Nylon 66

The Nylon semiauto rifles (Nylon 66, 77, and Mohawk 10A) were a big deal when they were introduced, new technology making it possible to manufacture a rifle with a minimum of machined parts and labor. They were produced continuously for 30 years, a long life for any production item. The rights to produce the Nylon 66 and 77 were sold to a South American company who still produce the rifle. They were imported for a while but did not enjoy financial success, so my guess would be that after 30 years, the product was having a hard time being competitive with newer offerings.

I owned a Nylon 66 for about 25 years, got it used from a friend who got it so carboned up it took carburetor cleaner and solvent to free up the action. I really liked the light weight, but as with any lightweight rifle, accuracy can be an iffy proposition. My Nylon 66 never really shot all that well even off of a rest, but many people report excellent accuracy with them.
 
I've never understood the press given the Nylon 66. Just feels like a plastic gun and shoots no better than many other guns of the period...Winchester, Ruger, etc.

Saw three of them for sale at a Cabelas recently priced between $300 and $400...still wouldn't give you a dime for any of them. A Marlin 795 with a synthetic stock has the same plastic feel and shoots much better for $100.
 
Saw one yesterday at a gun store and they were asking well over $300, far more than it sold for new. :o It was definitely very light. Call me old fashioned, but I prefer the feel of real wood. Or if I wanted to go more modern, I'd get something with the latest poly stock technology.
 
I never understood the hype heaped on these rifles. They were first and foremost designed to be produced a cheaply as possible. The fact they work so well was a bonus.
 
They wore out the tooling/molds, so they gave up on them.

I was never fond of them, but they were reliable. That was something sort of rare in a $49 rifle.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?VISuperSize&item=370505605971

Remington fired one rifle 75,000 times without a malfunction.

Tom Frye, their exhibition shooter, used a few of them over a 13-day stretch to shoot thrown wooden blocks that measured 2.25" x 2.25". He hit 100,004 out of 100,010.

They subjected the Model 66 to the kinds of tests that Glock owners brag about half a century later - ice, mud, etc.

I was impressed, but kept shooting my Mountie.

John
 
My first .22, $67.50. Tens of thousand of rounds. Still going strong. Lightest weight production semi-auto .22 at the time. No, it is not for sale.
 
Tens of thousand of rounds. Still going strong. Lightest weight production semi-auto .22 at the time. No, it is not for sale.
Click to expand...
Yep, I have a Black stocked Apache, with Chrome Barrel. It has taught my kids, and grandkids how to shoot, so I'm going to keep it.
 
I think part of the appeal is nostalgia. I have one (Paid $185.00 for it).

They feel kind of flimsy to me, but I love the little bugger.
 
They are reasonably accurate for their intended purpose, very reliable as anyone who has owned one for very long can attest to, and don't really require much in the way of maintenance. I have a collection of these, and shoot several pretty often. I've never had an issue with feeding ammo, and rarely ever clean them except for a patch through the barrel and light oiling of the metal parts. They are extremely good guns to carry in a truck gun rack and pull out whenever you need a small caliber gun and need something that will work.

Yes prices are going up on these for guns in good condition. Remington sold all the tooling when it wore out and production here stopped so there aren't any more of them being made.
 
I had one of the earlier ones, made somewhere around 1960. In about 20 years of use, it had no malfunctions of any kind. The open sights worked quite well, but for some reason it shot about 2 feet low at 20 yards with a scope. When my aging eyes demanded a scope, I traded it for a Ruger 10/22. The Ruger was not as accurate with open sights, but it did better with a scope.
 
Cheap after market magazines

Shooters:
I have one of the nylon models with the detachable clip. Bought it at an auction about two years ago for $225. That was about the gun blue book price at the time. I had to do a thorough cleaning but there is a plastic rifle web site that had all the requisite information to break the thing down. The accuracy is so so. My main complaint is that the after market magazines are pure junk. I've owned two of the ten round mags and they both fell apart after only a handful of uses. Fortunately I still have the five shot mag that came with the gun. And I bought the thing purely for sentimental purposes. I used to lust after that gun via the advertisements if Boys Life.

Live well, be safe
Prof Young
 
I bought mine at Sears Roebuck (Two names back then) in the early 70's for $75.00. It still looks like new, complete with instructions and parts list, shoots better than a 10-22, and has never had a serious malfunction in over 40 years of shooting. All I have needed to do to it is replace a couple of springs about a year ago. I still shoot it often and is my favorite .22 rifle. It has no Serial number because back then it was still America and they weren't required. Someday my grandson will be the proud owner...


http://www.remington.com/products/archived/rimfire/autoloading/nylon-66.aspx

http://www.chuckhawks.com/rem_nylon_rifles.htm

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Approxima...ylon_66_with_a_serial_number_of_2309580_built
 
Never had one, but pics of Tom Frye on a pile of 100,004 wooden blocks (out of 100,010 two inch blocks thrown) impressed me...... gun can't be too bad....

Tom
 
A very small number of them where made for use in shooting galleries often found at county fairs 40+ years ago. These guns were made to shoot ONLY 22. shorts. If you find one of those,especialy in great shape, you better grab it. This small group could be worth as much as 3K. I've only seen one that looked a tomato stake. It sold for $900.

Shoes
 
I had one for a couple of years, which came as one of several 'shoebox' guns I've acquired over the years. You know; the basic disassembled gun and a bunch of parts in a shoebox or similar receptacle.

Damn fine little gun. Mine never jammed with anything I fed it, and I fed it the cheapest cut-rate ammo I could get. Once I got the receiver cover stabilized, it would shoot with anything on the place including a very accurate old target-sighted Mossberg .22 bolt action.

My old 66 went bye-bye in a divorce and I regret it to this day. The loss of the rifle, that is.
 
I always thought they looked well, not my style. I understand though today some people are collecting them. :rolleyes:
 
By far the most rugged, dependable 22 semi auto of their time. That's why so many ended up in Alaska. My 66 is one of the few modern 22's I've seen which has the bore worn out from shooting. An unknown number of bullets down the bore over 35 years but now(after replacing some springs) it's resigned to the barn to dispatch varmints. I got each of my kids a new Nylon 66 when they were born but made them quit using them when the value started escalating. Nylon 66 parts are getting hard to find.
At one point, I had some Nylon oddities(a couple of which are not even represented at the museum in Cody) but had to part with those during a financial crisis in the 80's.
 
I had one as a kid in the sixties. Loved it and was so fun to shoot. It was very accurate and I have no idea what ever became of that great rifle, damn!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top