Review: Remington Model 700 Alpha 1

The Remington 700 has always been a favourite among hunters and shooters, with a variety models to cover any situation. The past decade or so has been shaky for Remington, and the reputation of the Model 700 doesn’t hold the same weight as it once did. However, under new owners and the RemArms name, we’re in a new era in which Remington emphasises quality, and in the Alpha 1 Remington brings to the table a souped-up version of its legendary 700 action, in a package that is ergonomic, durable, aesthetically pleasing and, above all else, accurate.

The Alpha 1 is a modern take on a sporting rifle that can be pressed into target work if you desire. With chamberings being offered between .223 Rem and .300 Win Mag, there is something for everybody, and it’s worth noting that it is available in both 7mm Rem Mag and 7mm PRC. The one I received for testing was in 6.5 Creedmoor, which needs no further introduction in the world of both hunting and long-range targets.

The rifle performed just as well from the ground as it did from the bench

The action and receiver are mostly typical of the Model 700, with some changes that reflect machining to much higher tolerances, and a deliberate effort to make it as accurate as possible. The receiver comes with a Picatinny mount from the factory, and sits beautifully in the stock, thanks to what Remington calls a ‘precision ground recoil lug’.

Remington has slightly increased the overall length of the box magazine to be able to accommodate longer cartridges, but a better way of looking at this might be that we can now load bullets out a little further in the cartridges we have become familiar with, or load heavier-for-calibre bullets, to get the most out of our reloads. The internal magazine shouldn’t be a limiting factor for you in this rifle, as it is in many other rifles; particularly ones chambered in older magnum cartridges. Complementing this added size, they’ve made the ejection port larger.

The bolt is a one-piece design that is smoother than any of the older Model 700s I’ve tried. It features spiral fluting, which looks great. It can now be disassembled without tools and the bolt handle is removable for those who wish to switch it with something a little bigger. They’ve done away with the old C-clip style extractor and gone to something which closely resembles an M16 style. Additionally, Remington has added a button on the left side of the action to release the bolt, doing away with the need to get your hands in the trigger guard as before.

Filling the magazine was a little tricky for me at first, and if I had the cartridges too far back inside the receiver when I pressed them down, they would nose dive. After some experimentation I found the rifle preferred to have the cartridges loaded in the centre of the receiver, and then slid backwards afterwards. Cycling and feeding was never a problem from there on in, but it’s something to be aware of.

RemArms has now adopted Timney triggers as standard issue in its Model 700s, and the Elite Hunter on the Alpha 1 is superb

The data on this rifle says the 6.5 Creedmoor holds four rounds in the magazine but I fitted five without issue, and fired it many times like this at the range and while out hunting. The internal magazine release is an Oberndorf style that is worked from the front of the aluminium trigger guard.

All Alpha 1 barrels are free-floated and fluted, featuring the same satin black Cerakote finish as the other hardware. The longer cartridges in the .30-06 and magnum family have 61cm (24-inch) barrels, whereas all other chamberings have 56cm (22”) barrels.

The profile is perhaps a touch heavier than some sporters, but it certainly isn’t a varmint profile — it measures 22.3mm at the base of the flutes and slightly tapers down to 18.8mm at the muzzle. The 5R rifling is another match-grade feature included to maximise the potential for accuracy. Twist rates for most chamberings are fast enough to allow you to load heavy-for-calibre bullets to really reach out and touch things, another feature that complements the slightly longer magazine. The muzzle has an 11-degree crown and is threaded 5/8×24 with a cap on the end that goes past the muzzle for added protection.

This rifle suits sitting in a vantage point and taking out targets at moderate distances

Continuing in the theme of upgrades, the Alpha 1 boasts a Timney Elite Hunter straight trigger. It’s adjustable between 900 and 1800 grams (2-4lb), the test rifle’s letting at an average of 1kg (2.3lb) over 10 pulls, and incredibly consistent with only 180g (0.4lb) variation. The trigger lever being straight is a nice touch and gives the rifle a slightly differently feel. It’s one of the best triggers I’ve ever shot, and it allowed me to shoot with supreme confidence. I never wanted more, nor less, and it was as close to perfect as I’ve experienced.

