What's the deal with my 597?

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I've got a Remington 597 TVP (heavy barrel) and a TruGlo 4x32 scope and bi-pod.

I've shot this thing now at least half a dozen times and each time it is progressivly getting less and less accurate.

The first time I shot it, I had it shooting 20 shot groups into a 4" hole @ 50 meters. Now, I can't get the thing to group 4 feet, never mind 4".

Today for example, I set up my gong which is a sqft piece of steel and I could maybe hit it 1/10 rounds @ 100 meters. I could see the bullets hit the snow and they were never hitting the same place. It would shoot 2 to the left of the vertical line of my scope and then 1 to the right, always switching back and forth. The total estimated area of all the bullets was at least 4', no joke.

Since the gun is new and I did have moderate success with it the first time out, does anyone think it could be my scope????

The scope looks like this and it cost me $80. It's nothing flashy, but I thought it would work alright.

TG8504BR-Large.jpg






What do you think? is it my gun or scope? I know it's not the ammo as I've tried several different kinds INCLUDING target loads from Remington. Even with those target loads the rounds fly everywhere, there is just no consistency whatsoever.

And yes, the gun is clean.
 
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Obviously you have to swap out the scope before blaming the rifle.

Got a buddy who can lend you one to try out?

I know the 597's don't have iron sights, but you could probably put a straight grease line along the rail and fake an iron sight just for a base grouping.
 
It may be the scope, the rings or even the rail on the 597. I have the same model, and I don't trust that rail. I just get the feeling that it's not secure. I'm changing it out for a Leupold one piece base.

Some other issues. The part of the barrel near the receiver may not be free floated. Mine isn't (it will be soon).

Also I've found mine to be extremely ammo sensitive. It was shooting everything like crud indoors at 20 yards from a bench. 2-3" groups. Then I shot one lot of Lapua superclub and it shot better than my Ruger 10/22 target. That was until that package of ammo was gone. I grabbed another package from a different lot and the rifle was shooting crappy again.

With mine I'll be changing the rail, and free floating the barrel near the receiver. Also I'll try and find some more Lapua to try out. If this doesn't work I'll be taking it in to a gunsmith to check the crown.

I should add that I have seen other reports of this problem with the 597, especially the target versions. So while rare, it's not an isolated occurrence. I also suspect others have had this that aren't speaking up. At least not until after they have sold the rifle.

By the way in case anyone hasn't guessed. I like my Ruger 10/22 target model better than my Remington 597.
 
Epoxy7 said:
It may be the scope, the rings or even the rail on the 597. I have the same model, and I don't trust that rail. I just get the feeling that it's not secure. I'm changing it out for a Leupold one piece base.

Some other issues. The part of the barrel near the receiver may not be free floated. Mine isn't (it will be soon).

Also I've found mine to be extremely ammo sensitive. It was shooting everything like crud indoors at 20 yards from a bench. 2-3" groups. Then I shot one lot of Lapua superclub and it shot better than my Ruger 10/22 target. That was until that package of ammo was gone. I grabbed another package from a different lot and the rifle was shooting crappy again.

With mine I'll be changing the rail, and free floating the barrel near the receiver. Also I'll try and find some more Lapua to try out. If this doesn't work I'll be taking it in to a gunsmith to check the crown.

I should add that I have seen other reports of this problem with the 597, especially the target versions. So while rare, it's not an isolated occurrence. I also suspect others have had this that aren't speaking up. At least not until after they have sold the rifle.

By the way in case anyone hasn't guessed. I like my Ruger 10/22 target model better than my Remington 597.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your post. It sounds like many of the "symptoms" my gun is having as well.

What do you mean "free floating the barrel"? What does that include?

I should note that mine is also quite ammo sensitive, but it does eat those Federal blue box 525 packs like no tomorrow. It also will feed somewhat reliably the 100 pack red plastic Winchester. It does not like Rem. Game Loads at all.

The problem with shooting Lapua all the time is cost, obviously. At $8+/box, I almost refuse to shoot it.

I think what I'm going to do is put this scope I have now on my shotgun and then buy something else for the 597. If I still have the same problem after changing out scopes, I'm going to throw this thing in a river. ;)

Thanks again for the info.
 
No problem.

I found mine fed and shot everything, it just didn't do it accurately.

With the design of the stock, the barrel is free floated for 95 percent of the barrel length. IE the barrel doesn't come in contact with the stock. However there is that small section near the receiver where the barrel on mine comes in contact with the Laminate stock. When the barrel warms up, it will change the point of impact of the bullet. The harmonics are changed as well. In short you don't want the barrel touching the stock if you can help it. There are exceptions to this and if it's shooting well I wouldn't touch it. In your case and mine, it's worth looking into.
 
Could it be that you removed the scope and then re-installed it with the mounts on backwards? By that I mean that you have now moved the one that had been in the back to the front and vise versa. I did that once with a 303 of mine that shot really well, then really awful when I reversed the mounts. Someone told me that might make a difference and I didn't believe them until I switched the mounts around and it shoot bang on again.
 
check all fasteners. takedown screw, scope rail, rings, anything else critical.

can you change scopes with another rifle? one that you know is consistent?
 
Here's what I found needed to be done to the 597 to make it a little more accurate, and consistent.

Use loctite when fitting the base, and ensure the rings are tight.
Polish your guide rods and ensure they are only finger tight.
Ensure the action is screwed in tight.
Stick with the same ammo (mine prefers CCI minimags)

I hope it works out for you.
 
Targettarget

Free floating is easy to do. I used a wooden dowel and sandpaper from cambodian tire. If your barrel is touching the stock, this will really cut down on the flyers once done.

Make sure your rings are holding in the grooves on the receiver, as I've had problems with this on mine. You don't seem to notice it at all, then the scope is nearly coming off the back.

If I had to bet, the scope or rings are the problem...the rifle shouldn't shoot that poorly.
 
G P said:
What type of ammo are you shooting? Could it be wax from the ammo clogging all the rifiling pits?
Click to expand...

If the problem with his rifle is the same as mine, then no. I used a bore snake between ammo changes. Also I started with the American Eagle which doesn't have a lot of wax.
 
I really hope he can get it figured out. I just don't see how it can shoot that poorly....I like to sometimes give a rifle a workout to see what will bog it down. With mine, the groups might open up a bit after 600 rounds, and the rifle starts acting up (jams and feeding problems) quite a bit after 1300-1400.

But still good enough to hit the poor man gong at 200 meters, which is an 8 inch pot. So in theory, mine should be capable of 4" @100 all day. And T has one of the target versions, which should be a better shooter.
 
Mine's a target version as well. It's the stainless TVP. Nice looking rifle. Feeds/cycles well. Just accuracy problems with 99 percent of the ammo. Just to tease me it shot really well with that one lot of Lapua Super club. Of course it had to be the one where I only had one box left :mad:. Oh well.
 
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