Xbolt max

I'm pretty stubborn, so if there is a bullet I want to shoot, I will spend (or waste) a lot of time and resources doing everything I can to make it work. If you're confident the 175 won't shoot in your rifle and aren't set on making that bullet work, may as well cut your losses. I have great luck with the 150 and 168 ABLR (and VLD) in 7-08 and 7WSM. Worth trying unless you have other bullets on the shelf to try already. Plenty of great 7mm hunting bullets for a 7 mag though and the options are endless.
The factory barrels, are they just a hit or a miss? It depends on who made the barrel or who made the rifle. Thirty years of reloading, I have had some really good barrels, some bad. The group size around 1.5" the bad barrel. The good barrels under an inch but all good enough to hunt with where most shots under 100 yards. Barnes Bullets all shooting under an inch group. My oldest rifle is Weatherby MK 5 in 300 Weatherby Magnum 3/4" inch, group or less.
 
Chiming in from Utah... right down the road from Browning HQ. I am a lifelong Browning owner and collector. (Member of the Browning Collectors Association). I have Browning BBR, BAR, and A-bolts. I have killed more deer and elk with my Browning A-bolt II 30.06 with a Nikon Monarch scope than any other rifle I own. With that being said.... I bought a Browning A-bolt II Long Range Hunter in 300 WM. 26" barrel, 1:10 twist. I put a Leupold VX-6 HD scope on it. I fought that miserable bugger for 2 years and it would not group very well. I took it into Browning and had them look at it. It was suggested to glass bed it and install pillars. $400 later it still did not shoot any better. I hired a local gun company that builds custom long range rifles and does custom ammo loads that guaranteed they could make it shoot. 4 months later they returned my rifle and didn't charge me because they couldn't get it to shoot. Their opinion, as was mine, it would shoot ok but would never produce tight groups. I sold the A-bolt and immediately bought an X-bolt Long Range Hunter in 300 WM. 26" barrel 1:8 twist. Put another Leupold VX-6 scope on it. It didn't shoot any better than the A-bolt did! I load my own ammo. I can't tell you the loads I have spent on the bench. I have tried numerous powders, numerous brands and weights of bullets, different primers, and played with searing depth. I have bought new Norma brass and new Hornady brass. I have reloaded Winchester, Remington and Federal brass. Nothing makes a real difference. I finally threw my hands in the air and yelled UNCLE and sold the X-bolt. 3 years down the tube and uncountable hours. I have never fought with rifles and load development as much as those 2 rifles. As a side note... others in my family are as Browning loyal as I am. We bought 5 of the X-bolt long range rifles and 1 one Hell's Canyon. 4 of us have now given up and sold the rifles.
I also own a Remington Sendero in 300 WM. 26" barrel 1:10 twist. It is an absolute shooter. I can consistently shoot .30 groups with it. I have an old Leupold VX-III Long Range scope on it. Absolutely no trouble reloading accurate ammo for that rifle.
What I learned in the past three years with the Browning.... Browning rifles do not like heavy bullets! Best groups in both rifles came from lighter bullets. 168 GR. worked well.
Browning's shoot best with a tangent ojive bullet. It's just how they chamber the barrel. So the hornady eld x or the nosler bullets would more than likely be your best bet.
All the Browning's I've done load development for love the Hornady.
I have absolutely given up on Browning for long range rifles. I have shot several other factory long range rifles that will put shoot and outperform the Browning rifles.

Browning's don't like heavy bullets? That's a pretty blanket statement. His gun an 8 twist barrel, it's built for heavy bullets. Hell, my 9 twist xbolt 28 Nosler loves the 180 Berger, 180 eld match, and the 195 Berger.
if you're xbolt is all factory original 7 mm Remington mag it only comes with a 9 1/2 ,twist that is why it doesn't like your big bullets try 160 class bullets or rebarrel it
All 2018 and newer xbolt LR rifles have fast twist barrels.
 
Just prior to 800 yd shot on good bull with Hell Canyon. I've loaded for 6 different HCs without issue in 28 Nos, 300 wsm, and 6.5 CM. All with a little work hover between 1/2 and 3/4 MOA just have to mess with load development like any. Second pic end state...2 cents
 

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Assuming proper bedding job and assembly has been done. BIf the barrel copper fouls badly you may need to clean to the steel and break in the barrel. If the rifle fouls badly a good solution is Tubbs Final Finish lapping bullets, about a fourth to half the suggested number of bullets in the instructions. Every rifle I've owned that was not shooting sub MOA gets the treatment and all shot better and copper fouling was greatly reduced. Also before doing anything check the crown first with a magnifying glass to look for any problems. Some people don't like to fire lap rifles as it moves the throat forward. I think it polishes the throat. Dont over do it. You can burn out a magnum barrel testing loads too.
 
