ok I have a Ruger m77 Markii the barrel isn't free floated on it. Should I sand out the stock so the barrel does free float? Also has anybody used rl26 in a 270? I have a load with h4831sc with 150 Berger hunting vld, but they are only going like 2650. At that speed my creedmoor has more energy and better ballistics because of the same or little more speed and higher bc.
Ruger m77 markii 270win
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Did the rifle shoot decent groups with the load using H4831? If it did work on other loads to try and achieve greater velocity and leave the stock alone. You didn't mention how much powder you used. Hodgdon says a max of 55.7 gr of H4831 for velocity of 2804 fps.
If rifle didn't shoot good groups you can remove the contact point in fore end and see if that improves things. You didn't mention if you have a wood stock, laminate or synthetic, nor did you mention it was bedded, which is something that many do before working up loads.
Just looked at Reloader's site. Both RL-23 and RL-26 will increase velocities when compared to H4831.
If rifle didn't shoot good groups you can remove the contact point in fore end and see if that improves things. You didn't mention if you have a wood stock, laminate or synthetic, nor did you mention it was bedded, which is something that many do before working up loads.
Just looked at Reloader's site. Both RL-23 and RL-26 will increase velocities when compared to H4831.
Ok it is a wood stock is not bedded at all. It shot one good group but wouldn't repeat it and the velocity was only 2680 at 54.5 g H4831. It shot 130 factory ammo right at 3100 so I was expecting a little more then 2600s with a 150.
If it were my rifle I would get it bedded with barrel floated except perhaps the first inch or two of barrel near receiver. Your gunsmith will help you decide that. I rebarrel so often I prefer to float entire barrel so I don't have to re-bed in future.
Any chance your chronograph was acting up? What chrono are you using?
I believe you can use more H4831 or switch to RL-26.
Any chance your chronograph was acting up? What chrono are you using?
I believe you can use more H4831 or switch to RL-26.
The reason I asked about the chrono is that the ones that use bullet shadow/sunlight can often get poor readings depending sun angle. If you got 3100 fps under same conditions ( just before you shot the 150 gr loads) then it would be reasonable to conclude that the chrono is working properly. In the past I often shot a well known load/rifle through chrono first to verify it was reading correctly.
I have a magneto speed, if the lab radar was available I would have gotten it instead. magneto speed is good but having it hang on the barrel might alter group size if doing load development.
Be sure to get back here and let us know what you discover.
I have a magneto speed, if the lab radar was available I would have gotten it instead. magneto speed is good but having it hang on the barrel might alter group size if doing load development.
Be sure to get back here and let us know what you discover.
yoteslayer
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If the rifle will shoot good I would leave it if it doesn't sand out the contact area if it makes it worse you can always put it back with some epoxy putty did you shoot the good group and bad groups at the same time if you did could be cased by barrel heat and the pressure point try letting it cool all the way down between shots see if that does anything
codyadams
Well-Known Member
I have worked on several m77's. They like to be bedded, as do most flat bottom recievers, it can make a big difference, I have noticed even more of a difference than with round recievers.
Since the stock is wood, make sure you use pillars if you decide to bed it, especially since Ruger recommends the front action screw be torqued to an unholy amount (90 in lbs). I have never been able to torque as much as they recommend with the flat head front action screw they have, you pretty much need a button head allen or torx head screw to hit those numbers. After I pillar bed, I torque the front to around 60 in lbs and it has always worked very well for me. You can get pillars specifically for the m77 from a few different places, it makes dealing with the angled front action screw much easier because they have the angles pre cut in the front pillar, and are the proper length.
I have always free floated the barrels on the m77's as part of the bedding process, just make sure you seal the wood back up with some linseed oil or similar, the bare unsealed wood can soak up moisture, causing it to swell and warp.
As far as Reloder 26, I have not used it in the .270 but I have in a few other cartridges, I use it in my .260 AI, and a couple 7mm rem mags with outstanding performance. I have heard several reports of people getting 3000 fps in the .270 with the Berger 150's and Reloder 26 in 24" barrels. In my experience, it is not very temp sensitive either. I would always check in your own loads though. Hope this helps.
