Remington 725

[HOSSISFREE]

I have recently inherited a Remington 725 .270 serial number 701248. From what I read it is something worth owning. any info that rifle historians could tell me about this rifle would be appreciated.

Ryan

[HOSSISFREE]

Apparently, the model 725 was a special order item made from 1958 to 1961 in a number of calibers. This is chambered for .270
Am I mistaken in thinking the the Remington model 700 was used by the military for sniper operations?
I took it to the range today. It still has Grandpa's Simmons 3-10x40 scope on it. At 200 yrds it is still dead on! I put 5 rounds (4 round magazine + 1) in a 1 inch bull! Sandbags for stability. Not free shooting. It's no wonder that the last deer I shot with it was at just over 300 yards! I love this rifle!!!

Hoss

[puma guy]

Basically a Model 721 with a hinged floor plate magazine and a three position safety that allows cycling with safety on. It also has a Monte Carlo stock. Manufactured from 1957 to 1962 in many popular calibers and then replaced by the model 700. A hunting partner of mine has a 721 in .270 with a fancy stock and it shoots dead on with the original Bausch and Lomb Balfor scope. They go for about $400-450 in good condition with premium for more exotic calibers. I assume you're hanging onto it, so that probably doesn't matter. They are not included in the Remington safety modification program according to their website. Your GrandPa passed down a nice gun.

[HOSSISFREE]

Thanks for the info! Yes, it is a nice gun! I took it to the range today. My Grandfather shot many deer with it, My Father shot many deer with it, and I have memories as a teenager of shooting deer with it! As a rifle that is probably 50 years old, it is awesome! I DO plan on keeping it, so the value doesn't mean much at all, but I am interested in finding out everything I can about my Grandfather's rifle. He was a collector. I very much appreciate your input! Thanks!

Hoss

[puma guy]

Thanks for the info! Yes, it is a nice gun! I took it to the range today. My Grandfather shot many deer with it, My Father shot many deer with it, and I have memories as a teenager of shooting deer with it! As a rifle that is probably 50 years old, it is awesome! I DO plan on keeping it, so the value doesn't mean much at all, but I am interested in finding out everything I can about my Grandfather's rifle. He was a collector. I very much appreciate your input! Thanks!

Hoss

Pictures would be nice!

[The Annoyed Man]

Am I mistaken in thinking the the Remington model 700 was used by the military for sniper operations?

Yes, and no. The Remington 700/40X action forms the basis around which both the M40 (Marine Corps) and the M24 (Army) sniper systems are built. The primary difference between the two being that the M40 is a short action designed to be chambered primarily in 7.62 NATO (.308), and the M24 is a long action, which although primarily chambered in 7.62 NATO, can also be chambered in .30-'06 and .300 Winchester Magnum.

But the resemblance to commercial Model 700 rifles ends there. The actions are purchased in batches. Then Marine or Army armorers mate them to custom barrels and stocks. The M40 uses one of two different McMillan stocks and either a Hart or a Schneider match barrel. The M24 uses an HS Precision stock. Not sure who makes the M24 barrel, but I know that it has interesting rifle, 5-R, and the twist is 1:11.25. The M40 barrel used to have a 1:10 twist, but I don't know if that is true today.

[HOSSISFREE]

As requested...

[HOSSISFREE]

Thanks for the sniper info! I had simply remembered vague mention of the Remington 700 being the closest civilian model to old sniper rifles on the History channel. Very interesting information. I do love the history of guns.

Hoss

[HOSSISFREE]

Come to find out, my Father never looked up the history of this gun. Upon talking with him about it, I discovered that the first deer I shot (a Doe) was with this rifle. I was 11 years old. The only pic I could find did not include the gun, but it is of me, Dad, and Grandpa George (Lord rest his soul). Outstanding memories brought back to life!

[threoh8]

The military often starts with commercial products, tries them out, then adapts them to military-specific configurations.