I don't mean to laugh, because it's not funny at all. But I've yet to see or hear of one of these shooting worth a hoot. I had one in .300 mag. "Iron worker" on here had one as well. I spent over $600 on components trying every combo I had access to. 4 or 5 different bullets close to 10 different powders. Browning accepts 1.5 MOA from this model and they were on about a 3-4 month turn around to "look" at it. But they made it clear to me that if they were able to get a 1.5 moa group out of it, it was within their specs. I ended up having mine rebarreled ($900) and it shot better. BUT I will say that the stock may seem like a neat one, but it IMO is in fact junk also. If it NOT stiff enough for bipod work. Even with the mcarbo spring installed, if you watch closely (hard to explain, without sounding like my form is garbage) you can actually see the stock flexing enough to make the cross hairs slowly drift down on the target... this may not be the case on I'll of them, but it was on mine. The Max LR was about a $2700 mistake I wish I would have never made. But, I'm glad it happened , makes me never buy another rifle that I cant work on myself. This is just how I feel about the rifles. I know some people love them, but I HATE them. I'll NEVER buy another browning again.


Hopefully you can get yours straightened out.
A lemon like that in any brand will make one an unbeliever. I have a Silver Stalker X-Bolt in 7mm-08. With a new trigger spring and bullet weight range of 139gr to 159gr, it shoots great.
 
I'd try a more forgiving bullet before I tried anything else. Try some Sierra gamekings or prohunters to see if the rifle will shoot at all. No point shooting up a ton of premium bullets in a rifle that may or may not shoot in the 1st place. If that doesn't work then you have gremlins.
 
I would spend the money for a Timney if you dont like the trigger. I put a Mcarbo mine too and it helped but not nearly enough. A Timney makes it a pleasure.
Mines a HCLR bought 2019. Also the Xbolt hunter I have didnt need any help other than adjustment.
Both my Xbolts are shooters! Like with any given combo I can get Moa or close, much better with ones it likes. Now whether it's the speed I want is another story lol.
Even with the crappy stock trigger the hell's canyon LR shot lil bitty groups I just had to work harder.
I'd try a different bullet before even considering it's the gun. The ablr is known to be finicky.
 
I'm having a hard time getting my xbolt to shoot very good. Can't seem to get anything I've tried to shoot under an inch. What are some tips you fellas can give me, any advice is helpful! Powders, bullets, primers, reloading techniques. It all helps. View attachment 185145
In my experience if you try multiple loads , powders, bullet types and weight bullets and the gun is that difficult it's time to sell it or have it fixed. I have traveled down the same road and had my eyes opened when I sent a Browning A bolt to Hill Country rifles and had a Benchmark barrel put on , along with their truing of the action and bedding. It is a 7-08 AI. When fire forming brass I used the least accurate bullets I had to burn them up. Now matter what I fed through it it would not group over 1' and usually around or under 1/2"
Today I took my recently received from them Browning A bolt formerly a 270 converted to a 280 AI. I tried to get it to shoot Swift A frames and it was not liking them very much. I got it down to 1/2" but the load was too hot and less power loads did not do well at all.
I loaded Federal Trophy Bonded tipped and without any messing around with different powders, loads, seating depths 0.155" at 100 yds and 1" at 300 yds.
So the moral of the story is some work on that rifle will give you what you want . Or, as I did for decades, struggle with a rifle that won't shoot
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Below is a 3 shot group 300 WSM 180 grain factory Federal Premium Trophy Bonded tip bullet on a steel plate. 300 yards. Also a Browning A bolt (love Browning actions) sent to Hill Country Rifles for a Benchmark barrel and in this case McMillon stock as well.
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If you want to give the Federal trophy Bonded Tip bullets a try they might be your salvation. If they won't work move on.
Hope this helps
 
