Yes there has been a recall (or at least I believe it is defined that way) for the 700.
I don't know how much of this is poor quality (though in the case of the R51 the quality and perhaps parts of the design had horrible manufacturing quality) and how much is living with a much higher expectation due to consumer safety visibility and litigation, speed and scale of consumer communication and understandably higher expectations set by other companies that exceeds Remington's abilities to put out a safe and reliable firearm. When people note that they're not like they used to be, they may be grading on the safety and price curves of then versus now.
The 700 trigger issue likely would not have been identified, no less addressed in the 1940's and 50's. Yea, a scant few went off when the safety was set but who would know? No internet, not a newsworthy story. And the failure rate is just too low for it to be a gunstore-lore and/or a letter-writing event back in the day. But it is unacceptable and has to be dealt with in the 21st century. And I'd be curious to know if these low-end 700's, when adjusted for inflation, are just too inexpensive to build properly and safely. Especially using the outdated manufacturing techniques that Remington has clung to (yes, that is their fault).
Put another way, I'm not sure how much Remington has slipped versus others just out-executing them. And I am the last person to defend Rem. I hate when a U.S. company fails to rise up against foreign (and domestic) competition and beat them. The bar has been raised in the firearms business. Not enough if you ask me. And Remington has not kept up.
B
