M77 .358/.338 CB

[lcriqui]

Hello, does anyone know anything about this Gun I just purchased? It is a Ruger M77 and in the barrel it is stamped .358/.338 CB.

What does CB stand for? And I am guessing I can shoot either .358 or .338 through it?

Thanks

 

[Rich/WIS]

CB first thing that jumps to mind is Cast Bullet, but that makes no sense, at least to me, Does this look like factory stamping?

 

[hittman]

Welcome to the forum

Is it a M77 or M77 MKII? A serial number may help.

Sorry, I don't know about the 338CB part.

A clear picture of the roll marks on the barrel and receiver be a big help.

 

[rugerjunkie]

And I am guessing I can shoot either .358 or .338 through it?

And I am guessing I can shoot either .358 or .338 through it?

There is no way in h@!! you can do that! Don't mean to seem harsh but just how do you think you can shoot 338 and 358 diameter bullets through the same bore? Especially when you don't even know what you have. And just by the simple fact of you asking that question says you really need to take it to a gunsmith to do a chamber cast to tell you exactly what you have.

And no way that is a factory chambering. Without knowing more I'd guess a wildcat .358 based off of a 338 win mag case which is basically what a 358 Norma is. Possibly to use (CB) cast bullets? Maybe a special rifling and twist rate for that purpose. Is it a long action rifle? Do you have calipers to measure the bore diameter?

 

[Black Fly]

There is a 358 338 that is the 338 win mag upped to 358 diameter. It's kind of a 358 Norma performer to make with readily available brass.
I would probably make a chamber cast and measure the twist as a first step.
I hope you got dies with it, custom dies can get expensive.
Should be a fun process to get it up and running.
Good luck,
Bfly

 

[Rich/WIS]

Been pondering this since I posted last nite, couple more questions. Is it a long or short action? Magnum or standard bolt face? If you haven't done so either make, or have made, a chamber cast to see exactly what you have and order dies accordingly (CH4D is a source). Once you establish what it really is you can hunt up components and reload for it.

 

[kmoore]

No you cannot shoot either .338 or 358 ammo through it.
My guesses are it was a .338 win mag bored out to 358 caliber, maybe the 358 Norma. Who knows?
CB may stand for the gunsmith that did the work or more likely the wildcat design. I could not find a wildcat 338/358 CB round listed. I only put that into a google search. It may be listed somewhere else.
358 Norma brass is no longer made by Norma, I found a custom brass maker who would sell me 50 rounds for over 300 dollars. To me that's far too much cost.
But 300 win mag brass can be sized up to 35 and trimmed to make the Norma round. Or easier yet a 338 win mag can be upsized to 358 Norma. That's what I am doing. The 338 brass ends up slightly shorter than the Norma. For the record this 338 to 358 is this winters project for me I have reformed brass but not shot a single round yet. I still have 100 plus rounds of good 358 Norma brass. So it's a future project.

I agree with others, YOU need to cast the chamber and also know the diameter of the bore. Do not shoot any rounds in it until YOU know what caliber it really is. This is interesting and maybe a great wildcat round, but sounds like a handloading caliber with custom dies. If you don't handload it might be a really expensive gun to shoot.

 

[Enigma]

You didn't happen to buy this rifle from Cabela's, did you? I just did a web search and a Ruger 77 in this chambering came up as SOLD on Guns International. Anyway, this seems to be a fairly common wildcat cartridge - a .338 Win Mag expanded to .358". There are many, many variations of this cartridge, so you definitely need a chamber cast to determine exactly what you have. And I'll repeat that I hope it came with reloading dies, because they'll cost you a few hundred bucks, otherwise. Since you won't find any factory ammo for this cartridge, reloading is the most economical of your choices to obtain ammo. The other is to find a company that custom loads ammo and pay them.

 

[Laserbait]

Did you get this rifle?

Ruger ~ M77 ~ .358/.338 CB

Ruger ~ M77 ~ .358/.338 CB for sale online.

www.gunsinternational.com

 

[lcriqui]

You didn't happen to buy this rifle from Cabela's, did you? I just did a web search and a Ruger 77 in this chambering came up as SOLD on Guns International. Anyway, this seems to be a fairly common wildcat cartridge - a .338 Win Mag expanded to .358". There are many, many variations of this cartridge, so you definitely need a chamber cast to determine exactly what you have. And I'll repeat that I hope it came with reloading dies, because they'll cost you a few hundred bucks, otherwise. Since you won't find any factory ammo for this cartridge, reloading is the most economical of your choices to obtain ammo. The other is to find a company that custom loads ammo and pay them.

Yes, purchased from Cabela's to go with the Ruger M77 tang safety collection we have. We have never seen

CB first thing that jumps to mind is Cast Bullet, but that makes no sense, at least to me, Does this look like factory stamping?

 

[lcriqui]

It does, I don't have the gun in my hands yet it is on the way to my FFL.

 

[lcriqui]

Yes, that is the gun. It is not here yet, on the way to the FFL.

 

[lcriqui]

Yes, that is the gun we purchased. Thanks for the input.

 

[lcriqui]

CB first thing that jumps to mind is Cast Bullet, but that makes no sense, at least to me, Does this look like factory stamping?

It does but I don't have it in my hands yet. It is on the way to my FFL

 

[lcriqui]

I couldn't imagine that it would shoot either but someone else told me that so that is why I decided to post the question here.

 

[kmoore]

Those bore diameter are far to different to shoot either in same barrel. 33 cal and 35 cal. If it was .338/33 caliber I could maybe see a gunsmith bore that out to 35 cal and re rifle the rifleing. I had that done on a .33 cal barrel to .45 cal rifle barrel. The gunsmith looked it over and said no problem. I wondered if there was enough barrel steel, he said there was. It shoots great in 45-70. Just costs a lot to have the work done.

 

[Paul B]

Interesting, a possible .358 Win. necked down to .338. Dunno what the CB stands for. That would basically make it a .338 Federal. Or a .338 Win. Mag. necked up to take .358" bullets Same comment on the CB. Be very interesting as to what I really might be.

I have a Ruger M77 tanger that is chambered to the .375 Taylor which is nothing more than the .338 Win. mag necked up to take .375" bullets with no further change. It duplicates the .375 H&H in velocity and is very accurate in the one I have.
Paul B.

 

[kmoore]

I finally opened the sellers add. Stranger for sure, lists .358/338 CB and in another spot says .358 winchester. To me the barrel does not look like a factory barrel. Can't read the stamping in the photos. Nothing in listings says aftermarket barrel. I have purchased guns from the Cabalas gun library and phoned the store that posted the listing to talk with someone who knew about the gun before buying. Unless they have changed you buy the gun have it shipped to a nearby store and can reject it once you get your hands on it if your not happy with it.