Remington 770 Review: Is it Really THAT BAD?

This Remington 770 review will be in-depth and hopefully non-bias. Inside you will find an honest look at the affordable Remington 770 including a breakdown of the rifle itself, and a look at the facts vs fiction in regards to the negative reviews online.

The Model 770 from Remington is designed to be an economic rifle above all else; hence why you can get it at Walmart for a few hundred bucks.

Next, the Remington designers wanted to make a dependable and durable rifle that could take some wear and tear but still get the job done. It was never designed to be top of the line, nor was it meant to even compete with other Remington models.

This is, however, arguably the most affordable rifle that will still get the job done on top of being easy to operate and maintain with simplistically rugged mechanics. Whether the goals set forth by Remington were achieved or not, we will find out.

Before we begin in on the rifle itself, let's briefly talk about the purpose of such a rifle, why someone might want to buy it, and who the buyers and shooters typically are.

It's Purpose...

The purpose of the Remington 770 is to be an out of the box shooter, specifically designed for those who may put a round or two through it before deer season, possibly put another round through it during the season, and then put it away until next year.

The idea is beginners or people on an extreme budget, can still get a rifle they can hunt big game with. They can get a rifle scope combo package they don't have to do hardly anything to at all to make it work well enough to hopefully take down a trophy.

People purchase this rifle for many reasons but above all, it is because of the price. For currently just under 300 dollars at Walmart, you can walk away with a powerful rifle that comes with a scope and is capable of shooting out of the box. You can kill a deer with it, and therefore it serves its purpose.

There are many types of folks who have purchased, will purchase, or will think about purchasing the Remington 770. They will consist mostly of beginners and people on a budget.

I mean no disrespect to those who shop at Walmart (I was just in there to refill my phone plan and check out this rifle) but that being said I could not find this rifle at any of my local gun shops. In fact, it wasn't even sold at the chain sporting goods stores in the area. People who shop at Walmart are the people who are interested in such a rifle, that much is clear, whatever that means.

I think the reason I want to make these couple points is because so many of the reviews online, especially the negative reviews, are made by either avid and experienced hunters or shooters, or they are made by people who could have easily spent a little more on a nicer rifle but instead they chose to be cheap and clearly regretted it.

Most of the reviews appeared to be made by people who had little to no gratitude towards the fact that for less than 300 dollars they could kill a deer, likely with a box of ammo and license included.

Those who have saved up, regardless of how many paychecks it took just to have the chance to go deer hunting, are much more grateful to have the opportunity to take down a deer with their brand new rifle scope combo. Something they weren't necessarily able to do before, or might not have been able to do otherwise.

That I believe was the vision Remington had for this rifle. They may have cut costs anywhere they could without totally compromising the rifle, but they have created a product which has given certain folks the ability to do something they might have otherwise not been able to do.

This rifle is in a class of its own and you cannot compare it to other rifles, let alone other affordable rifles. If you buy this rifle and expect greatness in the form of a mid to lower top shelf product, you're only fooling yourself. This rifle will get the job done; the one job it was intended for...

It will kill a deer.

Anything outside of that is of course left to question.

The Rifle

Stock

The synthetic stock is light and ergonomically shaped so it does have a level of comfortability when raised to the shoulder in a shooting stance. That said it has a "cheap" feel to it, and I attribute that to the quality of synthetic plastic that feels a bit thinner than other synthetic stocks.

Butt Pad

The butt pad is hard and doesn't offer too much in the form or recoil dampening, but it is better than nothing.

Trigger

The trigger is responsive, even with reports of being ever so slightly sloppy and having a minor bit of travel distance. It is a consistent trigger pull though so you can get used to it.

Barrel​

The stainless barrel is nice, simple, and advertised as a true free floating barrel, although some people have only been able to travel halfway up the stock with a dollar bill.

Clip

Although having a clip is nice, this one seems to be a bit of a hassle. I saw a video online of a gentleman who showed the abnormal struggles one must go through to take out and put in the clip. He wasn't exaggerating.

Image by sportsmanguide.com

Of course, if you got used to it you would probably face no problems but for those trying to load it for the first time, it is most certainly odd. There are strange hangups on the clips sides that interfere with it being put in and taken out, so unless you find the perfect angle it may take two or three tries to get it in place. The clip itself is made of three pieces that can, unfortunately, come apart far too easy if dropped or banged just right.

Chamber

The chamber, mechanically speaking, is pretty sound. It will jam if you try to go too fast or are too jerky with the movements, but again, remember this rifles purpose. It is not to cycle through rounds quickly at multiple targets.

Bolt Action​

The bolt action works. I'll leave it at that.

