Ruger M77/22lr or 10/22

Rem700..300 · Oct 25, 2023

Have a chance to pick up a blued/walnut Ruger 77/22 for a fair price. Have been wanting 1 for a while. When handling it and checking out function in the store I was amazed at how 10/22ish it felt except the bolt action. I know opinions are like behinds, everyone has one. Are they worth the extra money?

Knobgoblin · Oct 25, 2023

Buy it , and I'll buy it from you if it's not a keeper

USMC1911 · Oct 25, 2023

The 77/22 is a tack driver right out of the box. Worth the money? Well that depends. 10/22 need a few things imo for it to work to my preference. My 77/22 has a scope and thats it.

WAYNO · Oct 25, 2023

I have a lot of experience with many 77/22's and 10/22's.

There's no doubt, the 77/22 is a much nicer rifle, but in every case, no 77/22 was as accurate as any of my 10/22's.

There's maybe a 3rd choice... I have also much experience with the American Rimfire rifles. They are more accurate than either the 10/22 or 77/22.

s1xty7 · Oct 25, 2023

I wanted a 77/22 for so long but always heard the Ruger American Rimfire was a more accurate gun for less money. I ended up buying a RAR a few years back, had it threaded, and put some Tech Sights on it along with the rubber Ultimate Gun Sling. Thing is super accurate and super fun. Throw a can on it and it's about as quiet shooting as you could imagine. Takes 10/22 mags/drums and thanks to the stainless/synthetic combo, is about as weather proof as a gun could be. I'll setup some clay pigeons on a hillside and sit back shooting the progressively smaller pieces while I listen to the birds chirp around me. It's fun times. I even have a 10/22 mag modded to load and shoot 22 shorts just for kicks. One of my favorite rifles and 22lr bolt and lever action guns are about my favorite guns.

Never regretted getting the RAR over the 77/22, and I'd take either over my 10/22. Just no thrill to me without participating in the loading of the next round. Good luck with your choice!

K-22 · Oct 25, 2023

Rem700..300 said:
Have a chance to pick up a blued/walnut Ruger 77/22 for a fair price. Have been wanting 1 for a while. When handling it and checking out function in the store I was amazed at how 10/22ish it felt except the bolt action. I know opinions are like behinds, everyone has one. Are they worth the extra money?

There is a reason they are selling fo $700-$1,000 all day long.
That being said, do not be surprised if a little work may be needed.
Go to the Ruger section of RimfireCentral, and much will be revealed.

Best,
Gary

Rem700..300 · Oct 25, 2023

Thank you everyone for your input. Going to do more research. Yes 799 is a lot which is what this one is listed at. It would fit in great with the other Ruger M77s.

gmerkt · Oct 26, 2023

I have a wood stock 77/22, first year. I've had mine for a while now. They trade for $700 to $800 for a fact but I'm not sure why. You can't really compare a 77/22 to a 10/22. The 77 is an all steel action, more like a centerfire rifle. Whereas the 10/22 is more similar to other semi-autos with a soft metal receiver. I'm not nuts about the rotary magazine in the 77. I don't shoot the 77 much; I keep it as a store of value like a gold coin. I did buy a spare magazine for it just in case.

Mike_M57 · Oct 26, 2023

I've never owned a 77/22 and the only person I knew who did have one (back in the late '80s) was unhappy with it. He'd spent several hundred dollars on gunsmithing and trying every type/brand of ammo he could find to get it to shoot. His was never able to get groups under 1/2" @ 100 yds. even with "match grade" ammo. Nice looking guns, but his experience killed any interest I had in buying one for myself.

Maybe things have changed since then? I would hope so.

K-22 · Oct 26, 2023

Mike_M57 said:
I've never owned a 77/22 and the only person I knew who did have one (back in the late '80s) was unhappy with it. He'd spent several hundred dollars on gunsmithing and trying every type/brand of ammo he could find to get it to shoot. His was never able to get groups under 1/2" @ 100 yds. even with "match grade" ammo. Nice looking guns, but his experience killed any interest I had in buying one for myself.

