M77

[FATTTTDADDY]

i bought a m77  30/06 wood and blue today it has a pentax lightseeker scope the scope sells for around 500.00 the gun is in great shape a few dings in the wood but over all real nice shape i got it for 375.00 is that a good price and do they shoot good?

[George Foster]

In answer to your questions Yes, and Yes.  Very good price and Rugers do shoot well.  As with any other rifle you might have to tweak it a little to get the best accuracy.

[Coyote Hunter]

FATTTTDADDY –

Congrats on a super deal!  I purchased a Ruger M77 with a Leupold M8 4x mounted for $400 and I though I got a steal!

You ask if they shoot – the answer is a qualified “Yes”.  I have two M77’s and two M77 MKII’s and they all shoot.  You might want to do some tuning up, however.

First thing I would do is float the barrel, then reseal it with polyurethane.  This job takes about 10 minutes with a Magic Marker, sandpaper and a screwdriver.  After removing the stock, loop the sandpaper around the Magic Marker and sand the barrel channel so that it doesn’t touch the barrel when the action is installed in the stock.  I use a $1 bill to check for clearance.  While your new rifle may shoot great without floating, I float all my barrels.  When I got my first centerfire (one of the M77’s) I discovered I couldn’t zero it – the more I shot the more the bullets walked up and to the left.  Floating the barrel solved this problem and prevented others.

The second thing I would do is tune up the trigger, another job I do to all my firearms.  Some Ruger triggers are excessively heavy, others are pretty good.  

Here’s how my Rugers can shoot when things go right (wind, etc.):

M77 7mm Mag = 0.266”, 3 shots, 100 yards
M77 .257 Roberts = 0.65”, 3 shots, 100 yards
M77 MKII .300 Win Mag synthetic (canoe paddle stock) = 0.85”, 4 shots, 100 yards
M77 MKII VT .22-250 = 0.50”, 4 shots, 200 yards