Remington Rolling Block 1897; Buy or not buy?

[berettaprofessor]

Local store has a Remington Rolling block 1897 in good condition overall with great rifling and good wood, better than the one pictured at the link below. The barrel is stamped 7mm, which I assume means 7X57 Mauser.

Question 1: Is the gun likely safe to fire with modern 7X57 Mauser ammo?
Question 2: Buy or not buy for $559?

Link for similar rifle: http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?i=UF11144112&uf=true

 

[Cosmoline]

If it's intact and not modified, that's a fair price for one in good condition.

Personally I would insist on a headspace check and only shoot mild cast bullet loads from it if hs checks out--no factory 7x57 of any manufacture. The rollers themselves are solid steel and tough to hurt, but the receiver walls are pretty thin and can bend or crack. It has happened with rolling blocks before.

 

[BCRider]

If you can confirm the chambering is something you can get ammo or reloading supplies for I'd say it's a great gun for anyone that likes single shot rifles.

I've seen enough 7mm ammo types listed that I would not jump to any assumptions.

 

[Dr T]

If it is an original Remington, the answer to Q.1 is likely to be NO!.

My answer to Q.2 would be another question: For that money, is it an original Remington, a refurbished original Remington, or a replica. I recall that about 40 some odd years ago, there were some replicas built overseas and marketed by Navy Arms. I have no idea of the markings. However, for what will fundamentally be a collector item, not a shooter, I would probe a bit further.

 

[berettaprofessor]

Thanks guys. I don't reload and I'm not buying because I can't see spending $550 for a wall decoration. It is an original Dr. T.

 

[Jim Watson]

If it was nicer than the one at GM, it was probably a good buy IF you know its limitations.
Either they changed the specs or Remington thought a single shot needed more free play than a bolt action, but 7mm Rolling Blocks will nearly always show excess chamber headspace by current specifications. It didn't seem to bother the using services at the time, but we are more careful now. You can work around that in reloading but it does require attention.

 

[Gaucho Gringo]

Where is this rolling block located? It is just what I have been looking for.