IIRC, the 742's always had accuracy issues, inherited from the 740 - for which Williams Gun Sight Co used to make/sell an "accuracy" block, to install under the forend.
FWIW, I was the R.O. for my club, in the 70's, and when we held our annual Public Sighting-In Day, the only shooters that almost never achieved either a good zero or satisfactory groups (before they ran out of ammo) were the ones shooting those Remington autoloaders.
Many years later, I was given a new Model 7400 Satin in .30-06 that would shoot the lights out of a gnat's eye @ 100yds with 180gr factory fodder (only).
IDK if that 7400 was a fluke, or if Remington made some changes for the better with that evolution.
.