Ruger M77 Mark II Stainless 280 Rem

[rmarshall]

Hey all I have found a beautiful Ruger m77 stainless 280 rem, I'm planning on picking it up tomorrow, It has less than 1 box of ammo through it. It looks new in fact. Not sure on the age of the gun but it has the newer composite stock, pretty much the same stock as the hawkeye version. Should I be worried about accuracy on these ruger m77 mark IIs? I hear bad reports. I've had 2 hawkeyes and they were amazingly accurate. How easy are these guns to get to shoot well if it's a bit finicky?
I have 140 AB, 140 BT, 140 Partition, Hornady Interbonds in 139 and 154, and 160 AB and BT. I'll probably focus on the 140-154 weights. I have R17, R19, R26, IMR7828SSC, and Hunter.
What's ya'lls opinion on these Ruger M77 Mark II Stainless rifles? thanks
randy

 

[nhenry]

Hey all I have found a beautiful Ruger m77 stainless 280 rem, I'm planning on picking it up tomorrow, It has less than 1 box of ammo through it. It looks new in fact. Not sure on the age of the gun but it has the newer composite stock, pretty much the same stock as the hawkeye version. Should I be worried about accuracy on these ruger m77 mark IIs? I hear bad reports. I've had 2 hawkeyes and they were amazingly accurate. How easy are these guns to get to shoot well if it's a bit finicky?
I have 140 AB, 140 BT, 140 Partition, Hornady Interbonds in 139 and 154, and 160 AB and BT. I'll probably focus on the 140-154 weights. I have R17, R19, R26, IMR7828SSC, and Hunter.
What's ya'lls opinion on these Ruger M77 Mark II Stainless rifles? thanks
randy

Randy,
I had a Mark II VT in 25-06 that, even without bedding, was easily a 1/4" gun with factory ammo. I'd not worry about the bad reports, as you're much more likely to post about a bad experience than a good one. There are countless MkIIs that have shot amazingly that you never hear about.

That rifle sounds like a peach. I'd love to find a lefty 25-06 stainless at some point. They made them in low numbers.

I'd get it bedded with epoxy and pillars and free float it as much as you can. If the stock is too flimsy, B&C and HS make replacements for Hawkeyes, which is the exact same inlet as a MKII. Might have to relieve a little bit if the trigger is vastly different.

Hope this helps.

 

[RL338]

Should I be worried about accuracy on these ruger m77 mark IIs? I hear bad reports

A lot of accuracy concerns are usually from copper fouled barrels.

 

[DrMike]

Grab it; you'll be glad you did. It is a fine rifle chambered in a highly underrated cartridge.

 

[JD338]

Sounds like a good find. The 280 Ren is one fine round that's easy to shoot, load and fills the freezer.

JD338

 

[rmarshall]

Thanks all, it replacing a 7-08 I just sold, I have a 280 ai as well. I guess they will pretty dang close to the same thing.

 

[Blkram]

Love the 280 Rem, and all of the Ruger's I have owned over the years in various calibers have shot pretty well to very well, whether they were the Model 77, Mark II or Hawkeye.
As suggested bedding (glass and/or pillar) is not a bad idea.

 

[FOTIS]

Grab it , shoot it! If nothing else there is a huge market for 77's and a bigger one for 280's.

 

[preacher]

Nostalgia Bum here, congrats on a great rifle. Back in '77 I read alot of Jim Carmichael explaining how that the factory 280 was loaded down for the Model 740 Remington. I knew a guy who used that same outfit and liked it. Mr C. said to get the best out of it handloading was required. I had only used one handloader to work up a load for a 30-06 Mod 70 my cousin sold me cheap. I was impressed how well it shot, so anyway. I made up mind I was going to start handloading my own and with a 280 in particular. I had been "watching" a 77 Ruger Tang Safety model, blued walnut keep being marked down at a LGS, over in Beaumont, Tx. See , bolt actions sold slow back then in that part of Texas and 280 in anything was still rarely seen. Plus, we had no elk there, ha! When it got affordable for my saved up lunch money ( I had a young family then, no discretionary funds, ha) I bought it. That first Fall (actually 1976 then) I killed a nice buck at 15yds out of a box stand with factory 150 Clkt ammo. I saved my brass from the first 2 boxes of ammo I shot.

