I have the opportunity to purchase a used Ruger 77 in 264 Win Mag for little $$$ and I am curious if it is all of the negative things that peoplr say it is.
1. Barrel burner
2. Too light for elk
3. Too heavy for deer
4. Why not get a 7mm Mag?
I am looking for some opinions for those that own one adn reload. I will probably never fire a current factory load through it if I buy it. It is an almost unused rifle of my brother's.

Heading out in about 30 minutes to check the zero on mine.

My dad will be using it next week on a Utah deer hunt.

It was my first "big game" rifle, that he bought for me close to 30 years ago. We're taking it for nostalgia reasons, as he may never hunt the mountains again (who knows?).

As for your questions...

1- Not on mine at least. Just use your head and don't overheat it (good advice for any rifle actually)

2- I guess I just didn't know any better when I used it for elk.

3- Maybe more than you "need", but definitely not "too heavy". Heck, we're talking 120 and 140 gr bullets.

4- Good question. But it can be asked about a thousand different cartridge comparisons. 7mm RM is perfectly capable of doing what the 264 WM does. But it's more "common", and some guys like to be different. Then you can argue all day about it being only a .020" difference, or 6.5mm bullets having better BC's, or faster velocities, or whatever.

Myself, I like my 264 WM, a lot.

Load it with Partitions, or something of that sort. Stay away from Ballistic Tips, etc, as you'll be shooting some pretty high velocities for that bullet. (I like BT's in lots of other stuff, this just isn't the place for them.) I stay with 140's, as I have plenty of velocity anyway, so don't see a need to go down to 120's. Pick a powder load that works for your rifle, and enjoy fantastic penetration.

If you have the chance to get a good deal on one, especially one with a known history (brother), I'd jump on it.

Cold Bore did an excellent job of answering your questions. I have had several and really enjoy the caliber. My current 264 shoots 125 Partitions at 3300+ with IMR7828. Hard to imagine a much better long range deer/antelope rifle. Very close the the 7Mag for deer hunting, but marginally better IMO (although you'd never be able to tell a practical difference in the field.) Of course if you did't handload, there would be much better options.

I hear that Nosler will be bringing out a 130 Accubond in 6.5 which should be dynamite in the 264!

JABS
Buy it..Where you live it will be to your advantage..
AK

ive had 1 in a m70..since 1990....1 of the ugliest winchesters i've ever seen... i have an old lyman turret 16x scope on it.... its deadly on 'yotes to over 600yds...recoil is more than my 25-06... and i shoot it mainly at paper now...

I appreciate your replies. I think that I will get it ($250.00). Is IMR 7828 the best powder for reloading.

I forgot to mention that I agree with Cold Zero that 140's make the most sense.

$250? For a like new rifle? And you had to ASK us??

I should kick you right in the ..... ankle.

Heckuva deal there!

As for powders, yep, IMR 7828 is one of the best places to start. It will give you pretty much top velocity out of the commonly used powders, and usually quite nice accuracy. Of course, you gotta try it in "your" rifle. If it lets you down, try some of the other IMR's... 4831, 4895, or 4350 (most guys have at least one of those around from another caliber).

$250.... yep, I oughta kick you....

I agree with Cold Bore and as I am writing this I hope you have already bought the Rifle.

For me H-1000 and 140 NPs. I taking my elk hunting next week, I will let you know if the bullets bounce off, but they never have before.

Saludos...Frank

Want to make some $ on that 264 ?????????
I have 2 and love them would love to have another ruger I gave mine to my best frind and I used it to take over 110 head of game

120 gr X's and H4831

Mine is a pre-64 Model 70. It seems to prefer 125 gr Partitions and RL22. There probably is a better load out there, I've only tried a half dozen.

I just wish someone like Norma, Lapua or Nosler made brass for it. Wish also that Lee made a Collet Neck Sizer and Case Length Gauge. Getting tired of lube inside of necks and trimming the old way.

It sure is too good of a deal to pass, but the early 264 Win Mag Rugers I've seen had 22" barrels. If your's has a 22"-24" barrel don't expect published velocities; it will shoot considerably slower. It will still be a nice rifle in a fine, really loud caliber. Plus, for that price you can afford a longer barrel if you decide that you need all the speed a 264 can deliver.

Yes, IMR-7828 will do a fine job but IMR-4831 will do nicely as well.

The .264 gets compared to the 270 quite a bit. IMO it's a fine tribute to any cartridge to be compared to the 270! There's nothing wrong with the 264 Win Mag!

I stumbled on a load of 63.0 grains H4831 with the 120 grain Sierra SPT. This load groups better than anything I've tried in my Model 70.
I've used 125 grain partitions with this rifle also. I haven't used this rifle for anything but antelope and blacktail deer so a heavier bullet hasn't been needed.

Woods:
Not to get off the subject, but I've got a Lee case length guage for the 264 mag. I inherited it from my father so I don't know if he had it custom made.
I know Lee will make a custom guage as I just had one made for my 8 mag. Beats setting up the trimmer.

