Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Ruger 77/Mk11/Hawkeye All weathers

I just picked up another Hawkeye all weather in 300 win mag, I can't pass these things up when I see them come available. Any idea if they are on Ruger's timeline to produce again? They are about the ultimate AK big game rifle, seems like they should appreciate over time. I guess I'll just keep buying them and see what happens. Need a bigger safe.

Great rifles, and a good investment, if you can buy them right.

So much fluff out there. I remember back 5-6 years ago when Christiansen arms came out. You'd think the earth stopped rotating. This fkn trendy garbage was all over the gun counters. Don't see them any more.

BUT, for Alaskans that weren't born yesterday, rugers dominated the 90's up here. Here it is 30 years later, and a ruger 77 won't stay on our classifieds for no more than a fkn winter Alaskan day. They sell immediately.

Prices are always about $900 +/-. Which is about a "weeks worth of pay". Bill Ruger's original intent.........

I got this one for less than that, so couldn't afford to leave it there. Wish I would have bought a truckload of them when I got my first one. Boat paddle 300 win mag $379 at Sentry Hardware.

Seen 2 today browsing $1200 🤯

I have 3 of them in a "Hunt the lower 48" series. Bought 2 of them via the classified ads forum on this site and 1 from the Kittery Trading Post back when KTP always had hundred of used firearms on their site and were turning them over so fast that if you missed checking for a day you might miss a gem.

223 REM - $350 - 12/18

6.5 CM - $525 - 01/17

338 FED - $600 - 05/17

I felt that the prices were fair, with the 223 being even a little better.

I’m worried Ruger will eventually stop making a 77 period with all these American rifles taking over.

I'm a fan of them myself. I have a SS Hawkeye 35 Whelen and a SS MKII 243 ultra light. they are great rifles and I hope to add a couple more to the safe when decent deals pop up.

I owned two Hawkeye AWs and a Predator. Gave the Predator to my son and let the others, a .223 and a .243, go in search of the will ‘o wisp. Excellent rifles. I put the .223 in a factory walnut stock and it was pretty handsome. They are a trifle heavy, being all steel.

My favorite rifles and I own a pile of them in both the sporter and ultralight configurations. I wish Ruger would make an All-Weather Ultralight .308 win. I don’t know why this configuration was never done. Seems like a no brainer to me. Here’s one of my latest, a Sports South exclusive 30-06 Ultralight.

I’ve got a Ruger Hawkeye SS in .338 WM. The wife bought it for me when Wal-Mart in Anchorage clearances them out in 2018. I put a Yo-Dave trigger spring in it and it loves a load of 225 Barnes TTSX.

When all is said and done cockroaches and Ruger 77 MKIIs will remain. Just a bombproof design; simple, steel, heavily proportioned internals, one-piece bolt, integral bases. I bought one of the newer "full form" synthetic stocks for my stainless/boat paddle .308, it worked fine but I've gone back to the skeleton zytel; beauty is as beauty does. Should've bought a few more in the late 90's.

Ive seen more m77s locally than any other rifle. I love the stainless on the MKIIs.

I have a couple left. One a 300wm, and one my favorite configuration: The 300 RSAUM. Only made for 1 year:




Sweet little shooter.

Agree with the stainless on the MKII. The matte version on the Hawkeyes tends to show more scuffs than the shiny ones.

My main hunting rifle is a Hawkeye .338. It's in a Hogue stock, kinda chunky, but it shoots so well that I never bothered to look for something else. Year after year, a couple shots around .5 moa, but often a ragged hole. Then I go hunting. It's ended the careers of a "few" critters. I picked up a MKII 338 with open sights and a silver Leupold last fall. Considering giving that a turn for this years' adventures. It will be hard to leave ol' faithful at home tho...

