Remington 742?

D

Dave T

New member
In a local gunshop today I spotted a used Remington 742 in 308 Win. For some reason this struck me as a light, handy, slim and balanced rifle. Not a bench rest tackdriver and not a military combat rifle, just a handy long arm in a good, standard caliber.

Anyone got any long term experience with these or their kin - 740 or 74???
 
jam-o-matic

I had a Rem742 in 30-06, and sold it after one deer season. Most of the group I hunt with has 742's or 7400's and it is a love hate relationship. I have never seen a gun that is more fussy then 742-7400's. a little dirty it jams, not enough lube it jams, to much lube it jams, to cold it jams, ect, ect,. I would never own another one.
 
I've had a Rem. 742 in .308 W., since about 1971. I've never had the problems DOG1 spoke of. I have used it in various weather conditions, and have not been too meticulous in cleaning it, and it has done the job when I called on it. I use a very light lube on the moving parts.

Shoots 180 gr. Rem. PSP factory ammo to 1 1/4" @ 100 yards. I have an older Weaver V4.5 scope, which suits the rifle just fine.

I've also run a bunch of older mil surplus ammo through it, and never had a jam. Had some dud rounds, but that was the fault of the ammo, not the rifle.

The only jam I've had was with one of the old Cloyer eight round magazines. Never had a jam with the Rem. factory magazines.

I like the rifle just fine. FWIW. J.B.
 
I agree the rem autos are a handy configuration. Rem 7400 carbine in 30-'06 is my primary whitetail rifle. 1 1/2" 100 yard 5 shot groups (rfile on rest) are normal. They are a little fussy about chamber cleanliness. If you keep it clean, don't expect it to outshoot your bolt rifles, and use moderate velocity ammo, it should serve you well.
 
I have a 742K in '06; zero problems and reasonable accuracy.

I think it's fair to say there seem to be more "lemons" in this series than in others. However, I'd never worry enough about that to avoid buying one if the price is good.

They seem to be offered at asking prices of $275 to $300, bare, or with a cheap scope on top.

FWIW, Art
 
7400 Remington

I have a 7400 in 35 Whelen. Thing I like is that I have nearly the whack of a 338 but the recoil is very light, maybe in the range of a 20 gauge with light field loads. More of a push than typical recoil.

Someday I hope to take an elk with it. Never got the chance to use it in nasty conditions. Shoots about 1 1/2 with 250 Reminton factory soft points. I'm not a big guy and I could shoot 100 rounds straight no problem.
 
I don't own one, but I've seen a bunch. Mostly they work well, but I have to agree with Art Eatman that Remington has produced an awful lot of lemons in this series. Based on what I've seen, the defective ones probably number in the double digits, percentage-wise.

There are enough jam-a-matics in this series that I flatly wouldn't buy a used one without shooting a couple of boxes of ammo through it first.

I wonder if it's a Monday morning/Friday afternoon kind of thing . . .
 
I have owned 3 in 30-06. None of them gave me any problems. Accuracy is not the 742's strong suit, but the the ones I owned all gave acceptable hunting accuracy. I have found that these rifles are more picky about bullet weight than my bolt guns are when it comes to group size. The first 742 I owned was almost a tack driver with 165 grain bullets. Unfortunately, it was stolen. :(

David
 
742s

I recently read where Remington will no longer work on these guns which is definitely something to consider.
 
742

Correct. Remington will not work on the 742.
Correct. This gun has more lemons than any other I've experienced.

The 7400 is a much better weapon. If you want any gun of that series, this is the one to get. The BAR is, IMHO, a better buy. I've owned one 742 in my time and it was a lemon. Shot it four times and the fifth round didn't extract. When I went to extract it, the bolt was so difficult to move I hurt my fingers pulling it back.

The flaw of the 742 was in the locking lugs which were prone to wear out quickly. The 7400 corrected this by having larger lugs.
 
Got a .30-06 7400 in this last weekend that absolutely refuses to feed, or go into battery when chambering a round. I stripped it down to the barest parts, removed the barrel, cleaned EVERYTHING, to the point of using Q-tips inside the barrel extension's locking lug recesses, lightly lubed it, and it still refuses to chamber ammo completely. I have to physically work the bolt several times to get it to go into battery with either factory .30-06 or even my loads I make for my tight-chambered Browning BAR. No problem when closing the bolt on an empty chamber, though. I can't see any burrs in the chamber, and the bolt will close on a round after a bunch of manipulation, without really forcing it in there. I'll try a new magazine next, but then I'm telling the owner he needs to send it to Remington, or sell it and buy a BAR.
 
I have a 742 carbine in 30/06. In the 22 years I've owned it, I've fired it a lot with lots of different loads and bullet weights and not had a single malfunction or problem. The accuracy is good and it's one of my favorite rifles.
I wasn't aware that others had so many problems with them. Personally, I wouldn't hesitate to buy another.
 
I have a Rem 742 in 30.06, this was my father deer hunting rifle for as long as I can remember. He gave it to me a couple of years ago and I can get 1" to 1 1/2" groups at 100 yards. I have never had any of the problems the others have stated. I think it is a great rifle.
 
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