My local gunshop has a used 77/22 LR with laminate stock and semi heavy barrel w/ rings for 500.00 out the door. The gun is about 96-98%. Good deal? and are they accurate?
I was drawn to it because they are all metal and seem pretty robust. I have a kimber of Organ in .22LR, but don't like beating it up hunting(my excuse for a new toy)
what do yall think?

Trucker;

I picked up a blue steel 77/22 a few years back for a song ($200) It was well used (meaning abused).

A re-crown later it is my most accurate non-target 22 LR. I made it look purty by re-blueing and refinshing the wood as well.

With the short sporter barrel, and standard speed eley target ammo it prints under an inch at 100, wind dependent of course.

Maybe the $500 price is somewhat high, but I do not know what they retail for new....

I've been really happy with mine. I am espeacially happy with the accuracy.

$500.00 seems like a lot but I stopped looking at the prices after I got mine and that was at least a dozen years ago. We all know things have gone up just a bit since then.

I've had a sporter blue/walnut 77/22 for several years. I regularly plink empty .40S&W brass off target holders at 25 yard from field positions.

They are great little rifles IMHO.

I have 3 in .22 WMR; 2 SS composite and 1 wood and blue. All were bought sub $350. All are very accurate and fun to shoot. I wish I had one in .22 LR, but for now I am enjoying the guns (as are my 2 boys)!

Great rifle to practice off hand shooting.

Guys,

Thanks, I think I will be happy with it as I have told the clerk to put it behind the counter to be picked up Saturday. I looked on impactguns.com and the laminate with the heavy barrel is 625.00 new so Im thinking 500.00 out the door is well worth it for a like new.

sounds like a vbz model( brown laminate- s.s. med. heavy long- 26" bbl) I love mine- very accurate once you find out what ammo it wants. Its my favorite 22 for shooting clay pigeons at 200 yds- whole ones are no problem but it gets fun when you go to working on the pieces.(6x24 scope w/tgt knobs) You will like it- buy any ruger 22 mags you see the ones for the 1022 work fine only difference is the bottom contour- 7722 is flat 1022 is slightly rounded.

Lay 4 new 100 dollor bills on his counter...see what happens next.

Ted,

Your right, it's a buyers market. He said 500.00 out the door though, but I may get him at 4 or meet in the middle.

The barrel clamping method and two piece bolt can be a barrier to pinpoint accuracy. Nice guns with good heft and looks but it's not uncommon for them to shoot poorly and not respond to the usual remedies.

Nice rifles.
I had one of the very early sporters and it didn't shoot very well at all until I Loctited the barrel into the receiver, re-crowned the muzzle, floated the barrel and tightened the bolt halves up with a new pin.
It would then shoot around 1.5" at 100 yds on a good day.

I'm a Ruger fan, own them, but in your case, personally I believe the CZ offerings are more value for the buck. I am not a fan of CZ, but their various models in rimfire are very quality guns from what I have seen and reportedly are very accurate. JMO

martin

My wife bought a Ruger 77-22, when they first came out. She loved it! The next gunshow I bought mine. Both of us have been extremely happy with them.

I even bought a 77/22-Hornet--Love both of them.

As much as I like Ruger rifles (I have 3) I've come across enough accuracy complaints on this one to avoid them.I second the CZ 452 option.

I own two in small caliber, no complaints, the rings are a little uneven but can be remedied with better rings.

I think Ruger guns are real nice but often have problems. Like my very accurate .22 auto that jammed and misfired all the time and my No.1 with a beautiful stock that strung shots verticaly. I have heard that a lot of 77/22's shoot poorly. I have one that has a .22 Short barrel which was installed by Volquartsen and some clips modified for Shorts. I put a fiberglass stock on it and it shoots reasonably well. It would probably be more accurate in Long Rifle but I wanted a quieter rifle for rabbits. One thing that I very much like about it is that the action is longer than most .22's so the front scope ring can be positioned further foreward which is where I like my scopes. Also, I think the action is actually a control feed bolt. It never jams, even with the clips modified for Shorts and it will feed with the rifle sideways or upside down.

You WILL compare the Ruger to your Kimber, and not be satisfied, I bet! My Ruger followed me home in the mid-1980s, when I got it from a sporting goods store that was going out of business. $160 IIRC. My wife was horrified at the price! I wasn't into real accuracy then, and am still not really, minute of rabbit being good enough, but it shot lots of little sunflower heads on the hillside, dancing in the breeze! There wasn't much small game hunting where we lived.
No problems ever. Through the years, I added a scope, which was the best accuracy enhancer...that, and practice. I got a friend, who was a gunsmith to do a trigger job for $7.50, glass-bedded and floated the barrel.

