Ruger 77/22 In 22 Hornet?

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MP-44

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How do these rifle rate?

I am considering a 22 Hornet and unfortunately, I don't have anywhere to hunt so the use of the rifle would be a range toy and to play around with handloads. I first considered getting an older Anschutz but that seems to be a lot of money for something I have no real use for, although I think they are absolutely beautiful. The CZ would be on the list but I cannot stand the trigger guard and mag sticking out.

Any suggestion for a <$1000 rifle
 
I went thru the exact same thing. I bought the Ruger first. Accuracy was less than acceptable. IIRC, the original Hornets had an extremely generous chamber and new factory ammo slops around.

Evidently Ruger uses old chambering dimensions, CZ and other ones use tighter modern chambers

If for whatever reason you decide to get a Ruger, only neck size 1/2 way down the neck. That holds the bullet aligned with the bore. Only powder to use is Lil’ Gun

Got a lot of advice from the guys over at Varmints Den plus guys here and ended up with a CZ. There were guys that went thru lotsa money and many gyrations to get their Ruger to finally shoot about as well as my CZ

My preference (discounting price)
Anschutz
Browning
CZ
and 37th on the list would be the Ruger
 
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I've never even seen one of the mini Ruger 77's in 22 Hornet locally and can't say anything regarding feeding, accuracy, etc., but I do own a 77/44 built with the same basic action. It's a decent design in most respects, but the bolt stop on mine was too short and sometimes allowed the bolt to slip out when worked vigorously. I made a new bolt stop (lower in photo) from sheet steel of the same thickness that solved the issue -- it allows the bolt to retract slightly further but stops it very positively by roughly tripling the area of contact with the left bolt lug.

BoltStop.jpg

I also found the flush mag release a bit fumbly and installed a replacement by Volquartsen.

VolquartsenMagRelease.jpg
 
Also no experience with the 77/22H. But with. 77/22LR.
SOME will need their bolt shimmed.
I'd always recommend rechambering to Ackley or K- hornet.
Ruger barrels are a crapshoot, I'd estimate 1 in 10 are reasonable and 1 in 100 are good. (This may be a re-crown, or lapping job, or worse)
Plenty of aftermarket parts. Stock trigger is OK on my example, VQ would be better.

For the money... That savage looks good.
 
Despite the incessant bashing of the Ruger Hornet I decided to buy one and see for myself. Mine will not be confused with a benchrest rifle but it will consistently put 5 shots into approximately 1 1/8" or slightly better at 100 yards when shot from the bench with handloads. The secret to reasonably accurate Hornets has always been proper handloads with small pistol primers and a slight crimp to provide some neck tension in the very thin brass of the case.

I do believe that there are some Ruger Hornets that could benefit from having the bolt shimmed if it is too loose. Mine is fine the way it is.

I have never seen a Hornet (from any manufacturer) that was a really great shooter with factory ammunition, but of course many exist on internet boards.
 
I have one I got years ago... sadly I have not shot it enough to know its full capabilities. I absolutely love the way it feels and handles and have used it on groundhog successfully :) last outing with foreign factory loads it shot well enough. It is a laminated target stainless model that I love the looks of also... I did buy the dies etc so I can start loading her a while back... I need tio get on that :)
 
I have a Ruger 77/22 .22 Hornet. It took me awhile, but I found a load that often shoots under 1 MOA for 5 shots at 100 yards. As you have stated for your use, mine is also mostly a range toy. I enjoy it. I foolishly got rid of an old Savage 23D many years ago, it shot really well.

It has an older Nikon Buckmaster 6-18x40 (Back when they were a pretty good scope)
Ruger 77-22 .22 Hornet at 100 Yard Range Pic 2.JPG
 

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Hornets are well known for short case life. We suspect it’s due to oversized chambers plus thin brass

I’ve read that case life can be extended by annealing
 
I have a 22 Hornet and a Ruger 77/22, two separate rifles. Both perform well but both are modified from stock. On the Ruger, I swapped the factory barrel for a Winchester 52 barrel, bedded the action, bedded the barrel and sweetened the trigger. It is a fine shooter.

My point is, you may have to do some fiddling to get it to shoot the way you want it to shoot.

Or,

http://www.leverguns.com/articles/paco/22hornet.htm

You might get lucky and find one that shoots. I know of about a dozen Ruger 77/22 Hornets. Two, needed work, one needed triggerwork the other bedding.

Good luck! The Hornet is a great cartridge. Handloading will bring out it’s strong points.

Kevin
 
I passed on one years back, I didn’t get one of the decent 77/22’s, I didn’t want to take another gamble. Disappointing when a rifle that looks and feels so good can’t shoot as well as a 10/22, Marlin model 60 or Remington 597.

I got a Van Norman .22 hornet barrel for a contender rifle instead, have put 5 in 3/8” @100 so far.
 
My dad has had 4 or 5 hornets. Its his favorite cartridge. He did once have a 77 hornet and the accuracy was pretty abysmal. The chamber was also huge and would split brass after a few firings. This is particularly a problem because 22 hornet brass is sometimes impossible to source, as it was during the last run on components. He currently has a savage model 25 in 22 hornet which is a tack driver, a 1960 ish vintage savage that is so so and has a big chamber, and a browning a-bolt micro. The browning he tells me does not shoot as well as the savage 25 but I've held it and it is a beautiful little rifle.
 
