’ve hunted on foot for years. Great all around rifle and cartridge. I seldom get a shot at over 300 yds.
 
What's the attraction towards an ultra short barrel? More muzzle blast, poor balance, lower velocity are proven downsides. What's the upside? Standard bolt action rifles come with 22" barrels for a good reason. I have four .308 rifles. One with 20" barrel, two with 22" barrels and one with 24" barrel. The 22" barrels are "just right" for me - of course your needs may be different, but you asked for advice ...

18.5”-20” is my sweet spot for any hunting rifle I use, I’ve yet to see a or experience any negatives to a relatively compact rifle that I hike with.

I hunt grouse and rabbits with 28" barrel shotguns, and would not go shorter than 26" for that purpose - because of handling properties while shooting, which is more important to me than "handiness' while carrying. A similar equation exists for rifles. Too short and they are wonderful to carry but crappy to shoot.


I hunt grouse with 12.5”, 14” & 20” barrels, my 28”-30” are paperweights. I might bring them out when we shoot clays but then again I just do that with the 14” & 20” like when I hunt.
 
There you have internet info absolutely incorrect short bbl accuracy shred do you guys find this crap
Plus the inability to acutely process what you have read and research the info
 
I have three (3) rifles with 27" barrels.............to each their own.

Yep, it’ll never be the same hunting situation or preferance between people. I don’t shoot anything that shows massive gains in velocity from a longer barrel so it’s not even a consideration for me when I am looking at a new rifle. Where I hunt with a rifle a long shot would be 200m, so I could go shorter in length and not notice anything.
 
To each his own for sure.You also have to know your rifle and for that matter your own limitations when shooting anything.And besides all that, a model 700 with a twenty inch just looks so cool.
Dave G
 
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