Remington 7400 & 750: Do they still chew themseves up like the old 740 and 742??

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saturno_v

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I really like the Remington centerfire autoloaders...sleek lines and lightness.

I already own an used old 740 in 30-06, lots of bluing is gone but the few times I took it to the range, it did cycle perfectly.

I know very well that you shoud use these rifles (the 740 and 742) sparingly because the bolt carrier at some point "chew up" the receiver rails creating cycling problems...this issue is not fixable and eventually these rifles become single shots. On top of that, the chamber seems rust prone (I had to do a lot of cleaning on mine) and there are occasional instances of the extractor literally ripping the case head off.

Now, the 7400 introduced a redesign of the receiver and bolt carrier, only 2 lugs instead of the smaller 9 ad an improved receiver, promising to eliminate the problem and improve reliability.

The 750 has been further internally redesigned (for example you cannot longer use the same magazines as the 740/742 and 7400) and with a new gas system.

I want to buy a newer 7400 or 750 (new or used in very good shape) for "moderate" range use...I do not mean spitting bullets like crazy a la AK, AR or FAL style but a reasonable rate of fire and use.....I do not want to count every single round towards the demise of the rifle :)

So for the people in the know...are the 7400 and 750 improved on this regard or are they still "10 rounds a year" rifles??? Chamber rust is still an issue?? Should I not even bother??

Is the 750 better than the 7400??


Thank you!!!
 
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I own a 7400 and it is around for a hunting rifle, I know the 742 slide would split and cause failure to the rifle but again, I only use this type of rifle to hunt and as a possible self defense rifle know it could not match.... say a browning bar unit if so wait and spend the extra for the Browning older version and as you stated its not a FAL, AK, HK, nor should it be taken as such. Good Luck.
A-F
 
I do shoot it more than 10 times a year more like 150-200 I run it wet and suppressed. I do enjoy it.
 
From what I have seen, the new bolts do not chew on the receiver like the older models did. The chamber rusting is a factor of ambient conditions more than design so no difference there.
 
Either one will last a life time. The improved gas system on the 750 is a modified angle on the gas port, not a huge improvement. Get which ever one is cheapest.
 
If you like the lines and the handling of the 740 lineage of rifles do yourself a HUGE favor and buy a 7600 pump

After my first 7600 I won't bother with another rem autoloader. You literally get all the accuracy of a 700 (sporter weight) and all the benefits of a 7400 with none of the vices.
 
If you like the lines and the handling of the 740 lineage of rifles do yourself a HUGE favor and buy a 7600 pump

After my first 7600 I won't bother with another rem autoloader. You literally get all the accuracy of a 700 (sporter weight) and all the benefits of a 7400 with none of the vices.
Click to expand...

I already own a beautiful 7600 other than my old 740 and I plan to get a 760 as well.


I absolutely love that particular Remington look (auto or pump)
 
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7400

I bought a used 7400 in 280 Rem (7mm Express) 10 years ago. It shoots under an inch with some loads and has never malfunctioned.
I probably put 100 rounds a year through it, and have taken 4 animals with it.
Great gun !!
 
R.W.Dale said:
After my first 7600 I won't bother with another rem autoloader. You literally get all the accuracy of a 700 (sporter weight) and all the benefits of a 7400 with none of the vices.
Click to expand...

A few months ago I was able to get a 750 chambered in .270 Win (now discontinued) for a friend because she really wanted one for sheep/goat hunting. I feel bad for her because the rifle has been a disaster from day one. Not only is it a "jam-o-matic" in her words, but she couldn't zero the scope at 100 yards and had to have a local gunsmith shim the rear scope mount. I suggested that she order some magazines from Midway to see if that would improve function but it didn't. Now she has a paperweight and she's only speaking to me still because I got her a deal on a Browning BAR Safari in .270 Win which has been perfect from day one :D . Her only complaint with the BAR is that it's too nice to take hunting!! Maybe I'll send her a 7600 for Christmas!!
 
Have had a 7400/.270 for bout 30 years, shoots great, real close to my bolt actions for accuracy. Great hunting gun. Only problem I have seen on these is chamber binding/ ejector problems due to not cleaning them properly.
 
750 mags

As far as my 750 knows, it accepts the same mags as my 760 and 7400- triple K steel mags.
 
I have a 7400 30-06. One mag doesn't feed all the time. It gets hot fast, then the group opens up, big time. Good thing hunting is with cold bores. It isn't accurate enough for beyond 200 shots at whitetail. Otherwise, it functions fine.
 
I have a 7400 chambered in 30-06. Have had it around 15 years. It sees little use and hasn't been fired in around 8 years. Even when I hunted with it maybe 10 rounds in a year. Never had a problem one with it but again, very light use.

Ron
 
My contact at Ilion told me they 740/742 were good for about 500 rounds and the 7400 was designed to make them last longer but I don't know how much longer.

I have seen 760s with rifling gone 3" in front of chamber and they were still going.

I would not be afraid of the 760 at all.
 
If my 7400 wasn't inherited, i would sale it and get a Savage 308 model 10 bolt.
 
Certaindeaf

The 7400 was manufactured up until about 4-5 years ago (I think), which is when the 750 took over.
My 7400 was mfg between 81-83 with the "7mm Express" moniker. The original stock was cracked so
I replaced it with a synthetic camo Ramline, and it has been a great gun, no complaints. I have hand-loaded
130,140, 145, 150 and 160grn bullets and it has gobbled them all up with no malfunctions.
 
I believe it is possible for a good gunsmith to convert these rifles to pump action a-la-760/7600. Just a thought for anyone with a dead one....
 
I have a 7400 and 750 carbine, both in 35 Whelen. I've put several hundred rounds through the 7400 without any problems (except the bolt dust cover gets torn with use and needs replacement). The Timney trigger fix is recommended, it's a great improvement! :)

auto.jpg
 
The short answer - yes the newer autoloaders are better. The original problem with the 740/742 was not bolt design, but a lack of receiver hardening along the slide rails. Remington fixed this by hardening the receiver a bit more.
My 740 30'06 was purchased by my grandfather in 1956 (IIRC). He used to load real hot for it, and it is accurate with a hot load. However, there are some nice gouges in the receiver caused by the bolt lugs. It still cycles normal but obviously has a limited life in front of it.
I get decent accuracy out of light loads (I load for it at Garand pressures) and after working up a load, I only shoot maybe 10 or 20 rounds every year out of it. At this rate, I'm hoping my unborn son will someday get to shoot great grandpa's deer rifle.
 
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