May not have been the best way to approach hand loading, but I shopped for bullets purely on the BC spec, always looking for the highest BC for weight. I'm not a hunter so terminal was not part of the equation, but the BC on those Sierra 77gr TMK (which I think is a hunting round) is pretty good It's .403 G1 If I recall correctly.
My notes said I used 2.260” OAL but I didn’t write anything about seating to the ogive. I don’t remember that being the case
IIRC the 77 SMK is made for AR mag length and 77 TMK is very similar. That ogive is what it makes it specifically not a VLD, where Hornady’s 77 is.