Not to derail the thread, but is there any real advantage of a .22 Hornet over a .223 for a hand loader? It seems that the .22 Hornet fills the gap between a .22 WMR and a .223 Rem. But since a hand loader can download the .223 and brass is plentiful, is there a niche for the Hornet other than nostalgia? Honestly, while I really like my 77/22 in .22 WMR, I've wondered if I shouldn't just download my .223 Model Seven and give up the .22 WMR as I eye downsizing over the next couple of years.

That said, the 77/22 is a sweet walkaround rifle in any of its variations ...
 
In reality, probably no real world advantage other than it gives you an excuse to buy something different

The noise level is about the same as a .22 Mag. It gives 90% of the velocity of a .223 with about 1/2 the powder (but a lighter bullet)

I think the Hornets are usually a light, handy rifle tho this most likely varies by mfg
 
I have never seen a Hornet (from any manufacturer) that was a really great shooter with factory ammunition, but of course many exist on internet boards.

Another happy exception to this rule was a Match Grade Machine barrel I bought for my TC Encore, but I understand that aftermarket barrels aren't what you're referring to.

This barrel still shot tiny after I Kilbourned the chamber, even shooting a few one-holers with PPU factory fodder that I was just firing to reform the brass. Surprised the heck out of me, so much so that I swapped in a higher magnification scope after this photo was taken (also swapped buttstocks).

I've only put a couple hundred rounds though it so far, and haven't stretched its legs beyond 100 yards.

TCEncore22HornetMGM.jpg
 
Not to derail the thread, but is there any real advantage of a .22 Hornet over a .223 for a hand loader? It seems that the .22 Hornet fills the gap between a .22 WMR and a .223 Rem. But since a hand loader can download the .223 and brass is plentiful, is there a niche for the Hornet other than nostalgia? Honestly, while I really like my 77/22 in .22 WMR, I've wondered if I shouldn't just download my .223 Model Seven and give up the .22 WMR as I eye downsizing over the next couple of years.

That said, the 77/22 is a sweet walkaround rifle in any of its variations ...

Not really. I've wanted a .22 Hornet for a long time. But due to the brass issue and availability I'm now looking for a fast twist .223, something in 1/12 or 1/14.
 
I have a Ruger 77/22 in .22 Hornet. It is NOT as accurate as a .22-250 Remington caliber Remington 700. However, it is right at an inch or so at 100 yards. Considering the round involved is not all that potent at extended ranges (300 - 400 yards), the accuracy out that far is not all that important. About a 45 grain bullet is good for accuracy and suitable velocity in my experience.

If one seeks a three hundred yard prairie dog gun, I think this would be lacking. For carrying around in the woods and possibly shooting (legal) small game or varmints within one hundred to one hundred twenty five yards, it will probably do.
 
Older varmint rifles tended to have the slow twists for light bullets, but that seems to have changed some. My .222 Mag is a 1-14 twist. 1-12 should be fine though.

I have no idea what the Ruger 77-22 .22 Hornet twist is. Hm, I should. :)
 
I can't comment on the Ruger 77/22 other than the price is what kept me from buying one. I bought the CZ and I quickly get over the magazine design when I saw how beautiful the wood looked and now amazing it shoots! Ruger walnut tends to look like mud these days, they've never been known for inherent accuracy, and the 77 triggers haven't been much to write home about.

Consider the fact that the CZ is cheaper than the Ruger, generally speaking has wood with much more grain figure, AND has the amazing set trigger, AND AND CZ rifles are known for being inherently accurate, that would be enough to sway most financially conscience buyers' minds. My 527 shoots the factory Hornady 45gr SP Match ammo at almost 1/2 MOA at 100 yards. I see no reason to handload because I don't know that I could possibly improve on those groups. I used mine to take a big fat doe last deer season. A shot behind the shoulder dropped her quickly.
 
How did the bullet perform?

I didn’t recover the slug, but the internals were completely jellied. Had a buddy helping me do the skinning and he was blown away at the damage it did to the internals. I knew I needed to stay behind the shoulder, but I wanted to give it a try if the perfect shot presented itself. And it did.
 
I have two 22 hornets, a savage model 23D and a Ruger 77/22H. I was really frustrated with the Ruger, I couldn't get acceptable accuracy with any handload I tried, including Ken Waters best pet loads from his book. Then I tried the Hornady factory loads. They're "Vmax" or something like that ( I'm not where I can check the box). The bullet weight is much lighter than normal, around 35 grains. These shoot like nobody's business. I shot a 5 round group the other day at 100 yards. 4 shots wentinto one ragged hole probably about 1/3 inch center to center. The fifth shot opened the group up to about an inch. I've tried some handloads using 35 grain bullets and they shot well too. (Sorry, I don't have my shooting journal handy.) I guess the answer to what gun to get depends on whether you'd be satisfied only loading very light bullets. I shoot 40-45 grain bullets in my Savage and get sub 1inch groups. In my Ruger I have to shoot 35 grain bullets.
 
22 Hornet is a neat round, but I have never seen the need to own one. I have never seen a niche for it. If 22 Magnum isnt enough, I move up to 223.
 
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