Since the stock is wood, make sure you use pillars if you decide to bed it, especially since Ruger recommends the front action screw be torqued to an unholy amount (90 in lbs). I have never been able to torque as much as they recommend with the flat head front action screw they have, you pretty much need a button head allen or torx head screw to hit those numbers. After I pillar bed, I torque the front to around 60 in lbs and it has always worked very well for me. You can get pillars specifically for the m77 from a few different places, it makes dealing with the angled front action screw much easier because they have the angles pre cut in the front pillar, and are the proper length.
I have always free floated the barrels on the m77's as part of the bedding process, just make sure you seal the wood back up with some linseed oil or similar, the bare unsealed wood can soak up moisture, causing it to swell and warp.
As far as Reloder 26, I have not used it in the .270 but I have in a few other cartridges, I use it in my .260 AI, and a couple 7mm rem mags with outstanding performance. I have heard several reports of people getting 3000 fps in the .270 with the Berger 150's and Reloder 26 in 24" barrels. In my experience, it is not very temp sensitive either. I would always check in your own loads though. Hope this helps.
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MagnumManiac
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I do lots of new Rugers, both wood and synthetic stocked models.
If you sand the barrel channel and remove the pressure lump, you MAY make the gun shoot worse if you don't address the fact that without pressure on the barrel, the ENTIRE action will sit differently in the stock! It will also affect how the screws tighten.
It is absolutely necessary on Rugers to add pillars at the SAME TIME as the recoil lug is bedded. Do both front and rear pillars at the same time, DO NOT bed the tang until later, this is your datum point to keep the action square in the stock.
I bed the pillar/recoil lug TIGHT, no clearance, as the 60 degrees of the front screw pulls rearward and when loosened, the stock doesn't bind like other straight recoil lug recesses do.
I also bed the ENTIRE length of the action when I bed the tang.
The bottom metal and action should be snug on the pillars, if the action isn't snug on the pillars, it will bend, if the bottom metal isn't snug, then it can cause issues too.
If you haven't bedded a rifle before, then Brownell's sell pillar kits with all necessary instructions including diagrams. One thing missing from their pillars are cut grooves on the shafts to create a mechanical lock with the epoxy. I suggest 1 groove .040"/1mm wide x .040"/1mm deep on the front pillar and 3 grooves the same size equidistant on the rear pillar. If the stock is split between the trigger cutout and the mag well, this is when it should be addressed. Have seen many Rugers split there, even mild kicking guns like 22-250, 243 and 25-06.
I do many new and older Rugers, everyone of them has benefitted from Timney triggers, except M77 models with the tang safety, those factory triggers work very well with minimum fuss.
Hope this points you in the right direction.
Cheers.
If you sand the barrel channel and remove the pressure lump, you MAY make the gun shoot worse if you don't address the fact that without pressure on the barrel, the ENTIRE action will sit differently in the stock! It will also affect how the screws tighten.
It is absolutely necessary on Rugers to add pillars at the SAME TIME as the recoil lug is bedded. Do both front and rear pillars at the same time, DO NOT bed the tang until later, this is your datum point to keep the action square in the stock.
I bed the pillar/recoil lug TIGHT, no clearance, as the 60 degrees of the front screw pulls rearward and when loosened, the stock doesn't bind like other straight recoil lug recesses do.
I also bed the ENTIRE length of the action when I bed the tang.
The bottom metal and action should be snug on the pillars, if the action isn't snug on the pillars, it will bend, if the bottom metal isn't snug, then it can cause issues too.
If you haven't bedded a rifle before, then Brownell's sell pillar kits with all necessary instructions including diagrams. One thing missing from their pillars are cut grooves on the shafts to create a mechanical lock with the epoxy. I suggest 1 groove .040"/1mm wide x .040"/1mm deep on the front pillar and 3 grooves the same size equidistant on the rear pillar. If the stock is split between the trigger cutout and the mag well, this is when it should be addressed. Have seen many Rugers split there, even mild kicking guns like 22-250, 243 and 25-06.
I do many new and older Rugers, everyone of them has benefitted from Timney triggers, except M77 models with the tang safety, those factory triggers work very well with minimum fuss.
Hope this points you in the right direction.
Cheers.