Then that winter ( it took me a long time to save lunch money, sometimes in the Oilfield, I had to eat! ha) I bought and used a LEE Classic Loading set (hammer em in, hammer em out) an RCBS Beam scale, and three loading Manuals I read through first. I settled on 55gr IMR 4831, Rem case, 9 1/2 Primer and the Hornady 139 SP (so I could crimp it in the cannelure with the die) I got beautiful .90-1.0" three shot cloverleaf groups. I zeroed it at 200yds. That summer I shot it alot at the "long range", 200yds. (This was the Big Thicket, for 20 yrs my farthest shot was 90yds, most around 50) Shot my first "long range" (for me there in SE Texas) buck that Fall at 276 long steps down a PipeLine Right of Way. It might as well have been like a Junky's " first shot of Heroin", IOW, for me, I was hopelessly addicted to 7mms ( I've had almost all of them throughout the years since , have a Shilen 25" 7x57 now) and Handloading, ha. Have a ball friend, and enjoy your time with that rifle. Back then, no one would work on that hard trigger pull on that Ruger, but today, that is an easy fix. Even that trigger on the Mark II can be smoothed up. As mentioned, any 280 brings a good price today, so think of it as an Heirloom! P.S. I mounted a 3x9 "Montgomery Wards" made by Tasco scope. It worked swell. $40 back then!

 

[rmarshall]

Picked it up today, the trigger is real nice for a ruger, light and crisp. I’m going to put a vx3i 3.5-10x40 on it. As new, I’m excited to give it a whirl..

 

[FOTIS]

Good luck. Hope she shoots great

 

[JD338]

The rifle looks great. I used to load 140 gr BT/PT bullets with 59.0 grs RL19 in a m700 and it shot well under MOA.

JD338

 

[preacher]

I have the same scope on my 7x57 Marshall! Wat back in the 90's, I had a young man in my church that had a .280 , but in the Remington, BDL SS. He used the then available Federal Premium with the Nosler 150 Partition. He killed alot of mule deer/elk with that combo! In fact, he had such success with that 150PT that's what I set up my 7x57 with mostly. He made near and far shots with that thing! Good buy you made there!

 

[PJGunner]

I have the same scope on my 7x57 Marshall! Wat back in the 90's, I had a young man in my church that had a .280 , but in the Remington, BDL SS. He used the then available Federal Premium with the Nosler 150 Partition. He killed alot of mule deer/elk with that combo! In fact, he had such success with that 150PT that's what I set up my 7x57 with mostly. He made near and far shots with that thing! Good buy you made there!

I've been running the 150 gr. Nosler Partition at 2880 FPS from a Winchester M70 Featherweight. I'm using RL17 and Winchester brass and primer. Load is OK with that combo an a usual hot Tucsin AZ summer day at the range. If I use the same load with Remington brass on the same day, velocity is about the same but opening the bolt is slightly sticky. The load works just fine in colder weather so I leave it be.

Accuracy from either load runs sub half inch with the Winchester brass, half inch to .75" with the Remington brass. I figure that's what I'll use if I can swing another guided elk hunt. Last elk hunt I did back in 2019 had the temp right at 4 above zero. Back up rifle just might be my .280 Rem. Mauser that does real well with the 160 gr. Speer grand Slam. I still have to cogitate on that for a while. just might go with the .35 Whelen instead.
Paul B.

 

[6mm Remington]

My son has a Ruger MKII in 6mm Remington. I sold the factory walnut stock and put a Boyds nutmeg wood laminate stock on the rifle. Before the stock was put on I had my gunsmith pillar and glass bed the stock and work his magic on the trigger. It's been a real shooter with 90 gr. E-tips. Haven't used anything else in it. I think you will find the MKII to be a really nice shooting rifle. It has to be as it's in the great 280 Remington! Some 140 gr. Partitions or Accubonds should serve you well.

 

[SJB358]

Grab it; you'll be glad you did. It is a fine rifle chambered in a highly underrated cartridge.

For sure, I'd likely be all over one of them myself.

 

[HeathSexton]

All my Rugers shoot great.

Free Float

Stone the trigger and clip a couple coils off the spring, if untouched they are quite heavy

Open the floor plate and be sure the mag box is free and you can move it. If not take the action out and file the bottom of the box and cut down the points where it’s held in until it’s free

I torque the 3 screws in mine at 65/barely in the gun/50in/lbs


The mag box being bound is a common culprit with Ruger accuracy and the center screw being too tight.