Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats Tell me about the 257 Weatherby...

I know I've posted stuff about the .257 Wby. many times here, but here goes again-

I shoot a Wby Fibermark, 26" bbl. By far, the best load I've worked up for it is 72.0 gr. of RL22, factory Wby brass, CCI 250 primers, Barnes 100 gr. TSX bullets, for a MV of 3700+ fps.
Accuracy is exceptional.

Over the past 25+ years of owning this rifle, it has accounted for a passel of game, including a sheep grand slam, pronghorns, mule and whitetail deer, elk, caribou, and coyote. Last big critter to fall to the .257 was a cow elk, December 2008.

As far as brass goes- I have in the past bought some new, unprimed Wby brass, but most of my handloads use brass from once-fired factory ammo. I find brass life to be pretty good in this cartridge.

Personally, I'd go 10 and I'd also go Schneider, Krieger, Bartlein, Hart, Shilen and would take a pass on the Dougy..

Dober

i don't really think we need to hash that back up. it eats ragged holes, brass life is great, and i don't have any trouble seating primers. the load i use is just fine in my rifle.
fast barrel ?
excessive free bore ?

all i can say is it shoots great, 100 gr. tsx's fly like a laser, and it kills.

what you use in your rifle and what i use in mine, may not be fine in someone else's rifle.

they are all the same and we all know, different as well.

someone explain that to me....

was one made with a new reamer, and another someone has with a worn down dull one ?

look at the 264 wm issues i posted, and many others have the same thing happening and some don't.
why ?
there's no reason to rehash the original postings about what i get for velo's, and start with unsafe, etc...
it works just fine in my rifle and that's what it shoots.
i didn't post my load so anyone who loads can do what they want, and go as hot as they want. if they get a stuck bolt, or blown primers, they will figure out soon enough that they need to back off.
i get none of those issues.

you say it's not typical. not from what some post. but in mine it is.
right above me is a post with 3700+ fps from a 26" tube. so, let's say 25 fps per inch slower so i should be getting 3700 fps. roughly.
fast barrel issue again ? because i'm running a bit more powder ? most likely.
i'm not bragging mine is a supper dupper, seein all, dancin all, whizz bang 257. just that's what i shoot and that's what my rifle spits bullet out at.
nothing more.

I don't know what "freebore type powder charges" are. Both my rifles were done with that same reamer. Accuracy loads with 2 different powders wound up being about exactly the same as Keith's and several other guns also chambered with that reamer. This barrel has a 12" twist. And PMC Wby brass is much harder than anything else out there. With a good barrel, well-spec'd chamber and good brass, performance is impressive.

A freebore type powder charge is one that has been lab tested as a max charge for a regular Weatherby chamber with freebore.

Run one of those, or factory ammo for that matter, in a zero freebore chamber and it isn't surprising that velocities are high. The laws of physics not being dependent on a particular chamber reamer, it's a pretty good bet that pressures are higher too.

I have been using one off and on for about 20 or so years. The most deadly deer cartridge I have ever used. Been using Barnes 100gr X, XLC, TSX and now TTSX's running at 3800fps or so with moly in 27.5 inch tubes. Brass is easy to get, especially if you use 264 WinMag brass necked up. I now prefer WBY/Norma brass but the Winny stuff works great. Try it, you will like it!

Velocity ain't free...

I've said it before, run Keiths velocities and sooner or later you will be able to legally park next to the door at the grocery store..........


X-VERMINATOR

Say it all you want, still bullsh#t.

Lee is that you???


X-VERMINATOR

You missed the point. I don't know what the actual powder charge would be with my lot of powder in this barrel with this brass, this primer, if it had a sloppy SAAMI chamber with freebore. You don't either. All that matters is what works in this gun.

Factory ammunition won't come near chambering in these guns......the neck is short for use with 7Mag brass. Wby cases have a very long neck and are trimmed .050" to fit.
A 100gr bullet just off the lands seats to where the neck/shoulder radius begins.

What load are you running then?

I'm not Lee.

It's Reloder 22 with 100gr bullet. Another load is with IMR 4831. It shows no overpressure in my rifles or Keith's.

How much?

To whom it may concern, do a search.....you will see a pattern.


X-VERMINATOR

Doesn't matter. If you have one of these guns, all that matters is what works best in yours. If you don't have one, then it really doesn't matter. Either way I don't want a pissing match with a self styled ex-purt about what shoots in my gun.

It's not important to me.

No pissing, just physics. Your gun, my gun, whoever's gun.

m

All fussing aside, I gotta say, everytime I get myself calmed down and decide to just fart around with Wal-Mart calibers (.223, .22/250, .243 & .308) y'all start yammering about the .257 WM.

I start thinking about a slippery 100-grainer at way over 3,500 fps and my vision blurs...

A little drool starts slipping out the corner of my mouth...

I start scheming on how to create a diversion so that my wife doesn't notice a pawnshop Savage 7mm RM sidling into the house...

And meeting my hunting buddy UPS man a mile or so away when the new barrel arrives...

Gotta start Zen breathing again.