Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Single Shots Ruger #1B 6mm vs B78 6mm

I've got an older #1B 6mm on its way to me and am pretty excited to give it a range test... the prior owner says it shoots pretty well. I was also looking at a few B78's for sale. What is the general consensus on the #1 vs the B78. I know the 78's seem to be a little more expensive. They sure are beautiful as well(thats coming from a diehard Belgium Browning guy!). With that said, I wonder if a "custom" Ruger #3 wouldn't be the best of both worlds... American made and gorgeous too. Probably pretty pricey however.
Thanks for your comments, Lundtroller

Own and hunt with several of both.For pure aesthetics,the Browning wins.For accuracy,the Brownings (in my experience)are a little better than the Ruger.

I do though prefer to hunt with my #1's over the B78s.The little #1A is so handy to pack and points great.It is also a lot lighter than the B78.

You can't really go wrong either way-they are both excellent,well made rifles.

WB.

I had a B78 in 6mm Remington with 24 inch round barrel, which was pretty heavy, but the entire rig with its 2.5-8x Leupold scope, was not awful to carry. It really shot well. I sold it to a friend because .243s are not my thing.

I owned a Browning 78 in 6mm for about 14 days way back in 1983.
It shot 3 rounds before the trigger started locking up.
Pull...nothing...open ,close shoot..reload,pull,swear,open close,pull,swear.. you get the picture.
I took it back to the dealer and got accused of messing with the trigger. (damn short conversation after he said that)
Left it with him to fix and picked it up a week later "fixed".
Shot one round and tried to eject the empty.
Extractor didnt work after his "fix" job.

Hauled my pretty rifle back to the man and walked out with a Ruger #1B in 30-06 that worked first time ,every time.

I dont know if the trouble I had was common with the 78 but they didnt stay in production as the 78 for very long.

I had a B-78 in 6mm once, it had an actagon barrel, and was absolutely gorgeous. However, I couldn't get it to shoot muchh better than 2.5-3" with any 100 grain bullet. Since I wanted it for deer hunting, I let it go. For my use, I would much rather have a Ruger No. 1, if for no other reason than the customer service of Ruger over Browning.

I bought one in 6mm Remington like CrimsonTide's about ten years ago. I intended to have it rechambered to 6mm-06, figuring the 28" barrel would permit me to burn just about all the powder that I could stuff in the case. Like his, I just couldn't get it to shoot with 95 and 100 grain bullets. I traded it for something else and had a 6mm-06 made up on a Mauser action.

I've owned two B78's with lightweight octagon barrels that were super shooters, and my son's 6mm heavy barreld B78 was also a fine shooter.

I tend to like them more than my number 1's for hunting EXCEPT for the RSI in 7X57, of which I sadly traded off!
Cat

Well,it sounds like the jury is mixed in their opinions just like about everything else in life! This 6mm Ruger #1's role in life is going to be for rifle range, rockchucks, and antelope as far as I know right now. I hope she is a "shooter", should be here in a day or so!
Lundtroller
PS- Must not be much experience with custom #3's out there?

lundtroller,

I have two custom #3s both in lighter kicking calibers --7mm Br and 6.5x55. They are light stalking rifles -- barrels @ 22", with English shotgun style straight stocks -- not a full size and full length 26 inchers meant for looooong shooting like you seem to be planning.

I like them both and wiould use them again but that bent lever could punish your hand on a serious kicking rifle.

1B

I do not have a B-78 in 6MM (dammit!) but I do have one in 30-06. I also have two Ruger #1B's in 30-06 and frankly, the Browning outshoots both of them.
However, I do have a Ruger #1B in 6MM Remington and it is a very accurate rifle. I haven't shot it all that much but the box of 100 gr. Federal ammo (the cheap stuff) I shot in the gun did several 5 shot groups right at .75 to .80". The one 100 gr. handload I tried was right at .75".
Yours shoot shoot just fine.
Paul B.

When you get the #1, push a patch down the tube on a tight jag. If you feel tight and loose spots in the barrel, you have a sack of hell on your hands. You will have the option of re-barreling it or selling it. I learned this from having 3 of them.

Bill Ruger put a heck of a stock on them, and a piece of crap barrel on them...go figure. Tight and loose spots means that your barrel is crap. I have done the whole 9 yards on trying to fix guns like this.

Modern #1's have a whale of a better barrel on them compared to the old ones that were made in the early 80's.

Only have experience with the B78 in 25-06 in the octagonal configuration.

I LOVE that rifle almost as much as it LOVES 100 gr TSX's ...

GE

I have a #1B in 6mm Rem that was made in '76 (200th yr model). Once upon a rainy day I averaged all the results from my loading log, and that came to 1.25 MOA (that was all the groups from load development, the good and the bad). The loads I shoot are all well under an inch at 100 yards. The 95 and 100 gr loads chronograph 3,230 fps from the 26" barrel. I almost forgot, the factory trigger breaks at 18 oz.

I looked at the Brownings, but I prefer the "Farkie" look of the Ruger.

jim