Last gun I bought prior to having to fill out a Form 4472 or whatever the number was under the new '68 Gun Control was a Richland 707 in 3" 20 gauge. I had read several articles by Sell & believe I may have that 77 one you mention. Mine had 28" barrels with M/F chokes. My Son still has it.
I did change the recoil pad on it. The one it came with was so soft firing it was about like holding it off your shoulder & giving it Jumping Room to Stomp you. It had 28" barrels choked M/F & weighed 6Ľ lbs. After putting on the firmer pad I could shoot the full power 3" loads with reasonable comfort. Before that it had been a brute even with mild field loads. Killed my first Goose with it using a 1Ľ oz load of #4, a young Blue.
Miller,
I would be willing to bet the recoil pad on mine would be too soft as well, were it not 50 years old.
It seems OK to me now. I tried 3” loads for a 20 a long time ago, and wondered what all the fuss was about. More recoil, worse patterns in my Ruger red label.
Best,
Ted
