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Need assistance for buying used Rifle

00buck
What type of things does one look for when purchasing a used rifle?
I am looking for a remington 700 made in the 70's or 80's.

How do I know that the action, headspace and barrel are in good condition other than actual appearence.

Many thanks.


EDIT- this will most likely be a local person to person type sale.
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  • givette
    Many large 'box stores' (Gander Mtn. comes to mind-may be others), have a gunsmith FFL on staff, in a little workshop on premesis.

    If you see something you like, insist the G/S performs the tasks you have mentioned as a condition of sale. It may cost you, but you would be paying for the proverbial peace-of-mind. Joe

    EDIT-response to the edit in the above post
    ..then, make the G/S technical exam a condition of sale, if the seller is willing. Otherwise, if the seller is unwilling, and it's something you 'just gotta have', roll the dice by taking it to a G/S after purchase. Best again, Joe
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  • beantownshootah
    quote:Originally posted by 00buck
    How do I know that the action, headspace and barrel are in good condition other than actual appearence.

    You mean other than actually shooting it? [;)]

    If the bore is bright and shiny and the rifling grooves are sharp and crisp and the CROWN of the muzzle is clean and crisp, then the barrel is OK. You can get some sense of this just by peering through it with a bright light at one end, but the "best" way is with a borescope, which is a device specifically intended for this purpose.

    Either the action will function correctly or it won't. Make sure it opens and closes smoothly, that the safety works (check all three positions if the gun has a three position safety) and that the gun actually cocks and fires. Obviously you only test fire it in a safe place for that! You could see if the gun will cycle rounds through the action and eject them properly, again with the muzzle in a safe direction only!

    On headspace, the proper way to check that is with a set of headspace gauges for the appropriate caliber. If you don't already have a set, you can either buy them or take the gun to a gunsmith to test for you.

    If the headspace is too short, you may have trouble actually closing the bolt on a round or ejecting it after firing. If its too long it may leave stretch marks on the brass (or you may not notice anything at all).

    As a general rule, its unusual for a factory gun (especially something like a Remington) to be out of spec for headspace, unless the gun has a really high round count or was horribly abused.
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