Remington 700 Long Action Ultimate Varmint Stock by Choate

Purchased this stock, and a Harris bipod, last week trying to get as much as I can out of my Remington 700, 30-06. The barrel and action dropped right in; tolernces are close but no drama. I ran 20 rounds through it on the weekend and the stock/barrel fit remained rock solid. I had trouble with the bipod loosening due to recoil. My groups were OK but not spectacular. Could have been me, the optics, the ammo...you all know the excuses.

This is third Choate Ultimate Varmint rifle stock I purchased. It is the only standard commercially produced aftermarket stock I'm aware of with a profile similar to the SVD-63 Dragunov sniper rifle. Most people who have handled a Draguov rifle can understand and appreciate how ergonomic and "correct" the stock feels especially when the rifle is being shot from a prone or sitting position. The feel characteristic of the Dragunov's stock is well duplicated by the Ultimate Varmint stock when attached to a bolt-action rifle. Also, I believe the recoil characteristics of the rifle is also changed a bit. When shooting heavy bullets from a large caliber round (a 220 gain HPBT from a 300 Win Mag) from a Remington 700 Long Range fitted with this stock, the recoil feels more like an abrupt and heavy but controllable push. When the same bullet is shot from the rifle with the Bell & Carson Varmint/Tactical stock the rifle originally came in, the recoil felt more like a combination of a sharp upward snap and violent push.

The stock is a very heavy with features that lends itself to a very comfortable and stable hold especially for target shooting. However, if you are planning to go hunting, the weight added by the stock and its overall size will make the rifle too heavy and cumbersome to carry for a long period or for making an accurate shot from an off hand position.

There are a few other items that a buyer needs to be aware off.
1) The stock comes with a high and a low cheek riser that can be attached in three (forward, middle, rear) positions on the top of the stock. When the riser is attached to the forward position, there will only be enough distance for the bolt to be cycled and pulled for extracting and injecting the cartridge in the action. There is not enough room for the bolt to be removed from the action without first removing the entire riser.
2) When the high cheek riser is attached, the rear of the riser will usually block the front of a cleaning rod's handle and prevent the entire length of the rod from being inserted into the barrel for cleaning. This can be remedied by removing the riser, using an extra-long rod or attaching an additional segment to rod to make it longer.
3) The Ultimate Varmint Stock (for both the Remington 700 Short Action and Long Action) has a blind magazine well. There is no opening on the bottom of the mag well to accommodate a floor plate or detachable magazine. Ammunition in the magazine can be loaded or unloaded only from the top.

A similar stock from H&C, McMillian and most other aftermarket stock manufactures will usually cost about twice or three times as much. Overall, this is a great stock that I will recommend for someone who wants a sturdy, heavy and ergonomically well-designed stock on a rifle to be used in long range target shooting.


Advantages: Please see "comment" section.

Disadvantages: Please see "comment" section.

Stock is much heavier than the original one. As the rifle is a .30-06, and it used to kick the crap out of my shoulder, I am hoping that this stock will help with the recoil.

Advantages: Weight, versatility with the rail underneath the forearm, length of pull adjustment.

Disadvantages: Weight. Don't plan on carrying this through the woods hunting.