Have my eye on a Ruger 77 mkII Safari MAgnum in 416 Rigby. The serial number puts it from 1995 manufacture. Any issues with the early Ruger magnum rifles?

That would be a second generation RSM, IIRC.
The first generation RSM came along about 1989-1990.
Gen I: Fat 24" barrel with barrel band sling base inletted through the forend wood.
Gen II: Fat 24" barrel with barrel band sling base out beyond forend tip, as traditional.
Gen III: Sometime after 2000, slim 23" barrel, like a Gen II with slimmer, shorter barrel.

I have a Gen II .416 Rigby, and it is one of the most accurate rifles I own, and I took my first cape buffalo with it,
one shot kill.
My rifle has sentimental value besides being deadly.
The barrel is fat enough to be a .505 Gibbs or 500 Jeffery, etc., with a rebore, but I cannot change it.

August 2001, Botswana, Okavango:



First 3 shots with this bullet in same rifle, at 115 yards range, the bulldozer operator was either drunk or confused 100 meters for 100 yards,
when the berm was initially piled up for opening day at the local public range:



Recoil plate mechanism and possible tendency to stock splitting is the only negative about the RSM, same for all of them.
If the walnut cracks, fix it and make it better than ever.

I have the first model in 375H&H. Some have complained that this gun is too heavy. Beyond that I haven't heard of any other issues. To those I say quit complaing and man up!
Hope you enjoy youres as much as I do mine.

I am the minority here. I had one of the very early ones in .416. It didn't feed worth a damn and to make a long story short, Ruger refused to repair it unless they replaced the stock since I put a new pad and a horn forend tip on it. The rep said those two modifications caused the problem. I am now the very happy owner of a AHR reworked CZ550.

Recoil pad and Forend cosmetics effecting your feed issues...You must still be shaking your head with that one..

I was one who complained on previous posts that I felt that the Gen I & II Ruger RSMs were too heavy at 10.25 lbs. for a 375 H&H. I still feel that way, but I also still own that rifle and do not plan to part with it. It has beautiful wood and is very accurate, and I have taken many of my African animals with it. I think the Gen III rifles were a much better idea and I own some of them as well in 416 and 458 and I like their weight just fine, especially in those two calibers. As far as the weight goes, to each his own I suppose, but once you've held a Ruger Hawkeye African in your hands and felt what a 7.75 lb. 375 feels like, you too may feel that a 2.5 lb. heavier rifle may feel a tad bit heavy, especially in 375 H&H. But again, to each his own. And as far as 'manning up' goes, the same can be said for one who is willing to trade off carrying rifle weight for accepting the heavier recoil from a lighter rifle. There is no free lunch in physics. I prefer to accept the recoil, but again, to each their own.

I had one in .375. I got lucky. It came through with a really nice piece of wood. Shot it for a while with just the iron sights. However, when we tried to mount a scope on it, we discovered that the action wasn't true. We sent it back for repairs. I though they would just replace the action and send it back to me. They sent me a whole new gun and the wood was pretty plain. Shot it a bit and sold it of to another AR member. I also had issues with the weight. You're on the right track. If you buy one, get the .416 Rigby. Forget the Lott and .375.

I had one in .416...going by what others have written here, mine was a Gen2. Beautiful wood, and very accurate. It was definitely too heavy, and if the .375 versions were made with the same barrel profile they would be insanely overweight.

My gun split its stock behind the tang shortly before I left for my African trip-of-a-lifetime, forcing me to do it all with a .375H&H. Also, the RSM had a receiver that didn't take bluing properly and had that distinctive plum colouration that some steels exhibit when blued. It contrasted markedly with the blue of the barrel and I found it quite irritating.

I too am pissed that Ruger stole my stock. I had it dialed in and sent it back to them because it wouldn't eject properly. Got it back with a factory stock, not as good wood, and some bullshit about the stock modification causing the problem. Last Ruger rifle I've bought. Real problem with some of the Ruger RSMs is that the ejector does not fit the ejector slot properly. They can fix that without the stock. Never send a ruger to the factory with a stock that you've invested anything in. They will steal it.

I have a Gen III in 375 H&H. It's great!

A little heavy, though, for anything except Africa. Bought a Mauser M03 in 375 H&H for Alaska, etc.