The Model 750's profile is like others in the line. The rounded receiver, trigger group and overall appearance of the gun certainly shouts Remington!

By Stan Trzoniec

The Model 750 is Big Green's sharpest autoloading rifle to date.

Remington introduced its first autoloading rifle, the highly successful Model 8, in 1906.
 
Manufactured under a royalty-producing basis with John Browning, the Model 8 was designed as a hammerless solid-breech rifle chambered in .25, .30, .32 and .35 Remington.
 
The gun had a 22-inch barrel that recoiled within the confines of a rigid metal barrel jacket. Made with a straight grip, or English design, the rifle held five rounds within a box magazine, which, at the shooter's option, could be loaded singly or with a full clip. It sold for $30 retail!
 
The Model 8 was so successful, it stayed on the market for 30 years. Its successor was the Model 81 Woodsmaster, which sported a traditional hunting stock and a semi-beavertail fore-end. Like the Model 8, it was available in five ascending grades to satisfy even the most discriminating hunter.
 
In 1955, Remington introduced the first fully gas-operated, non-recoiling barrel type of autoloader called the Model 740 Woodsmaster. With a new type of rotating breech bolt that actually locked into the barrel, it was chambered for just one cartridge, the .30-06 Sfld, and retailed for $124.95. Two years later, you could buy this rifle in .244 Rem and .308 Win, and in 1958, the flat-shooting .280 Rem was added.
 
The better-handling Model 742 came along in 1960. Stock features included ample checkering and a grip cap. The first carbine version appeared in 1961, and through 1964, additional calibers were made available in the line. Around 1966, the Model 742 BDL had stocks with a full cheekpiece and could be ordered for either right- or left-handed shooters.
 
Fifteen years later, the Model 742 was dropped from the Remington line. The Model Four and 7400 took its place. The Model Four was the deluxe version; the Model 7400 was touted as the "regular" version. In 1994, an SP or "Special Purpose" gun was announced, and four years later, a synthetic edition was added.
 
Today, the Model 7400 is still with us, but a newly upgraded gun called the Model 750 Woodsmaster joins the line of Remington semiautomatic rifles. Introduced at the company's annual writers' seminar, the new self-loader not only has a more striking appearance, but also various internal design changes to make it better functioning and more reliable.
 
Through all my years of evaluating and shooting semiautomatic rifles, the only problems I've ever had with Remingtons were due to my own hand-loads, which in some cases failed to meet the velocity threshold required to cycle the guns. Tests on the Model 750 included using "reduced loads" - Remington's Managed Recoil Ammo, designed for recoil-sensitive shooters who flinch with even the soft recoil sensation of a gas-operated gun.
 
The Model 750 is the best-looking Remington semiautomatic to date. The buttstock has a lower Monte Carlo comb for improved eye-to-scope contact. The cheekpiece on the left has been designed to better fit those of us who don't have the physical dimensions of the "average" shooter. For a custom touch, there's a black pistol-grip cap, and to dampen recoil, an R3 recoil pad. The forearm is brand new and semi-beavertail in design. Two finger grooves grace each side, and the effect is quite pleasing. The forward taper of the fore-end sits naturally in the hand as you ready the gun for shooting.
 
More than an ample amount of checkering is on both the forearm and pistol grip. 
 

From left: The R3 recoil pad; modernized checkering pattern on the pistol grip; the cross-button safety is rearward of the trigger and incorporates Remington's proprietary locking system; and finger grooves on the forearm taper toward the muzzle to fit perfectly into your non-shooting hand.

The checkering combines the traditional point pattern with graceful curves around each corner. The checkering not only covers the bottom of the fore-end, but also extends up the sides. To add a touch of class, the flying "R" is laser engraved within an upper quadrant of the checkering, and both the buttstock and forearm are finished in an elegant walnut tone and then sealed with a satin urethane-type finish.
 
While cosmetics make a gun look sharp, it's what's inside that counts, especially with a semiauto rifle. The Model 750's enhancements include gas orifice holes that have been moved rearward about 3/4 of an inch. This not only reduces fouling, but also increases feeding reliability and bolt velocity.
 
Remington also redesigned the barrel extension to improve feeding. In the final machining operation, burrs within the locking lug cuts are removed. Finally, there's an electroless nickel/Teflon coating on the breech bolt to reduce friction and to improve feeding from the magazine.
 
The profile of the 750 is much like its predecessors. The receiver shares the look of the Model 1100 shotguns and gives the shooter an uninterrupted sighting plane if he elects to use the supplied iron sights instead of a scope. Both sides of the receiver are polished to a smooth luster and deeply blued.
 
The trigger pull on my test gun was not one of its strong points. Even with a modest amount of slack, it broke at a most unsatisfactory 7 pounds. Behind the trigger guard is the cross-button safety and Remington's proprietary locking system, both of which are very positive in operation.
 
The Model 750 is equipped with a detachable magazine that holds four rounds of ammunition and is interchangeable with current Model 7400-series guns. The bolt release is located on the left-hand side of the magazine. With forward push, it drops the follower, unlocking the bolt, stripping a round from the magazine and sending it home. Operation of this release positions the hand and fingers away from the enthusiastic forward motion of the bolt as it gains momentum on its way to the breech, loading a round and finishing up with a solid lockup prior to firing. 
 

The detachable clip holds four rounds with the release positioned just forward of the trigger.

The Model 750 is available with a standard 22-inch barrel or an 181/2-inch carbine barrel. Standard guns are offered in .243 Win, .308 Win, .270 Win, .30-06 Sfld and .35 Whelen. The Carbine model is available in .308 Win, .30-06 Sfld and .35 Whelen. Suggested retail price for either version, regardless of cartridge choice, is $732.
 
I mounted a Bushnell Elite 3200 3-9/40mm scope in Burris rings on our test gun. It was one of the early samples of the new model and chambered in .30-06.
 
Accuracy tests with different brands and weights of ammo at 100 yards produced groups ranging from 11/2 to 2 inches. Best groups were with 150-grain offerings from Winchester. Hornady 165-grain spire points produced a 13/4-inch group, and Winchester 180-grain Silvertips circled 2 inches.
 
I've spent a lot of time shooting semiautomatic rifles. While they are disdained by many hunters, I find them accurate, handy in the field and dependable. Overall, Remington has done a good job in resurrecting the image of the 7400 series gun and has accomplished it in grand style.

Stan Trzoniec
GunHunter Magazine - September 2006