Where to get a 77/22 Hornet barrel

G

Geezerbiker

New member
I sent my Ruger 77/22 Hornet that had been rechambered to .22 K-Hornet out to get the chamber recut (brass was extracting hard.) My gunsmith called me today to say the chamber was so out of round that it would have to be set back almost an inch to fix it and there's not enough meat there to do that.

He quoted me $400 to $600 to rebarrel it. The high price is because the rifle is discontinued and he would have to custom machine a barrel down for it. I told him I'd look for a barrel before I made a decision. So far the only one place I've found one lists one as available is PacNor for $430. So he wasn't BSing me...

As I recall I paid around $350 for it about 7 years ago. I'm not sure if I should call it a loss and buy another rifle or pony up the bux to fix it...

Any one know of a more reasonable price option? Are those inexpensive barrels from Green Mountain any good?

Tony
 
You could get on the notification list and wait for Numrich to get a take-off barrel in stock. $85 or so. It's just a matter of waiting.

If you don't need top quality, there's always the option of an ER Shaw blank for your gunsmith to chamber and finish. (They don't do .22 Hornet.)

Green Mountain quality seems to be a touchy topic. Some gunsmiths love them. Some consider them mediocre and variable.



If you do decide to sell the 77/22H, send me a PM. I need a donor to convert to .327 Federal and haven't had much luck locating the right rifle.
 
A BNIB Savage M25's MSRP starts at $620. There's a plain, BNIB, 20", 77/22 on Gunbroker at $795. Another at $749. Lotta guys there think they have Bill Ruger's personal rifle. Give you an idea of its value though.
The money spent on the re-barrel is money you'll never get back should you ever want to sell the Ruger. However, after a quick net search, it seems the biggest issue is more the lack of ready to install, aftermarket .22 Hornet barrels for a 77/22. Lots of rim fire barrels, but not many cf barrels.
"...the rifle is discontinued..." Not according to Ruger's site. MSRP is $999.00 for the plain 20" rifle. $1069.00 for the laminated stock 24" barrel.
https://ruger.com/products/77Series7722/models.html
 
So far the only place that lists the barrel is PacNor. Their barrel for this $430. I really like this rifle but if I keep it, I'll be in it 2x what it's worth.

BTW, Green Mountain replied te my eMail saying they don't make a barrel for this rifle. Part of the problem is that the chamber area on a Hornet rifle is much smaller than other .224 barrels so my gunsmith would have to turn one down and that will also cost more...

BTW, I'd have to pay the gunsmith for setting the barrel back if I don't go with a new barrel. I also eMailed the Ruger parts department about ordering one but I've not yet heard back...

Tony
 
Green Mountain barrels shoot pretty darn well, just not great. Still, better than factory barrels. Shilen barrels shoot pretty good (their Select Match barrels shoot very well). Kreiger, Lilja, Bartlein, Rock, Hart, Badger, PacNor, et al all shoot very well but cost 3-4 times what a Green Mountain barrel costs. Just ask yourself how well you want it to shoot and that will tell you how much to spend. I install a lot of Green Mountain barrels on hunting rifles, and they shoot fine. But as soon as someone fancies themselves to be a good shot, they want a big boy barrel.
 
I did a quick Yahoo search and found a few 22 Hornet rifles available including a few Ruger 77's. People are proud of them, $650 and up seems to be what they are asking with many in the $900+ range. If you re-barrel it you will have every nickel it is worth invested in it. Is there any chance that a good polishing might help the extraction issues or maybe it is time for a new rifle?
 
It's possible that Ruger will still rebarrel a 77/22H, and perhaps for less than $400. If so, it would have Ruger markings. The down side is that it might not be as accurate as a "custom" barrel. Since you are willing to buy a used Ruger barrel, you might consider the option of giving Ruger a call and see if they will install a new Ruger barrel on your rifle.
 
Ruger won't sell me a barrel. With them the only option is to restore it to factory. I'm pretty much resigned to going with a match grade stainless barrel so at least it will shoot as good as it cost... I looked over the auction sights and these rifles with match barrels are going for over a grand. I'd never sell it so that's not a big concern but rather, I've spent my gun budget for the next 6 moths already...

Tony
 
So what would Ruger charge to restore it to factory? I'm thinking you could maybe sell the restored rifle to recover your costs and then buy something that fits more in line with what you want.
 
This rifle is want I wanted. I'm just PO'ed to have to put so much more money into it to make it right.

It's looking like I either have to scrap it and start over or pony up the bux to fix it right. I'm thinking the later. I'm also pretty sure the owner of the shop where I bought it, knew it had problems...

Tony
 
Geezer,
I would recommend giving E.R. Shaw a call.
I know they make a ton of barrels for the 10/22, and other Rugers.
I've bought 2 barrels from them thus far, and have been very pleased with them!
Prices are reasonable also.
 
I'll look into the Shaw barrels. It'll be a couple months before I can afford to go forward with it but in the mean time my gunsmith is recommending a Benchmark barrel. Anybody here have any experience with them.

He offered to to the work and let me make payments on it but I don't want him to have to lay out the cash when I'm going to be broke for at least a couple months.

Tony
 
Geezer,
The barrel i got for my Stevens 200 was an over run special. 24", polished, blued in 250 Savage for $100.
My large ring Mauser action got a 1.5 Contour, 24" polished, blued with 11 degree recessed crown in 284 Win. $272 delivered to my door.

Some people put Benchmark barrels up there with Bartlien, Kreiger. Price usually reflects that.

As a side note, Shaw has been aligned with Savage for some years.
I've heard rumor that they may make the barrels for the Model 12 target rifles.

Since i work at neither place, i cannot confirm of deny.
 
Please do yourself a great favor and look at the CZ mdl 527 in 22 Hornet. I have one that I reload for and the accuracy is what stories are made of. I know 2 guys that went and purchased their own. I know this because I reload for them. :)
 
Gezzer... I have a 77/22H-K I have worked on it for years. It shoots well.
I don't understand why or how your chamber went out of round. If the cases are sized properly and trimmed the only other thing I can think of would be those thin cases might need annealing or chamber contamanated. The Ruger is a nice light and accurate rifle when tuned a bit. Check OACL and try fireforming some new brass. Im not a gunsmith but I do my own loading and rifle tuning.
 
The chamber was damaged by the previous owner or his gunsmith when rechambering to .22 K-Hornet. This rifle has had other work done to it. The bolt seems to have been worked on, it was glass bedded and the trigger was about 1.5 pounds and very crisp. It also has a very nice stock for a factory rifle.

If it was any other action, I'd just have it rechambered to .221 Fireball and call it good. I don't think that's possible in this rifle.

Tony
 
Geezer, you want to get ahold of Randy at Connecticut precision Chamber (CPC).

He specializes in accuracy work on the Rugers (especially the 77/22 both rimfire and hornet) and he may (just may) have a factory Ruger 77/22 hornet take off barrel.

Link to his website:
http://www.ct-precision.com/
 
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