Remington 742 Opinions Please

[FPrice]

My local dealer has a very nice Remington model 742 rifle in .308 on his rack. It's clean and comes with a Weaver Challenger (?) 4X scope with a superb view.

I have been looking for a .308 and am wondering if this would be a good acquisition. Does anyone have any comments on this rifle. Is it as accurate as a good bolt action rifle?

Thanks.

 

[James K]

The 742 is a good woods deer rifle where semi-autos are legal for hunting. They are reliable but in general not as accurate as a good bolt action. There are exceptions, and I have seen a couple that shot MOA, but 3 inch groups at 100 yds would be more normal.

There were several variations and grades; all were discontinued in 1980 if not before, on introduction of the 7400.

They are a good hunting rifle, but not, IMHO, a "poor man's M14", as they are not designed or intended to be an "assault rifle" or anything like it.

Top price runs around $325-350, with one in average good condition (80%-90%) bringing around $250. That, of course, is without the scope, which adds maybe $50.

HTH

Jim

 

[Art Eatman]

Dittos on Jim's comments. I have a 742K (short-barrelled version) in .30-'06 with a K4. It shoots around 1-1/2" at 100 yards. It has never given any trouble; I'm quite pleased with it.

I'd quibble that $325-$350 is a wee tad on the high side, but not a lot. I got mine in NRA 98% for $300. Some pricing varies with region and demand...

Art

 

[Jay Baker]

I have a Rem. 742 in .308 Win., which I bought in 1971. Weaver 1 1/2 x 5 scope. I get 1 1/4" groups on my good days with both my 180 gr Nosler handloads, and 150 gr. Rem. PSP CoreLoks.

I've killed several muleys with it, and will take it to elk camp as a back up this Oct.

I've never had any problem with mine. FWIW. J.B.

 

[JAMES L.SMITH]

Good SINGLE SHOT RIFLES!

 

[Raider]

I mounted a Leupold 3x9 on my 742 (243 cal) for my wife's use. We get 1" - 1 1/4" groups at 100 yards. The rifle is very reliable.

There's only 2 things I don't like about the rifle. One is the 4 shot magazine. Its a b***h to put in and take out. Fixed that with a Millett 10 round mag (legal in Texas) and only load 5 rounds in it. The other thing is that you have to clean it from the muzzle. If you want to clean it from the breech, you have to remove - thats right, remove - the barrel along with the gas piston etc. A copy of Remington's 742 instruction booklet tells you how.

Note that the 742's older brother, the model 740, doesn't have a dismountable barrel so its a muzzle cleaner only.

All in all, we like the 742 and have learned to live with its little faults.

 

[Bottom Gun]

I've had my 742 Carbine in 30/06 for over 20 years. It's a great little woods rifle. It's quick, points well, and shoots about 1.5 MOA. Never had a problem with this one.
It's going elk hunting as my backup rifle this year.

 

[FPrice]

Guys!

Thanks for all of the info. From what I can tell, this rifle appears to be the carbine model (looks like a 20-22" barrel?). It is in immaculate condition, looks almost new with great blueing on the barrel. I will have to think seriously about this rifle.

Thanks for the help.

 

[WiFAL]

My brother in law has one chambered in 30-06. He's had failure to feed problems with it for years. BUT, he insists on using round nosed ammunition. I keep telling him to use pointed bullets but he won't. He also won't spend the money on a new magazine.

Can you test fire the rifle first? It doesn't cost that much to buy a box or two of ammo just to try it out and have some piece of mind up front.

 

[FPrice]

WiFAL

I am sure that Joe would let me borrow the rifle to try it out. I've dropped SEVERAL thousands of dollars at his store over the years, plus provided him with many fine firearms to sell.

The only problem is that I was salivating over a nice S&W M12 that just came in. I am a sucker for older Smiths. I may have to plan this out carefully.

 

[WiFAL]

FPrice

The best rifle deal I ever got was sealed with half a dozen shots at the dealer's indoor range.

I walked into a local gun store looking for Pyrodex for my new muzzle loader. On the consignment rack was a spotless, one year old Reminton Model 7 with Leupold rings and base and a Weaver V series scope. The rifle had a trigger job, crowned barrel, bedded action and jeweled bolt all for less than the rifle cost new.

I figured something had to be wrong with it for that price but I asked to shoot it anyway. Fortunately the store had an indoor rifle range. The rifle shot like a dream and held a nice tight group. I offered him $50 less than the asking price and he took it.