Nylon 66: Remington's Revolutionary Plastic Rifle

Ian, another interesting fact about the Nylon 66. In the early 1960s, Remington also sold chainsaws. One year they had a promotion that each dealer got a Nylon 66 to give away as part of the chainsaw marketing. At the time, my dad worked at an Oliver tractor dealer in Bristol, VA that also sold Remington chainsaws. I would go there after school and cleanup the shop, hustle parts and generally make a nuisance of myself. One year just before Christmas, Mr. Hull, the owner, called me into his office. He reminded me that I was too young for him to hire and pay me, but he said nothing prevented him from giving me a gift. He gave me the Nylon 66 that had been sent to him for the Remington chainsaw advertising campaign! One proud youngster! I wouldn’t begin to guess how many rounds have gone through that barrel, how many black walnuts have left the trees because of it, how many squirrels and rabbits were brought to the table (along with a few ruffed grouse!), but it still shoots better than these old eyes can see and still gives enjoyment through its memories and through watching my children and grandchildren enjoy it. Thanks for dredging up some old, pleasant memories.

Never thought I'd see the rifle my grandfather taught me to shoot with on here but here we are lol

When I was 7, my grandpa passed away. A few months later, my grandma gave my brother and I each one of his .22s. My brother got a Marlin; I got the Nylon 66. That rifle has been everywhere with me throughout my life. I’ve shot countless game (and a few fish) with it, and even as an adult, the rifle still spends more time flying around bungied to the lift strut of my plane than any other gun. To date, the rifle has never malfunctioned in any way, no matter how dirty. You highlighted the fact that it was a cheap, high profit rifle for Remington. What often gets lost in the telling is, on top of those things, it was also a very reliable, accurate, lightweight and durable rifle too. Really one of the few examples of a total success in the gun industry where the gun is both very cheap but also very good.

My grandfather, a thrice wounded WW1 Husar, taught me to shoot using the Remington Nylon 66 in the early '70s. When he passed a few years later he left the rifle to me. Not everyone can say that the man who taught him to shoot rode a horse into battle in the Great War.

One day at work, about 45 years ago, A guy came to me and said, "I hear you know a lot about guns. I took mine apart and I can't get it back together." The next day we went out to the parking lot where he opened the trunk of his car and handed me the stock of a Nylon 66, the barrel, and a cardboard box full of parts. There was also an exploded view drawing of the rifle which was not exactly an assembly drawing, but was useful, although several springs were just labeled, "spring." This was a very interesting project and I did manage to eventually get it back together and functioning. I learned a lot from that experience. Most of all, don't take your gun apart if you don't know what you are doing.

I know it’s not a rare gun but still very cool to see a gun my dad owns that I didn’t know anything about.

The Nylon 66 was very popular with the Eskimo's and Inuit in the artic regions of Alaska and Canada because of its extreme cold weather reliability and the fact that the plastic stock would not warp in those very low temperatures.

Mine still runs like a champ, and has since purchased in 1970. I use metal tubes as speed loaders to insert 14 .22LR cartridges. Thanks Dad! This was the BEST 16th Birthday present ever!

I want to express my heartfelt appreciation to Ian and the Forgotten Weapons channel for their dedication to showcasing and preserving the history of firearms like the Remington Nylon 66. It's fascinating to learn about the innovative approach Remington took in the 1950s, using polymer to revolutionize the design of a .22 self-loading rifle. The extensive testing and the successful production run spanning nearly three decades demonstrate the durability and reliability of this groundbreaking firearm.

Thanks Ian for showing some respect to these great little rifles, and all the great stories in the comments. My grandfather was killed on his farm tractor when I was 16 years old. When we got home from the funeral, my grandma went to a closet and brought his Apache Black, handed it to me, and said "he always wanted you to have this." Nearly 50 years later, it still shoots great and is beautiful to look at. Needless to say, it's the most cherished item in my collection.

The molded stock is really elegant. The engineers tested their product way more thoroughly then a lot af plastic designs from that time and even today. Pretty cool.

The amount of game taken with these is immense. What an incredible rifle!

A 66 in Mohawk Brown was my first rifle at 14 and still have it 58 years later. All my bolt action owning friends were jealous of it's rapid fire capability but their boxes of .22 ammo always lasted longer. Shooting rats at the dump was great fun and spraying lead at a running rat and connecting always left them in awe. Thanks Ian for covering this cool little .22.

My Dad gave me one for Christmas sixty years ago. It was and still is a cherished rifle for two reasons. First because my Dad trusted me to have my own firearm and secondly because the thing just shoots so great - accurate and super reliable. I still have the instruction sheet and it advises not to disassemble the rifle for cleaning and do not attempt to lubricate the internal workings. Now that I am a retired mechanical engineer, I truly respect the Remington engineers' accomplishment with an entirely new approach that has been so successful and enduring.

This was my great grandmas old trickshooting rifle. We still have the old thing and it still shoots rather reliably for how little care it gets.

I purchased this rifle while in basic training at Fort Polk Louisiana Rod and Gun Club for $40 in 1971. When I returned home, I checked it in at the airport in the same box it came in. When I arrived at LaGuardia Airport, it came off the luggage belt and no one gave me a second look. Times have changed since then. I still have that rifle and it will handed down to the grandkid when I’m no longer it’s caretaker.

The first firearm I ever shot was a Nylon 66. It’s still in the family with another family member. Loved that thing.

This rifle was manufactured under license here in Brazil by CBC from 1962 to 1992, 200,000 being made. At the time, CBC was controlled by DuPont and ICI. CBC is currently controlled by Taurus and is best known in the US through its ammunition brand Magtech. It also manufactures rifles and shotguns. It is a fine rifle and I still own one in black. Local lore is that it it the gun most frequently taken to gunsmiths in a sack of parts for reassembly, as one needs to be born with four hands with two thumbs on each to put it back together... If you tried to disassemble one, you know what I'm talking about... 😂

I have one of these! My dad bought it in 1973 and gave it to me for my own maybe 10 years ago as a "housewarming gift". It is insanely accurate, lightweight, and everybody loves checking it out. It's actually great for home defense because "it'll put bullets into somebody as fast as you can pull the trigger". And the thing is so light and responsive, you can pull the trigger super fast. He and I shot squirrels and targets with it for years and it is so impressive. I think he liked it because it reminded him of the M-16 he used in Vietnam.

These things are simple, but a blast to shoot. My father bought one for my grandmother before we inherited it and going out with her and plinking around was just so fun.