Gun Review: Remington Model 700 PCR Enhanced Rifle in 6.5 Creedmoor

My friend and FFL, Tom McElwayne, did it again. He gave me a good one-liner to use to start this review: “I normally consider chassis guns an abomination, but this Remington is one of the nicest rifles I have ever seen.” Tom said this while closely examining the Remington Model 700 PCR (Precision Chassis Rifle) Enhanced that he’d just received. Apparently, Tom wasn’t kidding. He proved that by purchasing the review rifle from Remington when I was finished with it.

Just released this year, the “PCR-E” sent to me was chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor. And Tom was right, the rifle is pretty frickin’ impressive. It looked like something Arnold Schwarzenegger might have been carrying when he ‘came back’ into the police station.

Of course, looks can be deceiving, even impressive ones. So, I was eager to get the rifle to the range to test its dependability, functionality, and accuracy. On the Remington webpage for this rifle, they tout it as “More than a rifle, a fully optimized system that’ll stretch your effective range and shrink your groups like no other production rifle in the world today.” I had multiple types of ammunition to run through this ‘optimized system’, including some from Remington. We would see how it could shoot, but first…the details.

Specifications

As its name implies, the action on the PCR-E is the classic Model 700. However, unlike most 700 actions, this one has been paired with a chassis constructed of an aircraft-grade aluminum alloy.

The cleanly Cerakoted black action includes a bolt with a knurled, tactical knob that makes cycling easy, smooth and fast.

There’s a two-position safety.

The rifle comes standard with a 10-round detachable Magpul magazine.

The clean, even finish on the aluminum chassis and MLOK slotted handguard is ‘Cerakote Tungsten,’ giving them a silver-metallic, dark grey appearance.

The PCR-E comes with a single length of Picatinny rail mounted near the muzzle end of the handguard.

The blued 24-inch carbon steel fluted barrel on the PCR-E is free-floated and threaded (5/8-24) for a muzzle brake or suppressor.

The PCR-E barrel features 5R rifling. This results in the bullet being forced into the grooves from the pressure exerted simultaneously from both sides as it passes down the barrel. Having an uneven number — five — results in the sloped lands being opposite grooves and vice versa. That means less bullet deformation and, theoretically, increases accuracy.

The trigger on the PCR-E is Remington’s X-Mark Pro model that is externally adjustable. I didn’t adjust the trigger pull weight (this one broke at just over three pounds), but having the adjustment screw easily within reach would make that chore so much more straightforward.

The PCR-E’s Magpul pistol grip is very comfortable and worked well for my largish hands and long fingers. As you will see below, it REALLY worked well for my friend, Alex, whose hands are a bit smaller than mine.

The stock on the PCR-E is a multi-adjustable, user-configurable MDT skeleton carbine model. The cheekpiece height can be quickly changed using the two large knobs.

Length of pull is is also adjustable, but it’s a little more involved than dealing with comb height.

The shooter has to unscrew two hex-bolts that are recessed into the butt of the stock and then remove/add the small polymer shims to achieve the desired length.

I didn’t adjust LOP before going to the range; the stock length and eye relief once the scope was mounted were a good fit for me. However, if an adjustment to length of pull is needed, it’s easy enough to do, if a little fiddly.

PCR-E Range Test: 100 to 400 yards

I tested the Model 700 PCR Enhanced accuracy using three types of ammunition: Hornady 140 grain ELD Match, Hornady 140 grain BTHP American Gunner and Remington 140 grain Premier Match.

Despite this being a long range precision rifle, my testing didn’t include locking the rifle into a static rest. That’s not how people shoot in the real world. Instead, I shot the rifle from sandbags supporting the forearm and an Armageddon Gear Waxed Canvas Optimized Game Changer support bag for the butt of the rifle.

I fired groups from each of the three types of ammunition at targets located at 100, 200, 300 and 400 yards. All of the cartridges fed perfectly, and the accuracy was excellent for each. In fact, none of the rounds tested exceeded 0.5 MOA.

I’m not being self-deprecating when I state that’s phenomenal accuracy in my hands. I can usually guarantee sub-MOA groups with a decently accurate rifle, but not sub-0.5 MOA.

