Qualifies because it's seasonal?
Yup! I know Federal brand is relatively easy to find at my LGS but I prefer Winchester and that stuff is practically Unobtainium.
I haven't seen any in any of my local LGS in I don't know how many years. I did buy up every bit I could find back in the late 1990's and a decent supply of Winchester and Remington brass so I'm reasonably good to go but supplies only last so long if you're shooting a lot. Right now I'm looking for a load for my upcoming elk hunt. Trying the Barnes 140 gr. TSX, Nosler Accubond Long Range 150 gr. and probably the 140 to 150 gr. Partition. Might even give the Speer 160 gr. Grand Slam a try but shots can be a bit way out yonder when I hunt. I've had shots to 350 yards so may have to seek somewhat shorter ranged shots this year depending on what velocity I'm getting from which bullet.
I have three rifles in 7x57. The ranch I hunt does not allow single shot rifles so the Ruger #1 stays home.
The Winchester M70 FWT give good speed and accuracy but it's the custom Mauser that I really want to go with. The problem with it is it shows high pressure problems very quickly. Did a short test for spits and grins a while back. Made up a load with the 175 gr. Hornady round nose to duplicate the original 1893 load and shot them in all three rifles. The Ruger and M70 were quite close to the original loads and were very accurate. The Mauser on the other hand shot the very same load over 100 FPS faster. Cartridges from the first two rifles had the typical slight bulge from standard somewhat sloppy factory chambers. The Mauser's fired cases do not show any sign of being fired unless you look at the primer. Accuracy was superb with that load running .50" for five shots. Well, I still have almst a month to find something it likes that I too will like. Guess that half the fun and frustration.
Paul B.
