My New 357, and why it matters.

Yendor357

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Well it matters to me at least, I don’t know if you’re going to care, but read on. If nothing else, it’s slightly amusing.

Here in Southern Indiana, we still like our little Revolver Caliber Carbines. That really makes no sense because we can now use modern bottleneck high powered rifles on whitetail deer.

Ruger makes the 77/357 from time to time. They’ve always been a little too expensive. I’ve put it off for too long. The last iteration had the hideous bulge on the end of the barrel because like the 3 rd brake light and the green/yellow vest, There’s no turning back on everything NEEDING to be suppressor ready.

So I get the brilliant idea that I’d write a letter to Ruger,and they’d do what I asked. Yeah, Right! lol So I pen a hand written letter to 1 Lacy Place and it went something like this:
I love the 77/357, but I hate that hideous bulb on the end of the barrel. Please, if you would, just make a straight heavy barrel, that will leave enough material for the suppressor threads. Visually, it’ll be much better. There may be increased accuracy. But the icing on the cake for you is fewer machining operations.
While you’re at it make the stock laminate, same profile as the old walnut stock. You still have the programs for the router machine, so no R+D necessary. Do this, and you won’t be able to make enough of them.

I got a nice letter thanking me for my input. They also gave me a hat and a sticker. Thoughtful touch.

Shot Show, Indy 2023: I go to the Ruger guys and repeat my request. Heavy barrel Laminated stock. But the 1894 lever gun is all the rage at that time. Rages don’t last forever, and everything comes in cycles. I didn’t think much of it at the time.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago, my shooting buddy calls me to tell me Ruger, on line, is showing a re-done 77/357. But the barrel is different. My initial thought is: Is it possible? Sure enough, there is “My barrel”! Notably absent is the laminated stock, but nevertheless, there’s a straight heavy barrel.

In conclusion, I got my 77/357 the other day. It was a bit pricey. But who cares? If you want to save money (which I have done all my life) don’t go into gun shops. It is just super cool. So far 5 shots under 1.25 @ 100 yards. 158s going 1700, recoil is a little bump.

Now, did Ruger take my input and consider what I suggested? That’s debatable. But the fact is: I hand wrote a letter. I got a positive response. I reinforced my ideas face to face at the Shot Show. I didn’t (yet) get the laminated stock. But here’s the barrel I asked for.

Draw your own conclusion.
 

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^Im on it, Mike. Great idea! I’ll cut you in on the credit when it happens. My shooting buddy has an old beat up, hacked on 44 Carbine. It feeds, fires, ejects, and will put 3, 240s under 2 inches at 100y. I have only 130 yards at my place to shoot, so a 6.5 Creed or a 308 is really no challenge. But when you get decent results from a 357, or a 44 from a rifle or carbine, it very satisfying.
 

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I don’t shoot much factory ammo because I can reload cheaper. However, I firmly believe that the factories make better ammo than I can. I’m referring to the premium stuff, not **** like Wolf FMJ.

One thing I’ve learned from chronographing everything is that the smaller the E.S, the tighter the group in this rifle.

One 3 shot group is too small an example to be meaningful. After those 3 I couldn’t bear to risk shooting 2 more. This may never happen again, but it did this time.
 

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Ruger has always been really open to suggestions. I have never snail mailed them, but via email have pinged them a few times. They never did make a LH Ruger Scout Rifle in .450, and am still waiting for the Mini-350 I suggested recently.
 
Timney makes a sear/spring upgrade for this rifle and I did it to mine -- much improvement in the factory trigger if you're interested.
 
Great little utility rifle................ I have a little 1-3 Leupold shotgun scope and 550 paracord sling on mine... for Pa.'s small fields and woods.

Grab some extra 5rd mags..... makes for an easy "grab and go" gun.

Pairs nicely with any of my 3" .357, 60-10,65 or 66.
 
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I'm not really a rifle person, but that one looks nice. I had a 77/22 some years ago, from the first year of manufacture according to the S/N and it was the nicest rifle I have ever owned. It had, IIRC a 2x7 Simmons scope. I bought the gun used, and never touched the scope. It was sighted in for me perfectly from the first shots. I don't think I ever missed a squirrel with it. As I stood on the side of the hill with it in my hand, I felt like I was off in Montana or somewhere hunting elk, or sheep or something.

I wish I had never sold that gun.
 
