Ive had my backup deer rifle(Pre 64 M70 7mag) looked at and supposedly it should be fine. Ive had "friends" handload for it but maybe they aren't good enough. I wont go into what ive done to correct it but im through trying and I would like yalls advise on "who" to take it to. I feel that a real good handloader may be all I need but im prepared to let someone turn it inside out for possible issues as well. Ive been on this forum some an it seems there are some guys that I could turn to. Before I do that I figure ill just throw it out to all yall and hope you can tell me where to go or where not to go. Im all over Texas all the time so where is no issue. If you don't want to recommend someone or talk bad about some one on this open forum then feel free to pm me with your advise. Thanks

My 07 FFL is weeks away.

I spend every week at a rifle range, and I know the 7 Rem Mag well. If it'll shoot, I can figure it out.

If you travel and are willing, take it for Fireman he will know

I second JG, 100%. He knows his chit!......well, most of the time..

P_102

I'd pick up some quality factory 150-162gr ammo (stay away from Superformance) after a good scrubbing with Montana X-treme Copper Killer or Wipe-Out Patch-Out according to the instructions. Go fire a couple foulers and then shoot groups. If that doesn't work, I'd take it to someone that can scope the bore to tell you if the throat is toast before sinking any more money on bedding or chasing other gremlins.

It certainly needs a cleaning, a refoul, and a new start.
Mass produced ammo isn't even in the same ballpark as consistent as hand loads. And we don't know his twist rate yet. Most likely a 1:9, and a 150 gr bullet in mass produced ammo very well could shoot like poop.

Could have a stock flex problem, action screw/ bedding problem, base/ring/scope problem. It needs a bunch of boxes checked before even being fired.

I second cleaning all the copper out first. It could be that simple.

Im no expert gun guy for sure so I hadn't planned to solicit specific advise cause im not going to personally apply it and instead want to know where to take it. Also, its not likely I have the knowledge to answer the questions you would probably have to help me diagnose through the forum. Having said that, please continue to offer advice cause im a sponge for knowledge even if im not planning to do the work myself. I know yall enjoy throwing out your knowledge and I enjoy reading so ill give a little info to help you out.
Yes its been cleaned and fouled. Most of the boxes have been checked that Fireman rattled off. Ive been told it has a 1 to 10 or 9 twist but don't know. Someone before me had put a heavy 26" barrel on it. Ive had a couple different "friends" handload it from 140 to 175. I plan to only shoot Nosler Partitions and preferably a little heavier than some prefer. My M70 3006 has been my only deer rifle for 45 years and it shoots 1" at 100 with 165 Partitions. Im not a great marksman but im very careful about shot selection and placement and don't shoot over 250 yds and deer always die when I shoot. If this 7 mag wont shoot an inch with Nosler Partitions I will change guns before I change bullets. If yall have questions I may or may not answer cause I don't like looking stupid but feel free to fire away advise.
Well, I guess ill offer more. Got back from gunsmith today and he had checked numerous things and rebedded it which he said it needed badly. I was told that the last time it was bedded. This time he says it shoots under an inch with Federal Premium Trophy Bonded 175s which he just happened to shoot In it. I couldn't find any of those so I shot the handloads from before and it was back to 2". Maybe im a bad shot but I can shoot the 06. I can wait an shoot the exact bullet he shot but I want handloads anyway so im back to looking for a pro handloader in which case I may also have someone else look it over also. Handloader first or gunsmith first or is that likely the same person?

Maybe use a sled to take the human error out

Let Fireman look it over and shoot it.

Ummm...since he's specifically looking for a "pro" handloader, how come nobody has mentioned chad? Sounds like that's where you should go.

So I know for a fact that a competent handloader can make ammunition that is way better than factory box ammo, and I certainly wouldn't make it personal and question the competence of whoever you had load ammo for you. But with that being said, there is always a human factor with reloading, and there are just too many variables that come into play if you are trouble shooting. I think before you spend any more money on a gunsmith you need to get a couple different boxes of factory ammo and see what they do in the rifle.

On the same topic of human error, be realistic about your own capabilities in the driver's seat. Just because you can shoot your other rifle well, don't assume you're just as capable with this other rifle. Maybe there are some setup issues that are limiting you. Maybe the extra magnum recoil is inducing extra errors in how you are driving the rifle. It wouldn't be the first time.

Finally, agreed that enlisting FiremanJG's help would be a good idea.... I have never met him in person but based on his contributions here he is easily one of the most competent resources you could ask for help.

