Best scope rings for Ruger 77 ?

[rugerjunkie]

walks_at_night

A pinched ring like you describe is usually from overtightening. It takes a lot of torque on those little screws to bend the top half of a ring! Way more than is needed to hold a scope in place!! Crank em down and they won't come off without scratching a tube and won't go onto the next one either. The way to fit them again is to use a hard rubber/plastic hammer and lightly tap the top of the ring. It will spread them back apart. It needs to be done slowly and lightly and constantly check for fit while doing it.

This is not a problem exclusively to Ruger or to used rings either. This trick was taught to me by a very good gunsmith who has had to do this to many new rings from different manufacturers besides used ones while working on someones gun who overtightened. Do you also know that Ruger rings are matched? You can't mix or swap halves from one to another. That will cause you problems too.

Not directed at you or anyone else...but people need to do some homework before branding company x or y as being junk before they know what they are doing or talking about. It saves a lot of headaches!

Jeff

 

[rugerjunkie]

I'll add one more thing here about "fit". Not all 1 inch scopes are going to be 1 inch. Different tolerances from company to company,different thicknesses between finish coatings,etc. Noone can build one ring to fit them all perfectly so that is where the little adjustment trick I was taught comes into play. I have never scratched a scope since. And I have had the same issues as you with Ruger and others rings.

 

[walks_at_night]

walks_at_night

A pinched ring like you describe is usually from overtightening. It takes a lot of torque on those little screws to bend the top half of a ring! Way more than is needed to hold a scope in place!! Crank em down and they won't come off without scratching a tube and won't go onto the next one either. The way to fit them again is to use a hard rubber/plastic hammer and lightly tap the top of the ring. It will spread them back apart. It needs to be done slowly and lightly and constantly check for fit while doing it.

This is not a problem exclusively to Ruger or to used rings either. This trick was taught to me by a very good gunsmith who has had to do this to many new rings from different manufacturers besides used ones while working on someones gun who overtightened. Do you also know that Ruger rings are matched? You can't mix or swap halves from one to another. That will cause you problems too.

Not directed at you or anyone else...but people need to do some homework before branding company x or y as being junk before they know what they are doing or talking about. It saves a lot of headaches!

Jeff

Hi Jeff,

I'm a former gunsmith/shop owner/tool maker (for Sierra bullets); I've been around more than a few guns/rings/pieces of metal. I kinda know what I'm talking about. :lol:
Not an over-tightening issue, as I don't do that, and, out of the package, the top halves didn't 'seat' over the tube as they should. I am aware that they are supposedly 'matched', although this would have little bearing on dropping the top halves down onto the tube and them coming nowhere close to 'seating' over the tube.

I am the original owner of both of these rifles, took the rings out of the package. They were wrong when they were shipped. Don't know if you have any experience machining metal, but I'm guessing that this is resultant of metal stress causing them to 'creep' during/after having been machined.

I can see how one might 'beat' the rings into submission, but I'd rather have them replaced with rings that are 'in-spec'. When I get an onion from a company, I like them to take the time and expense to correct it. This helps them to identify problems with their processes, and hopefully leads to corrections in production/inspection.

Thanks for the response!

 

[rugerjunkie]

I'm a former gunsmith/shop owner/tool maker (for Sierra bullets); I've been around more than a few guns/rings/pieces of metal. I kinda know what I'm talking about. :lol:

I can see how one might 'beat' the rings into submission

Thanks for the response!

Must have been very cool working for Sierra! Get to play with some pretty cool toys?

You said beat to submission. I know what you mean but most don't take but a few light taps. Some I have seen were warped or twisted if you will and I was able to square things up and get a very good fit. Some I've seen are tough just to get the four screws in because of the twist in the cap. Probably like you say and a bit of metal stress there. I think it is just a sign of the times and kicking things out the door as fast and cheap as possible.

I wish you luck with the replacement set.

Jeff

 

[TheDude]

Don't know what to tell you since I've never had a set of rings that "bind". The other ring makers can't IMO make their rings fit the scope cuts any better than Ruger can so I don't see how things would be that much of an improvement. I do use a 1'' bar to ensure ring alignment no matter what brand of rifle I am mounting a scope and will lap rings just a touch if need be but have not had to lap a Ruger set because of any ring misalignment. I have lappped them to get a better fit to the scope on some heavier recoiling rifles for a little extra insurance but normally haven't seen the need to mess with them. I have actually had the most trouble with Leupold and don't use them anymore. I stick with the Rugers and everything else that's not Ruger gets Burris Signature rings.

+1

I have used Warne, Talley, Burris, Weaver, Millet, Leupold and Ruger rings. At the end of the day I feel the Ruger rings are the most solid and reliable rings made. Not that the others arent good either, its just that none are better in my opinion.
I do lap a little as needed. I also use rubber cement and a torque wrench.

Josh

 

[mattsbox99]

Leupold, Burris, Millet, Warne all make very high quality products. They aren't better than Ruger rings and they all cost more.

 

[sp]

I have had no problems with Ruger rings.

I guess if I were to be real fussy I would lap both rings while clamped to the receiver.

I have used the Burris adaptor that allows Burris Z rings to be used on M77's. Using the Burris Signature Z rings with their plastic inserts allows the rear of the scope to be "jacked up" slightly to get onto target at 1000 yds. The problem with this is that with the adaptor and the medium height Signature Z rings the scope is about the same height as it would be with Ruger high rings.

Possibly Burris might consider making Ruger type rings with moveable inserts.

 

[4MUL8R]

I have limited experience. I had a M77 with stainless Ruger rings that looked odd. I tried every combination of ring parts, thinking the previous owner may have mixed them up. Nothing made them work well. The top half never lined up with the bottom half. Gaps on either side, when tightened, suggested that clamping forces were uneven, although I carefully went through the mounting process. I then went with my favorite design, based on other rifles I had, the Warne Maxima. These were nickel plated and did not match up well with the silver stainless steel color. I then went to Leupold and was amazed at the quality, the fit, and the easy of installation. The Leupold design is svelte and not intrusive like larger Warne Maxima. Mating the ring directly to the receiver with integral grooves makes the alignment of scope to ring problem-free. I set the scope in the rings first, allowing the scope to line up the two rings along its axis. Then, I tightened the rings to the receiver. There is a special screwdriver made for these large slotted base screws, available at Brownells.

 

[Boxhead]

The Ruger rifles I own or have owned were all bought used and with no rings. My favorite rings are those that were made by S&K. I wish I owned a few more of them. The others I use are Leupold. Nary a factory ring on my rifles.

 

[Kerz]

Ruger factory, with few exceptions.
Vic

 

[TnTnTn]

I like the Burris Signature rings with the nylon inserts but alas Burris discontinued them several years ago for the M77. I have a set on my .260 but on my other 77s I just use the Ruger rings without complaint. TTT