Remington 700 sps tactical aac-sd

scarecrow1424 · Jan 28, 2012

I'm very familiar with precision rifles but was wondering if anyone could tell me about Remington's sps tactical aac-sd. I know the features and all but haven't handled or fired one yet. I was curious peoples thoughts on the quality of the reciever to use as a base for a build? Any input is appreciated!

geometro · Jan 29, 2012

It's a typical entry level Remington rifle with a few neat bells and whistles. Perfectly capable of being built up into a nice rifle. Just depends on your end goal of your build and budget.

I would say the AAC SD is good upgrade as you go along rifle: get the stock ergonomics as good as you can or drop into your favorite chassis, top with whatever optics you prefer, then true action when you rebarrel and maybe a new trigger if you dislike the stock one. As a budget minded precision rifle, it's not a bad choice: similar to a Savage Model 10 Precision carbine or Howa 1500, with the Howa not having exactly the same featureset as the AAC-SD or Model 10.

Otherwise you probably fall into the category where you know exactly what action, barrel (profile and twist), trigger, stock, etc, etc you want.

A lot of good impressions over on snipershide with the AAC-SD and here is some good reading if you haven't already found it: 8541 Tactical - Budget Precision Build, M700 Tactical AAC-SD

scarecrow1424 · Jan 29, 2012

Thank you for the feedback! I've read the 8541 post and a lot of reviews on it.

As a marine sniper I've come accustomed to some nice built bolt guns and understand that an off the shelfer In this price range isn't going to be what I'm used to. I guess what I'm really wondering is for the price it's listed something has got to give. I know the stock is flimsy but what are other weak points?

geometro · Jan 29, 2012

If you're used to the M40 the AAC-SD will handle a little quicker due to the shorter barrel. Functionally and in practical use, they're not worlds apart.

Out of the box, the AAC-SDs seem to be shooters for the most part. A couple threads that you may have already seen:

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Somewhere in each of the threads there are groups, for what they're worth.

Typical of most budget Remingtons, stocks are the first things to get changed. Second thing to change would be the trigger if it's not to your liking. That's about it.

If you're on a budget just fill the stock like this while you wait for a chassis: <broken link removed>

Otherwise just feed it 168 or 175gr pills and keep sending them...

scarecrow1424 · Jan 29, 2012

Yea the stock and trigger would be the first things to go. As for the m40s they have a lot of flaws. Our a5's with 5 rounds and suppressor is 22.5lbs ha so I know the aac-sd will have no problem beating it out in maneuverability and practicality. Do you know how smooth the aac-sd is when running the bolt? There are a few things that we already discussed ie stock trigger that sound like drawbacks but sounds like a good place to start! I might be buying one once I sell my savage.

geometro · Jan 29, 2012

The bolt should cycle just like any other 700 based action. I'm not a huge fan of the aftermarket knobs, but you can always try the KRG bolt lift to change the feel before committing to installing something like a Tac Ops knob. Why sell off the Savage: which one do you have?

scarecrow1424 · Jan 29, 2012

I ask cause generally the stainless actions are smoother such as xcr 's. I don't need a "tactical" handle. Im more of practical kinf of shooter. Our 40's don't even have them. I am getting rid of the savage to get the aac-sd to teach my wife some long range shooting. Shorter barrel and lighter stock for her. I have a savage 10 fcp hs precision. It shoots amazing, I am very impressed with it. Just want to get something for the wife. Its in the classifieds if you're interested.

geometro · Jan 29, 2012

With all due respect: why not keep the Savage and put on a 1-10 20" barrel from Shilen? The Savage 10 series are solid rifles. If the rifle is already sorted with optics, it seems like changing out the barrel to a shorter one would really be the most economical choice to change the rifle's handling. You could even have a barrel chambered in .260 rem if you wanted to... it's just harder/more expensive to find commercial ammo. Or see if you could get the barrel cut and re-crowned?

The AAC-SD is spec'd at 7.3 lbs, the Savage is 9 lbs. If you cut 4" off the Savage barrel, it will save roughly another pound. However if you change the stock of the AAC-SD to an AICS, it will add roughly 3 lbs to the AAC-SD....so you're roughly back at the weight of a Savage, if not slightly more when you change to a sturdier stock than the hogue.

Just my $0.02 after hearing what you're trying to do with the rifle.

*The AAC has a blued action just like any other SPS series rifle and I never really noticed the difference in cycling actions with different materials: but then again, I'm not usually trying to set speed records for bolt cycling.

scarecrow1424 · Jan 30, 2012

Yeah my wife likes the Remington though and once savage is sold I won't need to take money out of pocket to get the shorter barrel. On a fan of the model 10 and nothing at all bad to say about it. Just by selling it and getting her that one we'll come out ahead in the long run.

coyote223 · Jan 30, 2012

One particularly annoying thing about them. Remington didn't fully cut the threads on them, they left a little shoulder. They claim it add's strength, but I suspect they did it so it was only compatible with their suppressors. Not a big deal if you don't plan to suppress it. But if you think you might want to use another companies can. Something will most likely have to be done, so the can will screw all the way on.

Not a pic of the 700AAC-SD, but this is basically what their thread job looks like.

scarecrow1424 · Jan 30, 2012

Yea I've heard/seen the threads. A drawback but for the price I can live with it. By the time id be able to put a suppressor on it id either machine it or rebarrel. Id love to go quiet but that's a steep price to pay!

bulzeye · Jan 31, 2012

scarecrow1424 said:
I'm very familiar with precision rifles but was wondering if anyone could tell me about Remington's sps tactical aac-sd. I know the features and all but haven't handled or fired one yet. I was curious peoples thoughts on the quality of the reciever to use as a base for a build? Any input is appreciated!

I would look at just a SPS tactical and have it threaded. as said only muzzle devices from AAC will fit properly without work.

scarecrow1424 · Jan 31, 2012

I prefer the 1 in 10 barrel twist of the aac-sd. It is capable of shooting heavier bullet weights ie higher BC's for long range shooting.

bulzeye · Jan 31, 2012

how heavy? there are plenty of people that don't have any problems shooting 168 and 175 smk's with them.

scarecrow1424 · Jan 31, 2012

I'm not Saying they don't stabilize them. Our 40s are 1 in 12 but with the shorter barrel I prefer to get the two full rotations before it leaves the.muzzle. just my opinion.