Maybe things have changed since then? I would hope so.

Disappointed he could not get groups under 1/2" at 100 yards with a .22 rf sporter?
Methinks his expectations have exceeded his grasp of reality.

Knobgoblin · Oct 26, 2023

For affordable accuracy in a rimfire bolt gun , it's Marlin or Savage. Cz is also going to be a safe bet, for a bit more money. Have not tried either of the newer Ruger offerings ( precision rimfire, American) .
The main attraction of the 77/22 is it's similar weight and feel to a real centerfire bolt gun. I don't know why, but that seems to generate value for me and plenty of other potential buyers.

Dozer99 · Oct 26, 2023

3 shots touching at 100 yards - Ruger American 22 WMR with Leupold VX-II 3x9x44 off of sandbags.

My Ruger 77/22 WMR has not been able to replicate that but it is still fun to shoot (not fun to carry as it's too heavy).

If it was me, I would still buy the 77/22 and anything under a thousand for one in VG shape is worth it. For some odd reason they really hold their value.

VinnieBoomBah · Oct 26, 2023

Knobgoblin said:
Buy it , and I'll buy it from you if it's not a keeper

This is the way. Sometimes the reality doesn't meet the expectations and the only way to tell is to get one and try it out

K-22 · Oct 26, 2023

VinnieBoomBah said:
This is the way. Sometimes the reality doesn't meet the expectations and the only way to tell is to get one and try it out

If you really want to raise your Ruger rimfire rifle game, check out Connecticut Precision Chambering.
You will not be disappointed.

Dungannon · Oct 26, 2023

My first [new] .22LR was a stainless Ruger 77/22. No regrets and still have it. A scope and light polishing of the action is all that I've done. I don't think I could consistently get 1/2"groups @ 100 yards with any .22LR.

While I'd like to think I could many years ago, my 72 year old body [joints, eyes, hand tremor, and memory] are an ever ready excuse with the grandkids these days. As long as it's minute-of-ground-squirrel at 75 yards I'm happy.

Rem700..300 · Oct 26, 2023

The 77/22 is lighter than my M77 30.06 but I know I need to shoot more to get back to what I used to be able to do. When I have my 30.06 or 300wm it would probably be a funny sight to see if it had an ink pen in the end of the barrel drawing on a piece of paper while I am getting settled on the target. Probably be quite the pattern.
I am impress with some of the accurracy people are mentioning. My old Mossbergs do quite well also.
Mainly go to use it for shooting without a bench.

Ura-Ki · Oct 26, 2023

For that kind of Cash, I would look for a good used Winchester Mod-52 or Anchutz Mod-64 or it's variants, you want a tack driver, THOSE two will certainly out shoot all the others combined!
Still, I wouldn't turn my nose up at a Ruger 77/22, damn nice rifles, but for that kind of money, not so much, maybe look for a nice late 90's Remington 541-T/HB if you want a nice traditional looking rifle that shoots lights out all day long!

Mike_M57 · Oct 27, 2023

K-22 said:
Disappointed he could not get groups under 1/2" at 100 yards with a .22 rf sporter?
Methinks his expectations have exceeded his grasp of reality.

Well, he was pretty jealous of my Winchester Model 52, which can shoot under 1/2" @ 100 yds. all day long. He even offered to buy it from me. I laughed. Right in his face.

Like I said, I'd never fired a 77/22 (still haven't). I didn't know if it was capable of that level of accuracy or not. I just assumed it was because back then I still believed that Ruger actually made quality firearms. Silly me.

The Heretic · Oct 28, 2023

Personally I prefer tube fed mag bolt actions. I do have 3 (or is it 4?) 10/22 rifles, and a Christensen Ranger that uses the 10/22 mag, but the problem with those is that they do not feed shorts or longs or some other specialty ammo.

A semi is fine for quick follow up shot if you miss a small game animal with the first shot, but IME the bolt actions are more accurate out of the box, and I like that tube fed mag that feeds almost anything.