I have a 308 remington 742 and a friend of mine has a model 742, 243 barrel that he says I can have. Just wondering what I would have to do to change barrels. thanks

turko

You will need someone who has a barrel vise and wrench to remove the 308W barrel. This could cost you anywhere from 0 to $100. Then you need that same person to screw on the 243 barrel. Now the fun part begins. The 243 barrel may or may not fit. Headspace could be wrong. Barrel tenon could be wrong. Recess for bolt nose could be wrong. May not index properly. Need more? Fixing one or more of these things can cost big bucks. Or you may get lucky and have the 243 barrel screw right on and fit perfectly, at which point you should run out and buy a lottery ticket because this is your day.

Ray

Swapping out the barrel assembly is easy. The barrel assembly is held to the receiver by a nut that is easily removed once you pull the forend from the action arm assembly.

You will need to remove the forearm, the action spring guide and the action spring to access the take down nut. The Barrel and bolt locking lugs are assembled as one unit and easily swapped. Since the barrel extension contains the locking lugs, the headspace is be fixed. It wouldn't hurt though, to have someone who is familiar with this model to help you make the swap. Be sure to double check the headspace to be safe. Good luck.

Thanks guys, I don't use this gun much anymore. First thing I bought when I turned 18 in high school back in "76" and will just leave it as is

I have a 742 with a bad chamber,have been looking for a either a 243 or 6mm barrel to fix problem. Would you friend be interested in selling the barrel??