I have had a chance to put a few boxes thru my special run 77/22M with short barrel (18.5", blued, synthetic stock). Not much remarkable to report.
Accuracy might be really good. My only session on a bench rest was VERY windy and horizontal spreads were 2" plus. Vertical spread looked like a shooter better than me might shoot moa with a high power scope.
New 77 rimfires definately have better triggers than the last one I bought 15+ years ago. Not great, but better. Bluing is better because the metal has a nicer polish than my previous guns. Can't find any "warts" anywhere.
Short barrel is louder than the 20-24 inchers.
Velocity diff vs long barrels is less than the amount of standard deviation in a 10 shot string.
Demated the barreled action from stock and it looks like Ruger attempts to provide a fitted barrel support. It doesn't have the seam down the middle from the molding operation as I have seen others report. The cross members in the fore end all show a contact point with the barrel that looks fairly even.
Overall, I really like this gun. The missing 1-1/2" of barrel length makes for a very handy rifle to carry with a sling. It also makes it a poor choice for precision bench rest shooting as you really notice how hard it is to hold the skinny little barrel steady.
I currently have a pretty crummy 4X scope on the gun. Can't decide to put a tiny Leupold 2.5X ultra light for easy carrying or a Weaver 3-9XAO rimfire to try to exploit potential accuracy. Maybe buy both and put off buying the goofy Turkish 9mm auto pistol I have next on my shopping list.
In Denver area, 22WMR ammo remains the biggest challenge of just about ANY caliber. I got to go shooting today just because I got 3 boxes from a private party who no longer owned a 22 and was dumping his stash.
Accuracy might be really good. My only session on a bench rest was VERY windy and horizontal spreads were 2" plus. Vertical spread looked like a shooter better than me might shoot moa with a high power scope.
New 77 rimfires definately have better triggers than the last one I bought 15+ years ago. Not great, but better. Bluing is better because the metal has a nicer polish than my previous guns. Can't find any "warts" anywhere.
Short barrel is louder than the 20-24 inchers.
Velocity diff vs long barrels is less than the amount of standard deviation in a 10 shot string.
Demated the barreled action from stock and it looks like Ruger attempts to provide a fitted barrel support. It doesn't have the seam down the middle from the molding operation as I have seen others report. The cross members in the fore end all show a contact point with the barrel that looks fairly even.
Overall, I really like this gun. The missing 1-1/2" of barrel length makes for a very handy rifle to carry with a sling. It also makes it a poor choice for precision bench rest shooting as you really notice how hard it is to hold the skinny little barrel steady.
I currently have a pretty crummy 4X scope on the gun. Can't decide to put a tiny Leupold 2.5X ultra light for easy carrying or a Weaver 3-9XAO rimfire to try to exploit potential accuracy. Maybe buy both and put off buying the goofy Turkish 9mm auto pistol I have next on my shopping list.
In Denver area, 22WMR ammo remains the biggest challenge of just about ANY caliber. I got to go shooting today just because I got 3 boxes from a private party who no longer owned a 22 and was dumping his stash.
