Opinions on Remington 740??

In my youth the 740 was my absolutely must have some day rifle. I had 2 uncles who owned them , both accomplished deer hunters who sported them (in 308), they were featured prominently in the Canadian Tire Catalogue which I'm sure I would look at once a week at least till the next catalogue came out (no Internet back then) .... My father had a savage 99 in 300 savage that I didn't covet a bit.

Today that 99 (that I shot my first deer with) has more Deer to it's name than any other rifle I own and someday I'm going to purchase a 760 in 300 Savage as well.

The Shine has left the 740/42 for my eyes, perhaps because I've heard all the jamamatic stories but personally I've seen a bundle of them over the years, in numbers that are right up there if not exceeding the guys I've seen toting 30-30 leavers and 303 enfields. I don't ever recall hearing actual jamamatic complaints.... but that sentiment seems strong on the internet. I don't dispute it, I've just never been in a camp with an owner who complained about it.
 
Most of the jamming 740/742 rifles (not many) were either not cared for properly or the magazine was defective. Like most negative publicity, one story gets repeated by a lot of people. A lot like Ross rifle horror stories, not many have first hand experiences but my brothers buddy's brother in law had one of them and it was junk!!
 
gmtinker said:
Forgive me if I have been the "stormcloud in the corner," I was only giving my experiences with that old 760. I kept it clean and it still jammed on me when I needed it the most, on 3 separate occasions. When you asked about the 740/742 I remember reading in my old service manual and comparing exploded diagrams that they had some similarities and parts in common. If most of the others who have posted have had good experiences with the 760/7600 series, then maybe I just got a bad one. If you can find a Remington pump or semi that the previous owner vouches works well, then all the best and happy hunting!
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A friend of mine complained his 760 misfed rounds until he took it to a gunsmith who found nothing wrong with it. He told him "When you work that pump handle, SLAM IT BACK AND FORTH, don't baby it, that's not how it is supposed to be used." Not saying that is why yours malfunctioned but worth noting if a guy is unfamiliar with 760 Remingtons.
 
Mike Webb said:
A friend of mine complained his 760 misfed rounds until he took it to a gunsmith who found nothing wrong with it. He told him "When you work that pump handle, SLAM IT BACK AND FORTH, don't baby it, that's not how it is supposed to be used." Not saying that is why yours malfunctioned but worth noting if a guy is unfamiliar with 760 Remingtons.
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A bit off topic here but I have a Model 141 pump in 30 Rem. that really likes being cycled like you mean it,quite often jams if you try to baby it.Onto the 740/742 Remington,the only guy I knew of who used a 742 for hunting had a lot of problems with his rifle and he never could figure it out.This fella was raised on Remington autoloaders,albeit Models 8 and 81, and finally gave up on the rifle when it consistently jammed up at the most inopportune and unpredictable times.Granted,up until the time he gave up on it that rifle it had accounted for a lot of game in the freezer but he considered it unreliable at the end.Obviously others have had different experiences but since the OP was looking for opinions I thought I would pass this one along.
 
I had one briefly about 20 years ago in 30.06 - seemed OK test firing at the range. Then it jammed first time up on a deer. I felt like wrapping it around a tree. I traded it in on a BAR .308 - no problems since. My son had a 740 30.06 & he swore by it - never jammed on him, until it jammed on him. It was soon history too.
 
two-dogs said:
thanks for that tip SC, I shall keep my eyes open for a good spare mag.
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I once had a mag that was toast, so for experiment sake had some TIG weld added to the worn areas and filed it to fit. Worked great. Mag was getting tossed anyways, so no loss either way.
 
One of my early hunting rifles was a 740 Remington in 30-06. I had already heard some horror stories, so I really did a good cleanup on it as soon as I got it.

I never used oil in it [Graphite only] and I was careful to avoid "dirty" ammo.....only shiny, new factory ammo.

I shot a potful of game with it, and had exactly zero problems with it, but sold it as soon as I started reloading, replacing it with a brand-new model at the time, the 700 Remington.

Regards, Dave.
 
The auto loaders can be ignorant if neglected or well worn. When they do work, they work very well. As mentioned earlier I would go with a 760 or 7600 and don't baby them. I have a few and never have a problem with them. With the exception of the odd worn mag (easy fix).
 
I've got quite a bit of experience with the 740/742 series of Remington autoloaders. I also have quite a few that were broken down for parts due to chewed up receivers.
I get at least one person every fall telling me that their bolt is jammed either open or closed.
Most of the issues, in my experience, were with the 30-06 length cartridge based rifles. Most of the intermediates don't seem to have the same failure rate.
 
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