If the throat is worn, or barrel is in bad condition, you're wasting your time with ll the other stuff. Start there, if barrel/throat is OK go to bedding, then mounts, good scope that works, etc. If you want to take it somewhere I'd go straight to Hill Country Rifles in New Braunfels. One look through a bore scope and they'll know immediately.

I have had several 7MM RM rifles and all were very accurate. Do you have any idea of the round count on the barrel? Has it ever shot well for you? Some rifles just don't shoot Partitions well.

So you took it in and had it bedded cause it "needed it badly". Then you took it elsewhere and had it re-bedded cause it "needed it badly". Something fishy is going on here.

I'm no expert and have limited experience with vendors. I can say I have first hand experience doing business with both FiremanJG and ChadTRG42. There is little to nothing I could say negatively about these guys, both are qualified to address the issue/s you are having. If you choose to have one of them fix the accuracy, said person could do load development for that rifle, keep a copy of the data, and continue to load for you. All you would have to do is bring the brass back. Good luck.

Where are you located? Were it me, that would have bearing on decisions.

Handloads are great, but if I have a rifle that won't shoot good factory ammo worth anything, I'm going to address that problem before chasing an unknown with handloads. The pre-'64 Model 70 7mm Rem Mags had a 1:9.25" twist, as I recall.

Really impressed with the feedback so far guys but im not surprised since ive figured out this forum is great for lots of stuff like this. Since several of yall seem interested then ill give a little more info.
Ill answer or comment on all yalls posts in no particular order. The gun guy that just had it cleaned the bore(as I had) and used a bore scope. He said the bore wasn't perfect but it shouldn't cause a 2" group. No I don't know the round count. I bought it 10 years ago and have rarely shot it. No it has never shot well for me but always a backup deer rifle which ive never carried afield so haven't worried too much. It usually will shoot about a 2" group with whatever I shoot through it including handloads from two different guys that were working up loads for this particular gun. Human error on the shooting is certainly a possibility however the rifle I shoot well and this one are both M70 factory wood stock rifles so I wouldn't assume an issue. I would consider myself a candidate for possible recoil shyness but help me out on that... The 7mag "feels" much heavier and has a very heavy 26" barrel. The 3006, I think, is called a Sporter and has a seemingly small 22" barrel. Correct me if im wrong but wouldn't the felt recoil between the two be negligible?? I exaggerated the bedding issue. First gun guy way back said the bedding was fine and I no longer trust him much(for various reasons). My new guy is old school but I trust his basic skills and his honestly completely and he said the bedding was bad and redid. Not certain the twist but the Pre64 wouldn't of come with a heavy 26" barrel I, assume, so I don't think we can assume the normal factory twist of 9.25 which was mentioned. The above was all in reply to yalls very welcome posts.
UPDATE- I just went back to my gun guy and got the remaining ammo that he had shot the 1" group with. Fed Prem 175 Trophy Bonded. I also was able to find and buy a box of Fed Prem 160 Partitions. If I shot factory this would be exactly what I would prefer to shoot. Im waiting for the wind to change from 12 to 5mph later today then I will go shoot the two different ammos. Even if it shoots great I will likely still want to have handloads worked up.
Once again, thanks a lot and keep the feedback coming.

What? Why? Factory ammo is of poor quality to begin with. If you are trying to dial in a rifle with issues and the issue is with the factory ammo, how do you know the difference? With hand loads where you control the bullet, powder, and powder charge, you're able to dial in the load and figure out what might be causing your issues. I can read the groups with the type of pattern I'm seeing to dial in the load. Or read what the rifle is telling me to diagnose a rifle issue. I see a lot of rifles and shoot a lot of test loads. The last thing I want to figure out an issue with is factory ammo that is much less consistent ammo and has huge swings in powder charges to help diagnose my issue. Just my

OP, what part of texas are you located in?
If a reputable smith bedded your rifle and proceeded to shoot it MOA, I'm guessing that you personaly have not yet shot a load your rifle is agreeable enough with to suit you. You are correct in thinking a heavy 7RM will not kick any worse than your 30-06 sporter. Being that it has been re-barreled, I would probably measure the twist. Most 7mm barrels are around 9-9.25 twist. Standard bullet weight for the 7RM when it came out was 175gr. Western big game hunters quickly figured out what it would do with a 160gr which is now probably the most popular weight projectile used out of a 7RM for big game. The fact it has been re-barreled with a heavy barrel and your gunsmith saying the barrel was not perfect but should be ok, would make me curious how much it has been shot. Heavy barrels are seldom fitted to hunting rifles. Instead they are preferred on target rifles. Minor throat erosion can be an issue with a 7RM that has seen a good bit of honest use. In that vein of thought, I would find the distance to the lands. If it seemed a bit long, your heavy barreled rifle may either be chambered for a long heavy target bullet, or have some throat erosion, or both. In either instance, with the caveat you plan on hunting with a partition, a 175 partition may shoot better than the 160's you purchased.

