"New" ruger m77 owner

[Rock_Steady]

I was just given a Ruger M-77 chambered for .250 savage after the passing of my wife's grandfather - Didn't know him well, but we spoke of hunting and shooting quite a bit. We had some things in common, we were both paratroopers anyway. Beautiful rifle, and I've seen on the boards here that some still use them for whitetail, which I may do myself this year.

What I don't know about are the particular quirks, oddities, or things I should look for with this rifle. It was made in 1976, I believe (serial 72-15XXX). The thin ruger barrel looks like it may have issues when it heats up - that's the only thing I can observe off the bat. Are there any other things I should watch for on this rifle?

Thanks

 

[Linemup]

250 Savage

The M77 is a nice rifle, and the small barrel will heat up if shot alot at one time. But it is not a target rifle,it is meant to be hunted with where only one or two shots are fired at game. If you sight it in and plan on firing many shots thru it,just let the barrel cool down between shot groups.

 

[Delmar]

Rock-just keep the screws properly tightened, and feed it the ammo it likes. What you should be watching for is the holes it puts into bambi!

What you have is a hunting rifle, although it should show you a decent group of about an inch at 100 yards off a sandbag rest. That skinny barrel will heat up if you fire off a magazine quickly. I have a Remington bolt gun in 270 Win., and I have learned to group it quite well by firing 1 shot every 3 minutes for 4 shots, then let it cool for 5 minutes or so. I'm thinking something similar will work for you too.

Do you plan on handloading for it? The 250 Savage IMO, is a fine deer caliber out to a couple of hundred yards and will make many fine meals out of the biggest buck in West Virginny! I think you'll find factory ammo selection to be on the slim side, but I'd want to test it with 87, 100, 117 and 120 grain bullets to see which one it likes best.

It's really too bad that people sniff at the 250-it does everything its supposed to do provided you do the same.

 

[Rock_Steady]

I might be catching that bug.......

Yeah, since getting the rifle and doing some searching, I have found that factory ammo is just about nonexistant - and pretty pricey! I might have to think about starting my own reloading shop. One problem with this hobby......it works pretty hard on the bank account!