MM, your advice to 'keep them clean and well-maintained' will work on the 740-742 only to a point.. Even Remington admits they were built for a roughly 600+-round lifetime.. If you think there are a lot of them in Montana, then you've never been to WI..
Up to a few years ago, the 742 was THE rifle most often found in deer hunting camps in this state - topped by them sweet see-thrus.. The vast majority of those rifles went to hunters who shoot a half-box to sight in, go hunting and shoot 3-10 more, then get put back in the closet until next season.. I bet a ton of 742 owners rarely go through more than a box or two of shells/year.
Of all the rifles I get in the shop for problem-related issues, the 742 tops 'em all. I have 2-3 drawers full of spare parts for those pos rifles but the very FIRST thing I do upon receiving one is to shine a light back of the bolt and inspect the guide rails.. When (the usual instance) I see deep chatter marks from the over-rotating bolt, I warn the customer that he/she's on borrowed time with this rifle. Once those marks get deep enough, the bolt will lock open upon firing and the owner now basically has a single-shot rifle.
The 7400 was a better design, and I know the 750 has been further 'refined'.. However, and this is the POINT I'VE BEEN TRYING TO MAKE WITH THE GUY ABOVE, the MAGAZINES FURNISHED WITH THESE RIFLES ARE CRAP, and getting one that works correctly and reliably is akin to winning the LOTTO.. By FAR the majority of issues related to jamming/failure to feed etc., can be traced to the magazine. They are CRAP, CRAP, CRAP.. Until and unless Remington actually DOES something about those things they'll continue to get a bad rep as a 'jam-o-matic'...
Even Ahlman's in Morristown won't do much with these any more - basically they now offer a conversion service to alter the rifle to a M760 (for around $200, IIRC), which is a much more serviceable alternative.. Many other gunshops won't even touch 'em now - and I'm getting close to that decision; probably by the time I finally get to SD. Getting these things fixed is getting expensive - and even though I'm very reasonable in prices it's coming to a time when it can run $50-$150 to get it to function, so I warn everybody up front what they may be looking at re: cost of repair. Some wanna go ahead - others see the handwriting on the wall, especially when I can show them the visible evidence of what's coming..
Keeping the 742/740 clean is difficult for most owners since the rifle must be taken fully apart in order to properly clean/polish the chamber and keep it like a mirror.. If not done, the case will begin to grip the chamber walls more and more and become difficult for the bolt to extract. What happens next is (at first,) stovepiping, then damage to case rims, then a broken extractor, and finally (if the extractor actually holds) the force of extraction will actually break off a portion of the bolt face - and then you have a wall-hanger unless you can find a replacement breech bolt head and want to spend the bux to fix it.. Most opt to 'retire' that rifle and find something new.
Spare parts are becoming ever more scarce - and my supply mainly comes from 742 owners who've given up on their rifles and I buy them for parts. That's going to run out some day too..
BTW, you were smart to choose the 700ADL.. I bet you've rarely, if ever, had an issue with it.. I also remember the old gun rags that swooned over the 742 at the time.. And I drooled over it too at the time. But at the price of $175 (circa 1960, IIRC) I knew I'd never be able to afford one.. Man, am I glad now I was broke at the time..
My very first deer rifle is one I still have and still use.. Paid $125 for a two-year-old M70 in .264WM.. It feeds perfectly, I don't have to worry about CRAP magazines, it still lays 'em into one inch at 100 yards (even after nearly 40 years) and I don't find 'chatter marks' on the guide rails..
I couldn't possibly care less what a guy uses to go hunting with. It's their choice, their likes, their hunting area, yada yada yada... But when someone asks for information as to a rifle choice I will be first and foremost honest in my response. The OP said this rifle must be 'a semi-auto' and for the friend's wife. I want the lady to be a happy shooter. She'll be
most happy, in my experience, with a BAR if the choice is between the Rem, the BAR, or some other choice.. She's NOT going to be happy if she misses with the first shot and the second fails to feed from a crappy Rem magazine..
Flame away...
