Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

A good friend of mine bought a Remington model 740 Woodsmaster in 308 Win. for $150. When he started shooting it it would eject the spent shell with no problem but then the bolt would stay open. He took it apart and cleaned it really good and its been flawless ever since. It has some wear from being used over the years but it works great now. He told me if I want it he'll sell it to me for the $150 he paid for it. He has a few Remington pumps that he likes better then the auto. I don't know to much the Remington auto loaders, but I've been thinking about getting a 7400 Carbine. Are the Remington model 740 Woodsmaster good rifles, are they reliable? I don't think I'll get hurt for $150, I can alway sell it and get my money back. What do you think?

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

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Description:

Autoloading Rifle


Introduction Year:


1955



Year Discontinued:


1959



Total Production:


Approximately: 251,398



Designer/Inventor:


Research & Development



Action Type:


Autoloader



Caliber/Gauge:


.244 Remington, .308 Win, .280 Remington, .30-06



Serial Number Blocks:


Starting: N/A
Ending: N/A



# of Grades Offered:


740A Standard
740ADL Deluxe
740BDL Deluxe
740D Peerless
740F Premier



Variations:

N/A[/align][/align]

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

As the owner of a 742 Woodsman, I would rather have the $150. The older Remmy semi's are hard to find parts for, and are none too accurate by and large. Occasional specimens will shoot well but most throw 3"-4" patterns at 100 yards.

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

For $150 it'd be in my safe today. I've had several flavors of Remingtons auto over the years and with fair optics, they can shoot fine. Are they tack drivers? No. But they are plenty accurate for deer hunting and if you miss, it's unlikely the rifles fault.

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

For $150.00 buy it. they are picky on theammo they like but they will shoot good groups a 100 yards. it will not shoot 1/2 groups but 1 to 1 1/4 groups all day with the right ammo. If you don't want it send me a pm I will take it.

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

In this day, $150.00 for a 740 ius a good deal - even though they are the worst semi-auto in the 7400-series. Every change Remington has made to that rifle has been a needed improvement. However, they are accurate enough for the northern zone in NY!!

(BTW, IF you ever get a 1" or even a 1.5" group from a 740, it is a 1 of 1,000,000 rifle!!)

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

I said I got a 3" group from a Woodsmaster and everyone said with a scope I could get much better groups. Now I'm hearing 1.5" would be amazing. Whats up?

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

Before you drop the money on this rifle have a gunsmith look it over first internally. The older 740's and 742's would literally beat themselves up every time you pulled the trigger. If he has put a bunch of rounds through it you may not want it. The 7400 is much more reliable than the older versions.

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

3" is closer to the average performance of the 740, scope or no scope! There may one or two that CONSISTENTLY shoot 1.5", but I have never seen any Rem. semi-auto that did! BAR, perhaps. Rem., NO!

However, this evaluation does NOT apply to their 760-style pump-action rifles, which generally shoot much better. Seems changing them slightly so the firing gases work the action instead of your hand operating it has a real detrimental effect on how they shoot!

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

Well, had a chance to finally try the Woodsmaster on a deer this morning at about 175 yards. I got 2 shots at a buck, first one might've been a bad shell it missed bad, I have no clue where it went and the gun jammed. Before it ran I got another shot, it jumped like it might've been hit but I didn't hear anything. Me and my grandpa looked for blood but didn't see any and the buuck had ran across the highway. Got 2 more shots at a doe and one was broadside at about 150, but it was way off too. The second shot was in front of it, but real close. After I picked up the first shell that I shot at the buck I noticed the case was dented, don't know if this is why it missed so bad. My grandpas truck was a steady rest I'm sure I had the sight on the bucks chest. I know it probably wasn't all the guns fault, but I don't think I'm that bad of a shot.

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

The dented shells are not too uncommon for a semiauto rifle. My 742occasionally puts a slight dent in the shell depending on the load and where the shell is thrown.

What bigbulls says about having a gunsmith check over the internals is right on the money. The 740s and 742s will eventually batter themselves to death, and often are not worth repairing.

Another lesson here - - you can't miss fast enough to bag an animal. If your first shot doesn't go where you want it to, the next several are even less likely to, no matter what type of rifle you are shooting with. I finally got rid of a Ruger M77 MkII .30-06 because no matter what I did it would not shoot consistently:( (not trashing all Rugers, just the one I had.) I now have a few other rifles that will put the first shot where I want it very predictably provided I do my part.

My 742 has NEVER shot so consistently that I would be confident of any shot over 100 yards. For short range work such as hunting hogs in the shrubbery it is great, but if the shot is over 100 yards I won't take it with that rifle.

Just my 2 cents worth... sounds like you're starting to have some doubts about that 740, no?

RE: Remington model 740 Woodsmaster.
 

Aot of those Rem. semiautos dent ejected cases! This happens way after the bullet has left the barrel, so it has no effect on accuracy. You didn't say if you had taken the time to zero that rifle with the ammo you used while hunting, but even the worst of them should be good enough to kill a doe at 150 yards, if properly zeroed - I'd take the contraption to the range, and give it a chance to show you where it's shooting.

I had one once - a 740 in .30/'06 - and it had"wandering zero". It grouped acceptably, about 3 MOA wit Rem 180-grain RNCL ammo. But the center of the group today was different from what had been yesterday. Yours may be doing this too! I got rid of the thing before it cost me any animals. i was living in Alaska then, and didn't feel real warm & fuzzy about the ideaof wounding a big ol',mean ol', grizzly bear!