Remington 7400/742

[bcd007]

Hey guys, looking for some info from local Indy shooters/hunters. I became the owner of a Remington 7400 and an older 742, both in .30-06, and both with older Redfield scopes mounted on them. They belonged to my father, when he passed away I inherited them. Question is, would it be worth posting either of these for sale? I would love to see them go to someone that would appreciate and use them, I don't like the thought of them just sitting in my safe. With the caliber restrictions on hunting we have, they aren't much good in Indy for anything other than making holes in paper. They each have a 5-round mag and a 10 round mag. If you guys think they would be worth putting up for sale, I'll try them out here on INGO.

Thanks for any info or help,

 

[Tactically Fat]

They're now Indiana deer legal (on private property).

They just may sell.

My wife's Grandpa has an older 742. They're neat little rifles that pack a big punch!

 

[mom45]

I was just in the process of looking up dates on when hubby's rifles/shotguns were made to determine how old some of them are. The 742 is next on my list! He picked one up in 30-06 at a gun show a couple of years ago and paid about $400 for it. It's a nice rifle. His is a Woodsmaster.

 

[fullauto 45]

I love my Remington 740 and 742. In fact, one of my favorite iron sight rifles. I have had at least 6 of the guns in the last few years. My favorite is a 740 made in 1955. The 740, 742, 7400 and 750 are all the same gun over different generations. Change the wood and call it a different model. As far a value, eh. They usually sell for around $400. I see people asking more, sometimes a lot more, but they sell in that $400 range. I have killed many, many deer with my 740 over the years.

 

[Tactically Fat]

I love my Remington 740 and 742. In fact, one of my favorite iron sight rifles. I have had at least 6 of the guns in the last few years. My favorite is a 740 made in 1955. The 740, 742, 7400 and 750 are all the same gun over different generations. Change the wood and call it a different model. As far a value, eh. They usually sell for around $400. I see people asking more, sometimes a lot more, but they sell in that $400 range. I have killed many, many deer with my 740 over the years.

They've been trading at/around $400 for a decade or so, too.

When I was "in charge" of cleaning up my wife's grandpa's rifle, I learned that they MAY be somewhat difficult to break down, clean, and reassemble. To that, I have no idea. I DO know that, for whatever reason, I'm not a huge fan of ".30 caliber rifles" from a recoil standpoint. But the gas-operated 742 wasn't bad at all. Not the lightest "field gun" out there, but certainly not the heaviest.

 

[Hookeye]

The 740 and 742's in .30-06 often exhibit "bolt rail chew".
180gr and heavier bullets reportedly the culprits.
The small lugs dig into the receiver rail and eventually start hanging up.
There is no fix.
The design was changed to stop this, and it's called the 7400. The bolt lugs are bigger. Lesser in number too. Dunno if other changes were done to stop overtravel/rotation.
Many folks had rusty chambers too (lack of maintenance).
Have owned 3 Remington 742's One was minty, the other two had slight rail chew.
They all ran fine.
However, the minty one put hot barrels shots 7 or 8 inches lower than first cold bore shot. The gun was scoped.......so the problem most likely like that of the Ruger mini 14 ...........barrel warp.
The 742's did have two versions, regular and BDL (maybe the reg called ADL....dunno). The BDL's had squared forends, and basketweave checkering. Also there's a scallop at the rear of the receiver on top.
All 740, 742, 7400 and 750 are woodsmasters.
There was a 7400 version glammed up, called the "Model Four".

 

[Hookeye]

Some shops refuse to take 742's on trade.
There are a lot of them chewed up.
Quite a few folks in the day sent their rigs to Ahlmans for conversion to pump.

Remington 742 Tech Info

 

[bcd007]

Awesome information on these guns! Thanks guys, I really appreciate it.