The Remington XP-100 is a bolt action pistol

Pistol

When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...

 produced by Remington Arms

Remington Arms

Remington Arms Company, Inc. was founded in 1816 by Eliphalet Remington in Ilion, New York, as E. Remington and Sons. It is the oldest company in the United States which still makes its original product, and is the oldest continuously operating manufacturer in North America. It is the only U.S....

 from 1963 to 1998. The XP-100 was one of the first handguns designed for long range shooting, and introduced the .221 Remington Fireball

.221 Remington Fireball

The .221 Remington Fireball was created by Remington Arms Company in 1963 for use in their single-shot bolt-action pistol called the XP-100. This was a special round designed for an experimental pistol, and has the highest velocity of any commercial pistol cartridge.-History:In the early 1960s...

 (often called .221 Fireball), which is still the fastest handgun cartridge ever produced by a major ammunition maker. The XP-100 was noted for its accuracy and is still competitive today in the sport of handgun

Handgun

A handgun is a firearm designed to be held and operated by one hand. This characteristic differentiates handguns as a general class of firearms from long guns such as rifles and shotguns ....

 varminting

Varminter

Varmint hunting is the practice of hunting vermin, generally small mammals targeted as a means of pest control, rather than for food. Varminter may refer to a varmint hunter, or describe hunting equipment either specifically designed for, or suitable for varmint hunting, such as a Varmint rifle...

, which it helped create.

Description

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

Carbine

A carbine , from French carabine, is a longarm similar to but shorter than a rifle or musket. Many carbines are shortened versions of full rifles, firing the same ammunition at a lower velocity due to a shorter barrel length....

, the Remington Model 40X, which influenced the later Remington Model 600

Remington Model 600

Remington Arms Model 600 was a push-feed bolt-action rifle produced by Remington Arms from 1964–1968. While it is commonly believed that production ended in 1967, according to Remington representatives records indicate that it actually ended in 1968...

 rifle. The XP-100 was initially introduced with a 10¾" barrel set into a nylon

Nylon

Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers known generically as polyamides, first produced on February 28, 1935, by Wallace Carothers at DuPont's research facility at the DuPont Experimental Station...

 stock with an unusual center-mounted grip. Chambered in .222 Remington

.222 Remington

The .222 Remington aka the Triple Deuce/Triple Two/Treble Two is a centerfire rifle cartridge introduced in 1950, and was the first commercial rimless .22 cartridge made in the United States...

 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 .221 Fireball, produced factory loaded velocities of over 825 m/s (2700 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 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 1991-1994 in .223 Rem., .250 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 14½", and the grip location, which was moved to the rear of the stock. The calibers changed; with the elimination of the original 10¾" 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 discontinued, it faced stiff competition from other bolt-action pistols such as the Savage Striker as well as the versatile Thompson Center Arms

Thompson Center Arms

Thompson/Center Arms Company is an American firearms company based in Rochester, New Hampshire. The company is best known for its line of interchangeable barrel single-shot pistols and rifles. Thompson Center manufactures muzzleloading rifles and is credited with creating the resurgence of their...

 break-action Contender.

Model production by year

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

Caliber production by year

• .221 Remington Fireball (1963–1985)
• 7 mm BR Remington (1980–1985)
• .223 Remington
  .223 Remington
  The .223 Remington is a sporting cartridge with almost the same external dimensions as the 5.56×45mm NATO military cartridge. The name is commonly pronounced either two-two-three or two-twenty-three. It is loaded with a diameter, jacketed bullet, with weights ranging from , though the most common...
  
   (1986–1994), (2005–Present in XR-100)
• .35 Remington
  .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 1908.-History:...
  
   (1986–1994)
• .250 Savage (1990–1991) Custom Shop only
• 6 mm BR Remington (1990–1991) Custom Shop only
• .22-250 Remington
  .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, though it finds occasional use on deer. This cartridge is also sometimes known as the 22 Varminter or the 22 Wotkyns Original Swift...
  
   (1992–1994) Custom Shop only, (2005–Present in XR-100)
• .308 Winchester
  .308 Winchester
  The .308 Winchester is a rifle cartridge and is the commercial cartridge upon which the military 7.62x51mm NATO centerfire cartridge is based. The .308 Winchester was introduced in 1952, two years prior to the NATO adoption of the 7.62x51mm NATO T65...
  
   (1992–1994) Custom Shop only
• 7 mm-08 Remington
  7 mm-08 Remington
  The 7mm-08 Remington is a rifle cartridge that is almost a direct copy of a wildcat cartridge developed around 1958 known as the 7mm/308. As these names would suggest, it is the .308 Winchester case necked down to accept 7 mm bullets with a small increase in case length...
  
   (1993–1994)
• .204 Ruger
  .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 highest velocity commercially produced ammunition, and the only cartridge produced commercially for bullets of .204 inch/5 mm caliber.-Characteristics:The...
  
   (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 shotgun

Shotgun

A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...

s), the .221 Fireball remains in production. The Model 700

Remington 700

The Model 700 series of firearms are bolt-action rifles manufactured by Remington Arms since 1962. All are based on the same centerfire bolt action. They often come with a 3, 4 or 5-round internal magazine depending on caliber, some of which have a floor-plate for quick-unloading, and some of which...

 rifle has been available since 2002 in a .221 Fireball chambering; while it lacks the velocity attainable with the vastly more popular .223 Remington

.223 Remington

The .223 Remington is a sporting cartridge with almost the same external dimensions as the 5.56×45mm NATO military cartridge. The name is commonly pronounced either two-two-three or two-twenty-three. It is loaded with a diameter, jacketed bullet, with weights ranging from , though the most common...

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

Factory recall

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