I'm not wasting time, money, and components if there is a worn out throat or out-of-spec chamber. I'd rather fix the problem than screw around trying to make reloads work that won't be safe in a proper, SAAMI chamber. I prefer to start with good quality factory ammo to test all the rifles I build. If they shoot with factory ammo, then they're worth tuning reloads to, if the customer so chooses. If they don't shoot small groups with factory ammo, then I need to check my work, again. But, I'm in the gunsmithing business, and not the reloading business.

yep

Idk firemanjg or Chad but have socialized with both on here, and they both are as knowledgeable as you’re gonna find.

And some of us know what is inside the brass of mass produced ammo. Many a good rifle have shot poorly with mass produced ammo. Get them clean, and give them a powder charge within .1 gr, instead of 3.0 gr, and they come to life. Loading for one is as much trouble as putting fuel in the pickup. And, there are commonalities among cartridges. X cartridge tends to do well with Y bullet, and powder charges in a 1.0 to 2.0 gr area.

For example: .308 Win, 24" barrel, 1:10 or 1:11 twist. 178 gr, H-Varget between 《here...and...here》It is probably going to shoot somewhere in there. Same holds true for the 7 Rem Mag. If it is still 2" at 100, more things need to be investigated. Many of which, already have (allegedly).

That's nice. But most shooters aren't going to send off every rifle to have custom loads done, particularly one that isn't shooting for them. I'd rather address the more likely issues first, like a bad throat, chamber, or bedding. If I can't build a rifle that will shoot good factory ammo well, then I won't tell a customer to go spend hours or more money hiring out the work to someone else; if that chamber is so far off it won't group with GMM or Hornady Custom, then I don't want a reload made for it, I want the chamber done right. When you're a hammer, everything looks like a nail....when reloading isn't your business, not everything looks like it needs custom loads to start.

What? Why? Factory ammo is of poor quality to begin with. If you are trying to dial in a rifle with issues and the issue is with the factory ammo, how do you know the difference? With hand loads where you control the bullet, powder, and powder charge, you're able to dial in the load and figure out what might be causing your issues. I can read the groups with the type of pattern I'm seeing to dial in the load. Or read what the rifle is telling me to diagnose a rifle issue. I see a lot of rifles and shoot a lot of test loads. The last thing I want to figure out an issue with is factory ammo that is much less consistent ammo and has huge swings in powder charges to help diagnose my issue. Just my [/quote]

I'm not wasting time, money, and components if there is a worn out throat or out-of-spec chamber. I'd rather fix the problem than screw around trying to make reloads work that won't be safe in a proper, SAAMI chamber. I prefer to start with good quality factory ammo to test all the rifles I build. If they shoot with factory ammo, then they're worth tuning reloads to, if the customer so chooses. If they don't shoot small groups with factory ammo, then I need to check my work, again. But, I'm in the gunsmithing business, and not the reloading business.[/quote]

And some of us know what is inside the brass of mass produced ammo. Many a good rifle have shot poorly with mass produced ammo. Get them clean, and give them a powder charge within .1 gr, instead of 3.0 gr, and they come to life. Loading for one is as much trouble as putting fuel in the pickup. And, there are commonalities among cartridges. X cartridge tends to do well with Y bullet, and powder charges in a 1.0 to 2.0 gr area.

For example: .308 Win, 24" barrel, 1:10 or 1:11 twist. 178 gr, H-Varget between 《here...and...here》It is probably going to shoot somewhere in there. Same holds true for the 7 Rem Mag. If it is still 2" at 100, more things need to be investigated. Many of which, already have (allegedly).[/quote]

That's nice. But most shooters aren't going to send off every rifle to have custom loads done, particularly one that isn't shooting for them. I'd rather address the more likely issues first, like a bad throat, chamber, or bedding. If I can't build a rifle that will shoot good factory ammo well, then I won't tell a customer to go spend hours or more money hiring out the work to someone else; if that chamber is so far off it won't group with GMM or Hornady Custom, then I don't want a reload made for it, I want the chamber done right. When you're a hammer, everything looks like a nail....when reloading isn't your business, not everything looks like it needs custom loads to start. [/quote]

Sounds like a used gun with unknown round count that’s been to a smith with no avail so he’s reaching out for options. Heaven forbid genuine people reach out to help him figure it out, unless you were the smith.