The stock is by AG Composites and is made from carbon-fibre, with a grey speckled finish. It’s as rigid as you would expect from a carbon stock, and the texture feels great. Some of the ones I’ve handled in the past have felt a touch smooth and moved around too much when shooting off bags, but not this one.

The machining inside for the recoil lug is neat and tidy. Remington says that the Alpha 1 is compatible with other Model 700 stocks but some inletting will be required to fit the longer box magazine. The Pachmayr Decelerator on the back is hardly necessary for a 6.5 Creedmoor but it was very comfortable all the same, and brings the length of pull out to 35cm even. I imagine the pad would be a welcome feature on the larger magnum offerings.

RemArms has gone factory-custom by giving the bolt a claw extractor, set into a lug

The lines of the stock have a nice straight style that not only looks smart, but helps the rifle shoot well off a bipod or any sort of improvised rest.

Despite a carbon stock, this rifle still weighs almost 3.4kg bare, so it’s no ultralight mountain rifle, but nor is it a heavy varminter. The high-end carbon stock obviously drives the price up, too.

NIOA supplied this rifle with a beautiful Leupold VX-5HD 3-15x44mm scope with a CDS turret already laser etched and sighted in with some Federal Premium ammunition, so the start of my accuracy testing was easy. It came as no surprise to me that this rifle was extremely accurate. I believe the reasons for this would be a combination of the tolerances at Remington being brought up a few notches, the ergonomics of the stock, and the 6.5 Creedmoor being mild enough to shoot with ease.

I tested four different factory loads that I sourced from Calibre Country in Tamworth, and three of them averaged sub-MOA; the fourth was a cheaper brand and isn’t included in my data as it performed so poorly it’s not worth writing about. With this rifle bridging the gap between sporter and varminter, I shot my groups both from prone with a bipod and Alpine Accuracy rear bag, as well as off a concrete bench with a more conventional front rest. I didn’t notice any difference in point of impact or group size, which leads me to believe the stock design is very user friendly and easy to maintain consistency with.

I also sent some rounds past 100m at a few targets to confirm the marks on the CDS turret and then it was time to go hunting.

While the Alpha 1 isn’t set up or marketed as being a mountain rifle in a lightweight sense, the overall shape of it and the confidence I could shoot it from field positions made me feel like it would be a great choice in this role. I made shots inside reasonable hunting distances on goats in my local area and with each squeeze of the trigger, I grew to love the feel of the rifle more and more.

I made some shots from inside 50 metres off-hand, and others inside 200 metres from either a bipod and rear bag, or improvised rest on fallen timber. With the VX-5HD, 44mm objective scope, bipod and sling, it was a reasonably hefty outfit, but I like to think I’d be happy to carry something like this to lay down and make confident shots when the opportunity presented. In the smaller offerings such as .223 or .22-250, it would make a fantastic varminting rig, and in 7mm PRC it could be a positively lethal longer-range sambar outfit. Here in northern NSW, the 6.5 Creedmoor is about perfect, and I would be as proud to have a rifle like this in my safe as I would be enthused about taking it out hunting or to the range each time I reached for it.

A typical group shot at 100m through the Alpha 1, this time using Federal Premium ELD-X ammunition

There’s a lot to like about this rifle. Firstly, it looks fantastic! Besides that, Remington has clearly gone to great lengths to make improvements that bring good bang for the buck. It’s easy to shoot, functions well, and has the sort of accuracy that allows any shooter or hunter to feel like the rifle is working with them, rather than against them.

It needs to be said, though, that working towards higher tolerances, fitting aftermarket triggers and carbon stocks, and Cerakote from the factory lead to a price point that is higher than most of us would be used to when considering a Remington 700. The rifle is clearly a well-built package that oozes quality, and if someone were to source a Remington 700 barrelled action from somewhere, it would end up costing more money to do the work necessary to have it become a completed rifle that can be placed on the same part of a gun rack as the Alpha 1. Remington is on a winner here and I hope that this is an indication of the future direction and quality we will see from the brand in the coming years.

Specifications