Ruger M77RS 358WCF or Remington 600 350 RemMag

[little joe]

Hello,

Want a .35 caliber woods rifle and will get one of the following two rifles.

1. Ruger M77RS 19" factory barrel in 358 WCF (Dealer special)
or
2. Remington 600 18" barrel in 350 RemMag

My ONLY concern is the "Out of the Box" problems SOMETIMES associated with the Ruger M77R rifles ( circa 1980 - not a MK II ).
1. Accuracy
2. Trigger

Used for:

1. 50-200 yard shots 150-600# deer and elk timber, clear cuts and fields
2. Cost and condition about the same
3. Already have 270W, 338 WM, 44M and 45-70

Thanks Littlejoe

 

[dakotasin]

i like the 350 rem mag, but will admit that is just a personal preference thing.

 

[eldon519]

Do you reload your own ammo? If not I might look for a .35 Whelen if I were you. The other two are sadly dying off I believe. A quick look at Midway shows only 1 Winchester load and 3 Double Tap loadings for the .358 Winchester. The .350 Rem Mag has 1 load from Nosler and 1 load from Remington. The .35 Whelen has 4 loads from Double Tap, 1 load from Federal, 3 loads from Nosler, and 2 loads from Remington.

Even if you do reload, I would stick with the .358 or the .35 Whelen because they can be made from readily found .308 or .30-06 brass respectively. .350 Rem Mag is not so easy. I like the .35s and I don't want to dissuade you from them, but with a .338 WM, do they really gain much for you?

 

[Dallas Jack]

Of the two you mention I prefer the Model 600 but I have always been a fan of the 600. Unless thier is a compailing reason (like price) to get one of the two I would consider a long action 35 Whelen. Just for ammo and brass availablity reasons.
Dallas Jack

 

[little joe]

Thanks for the input guys.

I already have a 338 WM.

I will be reloading. 100-150 cases should last the rest of my life.

I want a .35 Caliber stalking gun w/scope in the 6.5 to 7# range an 18-19" barrel that is handy and fast on target, that will drop a 150# deer or 600# elk at 50-75yds in timber or 75-250yds from the timber line out into a hay field.

LilJoe

 

[ECVMatt]

I vote for the Ruger. I have owned several over the last few years and have had zero problems. I also owned a 600 and had some problems with the safety. I would sometimes fire when I took the safety off. I sold it to a gentleman who was a collector and not a shooter. He promised to pass along the info about safety/trigger if he ever sold the gun.

Rugers are simple, accurate, and stout. I would give them a good look,

Matt

 

[Gordon]

The .350 RM in a 600 is about the top of the heap of your specs. Nowadays the .350 is experiencing a mini comeback as you can really get a 225 grain bullet to get to 2600 fps in that 18" barrel. That is a fierce load as is a 250 grainer at 2500 fps! The best a .358 can push a 225 is about 2300 and 2200 for the 250, on a good day!

 

[rangerruck]

yes, oh God yes, the remmy , ... oh the wonderful 600 series. I could go on, but I will stop here. Lets just say, any 600 is worth it's weight in Gold almost, these days. Get one and hang on... plus that cartridge, on that short bbl, were really made for each other.

 

[SwampWolf]

I vote for the Ruger for all the reasons cited by ECVMatt. Though my experience with the calibers being considered is limited to the .358 Winchester, ballistically, the .358 is to the .350 Magnum much as the 30-06 Springfield is to the .300 H and H Magnum, with the .35 Whelen sort of riding in-between the two-broadly speaking.

 

[eldon519]

I'd go with the .358 then. It'll do what you asked (250 yards) with less recoil and blast. With short barrels on magnums, a lot of that extra oomph just gets wasted out of the muzzle.

 

[Silent Sam]

That 358 Ruger may be somewhat of a collector item depending on condition. M77 triggers are adjustable for weight and can be cleaned up or replaced easily. I have never had a problem getting my Rugers to shoot well. Besides, within the range we are talking about you don't need MOA accuracy. My vote would be the 358 anyway regardless of platform. It will do anything you want out to and more out to 225-250 yds w/ less recoil and blast. Just a big flat 'boom'. Brass for reloading is easy. Winchester makes a run once a year or you can neck up 308 or 338 Federal in a single pass. 200 gr bullets will work on any deer and 225 partitions will ruin any elks day. I load 225 Sierras for practice and deer and use the same load w/ Partitions for bigger stuff and don't even mess w/ any other bullet weight anymore. They run 2450 fps (chronographed) out of my BLR w/ a 20" barrel and that is not a "hot' load. Absolutely devastating on game. I have used it on moose and would do so again. The only reason I have a BLR is because Ruger wasn't chambering the 358 at the time and older M77s were priced quite high if you could find one, which wasn't easy. If you don't take that Ruger I would be interested.

