The better 44 rifle Ruger 77/44SS -vs Marlin 1894SS

[LuckenbachTexas]

Yeah, I know many of us love leveractions too, but I'm wondering in functional and practical terms whats y'alls opinion on these rifles.

I'm only discussing these two because they are both Stainless. Keep in mind, I love leveractions too, and will always have them in other calibers.

For the simplicity and handiness of the firearm I'm leaning toward the 77/44 and auctioning off my 94SS down the road. My Marlin is a tack driver but I've never been particularly fond of the 94 action and I have no need for the capacity, and I feel the short stroke 77/44 is about as fast for how I use it.

Thanks

 

[WAYNO]

Wow. Tall order. Folks will have opinions regardless of their actual experience.

For pure practicality and utility, I would prefer the 77/44. But that is outweighed by the better accuracy of the Marlin.

There is no reason the bolt action Ruger should not be on par with any other .44 carbine, but after owning four of the 77/44's, I don't see myself buying another. And in fairness, I will point out that one of my Rugers was a tack driver. If it was possible with one of them, why couldn't they all have been?

WAYNO.

 

[LuckenbachTexas]

I did sell one that was very accurate and I'm hesitant to jump into the luck of the draw. I wish someone made a decent stainless single shot. I'm not looking for another project.

 

[Heliman]

I agree with WAYNO. I have only owned one 77/44 and accuracy was suspect. It was okay with only one kind of ammo, where as the 2 Marlin's I owned were fairly accurate with any ammo. Just my experience.

Dave

 

[wunbe]

Heliman,

What ammo did yours like?

Thanks,
wunbe

 

[wunbe]

Heliman,

What ammo did yours like?

Thanks,
wunbe

 

[WAYNO]

Until he answers, I'll say the one and only ammo that shot the best groups with two of my rifles were the Hornady LeveRevolution.

WAYNO.

 

[Heliman]

Heliman,

What ammo did yours like?

Thanks,
wunbe

Well, it was the white box Winchester 240gr as I recall. I never did try the Leverevolution load.
Dave

 

[LuckenbachTexas]

Same for me on the 77/44 with Hornady. Some of the other ammo acted real flakey. Some kicked pretty hard surprisingly.

I've heard there is a type of phenomenon going on with the 77/44 and accuracy mainly because the recoil coupled with the slow exit means you have to really control that barrel? I'm not a heavy person and I did find some of the heavy loads even on the bench were kinda scattered. Those 180gr Remington Pills were accurate for me too.

I can say with a few loads, the 77/44 beat me up as bad as my 450 Marlin.

In my old age I've kinda come to the belief that Rifles are for rifle cartridges. That dual use stuff is kinda a utilitarian fantasy since its really only a 100 yard gun on average anyway, and you can accomplish most task with the pistol and a single shot rifle.

 

[jjas]

Luckenbachtexax

I've heard there is a type of phenomenon going on with the 77/44 and accuracy mainly because the recoil coupled with the slow exit means you have to really control that barrel? I'm not a heavy person and I did find some of the heavy loads even on the bench were kinda scattered. Those 180gr Remington Pills were accurate for me too.

That's why Randy Fritz (of Tarhunt Slug guns) tells you to grasp the forend and pull it back and down when shooting slugs. They (slugs) are slow to exit the barrel and it's amazing how different the techniques are for shooting slugs versus a centerfire rifle.

 

[LuckenbachTexas]

The phenomenon presents itself worse (for me) when shooting off the shoulder with the 77/44 using heavy loads. I think I just made up my mind.

 

[Otley]

Hello there.
I traded my 1894SS for an All Weather 77/44. I don't know if the stainless steel receivers used for the 1894SS are softer than the blued steel ones, but a steady diet of factory magnum loads definitely increased the headspace on my 1894. The design of the 1894 means that the breech locking block is loaded asymmetrically and this produces a high stress at the top of the locking block slots in the receiver. This stress produces strain in the form of deformation of the locking slots. An indication of this was the lever popping open on the shot.

Whilst it might not be as accurate, the 77/44 exudes strength and longevity in comparison.

 

[Old Judge Creek]

I'm a lever rifle man, through and through. My lever guns offer faster handling, easier carrying/packing afoot, on horseback, in my Jeep, or on my ATV because they are "flat" from side to side and don't have the bolt handle sticking out like a broken thumb. The lever gun can be reloaded/ topped off "on the fly".

IMO the lever rifle is the most utilitarian of all rifles.

Having said that, I've never seen any well made bolt gun that wasn't more accurate than one of my lever rifles. My serious, west of the Great Divide, hunting rifles are Ruger 77s... old (like I am).

The simple fact is that 44 Bolt, to 44 Semi-auto, to 44 Lever, I'm always going take the lever rifle for all the reasons I've mentioned.

And FWIW, I carry my Marlin Guide Gun 45-70 when I need my Hammer of Thor.

 

[rugerjunkie]

Ive had pretty good results in my 77/44 using Hornady 265 grain soft points and Speer 270 grain soft points with just under a max load of H-110. Granted , its no varmint rifle , but accuracy for a pistol caliber rifle is plenty good for its intended use. I get 2 - 2 1/2 inch groups at 100 yards on a good day. Sometimes a tad better and sometimes worse.

I dont know what some have gotten for group size with theirs but from reading several topics about this , I think there are some expectations that are too high. If you want something that will consistently put sub 1" groups down range you need a different tool for the job. I cant think if much Id shoot with the 44 anyway where even a 3" or so group at 100 yards wont do the job...

 

[mikeybuck]

I've had good luck with my 77/44, shooting factory hornady 240 gr, one inch high at 50 yards puts it dead on at 100 yards. Hundred yard group is right about a inch and a half.

You have to get behind these guns and hold it tight and be easy on the trigger pull to get a good group.... at least for me anyways.

Last few weeks I've been playing with some different hand loads and I seem to be finding the gun likes hotter loads.

 

[RJ556]

I've had 2 77/44's, 1 early, one late. Neither was consistent. Even after trigger work and many other attempted fixes, neither one would not do better than 2.5". But 2.5" groups at 100 yards was not the problem. Every time I went to the range, I would get some 4" groups. In the field, when you add shooter error from field positions to a shot that is up to 4" from point of aim, that is a poor shot on an animal. Inconsistent. A bolt carbine with a 7x scope and many many factory and hand loads, something should have been consistent. In theory, they should shoot, but not in my experience. In my 40 plus years of shooting and hunting, I have made some inaccurate rifles shoot well, but not the Ruger 77/44. RJ

 

[6gun]

I prefer the Winchester Model 94 in 44 mag over both, mine is very accurate, nice smooth action and can be reloaded while riding horse back.