• Watch Out for Scammers!

    We've now added a color code for all accounts. Orange accounts are new members, Blue are full members, and Green are Supporters. If you get a message about a sale from an orange account, make sure you pay attention before sending any money!

  • Site updates coming next Wednesday at 8am CT!

    The site will be down for routine maintenance on Wednesday 6/5 starting at 8am CT. If you have any questions, please PM alexj-12!

Gunsmithing Remington 742 Help

Raven 6

Raven 6

Full Member
Full Member
Minuteman
Oct 29, 2006
1,004
70
Blue Ridge
I have a 742 that has started lightly striking the primer when sending the bolt home. I have replaced the firing pin spring thinking to might have gotten weak over the years but still doing the same thing. Anyone run into this before and if so what was the cure?

Thanks,
Mark
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

I did not remove the firing pin it's self since it was staked in. But that would probably be a good idea to check the pin for wear.
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

Firing pin appears in good condition with little wear on the retaining pin recess area. Any more ideas guys?
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

Do you have access to another 742 to do a spring swap on everything to rule out a specific one?

I'm throwing out whatever ideas pop up for this one. My own 742 was my Grandfather's and almost 40 years old now and I have yet to encounter this issue.
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

Alright I did a bit of digging and from what I understand the 742 has two separate springs inside the bolt for the firing pin. The 742 had 2 very small springs and plungers that operated the bolt lock. These areas are prone to fouling and lead to firing pin issues. Sometimes it doesn't hit hard enough to discharge the round and other times it gets stuck and will cause what you're experiencing, sometimes even setting off rounds when you release the bolt on a chambered round.
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

I've already replaced the spring twice just to make sure on that. The guy I'm doing to work for says he has probably 500 rounds or so though it. I checked the headspace and it's a little long, the bolt will not fully close on a field gauge. I'm running out of ideas and am scratching my head, not sure if the headspace is having anything to do with it.
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

I've tinkered with firearms for years and I can honestly say that particular model is cursed...

Is it light striking the primer when it's fired or only when the bolt travels forward???
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

If its had 500 rds through it, he most likely hasn't done a good break down and clean. If he noticed a problem he may have pulled the old "something's wrong... Oil the shit out of it" causing trash build up or even a hydraulic effect in the channel that houses the firing pin.
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Pivot916</div><div class="ubbcode-body">If its had 500 rds through it, he most likely hasn't done a good break down and clean. If he noticed a problem he may have pulled the old "something's wrong... Oil the shit out of it" causing trash build up or even a hydraulic effect in the channel that houses the firing pin. </div></div>

If he has gone as far as replacing the firing pin spring I have a feeling he has broken it completely down to clean it and check the bolt for gunk.

This is a topic of interest for me since I own one myself. Keep these ideas coming guys cause I'm gonna print them out and keep them for later LOL
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

After checking the schematic there is a firing pin retractor spring shown in the assembly. I would guess the failure of this spring could be causing this problem. YMMV

R
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

Alright. True I have broken this rifle down more times than I care to remember. I give it a good cleaning on the first break down. The pin is hitting the primer lightly when sending a round home, it fires with no problem. I am ordering a new firing pin just to eliminate it from the equation. The deal of the firing pin channel has me wondering, the pin does have quite a lot of side to side play in the firing pin channel.
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

When you said firing pin spring do you mean the one that is on the front of the firing pin? The one that pushes the firing pin back off the primer after the round fires?

Just curious. I had one of those springs break one time and jamned the firing pin up in the channel so badly it would not fire at all.

I took it apart, removed the broken piece, about 4 coils, and put it back together. Even with the short spring the firing pin did not hit the primer on chambering a round.
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

I've always felt that the 742 is one of the finest single shot rifles Remington ever made.
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

This would seem the likely culprit. What is causing the strike on the primer is inertia from the FP.

Could be the rebound spring being to weak or firing pin too heavy for a given spring tension.

If you changed the FP rebound spring and that did not work it is possible the shoulder where the spring sits could be too deep or out of spec reducing the spring tension on the firing pin
you could try stretching the spring.

Remington has been making that rifle for a long time and I would think depending on the vintage that the tolerances vary quite a bit so any new parts might need a little tweaking its worth a look
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

No offense "NorthernBorn" but, I almost got shot by a gunsmith who assumed the gun was unloaded...
 
Re: Remington 742 Help

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Rude</div><div class="ubbcode-body">This would seem the likely culprit. What is causing the strike on the primer is inertia from the FP.

Could be the rebound spring being to weak or firing pin too heavy for a given spring tension.

If you changed the FP rebound spring and that did not work it is possible the shoulder where the spring sits could be too deep or out of spec reducing the spring tension on the firing pin
you could try stretching the spring.

Remington has been making that rifle for a long time and I would think depending on the vintage that the tolerances vary quite a bit so any new parts might need a little tweaking its worth a look </div></div>

Strange thing is I thought the same thing, so I put 2 springs on it and it didn't make any difference.
 
Hello everybody ,DEL here ,I am currently working on a 742 now , so I have been doing a lot of research on this rifle ! In my search I found out that the earlier 742 ,s had to have the firing pin retractor spring , Much larger diameter than the newer models ! It was from the ones used on the newer model 742 that slide on to the firing pin itself that I also discovered is not necessary in the newer model 742 . So given what I researched on this rifle I would just remove it ! The problem with the 742 I am working on turned out to be the extractor , my first thought when I first tested my rifle I suspected the firing pin spring , but since there was no spring in the bolt for the firing pin when I removed it , I had more searching to do . With the spring out you,ll have quite a bit of back and forth motion that I noticed when I disassembled my 742 ! Except for the extractor not grabbing every spent shell it seemed fine . I hope some of this info. helps you Del gunsmith13 . another quick note lube , lube , lube ! DEL
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Halfnutz
Berreta A400 help.
Replies
11
Views
343
Halfnutz
Halfnutz
Southernspeed
Sidearms & Scatterguns Mossberg 930 issue.
Replies
17
Views
567
BAMAboy18
BAMAboy18
L
Ruger RPR problems with new fireing pin
Replies
4
Views
178
LV21
L
A
Bergara Premier replacement bolt
Replies
4
Views
470
Longtine
Longtine
carbonbased
Gunsmithing Firing pin question
Replies
13
Views
752
carbonbased
carbonbased
Top Bottom
Back