Ruger American vs. Ruger M77 Hawkeye in 243

Apples and oranges. The Hawkeye is a "traditional" design, with many more parts that require fitting and a higher level of fit and finish. The American was designed from the start as a price point model. More plastic, less machining, and a utilitarian finish. That being said, the American is just as accurate, if not more so. If you want a rifle to hand down to your grandkids one day, get the M77. If you want a light, accurate hunting rifle that you aren't afraid to scratch get the American.

As has been said, the M77 Hawkeye is the better rifle of the two, but there are significant differences in the designs between the M77 Hawkeye and the American Rifle which may drive a buyer towards the American, even if they favor a finer rifle.

Some of the differences I can recall between the two:

The trigger of the American is user adjustable, while that of the M77 Hawkeye is not. The American trigger uses the Savage-style blade safety in the middle of the trigger, which some people enjoy, and some people loathe.

The barrel of the M77 Hawkeye is a traditional machined shoulder design, while the American uses a shoulderless, nut-style barrel. That means the American can be user/owner rebarreled with minimal tools, and no precision machining required.

The American is a push-feed action with a plunger ejector and a sliding, lug mounted extractor. The M77 Hawkeye is a controlled-round push-feed (meaning it picks up the round from the mag as a CRF, but can also take a round dropped into the chamber, not fed from the mag), with a claw extractor and fixed ejector. This means that feeding in the M77 Hawkeye is more reliable, that extraction more reliable and the extractor more durable in the M77 Hawkeye, and that ejection can be controlled in the M77 Hawkeye by how fast the shooter operates the bolt.

The American is a fast 70* throw, three lug bolthead, while the M77 Hawkeye is a traditional 90*, 2 lug design. This means the American has a shorter and faster bolt lift, but also means the M77 Hawkeye has a lighter bolt lift, and better primary extraction.

Multiple models are available for both, but the standard American Rifle comes with a flimsy polymer stock, while the standard M77 Hawkeye comes with a walnut stock. This difference marks a pretty significant contribution to the price difference between the two, as well as a pretty significant contribution to the aesthetic difference between the two.

The M77 Hawkeye includes integral scope ring bases in the receiver, and the bevel locked and recoil lugged Ruger Ring design. This is an incredibly strong mounting platform, although the positions and ring spacing are fixed, such not all optics will fit for all shooters. The American utilizes a more modern screw-on base design, such the owner has multiple options for one or two piece bases, picatinny rails, RDS mounts, etc, including the dexterity to move the optic fore or aft (almost) however they need.

The standard American Rifle includes detachable box magazines, whereas the M77 Hawkeye is a hinged floorplate, fixed box magazine. For a hunter in most states, this isn’t important, but for someone living in states where rifles cannot be transported while loaded, it can be a hassle. It’s hard to lose a fixed magazine (although I have never lost a DBM either), or hard to forget one when you head to the range (I HAVE forgotten my DBM’s on multiple occasions).

The American uses stock mounted V blocks for recoil transfer, while the M77 Hawkeye uses a more traditional integral recoil lug. The American does use traditional 90* action screws, while the M77 Hawkeye uses a 90* in the rear, and a 45* screw in the front, which resultingly requires proportionately higher torque to generate the same downward force into the bedding/action inlet.

Aftermarket parts are more readily available for the American rifle than the M77 Hawkeye, largely because there’s greater interest to do these modifications to the American (maybe a way of saying owners recognize they NEED upgrades?) and the drop-in compatibility for the American is better than the M77 Hawkeye. Many folks buy Americans to effectively serve as “kit guns,” replacing the stock and doing their own home smithing to make the American look and feel more like the M77 Hawkeye - and spending extra money to do so.

I’m sure I’m forgetting a few things, but those are what come to mind to compare and contrast the two.

Personally, I have no interest in the American Rifles, while I own several M77 MkII and M77 Hawkeyes.

I think rule 303 said it pretty well. If you want a family heirloom to eventually hand down, or a gift for a child or grandchild, get the 77. It will hold it's value and IMO there is no more enjoyable action to work than that one. If you want a more accurate rifle out of the box that is easily user adjustable and you won't mind beating up, get the American.

Balrog said:

Which one is likely to be most accurate out of the box, and why?

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American.

Better trigger and bedding system and IMO barrel.

I bought my brother a Ruger American in .243 and his first three shots out of the box were all touching at 100 yards. No kidding. I had never seen that before, especially with factory ammo. That was one heck of an accurate rifle. I've owned three Ruger 77's and after a ton of work on the trigger, bedding the action, relieving the stock, etc. I never got any of them close to that American. They shot fine, but not great.

Balrog said:

Which one is likely to be most accurate out of the box, and why?

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A roll of the dice, I say. I currently own four Ruger bolt-action rifles (two Model 77s and two Mark IIs) and they all are very accurate with factory loads. I have two friends who own Americans and they report that their rifles are very accurate. You never know from rifle to rifle which one will prove to be accurate and which ones needing "help" until you shoot them; sometimes a crap game at best.

American models have better trigger pulls than early Model 77s and Mark IIs out of the box, in my experience.

Balrog said:

Which one is likely to be most accurate out of the box, and why?

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Out of current production, I’d honestly say either could be more accurate than the other. The flimsy Ruger American stock is less prone to create pressure against the barrel than the stiffer Walnut in the M77 Hawkeye, but if both are free floating and the mag box pressure point is relieved in the M77 Hawkeye, either will be 3/4-1 1/4 moa rifles, with a few outstanding rifles at the smaller end, and a few lemons at the larger. Three very quick and inexpensive tricks (read “free”) can relieve the M77 Hawkeye to eliminate it’s common issues, then it’ll shoot as good on average as anything on the rack beside it. Equally, the flimsy polymer stock in the Americans is more prone to be sensitive to variability in forend pressure, inconsistently influencing POI, so if both are free floated, the stiffer walnut stock of the M77 Hawkeye is more apt to behave itself than the American.

Triggers don’t make rifles more accurate, they just make it harder for the shooter to push the rifle off of target. $12 gets a spring set from Ernie which significantly reduces trigger pull in the M77 Hawkeyes, with a bottom end not so dissimilar from that of the American trigger. Does it suck to need to spend a few bucks to swap springs in the LC6 trigger? Eh, it’s a mild inconvenience. Does the rest of the quality improvement offset the cost? For me, absolutely.

I owned a 77 in 30-06 and RAR in 308. OF the 2, the 77 "looks nicer", but the American is cheaper and shoots better, not to mention a easier to use safety. I currently own 2 Americans- 300 BLK and 6.5 CM, and I am 100% happy with both. My 243 is a 700, but if I didn't have it, I would own another RAR in 243.

I own and enjoy both. I would definitely buy a 77 over an American unless cost was a driving factor.

Accuracy on my hawkwyes has been good to great. Well under 1" for a few different loads. Newer 77's are on average very accurate for a hunting rifle.

While most people enjoy great accuracy from the American, it seems about out of every 10 or so are stinkers. I imagine the stock is probably to blame.


The Hawkeye is rugged, light, crf, has integral bases and beefy rings. I also prefer the bottom metal as opposed to the plastic mag for long term use. I also much prefer the open ejection port on the 77.

Ther American bedding system is pretty clever and works very well. However, if you want a new stock those pillars can introduce more time, cost, and a potential headache.

CDNN still has a few models of the 77 for $500.

I may have just talked myself into another ruger.