The Remington XP-100 (from eXperimental Pistol number 100) is a

bolt-action Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are right-handed). Most bolt-action ...

pistol produced by Remington Arms from 1963 to 1998. The XP-100 was one of the first handguns designed for long-range shooting, and introduced the

.221 Fireball The .221 Remington Fireball, often simply referred to as .221 Fireball, is a centerfire cartridge created by Remington Arms Company in 1963 as a special round for use in their experimental single-shot bolt-action pistol, the XP-100. A shortene ...

and 6×45mm. The XP-100 was noted for its accuracy and is still viewed as competitive today in the sport of handgun varminting, which it helped create, as well as in metallic silhouette shooting.

Overview

The XP-100 was based on Remington's short action bolt action

carbine A carbine ( or ) is a long gun that has a barrel shortened from its original length. Most modern carbines are rifles that are compact versions of a longer rifle or are rifles chambered for less powerful cartridges. The smaller size and lighte ...

, the Remington Model 40X, which influenced the later Remington Model 600 rifle. The XP-100 was initially introduced with a barrel set into a

nylon Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers composed of polyamides ( repeating units linked by amide links).The polyamides may be aliphatic or semi-aromatic. Nylon is a silk-like thermoplastic, generally made from pe ...

stock with an unusual center-mounted grip. Chambered in

.222 Remington The .222 Remington or 5.7×43mm (C.I.P), also known as the triple deuce, triple two, and treble two, is a centerfire rifle cartridge. Introduced in 1950, it was the first commercial rimless .22 (5.56 mm) cartridge made in the United Stat ...

in early prototypes, the short barrel produced significant noise and muzzle flash. Subsequently the case was shortened to reduce powder capacity to a volume more suited to the shorter barrel of a pistol. The resulting cartridge, the

, produced factory loaded velocities of over 825 m/s (2,700 ft/s) from the short barrel, and accuracy rivaling the parent .222 Remington, one of the most accurate cartridges made. All but the XP-100R model were

single-shot Single-shot firearms are firearms that hold only a single round of ammunition, and must be reloaded manually after every shot. The history of firearms began with single-shot designs, then multi-barreled designs appeared, and eventually many cent ...

designs, while the XP-100R had a small internal magazine (holding four rounds), similar to most bolt-action rifles. The R model - for "repeater" - was made 1991-1997 in .223 Rem.,

.250 Savage The .250-3000 Savage (also known as the .250 Savage) is a rifle cartridge created by Charles Newton in 1915. It was designed to be used in the Savage Model 99 hammerless lever action rifle. The name comes from its original manufacturer, Savage ...

, 7mm-08 Rem., .308 Win., .35 Rem., and 350 Rem. Mag. It was reintroduced in 1998, this time without sights, in .223 Rem., .22-250 Rem., .260 Rem., and .35 Rem.

Model history

The XP-100 went through a number of changes during its production run, and many variations were only available through the Remington Custom shop. The most significant changes in the later versions were to barrel length, which went to , and the grip location, which was moved to the rear of the stock. Stocks with a rear grip uses standard Remington 700 triggers, while stocks with a center grip need a special trigger linkage system with a long transfer bar. The calibers changed; with the elimination of the original barrel, the reduced powder capacity was no longer such a requirement, and the chamberings switched to standard commercial rifle cartridges. By the time the XP-100 was canceled, it faced stiff competition from other bolt-action pistols such as the

Savage Striker The Savage Striker was a bolt action pistol produced from 1999 to 2005 by Savage Arms for metallic silhouette shooting and hunting. The pistol was based on the action of the Savage Model 110 and was sold with a composite stock, originally with a c ...

as well as the versatile

Thompson Center Arms Thompson/Center Arms was an American firearms company based in Springfield, Massachusetts. The company was best known for its line of interchangeable-barrel, single-shot pistols and rifles. Thompson/Center also manufactures muzzle-loading rifl ...

break-action Contender.

Model production by year

*XP-100 (1963–1985) *XP-100 Varmint Special (1986–1992) *XP-100 Silhouette (1980–1997) *XP-100 Hunter (1993–1994) *XP-100 Custom (1986–1997) *XP-100R (1998) *XR-100 (2005–Present)

Caliber production by year

*.221 Remington Fireball (1963–1985) *7 mm BR Remington (1980–1985) *

.223 Remington The .223 Remington (designated as the 223 Remington by the SAAMI and 223 Rem by the CIP) is a rimless, bottlenecked rifle cartridge. It was developed in 1957 by Remington Arms and Fairchild Industries for the U.S. Continental Army Command ...

(1986–1997), (2005–Present in XR-100) *

.35 Remington The .35 Remington is the only remaining cartridge from Remington's lineup of medium-power rimless cartridges still in commercial production. Introduced in 1906, it was originally chambered for the Remington Model 8 semi-automatic rifle in 1 ...

(1986–1997) * 350 Rem. Mag (1991-1997) *.250 Savage (1990–1992) Custom Shop only *

6 mm BR Remington 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second smalles ...

(1990–1992) Custom Shop only *

.22-250 Remington The .22-250 Remington is a very high-velocity, short action, .22 caliber rifle cartridge primarily used for varmint hunting and small game hunting. It is capable of reaching over 4000 feet per second. It does find occasional use by women and youn ...

(1992–1994) Custom Shop only, (2005–Present in XR-100) *

.308 Winchester The .308 Winchester is a smokeless powder rimless bottlenecked rifle cartridge widely used for hunting, target shooting, police, military, and personal protection applications globally. It is similar but not identical to the 7.62×51mm NATO ...

(1992–1994) Custom Shop only * 7 mm-08 Remington (1993–1994) *

.204 Ruger The .204 Ruger is a centerfire rifle cartridge developed by Hornady and Ruger. At the time of its introduction in 2004, the .204 Ruger was the second-highest velocity commercially produced ammunition and the only centerfire cartridge produc ...

(2005–Present in XR-100)

Current production

The XP-100 action was used as the basis for a new single-shot rifle from Remington called the XR-100 Rangemaster. While the XP-100 has disappeared from Remington's lineup (Remington is primarily a maker of rifles and shotguns), the .221 Fireball remains in production. The Model 700 rifle has been available since 2002 in a .221 Fireball chambering; while it lacks the velocity attainable with the vastly more popular

, the short .221 Fireball delivers most of the performance with far less noise and flash.

Factory recall

In 1979, XP-100 pistols and Remington Model 600 rifles were recalled because of a safety issue. The bolt was fully locked when the safety was on, making it impossible to unload the gun with the safety on. Remington made a free modification available that allowed the bolt to open while the gun was on safe, allowing it to be unloaded while the gun was still on safe.

References

External links

User Manual

The American Handgunner, Jan/Feb 1979 Coverage

The American Handgunner, July/Aug 1982 Coverage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Remington Xp-100 Single-shot pistols .35 Remington firearms Remington Arms firearms Bullpup firearms