Looked at the Ruger website...can’t get a standard Model M77 anymore. They have a nice walnut/stainless rifle in a limited caliber selection. Can’t even get a .270 anymore.

Forget a blued job unless you want a compact or safari model.

Looks like another classic hunting rifle is falling by the wayside

I have a M77 in 270 I have had for many yrs. It is NOT the the sought after tang safety though. But it is still my favorite bolt action I have in the safe. I still use it quite often so not a safe queen.

The first rifle I bought with my own money was a M77 in 220 swift. Still my favorite rifle and a joy to shoot. I’ve since picked up a 7-08 compact and 7WSM. All three are the standard blued with walnut stock. My dad recently got a Ruger African in 6.5 Swede and it’s incredible. For me, nothing will ever look better than the Winchester model 70 and the Ruger m77. The #1 is in its own class, just don’t own one yet.
I know the Ruger Americans sell like crazy and they are simply filling demand. Cheap plastic guns or heavy barreled,1000yd guns are popular. Hopefully they continue to make them for distributor exclusives or in small batches.

No one buys 270 anymore. It doesn't have all the modern case geometry that kills things so well.

I'm sure it's based on sales. When was the last time anyone on this forum went to the store and bought a new M77?

They have gotten too pricey. I love the 77. Last one I bought one was 2006 when I bought one in 338 Federal. I paid $580 for it. Now they want close to a $1000 and I can get a Winchester 70 for the same price. Ruger 77 made its reputation as a solid hunting rifle that was about 25% cheaper then Remington, Winchester and Browning. They were a little rougher and came with a bad trigger that could easily be fixed. It was a working man's gun. They aren't worth what they are asking. Same thing they did with the Mini 14. Price them over what they are worth.

Running right there with the Rem BDL & CDL.

IMO

I love the model 70.

my neighbor bought one yesterday! But you are right, i bet they are rare in new rifles coming off the factory line.

I dont know many people period that are buying hunting rifles like that period, be it a model 700 BDL, a Winchester Model 70 or a M77. Everyone i run with are buying high end long range type rifles, save for a newbie buying his first deer rifle.


Which probably has much to do with its no longer being offered. Hunters new to the sport are enticed by the low cost synthetic rifles like the Ruger American, Savage Axis, etc. They shoot good and can be had for under $400

I agree. The average newcomer today may not carry a strong legacy in firearm history that make them desire a more legendary rifle like the Winchester Model 70 or Remington Model 700. I even noticed that Savage is now offering multiple versions of their legendary Model 110 that include adjustable, synthetic stocks. Savage still offers a "Classic" version of the Model 110 but it doesn't carry the same look, at least in my opinion, as the original Model 110's. When I think of a legendary deer rifle, I think only of a rifle with a finely grained wood stock.

I currently own just one rifle with a synthetic stock, a Remington Model 597 that I picked up for cheap target practice using .22 ammo. I consider it the ugliest rifle that I own.

Been disappointed in Ruger since the American line came out.

I've never cared much for any Ruger long guns other than the #1. It's amazing that the Ruger #1 seems like it is made by a different manufacturer compared to their other rifles. I'm still PO'd they quit making the #3's as part of there "bargain line" of rifles.

thats when it all started going downhill. I know its an incredibly successful line for them but damn, it sure turned them a completely different direction.


I always thought the M77 line was a fantastic rifle, not a "working man's rifle" like many tout it, but on par with the model 70 and 700, and a good step above the Savage 110. They just had chitty triggers

The choice of cartridge offering by manufacturers is cyclical. The .270 will be back. Again.

Truth is, the .270 Winchester has never left the nation's Top Ten list of most popular rifle cartridges based on the number of factory loads that were available in 2019. Because getting total sales numbers for each caliber is practically impossible, about all we have to go on is the total number of load options that manufacturers are making available to retailers.