 

[lefteyedom]

There has always been a niche market for the Remington 600 rifles which has supported their prices over the years. The 350 Remington was 40 years ahead of its time, if it were being brought out today with the belt removed the gun press would be falling all over it self with praise.
The 350 rem will do a better job on large game such as Elk, Bear and the fear-sum Wyoming Jackalope.

 

[Silent Sam]

I don't know how a 350 Remington "will do a better job" using the same bullet. If you've got more muzzle velocity it will get you more range. If you run the numbers figuring a 200fps advantage to the 350 it really doesn't buy you much in less drop. It does deliver more energy but how much do you need? A 225gr bullet will give you 2000 ft/lbs at 2000 fps. Enough for any moose or elk that walks. With a Sierra or Partition starting out 2450 that puts you right around 225 yds. And both those bullets will still reliably expand down to 1800 fps impact velocity. If you need more energy than that w/ a 35 cal bullet you are welcome to the increased recoil and muzzle blast. The thing about the 358 is it is so well balanced for "short" barrels. As far as comparing the 350 w/ the Whelen, the two cartridges have almost exactly the same case capacity, so ballistically they are virtually identical if loaded to the same pressure w/ the same barrel length. Most Whelens I have seen have been made up in 24" barrels. I have never seen one w/ less than a 22" tube. Let us know what you decide on and yes I would still like a crack at that 358 if you don't.

 

[MichaelK]

I want a 35 caliber rifle too, because I discovered you can easily make quality .358" bullets out of recycled .223 cases. I'm left handed though so that puts a damper on things. My idea is to get a left-handed Savage 110-114-116 in .30-06, remove the barrel, and put on .35 Whelen barrel. Figure I could do this for about 650$ covering the cost of the rifle, barrel, and barrel nut wrench.

 

[MachIVshooter]

The Early 77's are good guns, I have one in 6mm Rem. The 600's are also excellent. If it were just the rifle you were trying to choose, I'd say 6 of one, a half dozen of the other. However, the .350 RM is more available and a good bit more potent than the .358. That should make it a pretty easy decision.

 

[SwampWolf]

However, the .350 RM is more available and a good bit more potent than the .358. That should make it a pretty easy decision.

True-unless the significantly greater recoil of the .350 Magnum is an issue.

 

[Fe Man]

I had a 600 in 350 Rem Mag many years ago; lost in a car fire!

Load as hell and kicked lick a mad mule if I remember correctly.

 

[highorder]

Ruger M77RS 19" factory barrel in 358 WCF (Dealer special)

The .358 is just cooler.

 

[Wanta B]

Both!! Realy tho',both are great cartridges. The 358Win with todays powders and bullets nearly equals the original .375HH and the .350RM may just pass it,as pointed out earlier was ahead of it's time.

I have resently been bitten by the .35 cal. bug...looking at getting a new Ruger hawkeye allweather in .350RM.

The "short magnums" do VERY well with short barrels and light to mid weight projectiles. The "long magnums" do better with the heavier projectiles.Those short fat cases are feakn' great!! Brass in no problem for either round if you reload as you have staited.

A budy back home has both a short barreled Ruger 20" in .350RM and a 22" barreled Ruger in .35Whelen..He says that they are about even with 250gr projectiles...the .350RM is faster with the lighter stuff and the Whelen pulls ahead with the heavier.

Remington makes their 7600 and 750 in a .35 Whelen 18".

 

[little joe]

Thanks for all of the thoughtful posts.

Last night I purchased a Ruger M77RS 358wcf with the 19" barrel. Used, but 98+% with a Leupold 1.5x5 scope.

Gonna put the 1.5x5 on my Marlin 1894P 44Mag ( wifes gun ) and a 2.5x8 on the M77.