Ruger centerfire ?'s

IMO the wide, flat bottomed M77 receiver gives a really solid bedding surface to the stock. their diagonal recoil lug is actually an innovation praised by many people, this is the first ive heard of it being referred to as a 'drawback' from anyone other than people who are just grumbling about it being more difficult to glass bed :)

im a little busy at work at the moment but ill post a pic of the M77 receiver tonight for those people who havent seen one outside of the stock.

btw dave - what on earth is your avatar pic? LOL
 
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I've had my M77 for 25 years now. The integral scope mounts and steel scope rings is a superior feature. Mine is a rock solid shooter. Maybe I got lucky, but mine retains it's zero year after year. I can't say enough good things about it...besides Manbearpig has said it all!;)

It's a great hunting rifle and a superb shooter.

The CZ 550 American looks a fine gun too. Personally I'm not a fan of the Euro styled stocks of some of the other models CZ makes which makes caliber choice seem a little restrictive(i.e. No 7mm Rem mag or .300 win mag if you wanted one). Other than that is seems comparable in quality and finish.
 
the avatar is a picture of a ballchinian its from men in black the movie.

The Ballchinians are a race of aliens who generally wear cloth masks to cover their face, as (at least in males of the species) they possess part of their genitalia below their neck, and attached to their chin, hence their name. They had what some may consider goofy hair, and seemed to wear out-of-style human clothing. Other features include a short face that made it appear squished together, puckered lips, semi-pointed ears, and hanging jowels.

Its not that I consider the slanted recoil lug nescessarily a drawback , just makes me wonder what the reason behind it is and why Ruger designed it this way. It is unconventional and thats why I wonder. The barreled action will recoil directly back parallel to the bore line and a perpendicular recoil lug will put more of the available surface area to use. I certainly don't have all the answers and am open to being educated so if someone knows please pipe up
 
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the Ruger recoil lug's (thats cast as part of the receiver, not a 'washer' thats added to the bar-stock action like the 700 or savages) screw is on a backward 60° angle so that rather than just pulling the action down it pulls it down and back against the inletting. this is supposed to secure the action more firmly and consistently in the stock. whether or not this is an actual noticeable improvement, who knows, but the theory behind it seems to make sense.

the only drawback of this is that its more of a PITA to glass bed.
 
I've used a M77 MKII for years for hunting and it shoots great out of the box. Sure the trigger is on the heavy side, but if your just hunting with it lets face it, when you see a nice rack on a deer, and your adrenaline starts to pump, that rifle could have a 25lb pull and your trigger finger would pull it like it was nothin lol.
 
I've had my mk11 30-06 for 5 or 6 years now.

It's one of my guns that I won't sell.Stainless and the boat paddle stock grows on you after awhile.2 moose and 2 deer so far with it.
 
Forged?

manbearpig said:
its not really right to compare them to 'forged' anyway - most receivers these days are milled from bar stock, which is an inferior process to either forged or modern investment cast so its all a moot point. i feel better buying a forged M1A receiver because the receiver was designed with forging in mind and many companies that churn out M1A clones these days arent exactly the most reputable and known for QC. however, the M77 action was designed from the ground up and thoroughly tested as an investment cast receiver.
Click to expand...

Many modern rifle receivers are turned from tubing, not milled from bar stock. This is done for the same reason as investment casting; to cut cost. Current M1A receivers are made by investment casting in Montreal!
 
I owned an M77 in .338 win magnum but sold it only because I had purchased a 30-06 SIG for deer and moose. Bought the M77 specifically for moose. Very good rifle with relatively little felt recoil because of the weight of the firearm. It actually has less felt recoil than my Remington Model 6 pump in .270. I still wish I hadn't sold it.
I still own an M77 International in .250-3000 Savage that I intend to keep and hope to eventually give it to my grandson (7 years old now) when he is old enough. I bought it from a hunting buddy that had bought it for his son, but the kid wasn't interested in hunting. The only thing I don't like about this rifle is the cost of the cartridges...more expensive than .308,, .270 etc. But I intend to start doing re-loading this year.
 
