My first deer rifle was a Win Mod 100 carbine with the 18.5 bbl, it was loud.
I once took a model 725 Remington in trade, I was young, good ears. A 20" bbl was standard. It was in 06, it was the loudest and most painful to my ears rifle I've ever shot. It went quickly on a trade. Later the guy told me he got rid of it for the same reason.
I've owned a couple of Rem semi autos in both 270 and 06. Being a bolt action accuracy is better guy I did not keep them long. 2 to 4 inches at 100 ammo depending was best groups and I reload, many lost cases and had to use small base dies.
On 742's, my uncles, my brother and lots of local hunters used them.
Over the years all of them got rid of the 742s. For me, Ps it was never my primary rifle, I used the 270 for 2 years when we still hunted some very brushy farms that opened up to 400 plus yards in places. Open you never saw deer out in the open. The year before I used my Sako 270 and shot a wall hanger buck at 400 yards. That was an 80 acre farm, 440 all the way across. He was short of the fence just a few feet from the brush looking at a doe who had stepped out in the field to eat. One shot, broke his spine just behind the shoulders.
The following year, being dumb, I took the 7400 in 270. My brother jumped the biggest white tail buck either of us have ever seen. It crossed the corner, same place I killed one the year before and he stopped in the open, turned back and was watching my bro who was way off to my left and down in a valley.
From the same gate corner post I took a solid rest, 3 shots and no hits. I went down to look for blood, my bro showed up. It had been a very wet year. His tracks were deep, bro slow tracked him over a mile across 2 more farms. The buck swam the Gasconade river into non huntly farms that were brush filled.
My 7400, same gun as the 740, 742 was traded off.
Shortly thereafter my bro was going down a steep Ozark hill in the snow and slipped. He had his 740 slung on his shoulder. He landed on it. It appeared to be fine. A little later he missed a big buck at close range. Just for the record my bro is an excellent shot, standing or running a deer is usually dead.
I had seen him shoot one deer in the head at 200 yards, offhand no rest with that 740 in 06.
He then missed some Does. At lunch I shot his rifle, bullets were 12 inches apart. I lent him a rifle for the rest of the season. We took it to a gun smith, we found out the 740, 760 series bbls were somehow ptessed in and not repairable. Bro bought a Rem 721 in 06 that is deadly accurate.
We were told a loose bbl was common and Rem did not warranty it.
With ear plugs, close range and crossed fingers a 74o might be ok. I do know some guns were more accurate and many guys swear by theirs. I've just seen too many that were not keepers.