I just got my TC encore from Bullberrry in 264 Win Mag and so far I like it alot. Just did some loads for it A week ago with 100 gr. BT's and 120 gr. BT's. They clocked 3620 fps for the 100's and 3310 for the 120's. I tried some H4831SC the 100 grs. shot real good 1/2 moa at 100 yds. the 120 where not so good will try some 7828 or RL 22, H1000 and see how that shoots. These were thru a 26.5 in barrel.

Hoeram

It has a 24" bbl and is mine! I am getting excited to work some loads up for it.

Powders like H 4831 and IMR 7828 are only marginally slow enough for bullets of 120 grains and under, as are powders like H1000 (to finicky) and RL-22. For optimum velocities with 140 grain bullets, you should look for EXTREMELY slow powders. H570 and H870, now unavailable, were excellent in the .264. Perhaps AA 8700 would be a good one if it largely duplicates H870. Other possibilities might be the new US 869 from Hodgdon, or possibly Retumbo or RL-25.

After 41 years of loading for .264's (35 of it while owning a chronograph) I have found that the slower, the better. I currently use surplus WC-872 in my guns, but be cautioned that surplus powders are notorious for variations between lots, so understand what you're doing before going down this trail.

The .264 is a marvelous long range deer/antelope gun, and with 140 Partitions I have killed a couple of elk. There are better guns for elk, so I now reserve my .264's for lighter game, but if limited to the .264 I would happily pursue the largest of bulls with it. It might just be near the theoretical tops for medium game like Mule Deer and Caribou.

Hope you enjoy yours.

Retumbo is very slow. Have you tried this one?

Yes Retumbo is good but I think the best powder out there for 140's is Magnum. My custom 264 loves the 140 xlc and 73 gr of magnum ( work up to this load) for 3300fps with very good brass life.

I have a 264 Winnie built on an FN Mauser astion this past summer and wanted to shoot 140 grain slugs in it but I had the 1 in 9" twist installed and should have opted for 1 in 8" as it only shoots the 129 grain bullets real well, but thats OK. I found that IMR7828 wasn't very accurate in my rifle and the velocity was varying 150 ft/sec so I tried IMR 4350 and the accuracy is awesome and the barrel doesn't heat up near as quickly. I was a little apprehensive when I ordered my rifle in this caliber, but now I wish I had found out about it years ago. All I heard about this round was all the negative stuff which I now discount as mostly hearsay.

I consider mine to be my "meat gun". By that I mean it is the first rifle I pick when I need to fill the freezer. I'm still using up my old stash of H870 w/ 125gr NP and 140gr Hdys. I use the 125 gr load on deer & antelope and the 140 on elk.

Possibly one of the most UNDERRATED cartidges of all time. Several other cartridges came along right behind (7mm Rem Mag being the most popular), and kinda stole the thunder from the .264.

Many, many years ago I had a chance to buy a Mannlicher-Schonaur carbine in .264. But, as a college student I just couldn't afford it. I regret, to this day that I couldn't buy that rifle.

Has anyone had the chance to try Hodgdon's new US869 powder in a 264?

I just sold my SAKO because someone offered me an obscene amount of money for it. I'm going to rechamber a Mauser in 260 Rem (that I never use) to replace it.
It is a fine antlope or deer round but I think it light for elk. It is very flat shooting wven with the 140s. I took the longest game shot of my life with my SAKO and got a nice Pronghorn.

quote:

Originally posted by Stonecreek:
Powders like H 4831 and IMR 7828 are only marginally slow enough for bullets of 120 grains and under, as are powders like H1000 (to finicky) and RL-22. For optimum velocities with 140 grain bullets, you should look for EXTREMELY slow powders. H570 and H870, now unavailable, were excellent in the .264. Perhaps AA 8700 would be a good one if it largely duplicates H870. Other possibilities might be the new US 869 from Hodgdon, or possibly Retumbo or RL-25.

After 41 years of loading for .264's (35 of it while owning a chronograph) I have found that the slower, the better. I currently use surplus WC-872 in my guns, but be cautioned that surplus powders are notorious for variations between lots, so understand what you're doing before going down this trail.

The .264 is a marvelous long range deer/antelope gun, and with 140 Partitions I have killed a couple of elk. There are better guns for elk, so I now reserve my .264's for lighter game, but if limited to the .264 I would happily pursue the largest of bulls with it. It might just be near the theoretical tops for medium game like Mule Deer and Caribou.

Hope you enjoy yours.

Concur with everything Stonecreek has said. I have four custom rifles in the calibre and I've found that Re25 is perfect in all of them with any weight bullet. Re19 is good with 100 grainers. Retumbo is not as accurate in my rifles and has a lot of blast and bark.

I use it on 'roos and deer here in Australia and it is dynamite, it electrifies them

For elk, try the North Fork, bloody fantastic bullet.

Blair.