I own several Ruger rifles and pistols. Great products at reasonable prices. My last Ruger centerfire was a stainless/laminated M77 MkII in .338WinMag I picked up new a few years ago. Had the 'smith beadblast all the stainless metalwork, mount a decelerator pad and tweak the trigger. Dependable, rugged & accurate rifle that's put several moose and elk in the freezer. My only complaint is the lack of checkering on the laminated handle.
 
Don't worry about Ruger triggers...Many factory triggers coudl use a tune up.

One of my Rugers has a Timney, but my 375 Ruger I just sent to Guntech and he smoothed it out and lightened it up for a very reasonable charge.

For that matter, the last Remington I owned I sent the trigger to him, too for the same thing.

So don't worry about triggers, they are easily dealt with.:)
 
I bought a M77 Mk II *Target* in .204 in Aug. '07. Maybe the *target* model sports a superior trigger to the rest of the Rugers, I don't know. But the last time I had it out trying some handloads, I could cover 10 holes with a loonie at 100 yrds. Its a keeper for sure. Yeah, its heavier than hell with the "VersaPod" bi-pod and the Bushnell Elite 5-15x40 added to the bare weight of 10.75 lbs...but it shoots gophers a hot damn!
They say it has a "two stage" trigger, you take up the creep then it breaks like glass with just a kiss of finger pressure. I love it and won't ever sell it.
 
i snapped a couple photos of a Ruger M77 Mark II receiver for people who havent seen one out of the stock. the 60° front bedding screw, two rear bedding screws and flat bottomed receiver offer a really solid bedding.

m77mkiireceiverfy0.jpg

heres the 3-position safety. it seems many people think (ive even seen this in gun rag reviews) that in the third position the safety only locks the cocking piece - this is incorrect. in both the 2nd and 3rd positions a cylinder rotates and blocks the trigger from moving. in the third position the safety also physically blocks the cocking piece and pushes a pin that locks the bolt.
m77mkiisafetygb8.jpg

you can also see the grove along the back of the trigger that identifies the LC6. if youre buying a used or new Ruger M77, if it has that groove its definitely an LC6 trigger. if the back of the trigger is flat then it is the old Mark II trigger. there is no creep on the LC6 trigger on this rifle, and it breaks like glass. i dont have a scale with me but id guess its around 2-2.5lbs.

i should also note that the finish on my blued Ruger is much nicer. the stainless/target grey models are a touch 'rougher' like this.
 
Ruger M77

I have a first gen. M77 in 300 Win. mag and it shoots great. A little on the heavy side, but I like it. Also have a M77 MKII in 223, it too shoots great. No comlaints. But I do wonder why they designed thier stocks with the contact patch at the far end of the forearm?? Both of mine shot better once the barrel was free floated. Very well constructed and good metal to wood fit on both rifles. Eric
 
I have a No 1 223 and a 30-06 stainless Mk II. Both are very accurate and I expect them to get better when I am feeding them handloads. My 77MK II is also a leftie which can be hard to get. Fit and finish are excellent and they cycle flawlessly. Oddly enough everybody I asked about them told me they were best bang for buck and known for reliability.
 
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Ruger accuracy isn't an issue...They are more than accurate enough for hunting....

Here, I will trudge these out..again..

Ruger MKII, 7RM, 14 shots, 14 diffrent powder charges..

Picture857-copy.jpg


375 Ruger. 260gr Accubond

Leopardhide275-copy.jpg
 
The triggers on some of the older Ruger rifles seemed to be a bit difficult, I particularly had problems with a 77/22 magnum that I had the opportunity to shoot for a while. It wasn't mine, so I couldn't really send it out for improvement. My Ruger #1, and the trigger on my pal's new .375 Alaskan were close enough to perfect that I saw no reason to mess with either of them.

We haven't shot the Alaskan for accuracy yet, and I want to play around with loads for a while before we do, besides -38 and windy isn't conducive to good groups. The Ruger #1 (mine was a .416 Rigby) despite lost of press on the need for tweaking, shot MOA right out of the box. What it did need was even bedding of the butt as it failed twice.
 
btw if you want to lighten your Ruger trigger a little, cheap, brownells sells lighter replacement springs for $3. they charge like a buck shipping, so its a whopping $4-5 total.
of course this doesnt affect any creep issues you may have.
 
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