It took a while to come up with the original M40, and the test/development cycle started with "stock" commercial rifles. I wouldn't doubt that some 700's and 40X's were used in combat sniping, pretty much out of the box. Model 70 Winchesters certainly were. Deficiencies were found and fixed. The M40 was a just standardization of the modifications the USMC had developed for the Remingtons. Darned good rifle, too!

The 725 probably missed out on such things, coming between the big conflicts as it did.

[puma guy]

Come to find out, my Father never looked up the history of this gun. Upon talking with him about it, I discovered that the first deer I shot (a Doe) was with this rifle. I was 11 years old. The only pic I could find did not include the gun, but it is of me, Dad, and Grandpa George (Lord rest his soul). Outstanding memories brought back to life!

Hoss, the pictures of your Rem 725 show a great a old rifle with a lot of character from the many years of hunting it's seen. What a story it could tell. Great photo of you and your Dad and Grandpa, too. I didn't start deer hunting until I was 46. If you are interested there's a date code in the form of two letters on the left side of the barrel indicating month and year of production. The Model 721 began production in 1948 but the 725's came out ten years later, of course. There are several websites that have the information, here's the one from Wisners and one from the Remington Society which also has a diagram. According to BlueBook 2,818 Model 725's were chambered in .270 Win.
http://www.wisnersinc.com/additional_in ... e_code.htm
http://www.remingtonsociety.com/rsa/que ... arrelcodes

[HOSSISFREE]

Puma Guy,

On the left side of the barrel, near the frame is "L E 30". According to the links you gave me, that means February 1958. What is the "30". is that #30 out of 2,818 made?

Absolutely awesome info by the way! Thank you!

Hoss

[puma guy]

Puma Guy,

On the left side of the barrel, near the frame is "L E 30". According to the links you gave me, that means February 1958. What is the "30". is that #30 out of 2,818 made?

Absolutely awesome info by the way! Thank you!

Hoss

The number to the right of the date code is referenced as "assembly" on the diagram but I don't think it's the production number. Numbers/digits to the left of the date code are for any repairs. I will look at my friend's 721 as soon as we get back to the deer lease to see what his has on it.

[puma guy]

Puma Guy,

On the left side of the barrel, near the frame is "L E 30". According to the links you gave me, that means February 1958. What is the "30". is that #30 out of 2,818 made?

Absolutely awesome info by the way! Thank you!

Hoss

The number to the right of the date code is referenced as "assembly" on the diagram but I don't think it's the production number. Numbers/digits to the left of the date code are for any repairs. I will look at my friend's 721 as soon as we get back to the deer lease to see what his has on it.

EDIT: Still havem't found any reference for the assembly number. I guess it could be the number of the day in the month of production. The numbers would run from 1-31 if that's the case. I have a couple of older Remington's that I can check, but they're shotguns.

[Bear67]

Great gun. I know it is special because of it's history. I have a Rem 722 (short action) in .257 Roberts that I bought used in 1959. I bought it from Roy Venson, a long deceased Tyler gunsmith and when I knew him, gun shop and shooting range owner. He worked for the Reynolds Brothers in Tyler before opening his own shop. This was his wife's rifle(she died in '59) and the stock had been shortened, so we added a thicker recoil pad. Mr Roy got me started bench rest rifle shooting, handloading and taught me many firearm skills and was a role model to lots of young guys who hung around his range often trading work for ammo or "stuff".

This rifle will shoot 1/2 to 3/4 groups at 100yds with 43.5 grs 4350 and 117 Nosler bullet. I can attest that it has killed more than 100 deer--both whitetails and muleys, 22 elk, and 5 antelope. That does not include the kills his wife made. It was made in October of 1949. It killed 2 deer for 2 grand sons this season. When I bought it I was working 70+hours a week for .75 an hour bailing hay summers and farming winters during school--I paid $70 for the gun with a Weaver K-3 and a set of Lyman dies. A weeks worth of labor well invested. Mr Roy started a love affair with the .257
Roberts and the .22 Hornet in another rifle that continues to this day.

It has a special place in our family's hunting and shooting stories, a prime place in the safe and will go to my oldest son when I hang up my spurs for the final time. AH MEMORIES