I’ve only had one of the two Model 77 styles, the tubular feed version, on which the thinking behind placement of the charging handle is less apparent. 

Based on my recollection of ads I saw when the Model 77 was introduced, the box magazine style was by far the most heavily promoted by Winchester. At the time, post-Korean War, Winchester was very much concerned with shedding its “old fashioned” image and promoting a “streamlined” look.  The newly introduced Models 88, 55, 77, and 50 exemplified that look. A tubular magazine was “old fashioned” and detachable box magazines were cool and semi-military.  The box magazine version of the 77 was sleeker and more”modern”.  [If you doubt this, take a look at what Detroit was doing at the time.]

Also please to note Winchester was not notably – strike that — AT ALL concerned about left handed customers.  Go buy a pump. Why does that attitude matter? 

Because placing the charging handle on the left side of the gun:

• allows the shooter to keep his shooting hand in place on the pistol grip while changing magazines and operating the charging handle with his “off” hand; 
• makes the most photographed illustrations of the gun appear less cluttered and even more sleek and cool and modern.

To sum up, in 1955: 

STREAMLINED = GOOD.  OLD FASHIONED = LOSER STREET

To quote Elmer Keith, “Hell, I was THERE!” 

JWA said
I apologize for being slow in responding, I took the long route home from the Greeley show.

All of the previous Winchester semi-auto models such as the 1903, 63, 74, etc. ALL ejected on the right side of the receiver, and the 77 design is the same.  The difference being in that the charging rod for the 1903 and 63 was at the FRONT of the receiver and the 74 was at the REAR of the receiver on the right side so as to clear the ejection port.  The 77 charging handle (with a sheet-metal body/sides) had to have the knob located on the LEFT side or it would have obscured the ejection port during cycling.  

Personally, I like it there as it lets me keep my strong hand on the pistol grip instead of my off hand on the forearm while charging the rifle.

Don’t get me started on the Buck Rogers plastic trigger guards…….

Best Regards,

  

Jeff, I understand your point. A charging rod centered through the forearm would preclude an underbarrel tube magazine. However, I don’t think there were, at that time, patent restrictions against placing a non-reciprocating charging knob on the bolt itself, in the manner of the contemporaneous Model 50 shotgun. The Model 03/05/07/10 charging rod location was less a design choice than a necessity to avoid Browning’s patent, which had expired. 

From that, I would opine the design decision – to place the charging knob on the left and forward – was a styling choice that necessitated an attached operating rod to reach the bolt, rather than the other way round. 

I’m not an engineer but that’s what it looks like to me. I’m prepared to be educated otherwise.

Bill

Jeff,  That’s because you (presumably)  and I are both right-handed.  For us, the M77 operating handle on the left is a real improvement over having to do a “border shift” to change magazines or clear a mis-feed or a stovepipe. 

I think it was a conscious  choice made in the design department to improve the handling characteristics of the gun while rendering its appearance more stylish. Which it did. 

It may be sacrilegious to say it here, but I think the most stylish and handsome Winchesters to come out of New Haven were those designed in the Fifties, in particular the Models 77, 88, 100, and — a particular favorite of mine — the Model 59. I didn’t say “mechanically perfect”,  “historically important”, and certainly not “commercially successful” but when you look at them they make you happy! 

I would have to throw in the Models 42 and 61 even though they were products designed in an earlier era. And the Model 21 Skeet Gun with straight grip…

Bill

Jeff, Understood.. .Both my sons are left eye dominant and right-handed.  The younger one was ambidextrous until.about age five.  They both shoot right handed and close their left eye. 

I bought a virtually new tube feed M77 some years ago and could kick myself for selling it but was going through a stage of “Ive got too many” and somebody gave me a wad of bills for it.

Ive still got the new in the box steel Lyman aperture sight I was going to install. I think I hesitated because the receiver wasn’t factory d/td. 

Jeff, you just reminded me of what I didn’t like about the otherwise estimable Model 100. It didn’t have a manual bolt release. The magazine would hold the bolt open when the last round was fired but you had to pull back on the operating handle while extracting the magazine.  Awkward. A cheap jack way to avoid  designing a manual bolt release. 

Otherwise it was a nice rifle. Mine was a 308 and my 12 year old could shoot it comfortably. 

TXGunNut said

JWA said

I am actually left-handed but right eye dominate but I see your point as I shoot right-handed.

It began when I started playing little league baseball and needed a new glove.  Dad took me down to the 5 and dime store in our small town where they had a grand total of 4 gloves to choose from, including one for those of us guys throwing left-handed.  Unfortunately, the price for the “lefty” glove was 3 times the price of the other gloves so Dad handed me a new “righty” glove and said congratulations, you now throw right-handed (and I have ever since).  I write and eat left-handed but that is about it anymore.  I grew up in the Ozarks and my Granny always said I “owed the Devil a day’s work” for being left handed.  So maybe I only owe a half-day now?

Best Regards,

  

My dad was a lefty but for most things he was ambidextrous, like a lot of lefties. I can run a handgun, fork or paintbrush with either hand but can’t write legibly with either. Charging handles work well on either side of the receiver for me, I can reach over the top of the receiver with my off hand as easily as I can rack the slide on a pistol. 

 

Mike

  

I’m not ambidextrous but I was trained to shoot left handed too.  Also to keep both eyes open.  One eye on the target and the other on other stuff like wind flags and such.  I shoot single shot target rifles and reach over and catch the case with my left hand.  I can do it with my right hand as I pull the bolt back but not as well and some get passed me or get knocked back into the chamber.