257 Weatherby Mag

[WHITETAILFEVER]

Does Anybody Have One?are They Accurate With Factory Loads Or Handloads?

[onehorse]

I don't have one, but it is a great round. It was developed in 1944 and you probably can't get a better performing caliber for deer. On the down side, those Weatherby bullets can be expensive, and there are lots of other standard cartridges that perform equally as well without using so much powder and dollars. The .260, .270, 25-06 are in that same size range and will kill any deer just as dead as the magnum will. Also, my personal opinion is that there was a time when hunters had to look at calibers, better performing and newer ones,to improve their results because back then, bullets were just bullets. Nowadays, with the advances that have been made with bullet construction, I think we should be concentrating more on bullets and less on caliber. Here's the deal: way back when, we needed to get bullets to go a lot faster to improve performance until they started going so fast that it actually DECREASED their effectiveness. Today we have bullets out there that can perform almost equally effectively at any velocity. In the last two years, after hunting for almost 45 years with all standbys like the 30-06. 308. 270, 30/30, etc. I finally went "magnum". Guess what, they are fun to shoot, accurate and powerful, but they really aren't any better than the good old boys at practical hunting ranges. Any of those older calibers are good out to 400 yards which is too far for me, and most average hunters, to shoot. Even the 30/30 has new ammumnition that makes it effective out to 300 yards. That tells you something about how these bullets have been improved. Matching bullet construction and the velocity of that bullet in your rifle is the key to great caliber performance.

[ronn]

VERY well put One Horse. I couldn't agree more. the same is true for shot shells. When I started turkey hunting everyone wanted a 10 gage for the number of shot in a 12 circle and the umph. Now with heavy shot, copper plated, buffered and flight control wads a 20 gage is a great turkey gun. that's not even getting into chokes and the guns themselves. Is it true that the Weatherbys are harder to reload or should i say re-size because of the radial shoulder?

[Southern Man]

Glad to hear you say that One Horse. I'm not a magnum man and I don't have a problem with anyone who wants one...they're all good rounds. But the .270 I shoot will do everything and more than I want it to.

[Hunting Man]

I also don't have any experience with the 257, but I have several weatherby 270's and they do everything very well, faster than most, flatter shooting than many, accurate, and kick like a mule, this on a Mark V heavy rifle/scope combinations. I agree, with-in the normal hunting ranges most of us encounter nothing new has much over most of the old tried and true calibers. One thing that has changed though, with the better bullets being used today custom factory ammo is catching weatherby ammo in cost. I remember paying $38.00/box for remington brand 270's with swift A-frame 140 gr bullets. Today I find more fun in shooting the older bullet/rifles. Savage 99 in 300 savage, winchester 94 in 38-55 cal and 375 cal. I'm looking for a Winchester in 25-35 cal and a pre 64 Winchester 88 in 308 cal just in case anyone wants to part with one!

[WHITETAILFEVER]

Thanks For The Info.