M77 Mfg Date vs Date Shipped

[Stumps13]

Please correct me if I am wrong!!!
Recently I received an email about I M77 and the author of this email was concerned about the shipping date verus the mfg date I had given him. According to R L Wilson's book Ruger and His Guns the serial number fell into a date of 1971 (#70-30944 M77 350 Rem Mag Flat Bolt) but when Ruger was called they stated the gun was shipped in 1974 and if the gun was in fact a flat bolt.
With all this said it has been my experience that this happened all the time and I do know of guns that where found in the plant that hung around for 10 + years. Also, I believe that a person who is collecting or about to become a collector should be aware of this but not to become alarmed when the dates are NOT the same or within a month or two. AM I right or all wet? :?:

TNX

 

[El Numero Uno]

You are correct!
There are many instances of Rugers being shipped years after their manufacture dates. I do not feel this shipping "discrepancy" hurts their collectability at all.

 

[contender]

You can also tell that collector that Wilson't book has a lot of "mistakes." Tell him that the factory letter is the correct method of determining things.
But as you noted, many guns were warehoused for years before being shipped. And since Ruger doesn't tell us when they were made, only when they were shipped,,,!
Tell this nice gentleman to become a subscriber to RENE.

 

[mcknight77]

I sorry, but I have to disagree with the other learned and respected posters here. I believe that the discrepancy between the manufacture date and the ship date seriously degrades the value of that .350RemMag Flatbolt. Sorry.

If pushed, I'd have to say that it's probably now not worth more than any run of the mill roundbolt, say $350.


















Stumps, please let me know your address and I'll send you the check. Are you going to pick up the cost of shipping?

 

[Heliman]

I currently have a #1 S26M, 7mm Mag, non-prefix, 4 digit sn. The date on the inside of the fore arm is stamped "Oct 15 1968", but the factory says it was shipped 12-69. I have read here and in other reference material that the rifle was probably assembled/manufactured shortly after the date stamp on the fore arm. If this is correct, it sat for a little over a year in the warehouse before shipment.

Dave

 

[Stumps13]

Sorry Jim
But if it is only worth $350.00 as you stated I will keep it and shoot it myself. As I paid alot more than that for the gun to complete my collection of rare and hard to obtain M77's.
My understanding the rare and hard to obtain M77's are the 6.5 Rem Mag. - 358 Mag - 284 Win - and 350 Rem Mag all of which are flat bolts. Is this correct :?:
TNX

 

[mcknight77]

Well, it was worth a try!

Yes, those are the rare Flatbolts, except for the .358Mag, not sure what that is.

But, long action Flatbolts are rarer as is the 6mm in the V configuration.

 

[chet15]

Examples:
RSSM sn 312121, factory second...should have been shipped about April 1960, but not shipped until May 7, 1974
BKH-46 .44 flattop sn# 13971 manufactured December 10, 1958...shipped September 7, 1976.
OM Super Bearcat sn 91-57490...should have been shipped about April 1973, but not shipped until October 19, 1981...the last OM Super Bearcat shipped?
Tri-Color Lightweight sn 200058...manufactured April 17, 1956, shipped July 26, 1978 (the last Lightweight ever shipped?).
I think these guns should have the same collector value and then some!
I might add there was a group of flatbolt M77's in .338 Win Mag. that were completed a lot later than they should have been also...with sn's in the 70-87251 to 70-89196 range.
If that #1 in .225 Win. ever gets out of the factory I'm sure it will be held in very high esteem also!!
Chet15

 

[flattop44]

I agree with Chad. I like the late shipped guns, adds appeal and maybe some value in certain cases. My BKH4 s/n 10 was mf'gd in Dec 1956 but not shipped until August 1974 and I find that to be very interesting!! Especially the note on the shipper that says "Hold per WBR". 8)
FT44

 

[chet15]

Oh yes, that #10 flattop is another good example!
Not quite as extreme are the two-digit flattops (.357 and .44) that weren't shipped out until about September 1957, two years late on the .357 and almost a full year late on the .44 flattops. These were the first guns shipped of Ruger's "low serial number program" and were generally shipped to those few who had matching numbers of the Single-Six that they'd received earlier.
Chet15

 

[Anonymous]

My 358 is a round bolt. I thought they all were?

 

[mcknight77]

The .358 Winchesters were only made in a roundbolt.

Stumps may have intended to say .338 Win Mag. In that case, as Chad stated, some were made in the long action flatbolt. Very rare.

 

[Stumps13]

I did mean to say 338 in flat bolt.
How does the 338 compare to the 6.5 Rem Mag as far as being RARE goes, being a flat bolt?
TNX

 

[chet15]

The 6.5 has been known quite a while longer as being a scarce gun, and only with the flat bolt. Of course there is is the "R" model in that as well as the scarcer "RS" model.
The .338 "R" flatbolt hasn't been known as long, maybe for only the last 10-15 years, so slipped under the radar of most collectors looking for earlier serial numbered guns and not paying attention at all to those in .338.
I don't know...the .338 flatbolt may not bring as much as a 6.5 (because of the caliber) but I would think the .338 would be a heckuva lot rarer!
Chet15

 

[mcknight77]

Chad, I can show you a couple of 6.5s for sale on the auction sites. I've never found a .338Mag flatbolt for sale. I know where a couple are, but so far they have eluded me.

As we see more flatbolt collections come on the market there are a lot more rifles available than just a few years ago. Sadly, the prices of them haven't risen much. I presume because there aren't many folks collecting them. I do know, however, that because they are so much scarcer, most long action flatbolts never make it to the open market, but are traded/sold among a small group of collectors. There's a glimmer of light at the end of that tunnel, I believe, since I have seen more long actions for sale in the last two years than I saw in the previous twenty.

 

[chet15]

There's a glimmer of light at the end of that tunnel, I believe, since I have seen more long actions for sale in the last two years than I saw in the previous twenty.

That's good. There are a few Ruger areas that I'd like to see more collector interest. When Ruger had their auction page I was quite happy (and surprised!) to see some of those long guns go for what they did. Of course, I don't know if maybe there were only two or three people battling over them, or ??
Chet15

 

[martyj]

What is a good price for a .284 nib flat bolt m77r. They are asking 1300.00 but not going to get it from me.
I would like to find a M77v in 6mm though.

 

[mcknight77]

Marty, that price is high, IMHO. But, NIB certainly adds to the value. If it was an RS, I'd say the price is about right, or certainly in line with what I'd pay for it.

Good luck on the 77V in 6mm. The one I have is the only one I've ever seen.

 

[martyj]

Marty, that price is high, IMHO. But, NIB certainly adds to the value. If it was an RS, I'd say the price is about right, or certainly in line with what I'd pay for it.

Good luck on the 77V in 6mm. The one I have is the only one I've ever seen.

No its just a M77R flat bolt.
I also found a 250 savage but it has been back to the factory and had a new barrel installed for some reason.

 

[chet15]

I hear there is a 6mm RS flatbolt on gunbroker that will be available for bid until Sunday.
Chet15