I’m a big Ruger carbine fan. But I like the .44 big brother. I searched and searched for a 77/44 but the prices were silly. I wanted traditional walnut and blued steel. Well eventually I found a seller on GB with the new stainless/synthetic version. He had 4 of them and I promptly bought 2. Gave one to my son. He intends to put a suppressor on his. I’ve read all the stories about needing trigger work and shimming the bolt. I was prepared to do all of that. Then I shot it. With a 2-7 Vortex shooting 240gr JSP Winchester White Box I was getting darn near MOA at 100 yds. At 150 it’s at 2”. I was amazed. Some day I’ll try it at 200 just for giggles. As mentioned before, it’s a fantastic little compact grab in go gun. It’ll get put to use next week filling doe tags.
 

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I just bought one of these because I want to reload for it, and suppress it with my Rugged Obsidian 9mm can. The version I got was just released, blued, kryptek camo stock, threaded etc.

I think it only weighs 5.5lb? I’ll be tossing my fixed 2x ultralight Leupold scope on it with the factory rings, a tri lug (I use these on my other hosts - CZ Scorpion/Sig 522 pistol), and tote it into the woods once I get a load worked up that groups well.

I’ve got 125 grain FTX, 158 grain power shock JSP, and 180 grain cast. Surely the 158s over a stout charge of HS6 will do the trick on a Georgia whitetail?

SVT28
 
What is the purpose of the bulge on the end of the barrel?
Thanks.
 
Auto, the bulge was there so there would be enough barrel steel so that it could be threaded for a suppressor. I have a couple of suppressors. I won’t have any more. I don’t get the whole suppressor thing.

SVT, neither of my reloading manuals show HS6. I, and several friends have taken a number of Indiana white tails with the 357 in 4 inch revolvers to 18.5 rifles. Especially out of rifle, a 357 is, shall we say, very humane, if you get my drift.

I have a total of four 77/ rifles. I’ve never shimmed any of them. They are all capable of sub MOA on a good day.

The grey laminate is a VBZ. 17HMR with a Volquartzen barrel, the brown laminate is pretty much the same thing in 22LR. I took the scope off that one on the 77/357 at least for now. Check out the wood on the skinny barrel 22LR. I got lucky there.

My gunsmith is so cool. He bought a used bulge barrel 77/357. He turned down bulge on the barrel in a lathe. Recut the dovetail for the front sight. Then milled the stock, and threaded the receiver for a Williams apature rear sight. Now he has a peep sighted 77/357. How awesome is that?
 

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You had to buy one after suggesting they build it (and it really is a pretty rifle). A few years ago I requested they reintroduce the SP101 9mm and when they actually did reintroduce it (after I retired) I felt obligated to buy one and I did.

This is a far cry from S&W who said they weren’t interested when I suggested they reintroduce the M20 in .357 Magnum to go with my M21-4 and M22-4 (and now that they have it’s grossly overpriced).
 
SVT, neither of my reloading manuals show HS6. I, and several friends have taken a number of Indiana white tails with the 357 in 4 inch revolvers to 18.5 rifles. Especially out of rifle, a 357 is, shall we say, very humane, if you get my drift.

My 2nd Edition Modern Reloading manual has HS6 loads for 357 magnum (158 grain XTP) starting at 8.0 grains - 1182 fps and never exceed 9.5 grains - 1375 fps. Min OAL 1.580”.

I’ll probably start 8.0-8.5 grains with it and I’ve also got some HP38 and Ram Zip. Will report back!


SVT28
 
I probably didn’t explain myself very well. First time ever! lol Yes the “bulge barrel” as I like to call them, is indeed already factory threaded.

Full disclosure. My 77/357 started out as a camo stocked gun. Ruger barrels as they come from the factory brand new are often in need of a decent break in. I cleaned the barrel a lot the first day. Some Hoppes#9 got on the stock and dissolved the camo. The only thing uglier than a camo rifle is a half camo rifle. So I used Hoppes#9 to strip all the rest of the camo off. I called the factory. They took my info and said they’d e-mail a message back to me. Crickets. It doesn’t really matter. I’m just fine with the black stock. I carefully sanded down the ridge on the underside of the pistol grip. It feels a lot better.

So if you like your camo, keep the Hoppes#9 off it.
 

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Very cool! I always liked the 77/whatever - even the 22. hornet I had that wouldn't group very well. I still have the 77/22 that my dad gave me as my first big .22 rifle and a 77/44 at SRT arms right now waiting for an integral suppressor.
 
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