Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Ruger 77/44 77/357

Looking for reviews on these little rifles from Ruger. Thinking it would make a nice short range deer/hog rifle that could be paired with a revolver.

Never owned one but really wanted to at one point. What steered me clear of them were the rough triggers on the ones I handled and the short magazines eliminated the heavy bullets I wanted to use. If you were happy with light to middling bullet weights and had access to a smith for a trigger job I think they'd be great rifles.

I've recently bought a 77/357. I wanted it as a training rifle for my kids with 38s (which it feeds well) and it's nice to have a little more oomph with the 357 for a deer or pig. I've not shot for accuracy, only function, but I'm pretty pleased with it

If the trigger is an issue, it's my understanding the 77/22 kits from VQ can be used to improve it.

Son and I each own a 77/44. Very good deer rifle under 150 yards. Run an Hornady 240 grain XTP over a max load of H110. 1-2" group at a hundred. Trigger job would tighten that up considerably. But more than acceptable for the purpose. Shooter in the shoulder and no tracking on most.

And it's a huge improvement.

I have a 77/44 and love to carry it in the thick stuff.

As mentioned, the OEM trigger is heavy, but the Volquhartson kit is a huge improvement and takes about 4.2 minutes to change out, then a little time to fit the safety.

I floated the barrel on mine, and though it won't set the accuracy world on fire, I can get an honest 2 MOA out of it, which is more than sufficient for <100 yard hunting. I have had better luck with the heavier bullets in regards to accuracy, and I use Beartooth Bullets 300 grain WFN in mine, running in the mid-1500s. It'll shoot through most any animal I encounter in Va.

The magazine is strictly a 1.6" affair, no using the LCMN bullets and a longer OAL, which is a shame, that's leaving about 100 fps on the table.

Recoil, in .44 mag., surprised me. It is every bit as stout as a .30-30, which is not a hard recoiler, but I looked at that little cartridge and figured "ahhh, a creampuff". Nope. A small kid may be intimidated by the recoil in .44 mag with a full-up load.

It is relatively quiet. You still need ear protection firing it, but it is much quieter than my full-powered rifles, especially the shorter-barreled ones.

It is also my "White Goat" rifle....(grin)







Here it is in it's present configuration, with a VX-2 1-4X20 Leupold, and in the type of cover I hunt with it.

Great pictures Vic that albino dink was something else! I figure 1.5-2MOA would be fine for the 150 yards and under shooting it would see, glad to see there is a trigger kit for it too. Did they ever make them in the Zytel "boat paddle" stock?

Not that I am aware of.

They are available in Walnut/blued steel, but I prefer SS/Synthetic. The Walnut/blued is more aesthetically pleasing.

When I say "huge improvement" in the trigger, I mean it! There is a night and day difference!

Same report here. Accuracy is acceptable for what the gun is designed for. Don't try to stretch it beyond about 150 yards and you will be fine. I load ammo for a friend that shoots one, and I have shot it a bunch. If you play with different loads, you can probably find one the gun prefers as well. The factory triggers are horrible. I have heard some measure up to 9 pounds. Timney and Volquartsen both make sear/spring kits for about $35. I am going to be installing a VQ on his probably in a week or so. I recommended that one because it is stainless. However, results are similar with the Timney. 2-3 pounds max is what they should get you. It's a light short barreled little gun, and combining that with the awful trigger, makes for bad accuracy out of the box.

I have not owned the 77/44, but have hunted with a Ruger 44 Carbine and Ruger 96 (both in .44 mag.). I prefer these rifles to a short bolt action, but see no reason the 77/44 shouldn't perform nearly the same. It should have all the handling qualities of my rifles and be just as effective.

The Ruger 44 Carbine, in particular, is my very favorite rifle for hunting in thickets for deer or hogs. It handles fast and hits much harder than ballistics say it should. A real "thumper" at ranges under 100 yards.

I had a 77/44. It's a nice lightweight compact little rifle. Like davidsapp and VicinVA said, the Volquartsen trigger kit is easy to install and makes a world of difference. It's the same one as for the 77/22 if I remember correctly. It also has a 1/20 twist as compared to the Marlin 1894 which is 1/38.

I came very close to buying the 44. The reason I did not is because of excessive bolt lift.

I like to mount my scopes as low as possible. In order for the bolt to clear the objective, it has to be mounted quite high on the 77/xx.

Vic in Va photo is exactly how I would scope the rifle. However, I could not live with the scope mounted that high.

Not to place a negative on Vic. It's just a prefrance for me...scope mounted as low a possible to the bore.

I have both the 96/44 and the 77/44. They are both excellent litle carbines. Accuracy out to 100 yards is between 1.5-2 MOA on average. I have a Luepy 1.5-5 with post reticle on the 77/44.

It makes for a great little camp/4 wheeling rifle. Running 240-300gr loads its got plenty of power to kill anything I”m likely to take it after. The 240gr Winchester load clocks right at 1780fps out of the 77/44. I don’t doubt that bullet will work well for any deer, blackbear, or other critter I might take it after.

Would love to see Ruger bring back the 96/44.

I have both and I prefer the 96/44 for the action. Very fast and slick. The 77/44 wins in the stock category. Hate the curved butt on the 96/44. Both models I have found to be very accurate for what they are. A little over 2" groups at a 100 yards. Even the ones that shoot "bad" are under 4". Try that at a hundred with a pistol as fast you can shoot one of these 44 rifles.

As I mentioned I prefer the 96/44 but cannot stand the stock. Found a solution a few years back. Always liked mannlicher stocks but the standard comb and butt turn this into a a whole different rifle. The full length is just icing on the cake.

A $7 spring from Ernie the Gunsmith will get you most of the benefit of one of those pricey kits for....$7.

I did put the Timney kit in my son's 77/22 some years back and it was a huge improvement. It takes a while to cut it in for the safety to function. A diamond stone works well for that.

I had a walnut 77/44 years back and liked carrying it, but it is poorly balanced for offhand shooting. The stock trigger makes it even tougher. I'm hoping Lipseys brings out a stainless and walnut RSI to match my .22. That little gem balances nicely.

A peep sight on a 1.5-2 moa 150 yard rifle would eliminate bolt lift issues.

Or the Geezers' Choice, a 2MOA red dot. It's suprising how well you can shoot with one of those, even with old eyes.

77/44 is a piece of trash, don't buy one.

Haven't been able to shoot anything other than 300 grain paper patch in mine. Can't hit a bull in the butt with it.





Dang ol' Millett SP-1 wears out a battery after about 3, maybe 4 years.

It's plastic and stainless, so it doubles as a paddle when needed.

96 44

I have owned two 77/44's both blued/walnut, early rifles had triggers that were much better than the later ones. I replaced the trigger in my brother-in-law's stainless/synthetic and it made a world of difference. The safety was a PITA to fit, I did it at his place and did not have the proper tools availabe. He has shot more than a dozen deer with his, recovered all but one. I have shot one with mine, a shoulder shot at sixty yards with a 240XTP handload resulted in a bang-flop. To deal more effectively with the recoil I installed a Decelerator recoil pad, it is much easier on the shoulder now. I have a Vero-Velini neoprene sling on mine and scarsely know I have it on my shoulder, topped off with a Leupold 4X Compact I am well satisfied with the rife and its performance.