My experience with Remington rifles and shotguns extends to those I have owned in my lifetime; more than 20 now. Most were bought new; the first an 870 in 1978. Several were second hand; two of these being 700's early to mid 60's vintage and one is a 1950's model 760. I have bought 3 700's in the past 4 years; a CDL in 3006, a 7mm Mag SPS, and the newest, a VSSF II chambered in .223. More on these 3 in a bit. Additionally, I cannot count how many I've helped mount a scope on and/or sight in.
The problem with today's Remington product is they spend waaaaay too much time on how the outside looks and almost nothing on what you cannot see inside. They spend a small fortune on marketing and gimmicks. By marketing i'm talking about their TV adds and the like. By gimmicks I'm talking about stuff like that triangled barrel they put on some of their 700's. How many of the gun builders here on LRH build their custom guns with a triangle barrel. I would think it is between slim and none. .... and slim just ran out the door. None of this stuff actually contributes anything to the performance of the product.
Another thing to keep in mind is that Remington like so many other companys is now part of some conglomerate. To make a long story short, the accountants and lawyers run the show today. They only look to turn a profit for the stockholders and stay out of court. Cuts here and there will save X amount of money this quarter and we'll worry about side steping the consequences next quarter. The engineers, tool and die makes, the gunsmiths and machinists who still work there are probably made to feel lucky to have a job at all. Those are the guys that have x amount of time to produce a part or produce an assembly. The accountants and lawyers haven't a clue about the product - they just appease the stockholders.
As for those 3 model 700's I mentioned earlier, my experience with them and one in particular, may offer some proof to my earlier statement about external looks vs internal quality. The 3006 and the 7mm were nothing spectacular. The CDL has a pretty piece of wood fo a stock. My wife liked it in the store. It'll shoot just under a MOA in the best conditions. The 7mm was bought for the action and has since been reworked. More on this gun another time. The .223 VSSF II according to their advertising was supposed to be one of their top quality rifles. It was not.
It wouldn't hold 1 MOA at 100yds with Remington ammo out of the box. My reloads were only slightly better. The bolt and firing pin had fit issues. I debated with myself on whether or not to return it to the factory. I didn't. Instead, a local smith made repairs at a modest price. I didn't want to waste the time shipping it back and forth just to have them tell me nothing was wrong and replace the trigger because I adjusted it. Fixing the bolt got me to just under 1 MOA. Then, just for giggles, I had a Tubb Shooting Systems firelapping kit. Oh heck, it's not like I'm going to hurt it. I firelapped the barrel. That made the difference - sub 1/2 MOA. The target in my signature below is 6 rounds at 125 yards. The first round is high. then 4 more that I couldn't see in the black so I held on the left edge. I'm not a machinist and only a half fast home gunsmith. I had to do the kind of work that should have been done at the factory. The gun is stock except for the firing pin and spring were replaced with aftermarket and I put one of my Jewell triggers in. Do you think a 7 1/2 pound factory Xmark trigger is too much? It felt like it was full of sand too. In spite of all this, today, it is one of my favorite rifles to shoot.
Sorry for ranting and rambling but Remington needs to look in the mirror. I'll probably not buy their guns again. At least not new. But now I'll go into it knowing what to expect. Those older rifles and shotguns have their issues too but for the most part, that is on the outside. That 870 and the 760 are the smoothest pump actions I have. Age and lots of use may be a factor. That 1963 model 700 has never been to a gunsmith and has the smoothest bolt that locks up square. Those old guns just have lots of character now and they put the first shot on target every time.
If one want's to see how a gun company can turn around, just look at Savage. If someone on here on LRH works for Remington, take this back to your boardroom. They won't care until they learn about losing customers faster than they gain them. They're just looking to turn a profit that beats last quarter.