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I am pretty familiar w/ the Remington semiauto 742/740/7400 semi series which is very similar to the 760-series pumps. I owned a 740. The former are very popular in some states back east and the 760-series in PA with its millions of hunters where semi's could not be used for hunting. A good friend has a 760 in .30-06 and has killed a lot of game with it; elk, deer, etc.

For years I bought guns to learn the mechanism and understand the rifle and then sell it. Enjoyable and very interesting hobby of a sort. I couldn't get rid of the 740 fast enough. I've never seen a gun more obviously designed to cheapness of mechanical construction and less regard for long term function. Strong action, to be sure. I'll give them that. I did learn the gun and figured a method of accurizing it but cannot argue one word with the Remington sales representative that described them to a gunsmith/dealer friend of mine as:

"The Rifle that commences self destruction with the first pull of the trigger".

This...from a Remington sales rep!

You can find if you look hard enough raving reviews about their accuracy and such but this is frankly, mostly BS.

The gun served its purpose very well for gazillions of American hunters. My Father in law had a 742 from the early era for deer hunting in MI for many years and probably killed around 40 deer with it. Even had a custom stock made for it. His use fit well into the target market; 40 deer x about 10 shots per year of exclusively factory ammo "to check zero" for a grand total of maybe 500 bullets down the barrel for its entire career.This is the same category of use my friend w/ the 760 falls into. If your interest fits into the general concept you may find a 74/76-series gun to your liking.

1} Not shot a lot.
2} Shot at relatively short range.
3} Used with factory ammo unless you are fine with getting no more than 2 or 3 reloads from a case.

Could you get a reverse-lemon and trick yourself into a real dandy? Sure. Absolutely. I've heard of Vegas and Yugos that got good gas mileage and never needed a tuneup. But on the whole, I'd steer clear.

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