I’m a fan of the 25-20, been intrigued by it since I first saw a cartridge when I was 10 or 11 years old. The one I have is an 1894 Marlin. It’s currently residing with my son and he’s a big fan too. When I was out there last fall we spent some time making.25-20 cases from .32-20 brass which is much easier to come by.
I would concur with the idea that the 86 grain flat nose is the way to go. It’s always been easier to get accuracy with it in my experience. I’ve used the 75 grain Speer with some success but, at least in my rifle, as soon as you try to push it accuracy deteriorates fast. The 60 grain Hornadys I tried were a lost cause.
As far as on-game performance, the 75 grain Speers have proven deadly on such as coons, porcupines (a lot of porcupines) and beaver. I didn’t pay much mind to terminal performance, but all the critters died quite handily. In one case, I did “autopsy “ a beaver. He’d been up on the bank at sundown and I shot him at 150 yards or a little better. At the shot, he rolled over, kicked around a little, and expired. I saw my entrance hole when I got to him and, curious, I ran a stick of willow in at the shoulder to discover a bullet path straight through on the diagonal, exiting the rear, offside hip...a distance of around 14 inches of skin, muscle, bone and guts. This was with the 75 grain Speer started at about 1500 FPS.
I wouldn’t hesitate to use a .25-20 for any deer. I would say, however, I was killing deer with a .222 before it became trendy and have killed them with a.22 WMR as well. I’ve killed a lot of deer, including a number of wallhangers and, no matter what I’m using or how big (or small) the deer, I don’t get all shook up over it and I don’t shoot at running deer or take other Hail Mary shots.
Given the current state of affairs in.25-20 land, I would recommend laying in a supply of.32-20 brass and a mold to cast 85 grain flat points.
Have fun.