I can even state that I out-shot the ‘computer system’ at Remington. The following photograph shows my groups with each of the three cartridge types, and the printout of the Remington-produced group that ships with the rifle). The notable part of those results is that the Remington-produced group was from 100 yards (no doubt indoors) while my three groups were shot from 200 yards outside.

I have a separate write-up for the Maven RS.4 riflescope (see TTAG review), but suffice it to say, it’s an excellent companion for this precision rifle.

I would probably resort to handloading to get all the accuracy the 700 PCR Enhanced can generate for targets at 1000 yards or so. Then again, I don’t know if I could do much better than the <0.2 MOA, 400-yard group I scored using the American Gunner ammo.

Now for longer ranges

Once I had established the 100-400 yard accuracy for all of the ammunition types and distance combinations, I headed to a range that would allow shots at targets located at distances up to 0.4 miles (715 yards). My friend Alex joined me for this range session. Although an experienced shooter, Alex had never shot at targets at distances greater than 200 yards.

Because it was found to be the most accurate round in my first session, we only used the American Gunner ammunition.

We started out shooting at a metal target at 546 yards. Alex is pictured below with his 3-shot group. For scale, his hand is 5 3/8″ from tip of middle finger to the bottom of his palm. As can be seen from this photo, Alex’s first attempt at long range shooting resulted in a truly sub-MOA score.

We had similar results at 610, 670 and 715 yards.

We then walked our way back down the ladder of targets until we were back at 300 yards. This was as much to test the Maven scope as it was the rifle’s accuracy.

Conclusion

The Remington Model 700 PCR Enhanded rifle produces truly impressive accuracy at every range we tested. The rifle consistently produced sub-MOA and even sub-0.5 MOA groupings, even for a newbie to longer-range shooting. This isn’t a rifle to lug over hill and dale, but if you want a rifle to help you reach out from a whitetail ‘beanfield’ stand, or across a prairie dog town, the PCR-E would be darn-near ideal. Likewise, if you’re into long-range competitive shooting at 750+ yards, you’ll do well to consider investing in this Remington product.

Specifications: Remington Model 700 PCR Enhanced Rifle

Caliber: 6.5 Creedmoor
Weight: 9.9 lbs (without scope)
Length: Approximately 42-44”
Action: 700 SA (with an aircraft-grade aluminum alloy chassis)
Metal Finish: Action (Black Cerakote), Chassis and Handguard (Tungsten Cerakote)
Twist Rate: 1/8″
Muzzle Break: Barrel Threaded (Thread pitch 5/8-24)
Barrel Length: 24” (Carbon steel, fluted with 5R rifling)
Handguard: Aluminum MLOK
Buttstock: MDT Adjustable
Trigger: X-Mark Pro (externally adjustable)
Grip: Magpul
Magazine: Magpul 10 Round
MSRP: $1595 (about $1100 retail)

Ratings (out of five stars):

Style and appearance * * * * *
I was serious when I said the Model 700 action in this Cerakoted metallic grey aluminum chassis makes it look like  something from Terminator. It is an impressive looking rifle. The lines, black and silver metal finishes and black polymer stock produce a very appealing rifle.

Ergonomics * * * * 1/2
The PCR-E seemed to fit me well right out of the box. But the MDT stock offers enough adjustment options that virtually any shooter can customize the rifle’s fit as they need to. Half a star off for the fiddly LOP adjustment.

Reliability * * * * *
It’s a bolt gun with Remington’s venerable Model 700 action. There wasn’t a single failure to feed or eject. No mechanical issues at all.

Accuracy * * * * *
I said this already, but it is worth repeating. I have never encountered a more accurate out-of-the-box rifle. The precision the PCR-E produced was very similar across the three loads tested and exceeded Remington’s accuracy claims. I can only imagine what the gun is capable of with hand loads that have been tested and optimized for this gun.

Overall * * * * 7/8
The Remington Model 700 PCR Enhanced is an extremely accurate production rifle. Simply put, it ticks every one of the boxes a precision rifle should and exceeded my expectations. It looks cool, but more importantly, it performed extremely well with no hitches. The rifle produced exceptional accuracy using factory loads. This rifle is very much worth the price.

 

 

Mike Arnold writes for a number of outlets; links to other articles can be found here.

[Photos courtesy of Mike Arnold.]