Got a minty .243 a while back, was going to sell it, but haven't managed to talk myself into it yet. Found a 22-250 boat paddle, those seem to be hard to come by. The Hawkeye .308 will likely be my kids rifle this year. They've been using a youth model American, but will probably let them upgrade now that they are bigger. The Hawkeye 22-250 I bought used, had a bulge in the barrel about 1/2" from the muzzle. Lopped about 1-1/4" off it and recrowned, it now kills yotes whenever I point it at one. (Except that one time hunting at night at full moon). Then the original .300 boat paddle took my best ever moose about 20 yrs ago. And a .300 Hawkeye latest addition. Anyway, probably over sharing, but I like them.

I've tuned up the triggers on some of them, makes a difference. Make sure the mag box isn't putting pressure on the action. Get the action torqued into the stock right. Then go hunt.

Sounds like you have a good collection. First off, they need to be glass bedded.

Then you don't have to worry about what torque setting you run those action screws. They tend to shoot real well, after glass bedding. Second, they all need trigger work. They are horrible otherwise. They also get a good raceway polishing, so the bolts run nice and smooth. More like a Winchester model 70.

You mention 338wm. Those have been some of my favorites. They tend to shoot very well:

4 shots in that hole.

Do you bed tbe synthetic stocks as well? Or just rhe wood? I've done some work on the rails of mine too. Definitely helps slick it up.

I have two in 7x57 and 9.3x62.

Nice👍👍

I glass bed them all. On the Rugers, it has cut the group size in half, in most cases. This is most noticeable on the wood stocked rifles. Sometimes you can get away with not glass bedding the synthetic stocked rifles. Due to the angled front action screw, that helps pull the action down into the stock, and back a bit. This actually helps with minimizing poi shift, on a non glass bedded rifle. If your all weather shoots well without bedding, I’d leave it alone.

I had a 7/08 UL target grey. Put 'er in walnut. Should never have let that one go.....

I put my allweather UL 204 in a LSS chassis...

Not Target Grey, just matte, but I know how you feel….

M77 MKII all weathers are some of my favorite rifles. I currently only have three a 308, 30-06 dropped in a Hawkeye walnut stock and an ultralight 7mm-08. Once the trigger is worked and stock bedded (if needed at all) then they are about perfect to me. They are not light rifles, but I don't hunt at high elevation in the Rockies walking many miles so the weight does not bother me. In fact, it helps me to hold the rifle steadier especially shooting off hand. Ruger did make a run of them in the synthetic ultralight configuration in 243 and 6.5 Creed not long ago so maybe they will make another run soon.

No, that is a sharp rifle.

I like the Mark II and the Hawkeye stainless rifles. Personal preference, but I prefer the Mark II's bead blasted. Though, I do have some with the original shine.

I have a 7mm-08, .30-06 and a 35 Whelen. All work well. I replaced the trigger spring and polished the trigger/sear mating surfaces on all of them. It's about a 30 minute job and then you're good to go with a fantastic 2.5 pound trigger pull with a rugged open trigger design.

The 7mm-08 has killed a fair amount of stuff around home - whitetails, coyotes, and a bobcat. The .30-06 killed a caribou in northern BC last fall, and the Whelen took a black bear on Vancouver Island a couple of springs ago. I could have done all of that with just the .30-06, but the three together are a good set.

SR

There was a NOS All-Weather UL 7mm-08 Hawkeye that just sold in GB at its starting bid of $1200. It sat for a little while and was just a little too much for me, though it was tempting. I picked up one of the Sports South .243 UL’s about a year and a half ago and it is one nice handling rifle. I’m not wild about the chambering, but it’s a nice rifle.

It’s hard to beat the Ruger M77 Rifles. Here in Kentucky they are getting hard to locate in good shape for the older tang safety and mark II.

I love the older mark II M77 in the all weather “paddle stock”.

Dang dude, that's a nice pile of paddle stocks.

I hunt with a SS Hawkeye in 358 every season. I’m not nort a fan of the stock. I should have bedded it a long time ago but haven’t. I do like it a lot especially since it shoots better than it used to. The stainless shows marks more than I thought it would but it just adds character to it.

Not looking for one, or anything else actually, but if I wanted one, I’d pay that. Sometimes you just got to pony up for what you want, good deal or not.