.223 Remington - 421 loads
.308 Winchester - 365 loads
.30-06 Springfield - 269 loads
.300 Winchester Magnum - 190 loads
7mm Remington Magnum - 150 loads
.270 Winchester - 143 loads
.300 ACC Blackout (BLK) - 137 loads
.243 Winchester - 133 loads
6.5 Creedmoor - 122 loads
.300 Winchester Short Magnum - 84 loads
[list]
[*]1.

Truth is, the .270 Winchester remains a member (#6) of the nation's Top Ten list of most popular rifle cartridges based on the number of factory load options that were available in 2019. Because getting total sales numbers for each caliber is practically impossible, about all we have to go on is the total number of load options that manufacturers are making available to retailers.


1. .223 Remington - 421 loads
2. .308 Winchester - 365 loads
3. .30-06 Springfield - 269 loads
4. .300 Winchester Magnum - 190 loads
5. 7mm Remington Magnum - 150 loads
6. .270 Winchester - 143 loads
7. .300 ACC Blackout (BLK) - 137 loads
8. .243 Winchester - 133 loads
9. 6.5 Creedmoor - 122 loads
10. .300 Winchester Short Magnum - 84 loads

Source

I did too in 1978. That gun was custom barrel accurate. Found out later the barrels were outsourced from Shilen.I think I paid about $250 for the rifle new.

There appears to be two different groups of people buying rifles these days...the bargain hunter, and the Buzzsaw. Doesn’t seem to be much interest in the middle ground, so if you are a large manufacturer, you have to decide which group to pursue. High end guns probably make some money, but what is a major gun maker going to do with all the machinery and manpower they have invested in over decades? You gotta build what makes money, and what people want to buy.

IMO, it's also driven by what buyers are able to find on store shelves. While you can easily find Henry rifles just about anywhere you look, try finding a Winchester. There are a few of the independent retailers that will maintain an extensive stock of rifles in many different calibers and brands, but you may have to drive a few miles to visit them.

The largest retailer in my area has to be Able's Ammo in Huntsville. Their shelf is probably 40 feet long and three tiers deep.

I have had several Model. 77 Rugers. I only kept one, in .308. Bought it about 35 yrs. ago if I recall right. Had it rebarreled with a Hart stainless barrel. Then about 15 yrs ago I bought a 50% completed thumbhole stock. Took about 3 weeks working in the evenings to get it finished. It shoots several different load into less than MOA. The one rifle that I likely never get rid of.

Pretty good post. Mid priced rifle sales have declined along with the middle class.

I'm not sure I agree with that. Tikka CTR can't stay in stock. People use it for hunting, target shooting, etc.

Ruger just happens to be inferior in every way, and roughly the same price-wise.

There are pretty rifles, with high gloss wood, and high gloss bluing. Those are works of art.

There are utility rifles, with blasted finish, and synthetic stocks. Those are utility rifles, like an Estwing hammer. People are gravitating more toward utility rifles. They need them to work, work in all weather, and not cause the user to get bent out of shape over a scratch. Go before show. Shoot straight, all the time, in every state of the union.

And to say the Ruger American is bad, does not add up to me. The RPR and Americans I've shot all did very well. They shot surprisingly tight.

Pretty rifles are great to look at but i think to most people they are not practical. Did you buy it to look at or to use? Will a pretty rifle do the dirty work? Sure but it will bear the marks of it. I dont think most people are willing to do that to their pretty rifle. Thus the "utility" rifle Fireman mentions is taking off. I know i fall into that category.

The only rifles I own with wood stocks are my Marlin lever actions. They're blued, and I have to fight to keep them from rusting. Dinging the wood bugs me, but it's gonna happen. I hate those synthetic lever guns, though. But I love stainless and synthetic bolt actions. The bolt actions are wrenches, and I treat them like wrenches. I take care of them, but scratches and dings are part of the deal. Any time I've been a guest on a lease, a ranch, or lately hunting with my first guide, I get the same reply when they see whatever rifle or rifles I show up with. "Well, I can tell you shoot those things."