My New Old Remington 788

I remember when I was about 6 or 7 years old, deer hunting was not as popular as it is now and for my dad,  his love was varmit hunting. I remember while he was waiting for his buddies to pick him up so they could go out and call coyotes, he would let me sit in the chair and hold his rifle. Even though he had several different ones over the years, the one I remember most is the Remington Model 788 chambered for 6mm that he had. He still says today that he wished he had never got rid of that gun because he made more great shots and killed more coyotes with that gun than any other he has ever owned!

Even though I was not really looking to buy a new gun, my dad called me the other day and told me about a guy who had some Remington 788s for sale. We went over and looked at the rifles and I ended up buying a 788 he had in .243. I really like the .243 caliber because that is what I started out deer hunting with and also took my first buck with. It is a great caliber in my opinion, and will be good for Michele and the kids to use when they hunt.

The 788 was remingtons economy rifle back while they were being produced, and I have heard several different stories as to why they quit making them. One of the main ones I hear about why they stopped making them was because they were more accurate than their model 700, and it was cutting into the sales of their more expensive line of rifles. I do not have any idea if that is the reason or if there is any truth to that or not,  but I can say that the 788 is just as accurate as the couple of  700’s  I have owned.

The old 788 is not very pretty to some people I guess, but to me they just look like a rugged hunting rifle and thats beautiful to me! I have wanted one for a long time just to have since they do not make them anymore, and because thats the rifle that comes to mind when I recall my earliest memories of  beginning to notice and take an interest in guns and hunting.

My dad told me he bought his first Remington 788 chambered for .222 brand new for $89.00 years ago. He has traded, bought, and sold several over the years when I was just a kid, but still everytime we start a discussion about rifles he will say, ” I have never had a rifle that would shoot like that old Rem 788 6mm I had”. Well mine cost me $400.00 and that is pretty high since new they sold for $100.00 or less but I am glad to have it. 

I bought 2 boxes of Federal 100 grain factory ammo the day I got the 788  just to see how it shot. It grouped about an inch at 100 yards, not too bad and plenty good enough for hunting, but I know that I can get it to do better by handloading for it. I ordered some RCBS .243 Dies, and some85Grain Sierra hollowpoint boattail  bullets for it this week and I plan on working up a load for it soon. I hope to work up a load that will at least produce a three shot group I can cover with a quarter!  It might be impossible but the guy I bought it from said it will group about an inch with 100 grain bullets, but will put the lighter bullets all through the same hole. I know he was tellin the truth about the 100 grain bullets, now I hope the other part was true about the lighter bullets!  

I know my 788  is actually an old rifle, but it’s still new for me and I can’t think of any other specific rifle I really had longed for except a Rem 788. The one thing that really stood out to me on this rifle is that the stock trigger, with no modifications done, (according to the guy I bought it from), has a much cleaner, crisper, and lighter trigger pull than my Ruger M77, and I had a $60.00 trigger job done on my Ruger by a gunsmith!

Well I am excited about handloading for this rifle and finding out what it really likes best. If everything works out ok and I get a load I like,  I plan on leaving the 7 mag in the case this year and breaking the new old Remington 788 in right on some hogs and deer this year!