The October edition of GunBroker.com’s Top Selling Report presented by GunGenius.com, has a strong showing of bolt-action rifles in both the new and used categories – likely due to hunting season. When it comes to bolt-action hunting rifle models with “sevens” in their names, Winchester’s Model 70 and Remington’s Model 700 undoubtedly come to mind, but there’s a third one that flies a bit under the radar: Ruger’s 77-Series.
Occupying three different spots in the new and used sections for bolt-action rifles, Ruger Model 77 rifles are holding their own among the Model 70 and Model 700 rifles, which are both also present in the same sections for the October report.
Introduced in 1968, the Ruger 77 rifles only trailed the introduction of the Remington Model 700 by six years. With Winchester’s cost-cutting measures on the Model 70 that began in 1964, Ruger was perfectly poised to swoop in and take some of the market share from potential buyers who were put off by the Model 70’s then-new “post-’64” configurations.
Billed as the “World’s Leading Hunting Rifle …. [built] for accuracy, strength and reliability …. [with] not a penny spent on meaningless ornamentation. Jim Sullivan, one of the engineers behind the M16, had been recruited by Bill Ruger specifically for the task of creating a bolt-action rifle. With Sullivan at the helm, Ruger pulled no punches in striking at Winchester and Remington.
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Originally envisioned by Bill Ruger as a gun that would be built on an improved Mauser action, the gun eventually featured a one-piece bolt with two long, massive locking lugs, with the bolt handle acting as a third, and an external Mauser-style extractor. Unlike any of their competitors, Ruger made the receiver, bolt, and other major parts using investment casting. Cautioned that the parts wouldn’t hold up compared to machined bolts and receivers, testing eventually proved the casting to be stronger than traditional bar stock due to the grain structure.
Over the years, the M77 rifles have been made in more than two dozen different calibers including everything from .243 Winchester using the short action all the way up to .458 Winchester Magnum on the Long or Magnum Action. Once different barrel lengths and stock styles are factored into the mix, there’s an M77 rifle for just about any need and to fit anyone’s personal style.
Today, the Ruger Model 77 is available in at least 25 different calibers; with laminate, camo, and hardwood stocks; long-range target versions with 26” barrels and Scout Rifle versions with 18” barrels, and plenty of other variations in between.
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While the exact production numbers to date are hazy, more than one million had been made by the early 1990s. Since it’s been another 30-plus years since then, it’s probably a safe bet to say the number of rifles in circulation are closer to 2 million. As a result, it makes perfect sense that the Ruger Model 77 would occupy multiple spots on the October edition of the Top Selling Report.
Top Selling Guns Sold in October 2025
Source: gungenius.com/top-selling/
To learn more or shop for any of the guns listed, visit Gun Genius at www.gungenius.com/top-selling.
Editor’s note: In the report, guns are rated from one to five within each category, with the number one gun being the most popular that month. The numbers are color-coded to show any changes in the ranks from the previous report.
Black = Steady
Green = Up
Red = Down
Source: gungenius.com/top-selling/
To learn more or shop for any of the guns listed, visit Gun Genius at www.gungenius.com/top-selling.
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