Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Any Ruger M77/44 reviews?

I'm thinking of a new-to-me solution for whitetail hunting in local counties where straight-walled rifle/handgun cartridges are allowed. This to maybe replace the scoped Redhawk I've been using off-and-on for 30 years...

Experiences with the M77/44? Good, bad, so-so? Accuracy (or not)?

I would most likely gravitate toward the #7417 model with synthetic stock and threaded stainless barrel. The Ruger site says only 5.2-lbs; that'd be a good thing, IMO...

-Chris

Wow, that is light... I might look into one of those, just for fun.

From what I have seen accuracy has been not that good on the 77/44.

The ruger 350 legend on the other hand.......

they are a super light handy package. i love the ergos. the ruger americans will shoot rings around it.

My CVA hunter 44mag outshoots two friend's 77/44's.

It's obviously a single shot though.

With 240g JSP bullets we've gotten the Rugers to about 3" at 100 yards at best.

I have a ruger 77/44 with the walnut stock. I topped mine with a Leupold Freedom 3x9x40. It shoots about 1-1/2" Groups at 100. I shoot the Winchester 240 grain Jacketed Hollow Points. I have shot the Hornady Leverevolution ammo and it only shoots marginally better but is more expensive. I shoot the same bullets in my Ruger 44 carbine and my Super Blackhawk and they are deer killers.

My BIL and his family have shot carloads of whitetails with his 77/44 and wallyworld Winchester white box 240 JSP. I've owned a couple of early wood stocked Rugers, accuracy was acceptable for whitetails @ 100 yds. I shot handloads with Hornady 240 XTP's. I scoped my rifles with Leupold 4x Compact scopes and found them to be just right for the kind of deer hunting that I do.

My cousin has one in .357 that shoots well with 125 soft points

A 77/44 is my preferred choice for whitetails in Ohio. If I had to take shots over 150 yards I would reconsider - probably use my MGM 24" 460 S&W Encore more.

I like my 77/44 with plastic stock and low power scope. Easy to carry ( I picked it up a while back when I had tennis elbow) and handy in a blind. Shooting Federal American Eagle 240 gr factory loads took a doe last year DRT at 60 yards and a buck this year at 100 yards. The buck ran about 80 yards with a good lung shot that did not exit the far side. I think 100 yards is about as far as I like to shoot a .44 magnum.

IIRC mine shoots the inexpensive 240 gr into 3" at 100 yards. I expect it would do better with some H110 handloads. Some see accuracy improvements with shims in the two piece bolt. I might try that some day but it shoots plenty good the way it is for southern Michigan deer hunting.

It makes a nice "Walking Gun". I had to go direct to aftermarket supplier for QD 30mm Rings. I live with a massive amount of Brown Bears, and feel good walking with just the rifle and the scope in my pocket or pack, if a problem needs quick mitigation the open sights are fine for close encounters, truth is don't need sights for 5 or 15 yards. Should standing cabin meat present itself there is time to quickly attach the scope. I have the stainless 77/44 which receives an annual shower of "rattle-can" light brown paint. I am ever so slightly lukewarm on the safety configuration. It is "Safe" and functional, I just would prefer the full on position not quite so snug to the bolt. I have never had a problem finding the safety in a problem situation. Good strong solid gun.

Note: The heaviest power defensive bear load cartridges will not fit in the 77/44 magazine. But I chamber one, and put "Good'Enough" in the magazine.

I have one in the stainless synthetic. The thing I really like about it is that it handles about like a 10/22 and seems to have the same sights on it. I've fired hundreds of thousands of rounds through a 10/22. Back when we had a lot of rabbits I probably averaged 2000 rounds a week from a 10/22.

When I carry the 77/44 in grizzly area I load it with 270g speer gold dot flat nose bullets loaded to about 1500 fps from the rifle barrel. That bullet fits the mag and feeds well and seems to penetrate well at those speeds with a bit of expansion.

I load the same speer 270g in my 444 marlin outfitter at 2200 fps. The bullet seems pretty soft at those speeds but the harder 265 Hornady flat nose has been hard to find. I find myself moving more towards the 270g in my handguns too so I always have a supply of the Speers.

Bb

So, favorable reviews, in general... Good to hear...

I handload, already do the .44RM, so that's one possible attraction... I think I'd be inclined to put a red-dot optic on the receiver ring, call it good.

Doesn't seem to be any of the #7417 models anywhere for sale just now... no surprise there, I guess...

-Chris

Fiddled with one for a spell, whacked a few critters, boom-flop. Very limited experience with jacketed bullets, shot OK-fine. Came out of the closet and roared when I started loading paper patched lead.









Then I started foolin' around without the paper.

I can agree the 77/44's are definitely light/handy rifles, but I have actually yet to shoot mine.

Mine shoots great with factory 240 xtps. If I could only own one rifle it’d be on the short list

They seem to get some flack around here but I love mine for a short range deer gun. I've taken 2 bucks with it and both fell in sight. I found that mine prefers the cheap federal 240 grain JHPs. Will hold 2" at 100 all day.

I have one I use for still hunting deer in standing corn fields it is easy to carry and very effective as the shots are close range and so far have all been head shots.

In my experience, Rugers are not known for accuracy. But beings the 44 mag is a short range deer cartridge, it ought to be “minute of deer”.

I had a stainless 77/44, liked it alright.

I did a few things to improve accuracy, that being float the barrel, put a trigger kit in it, and shimmed the bolt. Scoped it with a Leupold VX-2 1-4X20.

With those mods, I could rely on a steady 2 MOA with the ammo I loaded for it, which was only one load, a 300 grain WFN LBT and L'il gun, got just under 1600 fps. Obviously this would fully penetrate a whitetail from any angle but I also wanted the load to do the same with the bear we have around here. Perhaps it was still more than needed but I like a .44 mag with 300 grain hardcast bullets, don't know exactly why, but they work.

I shot a few deer with it and about all I can say is that it killed them with boring reliability.