If it were a .308 (though they don’t exist) I would have. Not knocking the 7mm-08 by any means. It’s a great cartridge, it’s just I’m already well invested in the .308.

What’s everyone’s opinion on the 375 ruger and 416 ruger? I’m wanting to get a larger caliber rifle, but brass looks like it’s really hard to find.

I have, and like both. The 20" stainless ones are definitely favorites.

Is ammo easy to find up in Alaska for those calibers?

It seems as though it pretty prevalent on the road system in my vicinity. Pretty much wherever there is 375 H&H and 416 Ruger, the Ruger versions are there. Occasionally, I see the Buffalo Bore, Choice, and DoubleTap. These go pretty quickly if loaded with the Barnes TSX. Commercial Transportation limitations to Alaska, can be a limiting factor to anything coming to Alaska, particularly ammunition and powder. This is most obvious with increased demand during panic buying, and a month or so prior to moose season.

Edit: As to brass, I will assume there will be more runs. I have seen periods of no-brass availability for the 416 Remington, 458 Lott, and 458 Winchester over the years. This was before the covid bs.

I'd like an all weather ultralight 308 with an 18"-20" barrel and open sights. I really miss the way my old 338 rcm all weather 20" with sights carried. I packed it around the grizzly filled island Park quite a bit. The same in 308 would be more practical.

Sometimes I just carry my 77/44 all weather when camping up there these days. It's a hammer with the lee 310g cast flat nosed bullets.

I also wouldn't mind an all weather with a shorter say 20" barrel with sights in 9,3x62. Seems like it would be a great Alaska rifle. Should feed well and hold 5 rounds and be that stainless ruger ruggedness.

I had a guide gun in 30-06 that was close but the barrel contour was too heavy and the laminate stock was pretty ugly.

Bb

This will be the last one to go.


Interesting. I changed over to the skeleton Zytel for a while, but went back to the full zytel. Different strokes I guess.



Custom paint by the Grand kids.

2 here ss boatpaddles 223 & 308 all weather anytime anywhere. Both shoot well.mb

Pretty sure the skeletons were the only ones that were Zytel. The full stocks were an injection molded synthetic.

True enough, but Ruger has them designated as "FP", Full zytel buttstock. Designation "P" is listed as Zytel stock, AKA skeleton, or boat paddle.

That’d be my ideal rifle right there. Throw a fixed 4x on it and it’d be a simple, rugged, general purpose rifle.

Wanted a 77 MK II international in 308 for years. Finally found one from the 1990's in mint condition. Installed a Leupold 4 x compact scope, added a removable NECG custom receiver sight, got scope and irons sighted in, gun case just the right size and a simple leather 1" sling and had plenty of ammo. Finally got everything perfect. Took my 12-year-old grandson on his first big game hunt and he wanted to use the 308. He fired 3 shots. one shot at a coyote, dead in his tracks. One hour later with one shot he killed a 14" antelope buck. A few weeks later one shot and a mule deer was hanging. Needless to say, I no longer own a Ruger International in 308 Win.

I used a Ruger M77 MkII in .338 WinMag as my primary AK hunting rifle from 2006 through last fall. This was my favorite rifle by far, fit me better than any other rifle I have ever owned and felt so solid in my hands. I may sell it now that my remote AK hunting days are over, but it sure gave me a lot of great memories.

Sorry I didn't figure out how to show the photo within my post, just rejoining the forum after about a decade absence...

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/gallery/80/full/253779.jpg

I really like the Ruger all-weathers. This is my current one. Ruger K77 RSI 6.5x55 dropped into a Ruger Ultralight Synthetic stock:



I would love to find a short action RSI

That configuration right there in a SA .308 would be so damn awesome.

I'm fortunate to have a couple 308s and 223s in that configuration, I swapped out the mannlicher stocks for ultralight wood and synthetic stocks.

This is an Ultralight.

