I had a 1982 700 Classic, which is a long-action 257 Rbts. It's not at all necessary for this cartridge, and in a long action and a 24" sporter contour barrel, the Classic model is a hog relative to the chambering. The Rbts really shines in a short-action rifle. 2.825" is plenty of length and with some powders will give the same velocity as a round loaded out to 3+".
Watch in the classifieds or search and see how fast a Kimber Montana in 257 Rbts sells.
If yuoo reread my post you will see that what I wrote was �to take full advantage of the cartridge you need a mid or long action�. That is not to say a short action won�t work, just that you can do things with a long action that you cannot with a short action. Nor does how fast a Kimber shorty in Roberts sell have any bearing on that fact.
COL for my heavier .257 Roberts loads is such that they will not fit in a Rem M700 short action magazine � not by quite a ways. Even the longest bullets do not extend into the case past the neck.
The Ruger M77, BTW, is a long action. Don�t know about all the others.
I know about the Ruger. And Rem used both LA and SA - I've had both and prefer the SA, which I have several now. NULA is 3". Win 70 a tad longer. So what? There is absolutely NO real world difference in velocities with heavies in the Bob when loaded to 2.825" in a Rem 700 SA or when loaded to as long as 3.1". None!
Per Quickload - 120 Gr. Nosler Partition, 22" barrel, Pressure as close to 58K w/o going over, powder chosen to give case capacity close to or over 100% but not over 105%:
2.825" COAL45.9 Grs Rel 19 = 2903 fps
46.9 Grs H4831SC = 2870 fps
45.3 Grs Hunter = 2904 fps
3.1" COAL48.1 Grs Rel 19 = 2927 fps (+24 fps)
49.2 Grs H4831SC = 2897 fps (+27 fps)
47.4 Grs Hunter = 2923 fps (+19 fps)
27 additional fps is not going to make ANY difference in the field. You can figure the additional percentage of powder for each longer load....I don't need or care to take the time to do that. A longer Bob is not as efficient as a shorter Bob.
I shoot 100 Gr. TSX exclusively in the Roberts at about 3100 fps and never have a need for anything heavier or faster than that. 2.825" COAL is perfect in a Rem 700 SA for the Bob.
I learned my lesson when I had a 6mm AI built on a Rem 700 long action. When I put it to paper, I didn't gain anything using a LA versus using a SA. I still have that hog and will soon have the 6mm AI barrel unscrewed and installed on a SA. I also learned a lesson in barrel lengths with that one, which was one of my first builds. The 26" barrel will be cut down to 22" when it's screwed onto a short action.
