Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Inheriting a Rem 742 Woodsmaster 30-06 ...

FatOldMIhunter,

IF the 742 is in good shape, it may well surprise you. = My 1st cousin shoots a circa 1957 Model 742 in .30-06 that will routinely make ONE ragged hole in a target to ranges well beyond 200M.
(My cousin Randy is a FAR better "shot" than I ever was or ever will be.)

Fwiw, I'm a "model 760 addict" & my pump-rifles (in several calibers) are just as "hunting accurate" as any of my friends bolt-action rifles.

Fwiw, the only paper targets that I shoot at are for sighting-in a new rifle or "checking the zero" on my current rifles/scopes. = I'm a hunter, rather than a target shooter, & all of my pump-guns are FINE for hunting, IF I do my part.

yours, tex

mooshoo,

EXACTLY SO.

yours, tex

JoeBob,

EXACTLY.

yours, tex

FatOldMIHunter,

For coyotes, it's hard to beat the CHEAP "white box" 150 grain Winchester ammo that is sold all over the USA. = I've shot LOTS of it in my SA circa 1943 M1 Garand, as it's JSP "near clone" of M2 Ball.

You might also buy some boxes of FMJ M2 Ball & take coyotes with that ammo. = Works FINE on coyotes/bobcats/similar quarry, passes through both sides of the body leaving 2 small holes & doesn't mess up the pelt.. M2 Ball (or one of the numerous "foreign clones") is often VERY cheap if bought by the hundreds.

Otoh, you could pass the 742 along to someone in the family who will appreciate it & who HUNTS.
(The 742 was never intended to be a "target rifle", any more than a Jeep was ever intended to win at the Indy 500.)

At 71YY, all six of my Model 76o pumps shoot better than I can at my age.
(On the other hand, do NOT stand out at ranges to 250-300M & invite my lovely/33YO/60" tall/92# Darla to shoot at you, as you'll soon look like a piece of Swiss cheese. = She is "downright deadly with" her Model 7615P pump-carbine and/or with any of my numerous rifles, including my 9.3x62mm.)

ADDENDA: To anyone who says that any "halfway competent" gunsmith cannot improve the trigger 100% on ANY of the Remington SA rifles or pumps, I say that what you stated is: BRAVO SIERRA.
(I had the trigger-squeeze "worked on" upon my .244REM Model 760. = It took Rob Peters about 20 minutes to improve the trigger a LOT & he charged me 35 bucks. Rob can easily do the same "magic" on any 742/7400/760/7600. = It's all in "knowing your craft".).

yours, tex

FWIW, my dad has a 742 in 308 WIN that he bought when he was a young man that has been great for him and killed MANY Deer. My Uncle on the other hand went for the 30-06 and had tons of issues over the years to the point that in the 80's Remington took his 742 back and gave him a brand new 7400 Carbine in 30-06 which he also had issue with. I just heard from my Dad that he broke the stock on a Hog hunt in Texas.

That could happen to any rifle sure, but he has been plagued with issues his entire adult life with that gun. I would have thought he would just give up on it, but alas no.

When I inherit my Dad's, I will cherish it for the memories but will probably never take it out in the the Deer woods. YMMV.

I have a 740 30/06 that my dad bought in the 50s. He loved that rifle, and tinkered with it constantly, but could never make it shoot small groups. He called it "Lightin"...not because it was fast, but because it never struck the same place twice! I cherish the rifle and take it hunting occasionally, just because.

The 125 Nos BT out of a 30-06 has an MPBR of 297 yards or so. That seems to fit your criteria pretty well.

Don't even try the 224 sabots..they're basically shotgun patterns.

Shoot flatter and with less recoil.

Not an issue.

From what I've heard, pump actions are typically more accurate than semi-autos, all else being equal.

Flatter? The max point blank range of a 30-06 with a 150 grain bullet is 287 yards when it is sighted 2.5 inches high at 100 yards.

What causes that? I've heard they don't stabilize well in longer twist rates, but they supposedly do fine in 1:10 twist barrels.

That's probably the MPBR for deer (+/-3" from zero). The MPBR for coyotes is smaller.

FatOldMIHunter,

No nieces/nephews either, that would love to own a "family rifle"??
(Fwiw, at 71YY, I've started my "distribution" of firearms to my niece/nephew. - My adult daughter has already "adopted" the firearms that she wants.= A .223 BA sporter & my old Makerov.)

A chuckle for you: IF you have a daughter (or a favorite niece) in your life, you'll understand their "taking ways", when it comes to "Daddy's stuff". = One afternoon my daughter came to the house, picked up my 9x18mm Makerov/holster that was lying on the table next to my lounge-chair. She said, "This is a way too girly a gun for you to carry. - I'm going to borrow it."
As a result of that one-sided conversation, I bought myself another Sig-Sauer 9mm for EDC.
(The only time that I've seen it in the last 2 years, the MAK was peeking out of the right back pocket of a pair of size 6 CHIC jeans.)

yours, tex

Nobody else wanted this rifle. Maybe that will change by the time I croak, but it seems unlikely.

OldFatMIHunter,

In that sad case, I'd convert it to "dead presidents" forthwith & get something that you DO like. = I've converted to ALL pump shotguns & rifles, other than my antique single shot military rifles & a very few handguns.

yours, tex

My brother brought me his old 742 carbine in .308 the other day...broken extractor. It has always been a good one MOA gun with 150's and he had let his boys use it a time or two . The magazine he sent with it would not function so I dug through a pile and put one together that would feed. Told him to just get the old girl sighted in and use it to hunt with no plinking and she should have some life left in her. If I recall I once made up some 110 gr. handloads for that gun and it was used to take fur as a call rifle. Worked just fine. As Redneck stated these old guns have a limited life...

That might happen, but the only type of rifle that I'm really wanting is a cheap, flat-shooting, low-recoil, semi-auto, 300 yd coyote gun. By cheap, I would mean under $500 with mounts and rings. That's if the 742 sells for $250.

OldFatMIHunter,

Check your mail please.

yours, tex

JoeBob,

All else being equal, I cannot tell ANY difference in any style (SA, pump, SS or BA) of rifle for HUNTING, with the exception of my NM-grade & treasured M1 Garand that shoots MUCH better than I do now with these 71YO eyes.
(I don't see peep sights all that well these days. = Everything but the Garand is scoped.)

Note: Several younger shooters (who see BETTER) have done very well with my M1 in the local rifle matches.

yours, tex