Tell me about 77 flat & hollow bolts

If you please.

Years of flat bolt

Years of hollow bolt

When the RS appeared (assuming the first 77's in '68 were round top)

the hollow bolts are long actions that were after flat bolts. Round tops were after hollow bolts. Don't remember the year made but not a lot of flat bolts were made in long actions.

The M77 was first offered only as a short action flatbolt, beginning in 1968, both with and without sights. Long action flatbolts followed about three years later, both with and without sights. Ruger discontinued the flatbolts and started making hollowbolts to satisfy mostly gun writers who did not like the flat bolts. Simultaneously they introduced the roundtop actions. There's about three years overlap in the early 70s where Ruger was using up their flatbolt actions while also making hollowbolts with Ruger rings and with roundtops without rings and drilled and tapped for standard rings. They were also transitioning to the traditional round bolt. So, there are some interesting combinations out there like hollowbolt roundtops. Every version was offered in a R and RS configuration from the beginning. It appears that Ruger made about 10% of the rifles in the RS configuration (with sights). however there are some calibers and configurations that were not ever made with sights.

M77R short action and long action. Flatbolt, hollowbolt, roundbolt

M77RS short action, long action. Flatbolt, hollowbolt, roundbolt

M77PL long action, roundbolt and hollowbolt without sights.

M77ST long action, roundbolt and hollowbolt with sights.

Short of re-writing Ronnie Burke's wonderful book on the early M77s, this should get you started.

I have a few. I will say this - if you're looking for a good wood-stocked rifle, it's hard to beat the early Ruger M77s for the price. The flat bolts were generally pretty well finished for a production rifle and had good barrels. They are accurate and feel good in the hands - everything a good rifle should be.

I love pre-64 Model 70s and have a few of those as well. But you can usually buy 2-3 flatbolts for the price of a pre-64 M70. I think the flatbolts are just as good as any M70 built after about 1957 or so. The flatbolts are one of the most underappreciated rifles out there.

SR

While not the best place for gun info, but Wiki has the rifle first appearing as a round top & the first design change was to the integral scope mounts.

I got into shooting seriously in 1974. I've had & used 20 or so round bolts, & kept up with most changes from that time up to when the tang safety was discontinued. The early ones simply escape any knowledge of mine.

I've personally seen several flat bolts over the years, but can only recall 1 hollow. That on the other hand could be missed if just casually looking. Are they the scarcest?



Thanks

Hollowbolt short actions are a lot more common than the hollowbolt long action, with the SA's running into the 71- prefix.
Ruger must have had a bunch of these bolts already made when the decision came to start making hollow bolts (long action only) then roundbolts.
Chet15

I didn't know they made hollow bolt short actions...

I agree. I never saw a hollow bolt in Short action. For that matter I have seen very few hollow bolts period.

I have an RS hollow bolt in 7 Mag and it's barrel is stout!

rugnelli said:

I have an RS hollow bolt in 7 Mag and it's barrel is stout!

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In the early days Ruger made two barrel profiles for the 7 Mag, a medium weight and a light weight. The medium weight was the same contour as other magnums (.300WinMag, .338WinMag, etc.). The light weight was the same contour as non-magnums (.270Win, .30-06, etc.). All the flat bolt 7 Mags were medium weight and the hollow bolts and round bolts were mixed until about 1975 when Ruger settled on the light weight contour for future rifles.

A 7mm hollow bolt with the slim barrel? I would love to see that. Could you post a picture?

I believe Chet15 was referring to flatbolt SA/LA rifle production numbers, not the hollow bolt.

3DTESTIFY said:

I believe Chet15 was referring to flatbolt SA/LA rifle production numbers, not the hollow bolt.

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Yes, my misquote. Thanks for keeping that one straight!
Chet15

The early M 77's with the 70 prefix had a short lived varaiation on the stock. In the action area where a case is ejected, the stock has a straight line all the way from the bolt to the stock tip. This has a serial number like 70-004xx. Our other M 77 has a serial number like 70-1xxxx. This stock drops down at the bolt.

Both are flatbolts in 6mm Remington. Both are sub-MOA. One has a stock which supercedes many #1's, the other has many dark lines. Not for sale, no pictures. We also have a later roundbolt .243 which also has a knock your eyes out wood. Same kind of shooter. It is a very early roundbolt. Seems like these early rifles tend to have very good wood.

Wyoming7220

Those early rifles had Douglas barrels and were good shooters. The wood on the early rifles were generally straight grained unfigured walnut although I have seen some stunning exceptions. Out of curiosity, do either of your 6mm flat bolts have sights?

I have one flatbolt in 6MM with sights and one w/o

The one with the sights would be pretty scarce if it letters as an RS, more so if it would letter as an S (a rifle shipped with sights but without scope rings). You may know for a fact the scope rings are original. Some rifles were sent back to the factory to have sights installed, and these would letter as an R, but I would expect that if a 6mm has sights, they came on the rifle.


I can certainly understand why they are not for sale!

No, no metal sights. Yes, the early ones had Douglas barrels. I had a bi-centenial 25/06 that shot everywhere but the target. Tried everything. No luck. Sold it. Seemed like the 25 caliber barrels of 1976 were poor shooters.

Re the 6 mm's, I free floated both barrels. My wife whacked an elk with her 6 along with a herd of deer and antelope. Her rifle was the first, or very close to it, 77 in town.

Wyoming 7220

gunzo said:

If you please.

Years of flat bolt

Years of hollow bolt

When the RS appeared (assuming the first 77's in '68 were round top)

Click to expand...

First add for the Ruger M77 RS. Right out of the gate, Sept. 1968....Flat bolt, sights, and Rare Ruger vertical rings...

I think the hollow/round bolts began in '72. because I graduated college then and a roommate and I were eyeing rifles and the pictures in the '72 catalogs weren't flat bolts for sure. I guess it could have been '71, info got around much slower in those days.