American Rifleman by Eugene Myszkowski May 8, 2022
A look back at the history of Remington's pump-action rifles reveals a few interesting facts. 
The first production Model 760 (r.), serial No. 1001, was presented to Remington Arms Co. President C.K. Davis. It was
engraved by the firm’s master engraver, Carl Ennis, and gold game scenes were inlaid on both sides of the receiver.
The modern family of Remington pump-action rifles can be traced back to 1933, when Charles Kuhn Davis took over as company president. Davis recognized that the Model 14 pump-action, which was introduced in 1912, was by then outdated and expensive to manufacture. The Model 141, a cosmetic update of the Model 14, appeared in 1935. Remington’s Crawford C. Loomis and his design team were authorized on January 20, 1936, to develop the Model 49 pump-action as a replacement for the 141, but work on it stopped in 1939 and on June 13, 1940, design work on an entirely new model began. It was given the in-house engineering studies designation “Model 760.”
But all Remington’s commercial projects were put on hold after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, so the company could focus its efforts on the war effort. Work resumed in late 1943 on the Model 760 with three sizes of receivers: .300 H&H Mag. and .30-’06 Sprg.; .35 Rem; and .22 Hornet and .30 Carbine. A prototype rifle in .30-’06 Sprg. was first tested in 1944.
By 1947, there were actually two design teams working on a pump-action rifle—Remington’s Technical Division in Ilion, N.Y., and the Du Pont Engineering Department in Wilmington, Del. An inevitable “turf war” developed, and Davis resolved the conflict by putting Du Pont’s L. Ray Crittendon on the Remington design team. Crittendon had managed the development of the U.S. Model 1903A3 during World War II and then the Model 11-48 autoloading shotgun.
His pump-action rifle, based on the dimensions of the 28-ga. Model 11-48 shotgun receiver, was selected and subjected to extended function and endurance tests. Its original Model 762 designation was changed to Model 760 on May 22, 1950, to avoid confusion with the 7.62 mm Russian cartridge. Later, the “Gamemaster” tradename was added to tap into the good will and reputation built up by the venerable Models 14 and 141.
The new Model 760 was introduced to the public in Remington’s 1952 consumer catalog in three calibers. The.30-’06 Sprg. rifles became available in January 1952, followed by .300 Savage in April and the .35 Rem. in July. Sales in 1952 surpassed all marketing predictions, and they totaled 63,735: 41,417 in .30-’06 Sprg.; 14,431 in .300 Savage; and 7,887 in .35 Rem. The first production Model 760, serial No. 1001—“F”-grade engraved and inlaid with gold game scenes by Remington master-engraver Carl Ennis—was presented to Davis. It is currently on display at the Remington Museum in Ilion, N.Y. Almost all of 1952’s production was “A” grade with a plain, low-comb stock. The receiver was not drilled or tapped for scope mounts or a receiver sight, and the new rifle had an overall length of 42", a 22" barrel and a weight of 7½ lbs.
The Model 760 ADL “Deluxe” and BDL “Deluxe Special” grades were first offered in 1953, with both featuring high-comb, checkered stocks, receivers drilled and tapped for scope mounts and receiver sights. The buttstocks and the action-tube endcaps were fitted for sling swivels, and the checkering pattern employed is called by today’s collectors “5 Diamond” (not a Remington designation).
Total 1953 sales were 81,428 rifles, of which 11,822 were ADLs or BDLs. The next year, production increased to 85,065 rifles, while it dropped to 30,099 in 1955 due to the introduction of the new autoloading Model 740 rifle. Persistent consumer complaints about the “rattle” of the ejection port cover were answered by changing the steel cover to one made of a black nylon resin called Zytel. An “all purpose” high-comb stock was fitted to the A and ADL grades in 1958, while the BDL was dropped.
The first major change to the 760 occurred in 1960 with the introduction of the Model 760 C carbine. The carbine’s action tube did not extend past the end of the fore-end and an “O” ring was fitted in the fore-end to reduce rattle. Both were so successful that they were later incorporated into all 760s. The CDL carbine grade appeared a year later, and it was equivalent to the ADL rifle. Both the carbine and the rifle were fitted with new sights compatible with the “all purpose” stocks. The carbine had an overall length of 38½", an 18½" barrel and a weight of 7¼ lbs.
More:
https://www.americanrifleman.org/content/remington-s-pump-rifles-models-760-7600/
