Remington 7400 vs Browning BAR

[EKUgrad]

Is the Browning worth the extra $$$$? Several people in my family have and like the Remington, but I don't know anyone with the Browning. Of course the magazines say so, but they probably have more money than me to start off with (and who ever heard of a magazine writing type liking the cheaper of a pair?).....

Thanks.

[kyhunter270]

I have hunted with my Browning BAR for about 7 years now and would take nothing for it. It is a sweet shooting weapon that is accurate and just a really great quality smoke pole. I have never had any hangups and the only thing you need not to do with this weapon is not shoot magnum shells through it. :D

[brandon2000]

I had the rem model 742 in 30-06 and the browning bar in 30-06 and would reccomend the browning. I was smoother shooting and never had any hang ups like my 742. Just my opinion though.

[WINGMAN]

I have had both the browning bar in the 270. and the 30-06. Right now I am shooting a 7400 in 270., I have never had a problem with this gun. I like them both about the same, I believe for the money Remington makes the best shooting gun you can buy out of the box.

[hunter115]

Hands down the Browning is the best. Remington magazines and feed problems have plauged them for years.

[gun hunter]

I have two brother inlaws one owning a Browning and the other owns a Remington.The one with the Browning says shooting side by side the Browning is best by far.

[plowboy]

I have the 7400 in 30.06, really sweet BUT, you have to be careful about the type of ammo you use or it will hang. Blows my mind but it hangs with Remington ammo and not with Winchester????????:confused:

[Tha' Hat]

My dad has an old 742 Woodsmaster in .30-06. I've killed a couple of deer with it, including my biggest buck ever. It's pretty accurate, but very picky about ammo and not always reliable if not kept squeaky clean and well lubed.

Never had any experience with the BAR, but I'm a Browning fan through and through.

[WINGMAN]

I guess there are good ones and bad ones in evrything. Like I said I have owned both and both are very good shooters In my mind. For the money I would choose the remington. As far as ammo goes I have used an assortment through my 7400 and never experienced any hang ups. I like the remington core lokt loads they seem to be just fine.

[TROPHYTAKER308]

browning..

[Born to Hunt]

I can't comment on the Browning...I've never owned or fired a BAR. I have owned a 7400 in .270 Win and still have a 742 in .243 Win...never had a malfunction from either of them.

I was at the range a few days before rifle season and a really nice gentleman came in with a BAR in .270 Win that he had just bought that day at a local pawn shop. It worked fine for the first two or three shots and then the next three in a row it would eject the spent case but failed to pick up a fresh case???

This doesn't mean that I'm trying to make you think harshly of the Browning. I have no vested interest either way and considering this rifle was used...who knows how it may have been mistreated???

[C.L.Button]

I have owned both in a .270 Cal. The Remington was a nice rifle and never hung up. The Browning was a tad bit smoother and I felt that made it easier on a second shot if it was needed. The Browning never hung up either.

[beaver396]

i got a bar .270 weatherby mag and a bar 7mm. both are great guns, i cant afford to shoot the .270 45$ a box for shells. the 7mm is over 30 yrs old and has never hung up to my knowledge. keep in mind that the bar are very heavy. if i hunt in the mountains ill use a 700 remington instead.

[GSP]

I am very familiar with the 7400's, 30.06. I have been using the same 74 Sportsman (cheap version of 7400) since 1983. It has NEVER hung, jammed and gave me anything but reliable use. My dad bought one a year later and it gave him fits! It hung shells in chamber, ejector spring broke, Remington finally replaced entire receiver and bolt. Rifle did fair after that. I bought him a new one 6 years ago and it has been trouble free.
I have shot several BARs, they are VERY smooth rifles. I have not owned one, but I feel they are a very fine rifle.
If I had to put my life on the line against a big critter, I would choose my 74 Sportsman. I has never let me down.

[Hurricane]

I can't say much on the browning as I have never owned one. I have shot a few, but not enough to form an opinion.

As for the Remington, I have a 6mm 742 and a .30-06 742 BDL. I have been hunting with the '06 for about 15 yrs. now and have never had any trouble. My dad also has a .30-06 742 BDL and has hunted with it EVERY season since the mid 70's. He'd rather not go hunting than go with another gun. We both use Rem. 180gr. soft points. I beleive the trick to the Remington is to keep it extremely clean in the receiver and to ALWAYS make sure the bolt is completely closed. When I chamber the first round I will make sure the bolt is closed by pushing it forward after I have let it slam shut.

Either way you go, Good luck!

[Hurricane]

I got to thinking about this a little more.

If you were planning on buying a used rifle, Be sure to check it out thoroughly. The Remington could give you problems if the previous owner hadn't kept the inside of the receiver clean and the lugs on the bolt have been damaged. Also the feeding problems that sometimes occur with these guns are often due to a damaged clip. The top part of the clip can get bent sometimes and cause a new shell not to come out be chambered as smoothly. As I mentioned in the above post my dad and I both shoot Rem. autos as well as all but one of our hunting buddies. That is about 7 Rem. autos that I have been around for several hunting seasons and the only problem I have witnessed was due to a bent clip. In this instance after the first round was shot the clip would release and try to fall out of the receiver. Our buddy had an extra clip and tried it in the same gun and it worked with no problems.

If you were looking to buy a new rifle...I read a review in a magazine recently about a new Rem. model 750 Woodsmaster. I can't find anything on the net about it, but I do have the magazine at home. Remington has supposedly redesigned the 7400 inside and renamed it a new model #. You might consider waiting for this to come out.

[brad541thb]

I have a Browning Bar Mark II(BOSS) 270Win. I know people who have owned the Rem 7400. I can tell you that the Browning Bar is the better built gun and also the more accurate gun. My Bar with the BOSS on the end of the barrel will shoot with most factory produced bolt action rifles at 100yds for 5 shot groups and will beat several in the process. It will laugh at 1 in groups. My first 3 shots with cheap Win Super-X 130gr bulllets were in the .5's at 100yds. I have shot 10 shots back to back without letting the barrel cool into a target at 100yds and you could cover all 10 shots with a half dollar. And that was just ripping shot after shot off without letting the barrel cool except to reload the magazine.

Get the Browning Bar, and don't look back. They are the ultimate deer gun in my honest opinion.

Brad