I went to my usual guy to order a Remington 700 BDL in .30-06. Never owned one and always wanted one. So after selling off a load of AR-15s and scopes, I had the cash so I bought one. My guy ordered if from one of his usual wholesalers. I went to go pick it up yesterday. Holy cow, what a disaster.

When I showed up, he brought the boxed gun out. The box was brand new, crisp, clean, no damage. It was taped shut. He always lets me open the box. So I cut the tape and opened the box.

First, the styrofoam packaging was broken to pieces. Some pieces were crushed. Absolutely a mess. The box was perfect, the packaging inside was a disaster. How does that happen?

Second, the front sight shroud was knocked off and laying loose in the box. So was the rear sight. The rear sight blade was knocked off the base and the screw that holds it in was missing completely.

Third, the butt plate had four large chips in the left side just aft the white line spacer. Four big gouges.

Fourth, one of the but plate screws looked right, but the other was grey, almost white, with what appeared to be some kind of corrosion. And the head of the crew looked like someone had been pounding on it with a hammer.

Fifth, the manual was the only paper in the box, and it was loose. Remington usually packages their manuals in a plastic envelope with a warranty card, and an advertisement or two. In this case, it was just a loose, and somewhat damaged, manual.

Sixth, the rifle was loose in the box. Remington packs their rifles in a plastic sleeve with a strip of anti-rust paper in it. This was just laying loose in the box.

Seventh, the bolt was just rattling around in the box. Those usually come wrapped and at least somewhat secured in the box.

Eighth, there was an Allen wrench just stuck like a pin into the broken styrofoam and it had a healthy coat of rust on it.

I never checked to see if the serial number on the gun matched the number on the box label.

I told my guy I couldn't accept the gun. And he was equally shocked at the condition it was in.

I have no idea how this happened. I've been buying guns from my guy for 20+ years. I trust him completely. And I've gotten a number of guns from him through his supplier, so I trust them, too. And I just can't believe this came from Remington this way.

I'm so glad I did not order the gun online, but rather ordered it thru my dealer so he had to send it back for a replacement. I can't imagine having to take delivery of a gun in that condition. Someone majorly screwed my dealer, his supplier, and made Remington look really bad. Sheesh.

Most guns(rifles) I may buy today were made many years ago. Even at that, I really don’t need any. The most recent was made in 1970, a 284 Winchester.

The last Model 700 I bought was for the action only, 10+ years ago.

It's unfortunate that the 700BDL didn't arrive in the expected condition. However, this provides the opportunity to invest in a quality rifle. Consider what you really want in a rifle -- accuracy levels, components, appearance, and budget.

Leave the Remy for someone else.

Sounds like your dealer's supplier put a returned gun in a new box. Pretty sure it didn't leave the factory that way.

I don't trust Remington as far as I can throw their headquarter building but I doubt the rifle left their factory like that. Someone tried to pull a fast one.

I agree with the others that you should look for a lightly used version from way back when or get a new, quality rifle from another manufacturer.

quote:

Originally posted by bustabuddy:
Sounds like your dealer's supplier put a returned gun in a new box. Pretty sure it didn't leave the factory that way.

A return or display gun. Went through a similar deal with a target rifle. The recieving dealer smashed my Palma sight to hell. They tossed its shipping packaging and lables so I had no means of returning it. The Palma replacment was $400.00. They looked up a used one on line and gagged. I left the F'n rifle right there for 3 weeks. Went back and collected it, removed the broken Palma and sold the rifle at a loss. I will never again do business with that dealer.

Yeah, I was disappointed to say the least. I'm confident my guy will get it squared away. I'm just glad I didnt buy it direct and have it shipped to my FFL. My FFL actually ordered the gun, so it was his problem, not mine. I've gotten to where I have to put my hands on a gun before I buy it.

As far as quality, I'm satisfied with Remington these days. I bought another 700, a stainless 5R in .308 and it's as nice as anyone could ask for.

Yea, seen this before. First clue is when the undamaged box and label and the contents within do not having numbers alike. Employees grab the wrong box some times...or not.

It can leave the factory a mess, my friend who was an owner of an lgs showed me the the bore of a brand new Remmie 700bdl and it was trashed. He was returning it. Moral of the story inspect everything on your new firearms purchase