Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game 257 bob deer bullets

I have the exact twin to that rifle, right down to the TI stock and BDL. Perfect deer rifle!

Thanks for sharing that info.

What's your go to load(s) for deer/hogs?

DF

Here it is before I had the TI for it. No hogs here, and not many deer these days either.







Shown with 2.5-8 but now wears a 2-7. Weighs 7.25lb with the TI stock.

Shooters pro shop has a decent selection of 25s right now.

Thought about you maybe not having hogs where you are located as I posted that.

Your thoughts on a LA 257R vs SA.

DF

My wife and I have killed a bunch of deer and antelope with various .257's, using a bunch of different bullets. Off the top of my head the bullets included Barnes TSX's and TTSX's, Hornady Interlocks, Nosler Ballistic Tips and Partitions, Sierras and Speer Hot-Cors. Most were 100-grain but some were 115-117. Almost all worked fine.

The rare exceptions were an apparently "hard" batch of 100-grain TSX's that didn't expand much (if at all) on a couple of animals, an early 115 Ballistic Tip that didn't penetrate sufficiently on a frontal shot, and a 117 Hornady Interlock boattail that came apart on a mule deer shoulder. Tipped 100-grain TSX's have worked very well, every time, along with later 100 and 115 Ballistic Tips. Haven't shot any other deer with 117 boattail Hornady Interlocks.

The deer ranged from does in the 80-120 pound class to bucks weighing at least 200 pounds, both whitetails and mule deer.

If I were going to pick a single bullet to use forever on deer from the .257 Roberts its would be either the 100 TTSX or 115 Partition, since both have worked great on deer of all sizes at various ranges.

I chose the LA on purpose so I could seat bullets out to 3". More action length then needed but I dont like crowded mag boxes. I wouldn't do it differently.

A 3” action would be ideal. Given the choice of 2.8” vs 3.4”, I too prefer COAL flexibility of the latter. The extra space has no effect on smooth feeding, at least in this case. In fact, this is about the smoothest feeding bolt gun I have, regardless how the rounds are positioned in the mag.

Pretty amazing how similar these guns are. Ti stocks aren’t that common, especially BDL conversions.

DF

115gr partition is most accurate in my model 70. Taken 5 or 6 antelope with it. second choice wood be 110gr Accubond.
with Rl23, or RL26 with both bullets.

It looks like Speer has discontinued the bullet I used the most in my 257. My first one was a push feed model 70 featherweight. It loved the Speer 120 grain flat base spitzer. I didn't have a chronograph back then so can't say what the velocity was. I used 4350 under that bullet, the same as I do now with the 120 grain Partitions and the 117 grain Hornady RN's. My wife and I killed several deer with that Speer bullet in the 257 and never found fault with the performance. I haven't had the Roberts out in a long time. My current one is a 1952 FN Mauser. It may some service this year against caribou. We have a couple of college kids living with us and both want to hunt next year with us.

Me 2,

Well, crap. First Speer drops their new Deep Curls and brings back the Hot Cores. Then Hornady drops the 100gr and 120 Interlocks. And now Speer has dropped the 120gr Hot Core??? It's a vast right wing conspiracy against quarter bores!

Unless Hornady stops making these bullets they will be what I am searching for when the current supply runs out.

Hornady has already stopped making them.

Let the scrounging begin.

Don't worry, Hornady will make up some new forming dies and get them back on the market. Of course they'll change the placement and shape of the ogive/shank transition area which will require some work to get your loads tuned back in, if they can be tuned back in.

I'm moving on to other bullets when mine are used up.

I have some 100 and 115 Partitions that I would sell if you want to test them.

My Kimber shoots the 117 hornady bullet well.

Have you tried slower powders with the 115's. My go to load in one of my 700 Mtn rifles is Mule Deer's load of 48.0 of RL 22 and the 115 Partition. The custom I have for sale shot the 115 BT well with Magnum.