I then bought a CZ 452 American, which was a beautiful rifle, and it shot ....maybe 1/4 in. better than the Ruger at 50 yards. Field...little noticeable diff.
I am now considering (saving the $$) a new CX 455 American, which I believe will be as accurate than the last one, without the problems.
I think the Ruger was/is worth the money. The only thing that might help is a set of bolt shims from triggershims.com. My old 77-22 didn't need them!
I know a lot of guys have much negative to say about the 77-22, and my experience may be atypical, but, if you like it, then buy it!

So.. The heavy barrel/varmint model is quite expensive for what it is...

Consider that for a similar price - you can buy a heavy barrel CZ - many of which come with a single-set trigger which is a thing of beauty... The CZ will shoot circles around that Ruger...

Now, one big advantage of the Ruger over the older CZ's is that you can switch barrels... That's kinda fun.. My 77/22 VBMZ is wearing a Shilen 17HM2 barrel - and that sucker shoots under 1/2" at 100 yards...

Can't say anything about the model you are looking at, but I've had very good luck with the 77/22 rifles that I've had. I've only had two 77/22's. The first was the standard blue walnut sporter with no sights. I used it for quite a few years. I used it for hunting and plinking, but never did real serious target shooting with it. I sold it when I found an blue walnut model with sights. I had it worked on before I shot it, trigger and accurizing. It shoots ten shot one hole groups at fifty yards with a number of different brands of ammo. Good for silhouettes or game. It was well worth the money. I can make head shots on squirrels out to 75 yards, I couldn't ask for anything more.
Bfly

I think I have the same rifle as the OP. Laminate stock, Tardet grey barrel fairly heavy. Mine is my most accurate rifle I own, with the exception of a Rem 788 in 223. I paid a lot less than the asking price of the OP. Mine was very lightly used and still shoots its favorite ammo lights out. Federal Lightnings. Also does amazingly well with Fed.Bulk ammo.It's definately been worth the money to me. I think you'll love it.

I own this same rifle in 22 LR,22Mag and 22 Hornet.They all shoot lights out.Yes it is worth that and they do have good resale value.Better than a full size 77 for some reason.

I bought a Ruger 77-22 new for my son about 1989 or so. I liked it so well that when I ran across a used one I bought it. Those two have put a lot of squirrels on the table for us. the son got pretty good with his and was shooting possums on the run that were trying to raid the garage.

I also have a 77-220 swift and a 77-243 favorite rifles.

Al

I had one of those in a hornet, I couldn't get it to shoot anything smaller than 3/4s of an inch. Which is honestly pretty good for a hornet.

Nice full size little 22 rifles. I'd own another one.

My cousin was given one when he was 12. He's now 40 and we are still shooting it. A .22 to go the distance.

I have it in 22 mag. Love it.

I have one in stainless with the boat paddle synthetic stock (it now is in a walnut stock) and really like it. It is not my most accurate 22 lr (not even close) but I like it very much and will not sell it.

Steve......

+1 with Larry Shores.

quote:

posted 02 January 2010 06:43 Hide Post

Had a 77/22, one of the first year production, and it was OK. Sold it and bought a Remington 513S (sporter version of 513T) and later a CZ 452. I'll take the 452 any day--even with the backwards-working safety.

I bought a Ruger model 77 at a gun show 20 years ago, stainless with tupperware stock, put a 3X9 scope on it, shot like crap, almost sold it, kept shooting it and then let my gran daughter shoot it, more it was shot better the groups got, now it is a tack driver, have had my share of bad Rugers that went on down the road, but im keeping this one.

I have a 77/22 in .22LR that I bought in the mid 1980's. It has a walnut stock and is blued. It still functions flawlessly. I bought another with a synthetic stock in stainless steel about 15 years ago and two years ago got a 77/22 Hornet with a grey finish and a laminated stock. I really like them all. They all needed trigger work done, but that is the only "fix" they have needed. They are as accurate as I need for anything up to true competition. I also have a CZ 452 American with the YoDave trigger spring which is extremely accurate as well. I enjoy shooting all of them (even though the safety on the CZ is backwards) but the flush magazine on the 77/22 as compared to the CZ, makes it the winner in my judgement. As I said, they are accurate, reliable and just fun to shoot.

Have one in a .22 LR and one in a 17HMR...Yes...well worth it.