Okay, just kidding, but again it gets the job done and that's the point here. The bolt doesn't slide very smoothly out of the box and will absolutely get bound up if you try to slam it home on any sort of angle.

This also has to do with the fact that although Remington advertises this as a complete steel barrel and chamber, the very end after you pull the bolt completely out has a plastic liner. The combination of a looser fitting bolt and plastic lining make the bolt bind up if you try to go too fast or push it in on an angle.

You can see in the photo the ring of plastic inside the entry point for the bolt.

There is a little metal flip switch on the left side of the rifle that stops the bolt from coming out when reloading. I have come to understand it can get dented or become loose the more racking is done but no one has reported a complete break. It is a little strange to lift and is a very cheap design but that is one of the areas you can get away with cutting costs I suppose.

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There have been a couple reports of the bolt handle breaking but if you send it back to Remington they will replace it. It seems to be the cause of a very random manufacturing defect, and/or abusing the action for no reason. Slow and steady is how the 770 needs to be handled.

Safety​

The safety off to the right works well, but it's a bit clunky and could possibly be in a better position. However, it's a safety so long as it works then who cares.

Scope​

The stock scope that comes premounted is not built for distance and it is nothing special. It will serve its purpose which means you'll be able to lock onto your target at a greater distance than your eyesight and hit that target after minimal, if any, adjustments out of the box. It is meant for anything under 300 yards but once you get past 220-250 yards the target is exponentially smaller.

Final Thoughts

Feel

When you grab it for the first time, I don't care who you are, it feels like a toy. It is light, slightly unbalanced in the arms, and just doesn't quite give the same satisfaction as holding a rifle that has been solidly constructed. That said, the light feel can be a positive, especially to those who aren't used to holding a rifle, or those a bit smaller in stature.

It was fairly comfortable in my hands, but maneuvering them around the rifle, say when unloading and reloading (because the clip has no ejection spring), my skin would catch the unrefined jagged edges.

The butt stock felt slightly short, which didn't help the toyish feel. It may be that because I'm just over six feet tall and have ridiculously long arms it felt this way, but I'm pretty sure the butt stock is shorter from end to trigger than other similar models. Then with it being light, it simply put, felt odd. That feeling is not experienced across the board and when I had my partner, of just over 5-feet in height, hold it she managed it well with no complaints of it feeling too short or too light overall.

Action​

I couldn't pull the trigger but from I gather it is not the worst available, and may just take a little getting used to. The bolt action wasn't the smoothest and was easily bound if pushed in at any angle. Keep in mind that there are ways to remedy the sticky slide and potentially fix the problem altogether.

Look​

It looks cheap, plain and simple. It has a plastic toy kind of look with rough edges and seams. It does, however, have a sense of sleekness when standing a few yards back. From there you can admire the flow and simplicity of the entire rifle with its complementing black on stainless steel. That is until you see the strange and bulky trigger guard. If nothing else, that alone makes this firearm look like a toy.

Thoughts​

The Remington 770 is a perfect rifle for those it was intended for and the purpose it was designed for. It is great for beginners or people new to hunting large game. It is perfect for those on tight budgets. It is great for deer hunting but that is about it. It should only be fired a few times a year if you want any decent kind of life out of it, but it can take some wear and tear and it will kill a deer accurately within 300 yards out of the box.

It is not great when compared to other rifles around the same class but standing alone this is a fine rifle for all intentions.

Out of all the videos and articles about this rifle being garbage, I was only able to find one true story about a muzzle that actually split while shooting. Everyone who has nasty things to say about this rifle would seem to want you to believe this rifle explodes or has extreme malfunctions on a regular basis. That is simply not true. Either that or they are all referring to this one incidence without giving you all the facts.

Now, it's not 100% confirmed, but it is very safe to conclude that the person who experienced the muzzle break had a squib load. That is to say, a projectile that was unable to fully exit the barrel due to a lack of power for whatever reason. The next bullet did, and when that happens it's like an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object and the explosive force of that collision destroys the barrel.

Other than that, the main complaint is about the bolt action itself, or the looks and feel of the rifle. Remember there are things that can be done to increase the actions mobility, smooth edges, and overall fix some of the lesser qualities.

Recommendation​

If you are brand new to hunting bigger game and/or shooting in general, do not be afraid to buy this as your first rifle. If literally all you have to spend is 300 dollars or less then go with this rifle.

If not, spend the extra 45-60 dollars and grab a Savage Axis or other budget rifle that is out there for under 500 dollars.

Hopefully, this Remington 770 review helped you learn a little more about the rifle. At the end of the day only you can decide what is good and bad by your personal terms, so get out there and check things out for yourself. Thanks for reading!