Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing bought a decent condition Remington 742 Woodmaster

in .30-06. I think it is the carbine model. The metal is in pretty good shape and the wood is decent, actually very good for the age. I inquired about the function of the gun, knowing they are prone to jamming and cycling issues when dirty. The seller told me that the magazine was worn out, that it didnt lift the next round up enough to be picked up and cycled.

Not sure if that is a real thing? Is it more likely that the gun is just dirty and not cycling or should I try and find a different magazine and give it a run? I have not fired this gun yet.

Had one as a kid and couldn't get a group inside a six inch ring at a hundred yards. just saying. Shoot it.

No semi-auto will function when dirty, clean the action, gas system and gas port(s) in the barrel. Clean the magazine and lightly lube. Part of my job when I worked in Browning Arms Company's gunsmithing shop was working on BAR rifles. Most whose owners had sent them in complaining of jamming and not functioning properly were simply dirty. You can't neglect cleaning if you want a semi-auto to function properly. Also when I say light lube it only takes a drop or two to do the job, spraying with WD-40 or similar products is not advisable. Too much lube will attract dirt, you want only enough lube so the parts work smoothly.

another area that causes problems relating to cleaning is the chamber. the barrel is cleaned from the muzzle and the chamber never really gets scrubbed out during normal cleaning. it is an area that I really clean and polish when I get one in the shop.

Before you do ANYTHING, close the action and, with the help of a small light source, check the bolt guide rails behind the bolt on the receiver.. If you notice a series of about 6 square indentations on those rails, you should immediately do NOTHING but re-sell that rifle and move on.

The 742s have so many problems that the vast majority of gunsmiths won't even touch 'em. I quit servicing those rifles about 4 years ago - followed this year by the Winchester M100..

The magazines for the 740-742 et al are absolutely horrible. Buying a new one does NOT ensure it'll work. Usually about 1 in 4 magazines for those rifles will work correctly.. And at $30 a pop it's just not worth it..

FWIW..

Better listen to Redneck. I have quite a bit of experience with the 742 and needless to say, I know them inside out, but there isn't one inside my safe.

Yeah, I shouldnt have bought the rifle most likely, cheap glass in a very common caliber. I just was enticed by the $250 price tag and not having bought a firearm in quite a while. I didnt have anything on the low end to barter/trade with. I know they are trouble... should have passed. Oh well, I have it now and can always trade it in and not take too much of a loss.

Find another sucker to sell it to before it gets any worse.

They aren't all bad. Depends how much neglect it's seen. Give it a good cleaning and go from there. I have 1 of these + a 740 and 7400. Mine are actually decent shooters 1 1/2" or so at 100. They just need to be cleaned religiously. As far as mags eBay or other sites or gun shows . I've bought some mags fairly cheap. If it is a carbine ( more desirable) it will be a 18 1/2" bbl and also stamped carbine on the barrel.

This.

Or this by Ahlman's Rifle Work http://www.ahlmans.com/rifle-work.html

Convert Rem. 742 to pump action ...$249.00

Lee,

What causes the guide rail indentations? Pleas elaborate.

Doc

The recoil from (say) a 30-06 causes the bolt to over-rotate and the locking lugs come into contact with the guide rails.. After enough rounds are fired the chattering marks get deep enough that one more shot locks the bolt in the rear position. Now - the owner has a single-shot rifle..

There's' no cure for the guide rails.. Ahlmans at one time tried repairing them for customers but gave up since the cost was high and the life-span of the repair was very short.. I know they offered a 742-to-760 conversion for a while but I had thought they even quit that.. Maybe they still do it..

The bolt assembly on the 742 is very complex, with about a dozen parts; many are very small and quite delicate. Those break. With many of those rifles now over 45 years old it's now getting very difficult to obtain the necessary parts to keep them running..

They fail also due to the difficulty of full disassembly necessary for a proper cleaning - owners don't (1) have the tools and (2) do not have the knowledge as to taking them apart and ensuring all those teeny parts stay in place.. It takes special care and deft fingers to reinstall the bolt and action into the receiver.. I've had about 15 years of practice and it's STILL a pita..

If the owner doesn't keep that chamber VERY clean and VERY shiny (as in: mirror-bright) eventually the next shot will slam that bolt back but the empty case stays in the chamber.. If he's lucky, all that's ruined is the extractor. That's bad enough - but if he's NOT lucky, the front edge of the bolt face will be ripped off and now he's looking at a $150 (rather cheap at that) repair IF the part(s) can be obtained.. Last time I looked - they were not.. The extractors are a typical weak Rem riveted style N/A any longer; except the Marlin M7 extractor is usually able to be substituted..

The 7400 was an improvement in bolt design and basically eliminated any bolt chattering, but even Remington won't touch 'em any more for repairs..

Someone said he's "bought some mags fairly cheap" but I'd bet they're cheap because (1) the original owner got rid of that pos rifle or (2) those magazines didn't work in his rifle so he sold it to someone else.. Maybe they work just fine - more likely they will work much better in a 760/7600 since the user doesn't cycle the action anywhere nearly as quickly (obviously) as a semi-auto..

Best place for a 742 is (1) on the wall or (2) in the trash..

FWIW..


Sorry - got a little long-winded this am...

Yeah, they are all bad! The ones that still work haven't been shot much. Once they get shot much they will go bad.

Magazine out, rifle upside down in your lap, open the action and look at the inside top of the receiver. If it shows sawtooth marks, Very carefully close the action and get rd of the gun before you open the action again. When they get to that point they can and do lock up and it takes a smith to free it.

I have seen one and only one 740/742 that was accurate enough to shoot inch groups. I don't think I have ever known one that didn't eventually jam.

Yep..

Even Rem admits they were designed to last about 600 rounds..

You are assuming the Remington POS is on the same level as a properly designed and built semi-auto.

Thats about 580 more then when the POS I bought broke. Luckily I was able to give it back to Walmart and get a new one and immediately sell it to someone that thought it was better then a BAR.

LMAO... Man, did THAT guy need an education..

Other than an occasional timing latch pin shear, the BAR is the only one I'd recommend for a hunting rifle.. (Excluding any AR etc)

A. He was not the brightest bulb B. a lot of the guys in his hunt club(Dog) used remington semi autos.

Most of my family members had 742s during the early days of our deer hunting. They wanted follow up shots at running deer. Today most of the 742s are siting in closets with pitted chambers and galled guide rails. I know where there is a 742 Woodmaster that has less than half a box of ammo through it. I could get it cheap, but I don't want it.

First time posting here. Had to add that my friend came into a 740 with badly damaged guide rails. I milled flats on a 3/8 inch brass rod and tapped it into the raceway and TIG welded the damaged area. Cleaned up the excess and the old thing functions perfectly. We have only shot it about twenty five times but it shows no hint of failure in the repaired area. Dale