Ruger's 77/22 VBZ
(.22LR)
Bolt action rifles are certainly not new. For decades
militaries fought with them, sportsmen hunted with them, and
kids grew up learning to shoot using them. So it should not
have surprised anyone when Ruger introduced his first bolt
action rifle in 1968, following up on their auto-loaders of
the previous 4 years, and single shot rifles of 1967. Ruger's
usual goal of producing affordable weapons manufactured to the
high standards consumers have come to expect of the more
expensive models was prevelant in all parts of this
process.
Like many shooters, when it came time for my first firearms
purchase, I chose to go with a simple .22 long rifle. I had
fired a rifle before as a youngster at scout camp but wasn't
much good at it. However, the bug had stuck and I had an itch
to learn how to shoot accurately at long distance. With a
.22LR, there was a limited amount of damage I could do and I
wasn't under risk of dislocating my shoulder from the recoil.
So on my way home from work one night, I took a bit of a
detour and headed over to Sportsman's Warehouse which had
recently set up shop in my area of the country. Not knowing
anything about rifles at the time, I simply accepted the sales
reps recommendation for this purchase and I couldn't be more
satisfied.
Type: |
Bolt Action Rifle |
Caliber: |
.22LR |
Capacity: |
10 round magazine |
Barrel Length: |
24 in. BBL |
Rifling: |
1:16 RH, 6 groove |
Overall Length: |
43 1/4 in. |
Weight: |
7 1/2 lbs |
Sights: |
None. Scope rings provided |
Finish: |
Target Grey |
MSRP: |
$812 |
Originally intended as a modernized Mauser 98, meaning the
rifle uses a two lug bolt system with a claw extractor, the
M77 also incorporated many changes. Ruger formed the receiver
from an investment casting rather than forming it through
machining or stamping. This resulted in a strong body with a
minimum of production time. Barrels were all hammer forged of
high quality steel. No longer was it necessary to have a
gunsmith tap the receiver for scope rings as Ruger integratred
a scop base into this casting. To give added strength to one
of the key components, the bolt handle was cast as an integral
part of the bolt, eliminating the silver soldered joint that
so often failed under repeated strain. The safety was also
redesigned to guarentee positive function and increase
strength. Stocks were of the basic straight variety made from
American walnut.
Ruger's M77 received an update in 1989 most notably
incororporating a 3 position safety which allowed the bolt to
be cycled while the trigger was still locked out. This meant
it was now possible to load and unload the rifle without the
danger of an active trigger. Another unique feature of
Ruger's was the rotary magazine. Bolt action rifles have
constantly been plagued by feeding problems from rounds not
quite lining up correctly as they rise from the
magazine. When fed off the follower, the bullets would line up
correctly every time. But there was no practical way to place
a follower below every bullet... or was there?
To solve the feeding problem, Ruger took a cue from a Mannlicher
carbine and came at the problem from a completely different direction.
Rather than using a traditional stacking magazine, engineers looked
back at the drum style magazines feed used by this carbine for a solution.
Using this
inspiration, a rotary feeding system was designed using a
plastic rotor and a good spring and a magazine throat with an
angled face, forcing the rounds to be inserted at somewhat of
an angle. As each round is loaded, the pressure forces the
rotor to pull the last round down and to the side. This brings
up a new section of the rotor for the round to rest in. On
chambering, the reverse process occurs. From the perspective of
the rifle's mechanism, the rotor feeds each round to the bolt
from its own follower from precisely the right alignment with
the bolt, virtually assuring proper feeding. A side effect of
this sytem is that these 10 rounds to not require a magazine
to protrude through the bottom of the receiver to get caught
or bent.
Since this rifle is not equipped with iron sights, it was
necessary to purchase a scope to go with it. Looking over the
display cases and seeing scopes prices as high as $700, my
wallet wandered over to something a bit more reasonable for a
100 yard rifle and I selected a Simmons Pro-Sport 3-9X x 40
for about $78. A pretty basic scope with few frills and a
basic cross hair reticle, it's just about right for this
rifle since all I really need is a firm point of aim. The
magnification, and variable at that, is merely a bonus.
One very annoying problem with this purchase was that after
getting the rifle home, it was a full month before I had a
Saturday free so I could go out the range and give it a test
drive. Once I finaly did get out, it was clear that I would
need practice. At 50 yards, I managed to miss a 12 inch target
several times. On the other hand, I had a great time while I
was there. Over the next few weeks, I went back frequently,
burning litterally hundreds of rounds on each visit. In time,
I started experimenting with different ammunition after
noticing some of the defects in some of the cheap stuff such
as loose bullet crimps, doubtlessly leading to poor bullet
placement within the chamber and at the start of the
rifling. I also determined that this rifle seemed to function
much better feeding lead rather than jacketd bullets.
Ultimately, I settled on Federal's Champion lead solid rounds
for all my .22 shooting chores. These are both very reasonably
priced and seemingly very consistant. Running these rounds
through a chronograph, the average came to exactly 1184.4fps
which is precisely where a .22LR should be. The standard
deviation of my relatively small sample was 18.4fps. For kicks
and giggles, I fired a few of CCI's .22 short rounds from this
rifle. These averaged at 714.9 fps. Such rounds require single
feeding and can leave a ring on the inside of the
chamber. Therefore, I have only used these for testing.
Since I purchased this rifle, I have run about 4,500 rounds
through it. Thus far, it hasn't complained one bit. This rifle
has gone out into the desert, over the river, and through the
woods. While Grandmother's house was not on the map, it would
have gotten me there just fine.
In time, I got much better with this rifle.
Although these bullets quickly drop below
supersonic and tend to go off their trajectory when they do, I
still have a good chance of hitting a target at 200 yards. My
favored range usually has a somewhat gusty cross wind in the
afternoons making it a challenge to keep a good group at 100
yards. My typical grouping for 10 shots is about 2.5
inches. At 50 yards, however, it gets pretty easy to see the
real potential of this rifle. From this distance, using
nothing more than my hands on the rifle and my elbows on the
bench, I was able to get that group size down to less than
1.5" and I think I still have room for improvement. Just
to show that this was not a fluke, on a later trip, I did 15
rounds into the same size group with a dirty bore and all.
The model 77/22 VBZ was my first introduction to Ruger's arms
and the very first firearm I ever owned. I've gotten much
enjoyment from this rifle and didn't have to spend a great
deal of money doing it. With proper maintenance, I have no
reason to believe that this rifle won't last for 100,000
rounds or better with nary a squeak or a whimper. Oh, I'm sure
that when it gets to that point that I might have to replace
the bolt face or firing pin due to simple wear but I expect
the barrel to be in excellent shape and nothing more than
springs wearing otherwise. Afterall, Ruger builds these things
to last. A rifle that has a limited life is a rifle you can't
trust when you really need it. I trust my rifle, and while I have
purchased others that are bigger and more powerful, I
still bring my little .22 along more often than any of the
others and always enjoy shooting it. It's just that good.
Here's hoping it's still around to serve me 20 years from now.
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