Originally Posted by
sconnyhunter
I owned a .308 and a .30-06 both in Ruger M77 Mark II, neither fit me as well as the 7mm (also a Ruger M77 Mark II) I have now.
Considering that dimensionally, the .308 is built on the short-action version of the 77MkII, I wouldn't begin to expect it to "fit" the same as the long-action version. I don't believe Ruger used the magnum-length action in your 7mm, but rather the standard-length action. What you're probably "feeling" as "different" is the barrel length, which affects
balance. Most .30-06s come with 22" barrels, while 7mms typically come with a 24" or 26".
However, I wasn't talking about comparing a 77 Mk II in .308 to a 77 Mk II in 7mm RM. The OP here says he can't find any 7mms. That leaves him with the following possible solutions:
1. Ditch the 7mm and get something else that IS available,
2. Compare side-by-side for "fit" in a similar-length action and barrel. For instance, 7mms are typically built on the same action .300 Win Mags are. .300 Win Mags typically mount the same barrel length as well. If you look at the 700 CDL, the dimensions are the same between a 7mm RM and .300 Win. Action length, barrel length. The only difference is the overall length, one is 46.5", the other is 46-1/2"
No, I'm not talking about comparing it with a short-action or non-belted-magnum stand-in,
3. Go to the gun dealer and request that he order in all of the examples of the 7mms you wish to compare. Now, if he expects he can move the inventory, he might do just that. In that case our OP just needs to wait. How long? However long it takes for all of them to come in, of course. But, there's also a distinct possibility that he'll laugh and simply endeavor to find a different customer than our OP,
or he can
4. Give up because he can't find a 7mm RM and can't figure any other way around the problem.
I'm not saying you're wrong - handling them all at the same dealer is certainly my preference as well. But that's not always possible. Where there's a will, there's usually also a way.
And, IMO, "fit" and "balance" are different. I typically find that the "fit" of most manufacturers' rifles is just fine for me. It's the "balance" that I'll either like or not like.