My current Roberts is a Savage Axis originally in 308. I had Shaw make me a factory contour barrel 24" chambered for the 257 Roberts with a short throat, the same as the 250 Savage barrel I bought on sale from MidwayUSA. I had a gunsmith buddy with a barrel vise screw it on, and now I have the best Roberts rifle I have ever owned (of three). It shoots great, and the rifle weighs 7-1/2 lbs with a 2-7x Burris scope on top.
It shoots about everything very well, as in 10 shots into an inch. My favorite load so far is 44-45 grains of IMR 4831 under a 117 grain Hornady boat tail. Loaded to the cannelure, the bullet is firmly into the lands when a round is chambered. 44 grains of IMR 4831 gives me 2,875 fps and 45 grains gives me just under 3,000 fps. Recoil is modest. If I were to take it hunting for something larger than a NY State buck, I would load up 115 Nosler Partitions to around 2,900 fps. That's 25-06 territory. My first centerfire bolt gun was a Remington 700 in 25-06. Back in the 1980s, I shot a pile of woodchucks and some deer with it. My whitetail load was a 120 grain Hornady HP at around 3,000 fps. This Roberts should be right on its heels.
My first Roberts was a tang-safety Ruger 77 made in 1976. It had a very long throat, but shot well with long bullets. My woodchuck load used Speer 100 grain HPs. The difference in the loads these two rifles would tolerate is vast due to the throating differences.
The third Roberts was a pre-64 Model 70 Winchester. It was somewhere in the middle of the two already mentioned as far as throating is concerned. Like the Ruger, it was also a heavy rifle, so I sold it.
The Savage isn't the prettiest of my Roberts rifles, but is sure is the best shooting and carrying one.
