A: Nothing wrong with the 77/357.
B: A certified rifle looney would rationalize the purchase of a new rifle w/o mutilating an existing functional piece. You might need that one down the road.
C: KISS is the best roadmap.
Nothing there I can disagree with. My 77/357 is getting Cerakoted in Midnight and has a nice black walnut mannlicher stock underway so maybe that will appease me at least till this winter. I get a little over 1700 fps with factory 158 grain loads out of an 18" barrel. Maybe I need a second one with a 22" barrel and a modern classic stock and could pick up a few more fps that way.