[quote=kandpand]I really like the Ruger all-weathers. This is my current one. Ruger K77 RSI 6.5x55 dropped into a Ruger Ultralight Synthetic stock:



I would love to find a short

Just about perfect right there

Some nice Rugers here. I sure like mine: a 1991 manufactured tang safety model in 7x57. Nothing fancy, but it has been rock solid and reliable. I did have to replace the mag spring as the original "was sprung" (btw, MKII/Hawkeye springs are an EXACT fit) and I somehow managed to damage my extractor after a hard extraction. Luckily, I sourced a perfectly good used one. It now sits in a period-correct B&C Carbelite stock with the barrel pressure point still intact. It shoots an honest 1-1.5 MOA on average with factory S&B 173 grain SPCE. I recently installed PT&G bottom metal (bought one of the last units in PT&G's inventory!). The rifle could benefit from glass bedding, but it seems to be perfectly serviceable 'as is'. I will likely have a professional bed it over the summer just so I don't have to deal with the ridiculous 90-95 inch pounds of torque that needs to be applied to the angled front action screw and the barely hand tight mag well screw (only gripe). The bluing is deep and shiney, and regardless of weather, it has never had a fleck of rust. I just wipe it down with an oily rag and call it a day. Having said that, I might just break with tradition and have all the metal parts coated in a matte black and simply turn it into a low-maintenance, all-weather rifle. They don't make them like this anymore, so hang on tight to yours. I might grab an international in 243 or 7x57 if I can find one in mint condition--those will stay blued! Those crappy American models seem to be taking over. Bill Ruger is probably turning in his grave.

The SS Hawkeyes are my favorite 77s, though all of mine have moved on in favor of lighter rifles. I had three, and not a single issue with any of them. The Predator was a particular favorite, and I gave that one to my son after he had a good day with it during a suburban cull hunt. Wonderful trigger.

Zytel is an injection molded synthetic. Remington pioneered it's use for gun stocks with the Nylon 66.

Ive always wanted a stainless 30-06 with irons. They are hard to find these days so I found a boat paddle stock and plan to buy a guide gun and put it in that stock. Should do everything i ever want.

I can remember seeing racks of them at affordable prices. Always told myself I would buy one. Never did and regret it now.

Bad wording on my part.

The skeleton "Zytels" always had a small bit of soft touch to me. The surface didn't seem as "hard" as hollow injection molded stocks.

Same. At the time I figured that rifle and a 4x scope would be bulletproof.

Would still like a skeleton with irons but my cartridge choice would be something SA now.

Nothing wrong with the full form, the paddle stock just seems to have a shorter LOP which works better for me. The Ruger full form stocks from that era seem to be more solid and stiff than other factory injection molded stocks.

I was going to go that route. I bought s 30-06 guide gun but the barrel contour was too heavy to fit in the boat paddle stock. I didn't want to open up the boat paddle stock unless I was sure I wanted a 30-06 with that heavy contour barrel. In the end I sold the guide rifle and didn't do it but I still have the extra boat paddle stock stashed away.

It really just needed a lighter contour barrel to have the feel I was looking for like my old rcm. I still think a SS 18-20" 308 in a light contour with sights would be great. I liked the limited ss 6.5x55 with the full length stock that was going around I just didn't like them at the prices I was seeing. I sometimes wonder if my guide gun 30-06 would have handled better if I would have taken some weight out of the middle of the barrel by having it rebored to a 9.3.

Bb

Or have someone recontour the barrel if you wanted to stay 30-06.

K, where did you find the UL LA synthetic stock. I've been looking for one for awhile. I have an UL 257 Roberts, blue / wood, I'd like to put in a synthetic full zytel.

What a beautiful configuration that is!

Is the Ultralight synthetic stock slimmer/shorter in the forend than the normal synthetic stock?

I bought a Ruger Ultralight 270 and used the stock for the RSI. I then sold the 270 barreled action. I looked for a stock for long time and could not find one. I do have a short action synthetic stock that needs a short action RSI.

Several years ago when those UL 270s hit the market I thought about the same, but never followed through.

Very nice 6.5.