You Won't Believe What I Just Discovered On My 700 Action

[p-man]

Had a 'donor' unfired 700 ADL barreled action that I had been sitting on and when I decided to put its intended project on hold, I though that I would shoot it a little - the barrel looked fairly decent with the borescope and I didn't have a stock 30-06 to shoot. So I started by removing the plug screws and then attempted to mount the scope base - I had difficulty getting the forward base screw in the front receiver ring to engage all the way. I removed the base and inspected the hole - it actually was puckered a little, had a little ridge or lip on the left side of the hole - from what I could see down in the hole, it looked like it was not drilled completely as I could not see the barrel threads at the bottom - and the floor of the hole seemed rough like it had epoxy or something in the bottom. Well isn't that curious? Was this some sort of compound that Remington used in barreling back then that must of 'squeezed' up into the hole and cured rock hard? I tried digging it out and the stuff was very hard and sounded like metal on metal when the pick hit it. Hmm, now I really was curious so out to the barrel vise and action wrench I go - the barrel was tough but I managed to get it off - I cleaned the receiver rings as well as I could and and noticed that the hole HAD been drilled all the way through receiver rings - but that crap was there so I cleaned inside the rings and the base of the hole with a wire "toothbrush" and the glob fell out - it was a piece of friggin' weld!!!!! Some A-hole up there had butchered the screw hold and filled it with weld and redrilled it . . . short . . . and obviously it was after the barrel was on because there was traces of weld on the barrel threads - and when he retapped it he didn't go but just a few threads . . . just enough for the plug screw to fit. Further, after the weld fell out the result was the bottom of the hole looked like an oval - there is a little remaining sliver of weld that looks like a crescent and it is so thin that there is a gap between it and the wall of the original hole and it's so short that only one or two threads remain.

Now I guess my only recourse is redrill and retap with 8-40's - to say I am pissed is an understatement. If someone had used this with only iron sights I guess no one would ever know.

 

[Dans40X]

There is a correct process to plug screw holes by/ peening or welding if desired-- but as you've witnessed your receiver's attempt wasn't the correct process.

 

[abishai]

They just dont make em like they used to ....... I wish a buck was still silver , it was back when the country was strong ....

 

[jscandale]

Am I reading this right? Was this a factory untouched rifle?? Wow, that's some crazy story.

JS

 

[Eddie Harren]

If it was "welded" how did it fall out?

 

[JRS]

If it was "welded" how did it fall out?

+1 ;D Another wild tale : "after the weld fell out" ??? :

 

[p-man]

It was a 'factory untouched' receiver - I'll try and take pictures but it's so small it's hard for my camera to pick it up - the glob of whatever the hell it is sure looks like weld material to me - maybe some sort of solder

 

[p-man]

JRS, I don't proclaim to be a metallurgist or welder - maybe it's some sort of solder material - but don't beat around the bush, if you don't think I'm telling the truth, come out and say it.

 

[JRS]

At no point did I accuse you of lying. You may in fact have found something, but, I seriously doubt that ANY gun manufacturer would go through the trouble and time to plug weld, then re-drill and tap the hole. The man hours expended to do that would outweigh the cost they have in the action itself.

 

[gotcha]

P-man, I don't doubt your findings Just wonder what might have happened between the factory and you taking ownership? I can easily imagine some bone head attempting to run an overly long base screw into that particular hole & snapping the screw off & possibly buggering the threads with an "easy-out" ...... Like you say, pretty hard to take a good Pic of that kind of thing so I'm only offering a guess-timate...... Sounds like a job for Sherlock Holmes.

 

[p-man]

And I am not trying to rationalize WHY someone would do something, just saying what had been done - whoever did it, blued it AFTER the hatchet job and it damn sure looked original to me - I bead blasted it before removing the barrel and it became more detectable to the eye

 

[p-man]

Here's what I'm talking about - sorry about the pic quality

 

[gotcha]

Maybe you need to lower the octane on your coffee

 

[JRS]

That actually looks like someone tried to drill out a screw.

 

[Rustystud]

Looks like John Holmes at Remington did the front hole. You might be able to re drill (with Carbide endmill) and re-tap it as a 8-40 thread. If not I would drill it out .250" and use a .250" w/ a 6-40 internal thread. I would bet Bobby and Wally Hart might have some of those inserts. They use to put them in Hart actions.

Nat Lambeth

 

[RHux]

In my experience , a part that has been welded takes a different color blue than the surrounding metal.

 

[JRS]

In my experience , a part that has been welded takes a different color blue than the surrounding metal.

???

 

[p-man]

The gun was blued afterwards - at times Remington has blued rifles after they were drilled, tapped, and plugged - you'll see what I'm talking about when you remove the plug screws and the threads are still in the white.

 

[jonbearman]

I am gonna get pounded for this but I had a savage just like the remington you have and drilled all four screws out to 8-40 and problem solved.You might as well drill it out and see if there is enough left for an 8-40.

 

[p-man]

That's what I plan on doing