Well apparently Browning ain't what it used to be.
Back in the early 90's I had a 7mm-08 Medallion.
A very nice rifle and a great shooter. Easily a 1" shooter at the time. That rifle got me hooked on browning & the 7mm-08.
I purchased 2 other Browning A-Bolts. In 1998, an A-Bolt in .270win and in 2002 another 7/08
Never could get either one of them to shoot better that 2.5" Sold them both.
The last time I took the 7/08 to the range, I just by chance...set it up on the range bag, got my parallax set, had everything perfectly set-up and dry fired.....WOW!
Just then I thought I found the problem....the cross hairs wiggled... Sweet...so, I buy a new Leupold 4.5x14x40A.O. remount an went back to the range the following week and went through my set-up process. Crosshairs where solid..Looking good so far! I bolt one in and fire, then fire 4 more and just like MAGIC I had a 4" group!!! Needless to say, after MUCH swearing-I was SOOOO FRIED from this whole experience, i vowed never another Browning.
Sorry for the long winded story.......Check your crosshairs.
 
Browning's don't like heavy bullets? That's a pretty blanket statement. His gun an 8 twist barrel, it's built for heavy bullets. Hell, my 9 twist xbolt 28 Nosler loves the 180 Berger, 180 eld match, and the 195 Berger.

All 2018 and newer xbolt LR rifles have fast twist barrels.

Then Browning needs to update their website on the Browning XBolt Longrange Max 7mm Rem Mag, because, like John 264 said, when I checked just two MINUTES ago, Browning lists in that rifle's specifications that the XBolt Longrange Max 7mm Rem Mag has a 1 in 9-1/2" twist rate...
 
I am the fan of 'bullet jump' I want my bullets to have that running start. There is something wrong with the bullet setting still at the lands when everything behind it is getting very serious. I want my bullet past the rifling before it has trouble getting started.

F. Guffey
 
Slightly different xbolt rifle but similar challenges.
Hells Canyon Speed 300wsm With factory brake.
tried various factory rounds, couldnt get much better than 1.5 moa.
did load development and seating depth process with barnes 175 lrx, vld 175s, eldx178s.....groups got better but not where i wanted.
tried h4350, and then changed to H4831sc.
tried 190 lrabs and decent but still not great. Then went to 200eldx, and i upped my reloading game with a better scale with .001grain accuracy, brass sorting, annealing, neck turning, headspace measurement, etc.

also had trigger trouble. The browning trigger wouldnt adjust below 4.25 lbs,even with the set screw completely removed. so i got the Mcarbo spring...ok at first, and then it was inconsistent...sometimes 2.5 lbs, then 3, then 3.5, then back to 2.5.
the browning trigger assembly actually looked slightly mis-aligned inside the assembly.
so i went to a Timney trigger, now 2.5lbs all day long. its a hunting rifle.
groups got More consistent.
also added a Spartan Javelin Lite bipod, groups got better again instead of the Caldwell rest.
with the 20moa rail under the Leopold Mark5 HD, i realized i needed a cheek riser, so added a Kydex adjustable riser.
finally i started focussing on technique, holding the rifle like a baby bird, firm but not tight, letting it recoil, finger placement on trigger, finger placement and pressure on pistol grip, thumb placement along right side under the bolt handle,
and now shooting .962 inch 3 shot groups at 300 yards. its been a process.
..a fun learning process, but also frustrating at times.
just gotta stay focussed on removing all possible variables.
next step is to stretch out the distance to 1000yds, but im on hold for now with the self isolation requirements here, gun ranges are closed.

total contrast to my son's Tikka T3 300wm , which shoots 1/2 moa with pretty much anything i load for it. Still went thru the basic steps of load and seating depth development, but finding a satisfactory solution was much quicker.
 
I'm having a hard time getting my xbolt to shoot very good. Can't seem to get anything I've tried to shoot under an inch. What are some tips you fellas can give me, any advice is helpful! Powders, bullets, primers, reloading techniques. It all helps. View attachment 185145
Retumbo is seems to be a match made in heaven for the 7mm rm. 180eld with out any hesitation if your twist is indeed 9 or less. I've had excellent results with 180 elds in three different rifles. .007 from lands, .047 from lands & .060 from lands were some of my sweet spots. I'm jumping a 180 eld a long way in one rifle. I really don't even know how far it's jumping, it shot good and I didn't mess with it. You should find an accurate node somewhere between 2800-2900 fps. I Know you said 8 twist but you might want to check it because I have found more than one xbolt with different twist that advertised. 162 eldm is also a great shooting bullet. Nothing wrong with the berger hybrids either.
I've had three xbolts. And one left I'm keeping for sentiment.
 
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