I am considering a .257 Roberts for deer. I have never owned one or hunted with one. I would mostly be using it for deer. What has been your experience with the round on deer? What bullets do you prefer? Have you seen much difference between in the performance on game with the .257 and say a 7mm-08 or .270? Thanks.
I would say its marginal on deer, lately I have been educated in how deer really are, virtually unstoppable. I would go with nothing less than a 300 magnum of some sort, with a light really fast ballistic tip.
in all seriousness the .257 is great for deer, my hunting partner uses one and has for many years.
.260 rem is also a great deer round, second only to the .243 win
Beware of any old man in a profession where one usually dies young.
the 257 is an excellent deer cartridge will kill deer just as dead as a 7-08(another one of my personal favorites) or a .270 with a lot less recoil if you worry about that i personal use 110gr accubonds or 115 tsx just because mine dont like 100gr. tsx's have not yet tried the new 80gr.ttsx
I've never killed a deer with a .257 Roberts. But I've watched lots of stuff die from very similar rounds. Like the .243, the .240 Wby, the .25-06 and the .25-284. The only real difference in the larger cased rds. is the remaining velocity of the bullets. If a .25-06 will do a good job at 300 yds. and .257 Roberts will do just as well at 250 yds. They all work fine as long as you use big game bullets not varmit bullets. 100 gr. bullets often shoot through on broadside shots if the bullet doesn't hit any bone or heavy muscles and and the 120 gr. stuff works even better for those shots. A lot of people have grown very fond of such rounds for deer because they shoot them better. E
I shot a grand total of 1 doe with one. It died. I used 117gr round nosed Winchester's.
I shot the doe standing at 40 yds, and she turned to face the other way so I shot again... She walked 40 yds and tipped over dead about 20 feet from me.Both bullets exited.
The 257 Rob is a favorite of mine since the 1960s. No complaints using it on anysize deer. Started with factory 117grs and reloaded 120grs - soon realized the lighter 100gr c&c bullets worked just as well.
90gr sierra hpbt is the most accurate .257 I have ever used, but don't have complete confidence in it on deer. 115gr Nosler Part. pushed as hard as possible is where I am at now.
I own twin tang safety Ruger M77s...when one gets hot, I set it down and commence firing with the other.
Trying to get my stuff in order to have RedNeck rebarrel my .270 to .257 Roberts. I've shot 270 for 20years and no complaints. Just WANT a .257R for now and (Lord willing) 30 or more years down the road on older already jacked up shoulders.
You'll love it. I mostly used 120 gr Rem. CL but have switched to the 117 Hornady recently when my suppy of the Rem's dried up. Mostly load H414 and WW760. Deer die quick when you hit them with a 117-120gr going about 2700-2800fps.
Question about the 257 Roberts barrel twist rate. I've been interested in this caliber for some time and have noticed that factory rifles are all offered with 1 in 10" twist. Have you guys had problems shooting the longer bullets in the 110-120gr range with 10" twist? Would it be better to rebarrel to 1 in 9" twist, if your primary use for the 257 Roberts was deer hunting and you wanted to use 115gr TSX's or NPT's?...CT
"Good judgment comes from experience but unfortunately, experience is often derived from a series of bad judgments"
I've only killed one deer with my M70 Ftw, but I was very impressed. I had to squat down to shoot under some branches. Deer was at 150-160 yds. Only went as far as gravity could take her sliding down the hill. I don't think she kicked the first time.
I was very impressed with my snap shot abilities until I walked up to the deer. The shot hit just in front of the hindquarter and passed below the spine to exit exactly the same spot on the other side. No bone or muscle was hit. I know there are a couple of major arteries running in that vicinity, but never would have expected a bam/flop from hitting there. The bullet was a 117 gr Hornady SST loaded over 4831.
I picked up a Tang Safety Ruger in Bob AI from another member here and the rifle is Sweeeeeet!. It really dotes on 120 partitions. Though I'll be trying 100gr TTSX's, I'd have no worries about running the 120 Partition lengthwise on a buck.
I've only killed one deer with my M70 Ftw, but I was very impressed. I had to squat down to shoot under some branches. Deer was at 150-160 yds. Only went as far as gravity could take her sliding down the hill. I don't think she kicked the first time.
I was very impressed with my snap shot abilities until I walked up to the deer. The shot hit just in front of the hindquarter and passed below the spine to exit exactly the same spot on the other side. No bone or muscle was hit. I know there are a couple of major arteries running in that vicinity, but never would have expected a bam/flop from hitting there. The bullet was a 117 gr Hornady SST loaded over 4831.
Yea, the Bob will work!
Likely knocked out her nervous system ( which runs just along and below the spine) Either way you slice it Great Deer round and good hit...anyday for either
Have you guys had problems shooting the longer bullets in the 110-120gr range with 10" twist?
I think my Bob(Kimber) is a 10 twist. It shoots 115/117's just fine out to 400-500 yards which is as far as I've shot it.
As far as 257 Roberts go on deer, I have only shot one deer and one pronghorn with the Bob. Both lung type shots(no big bones) and complete pass throughs using a 117 Sierra Gameking. The antelope was bedded at 208 yards, never got up at the shot.
Big, alert whitetail doe at about 250 yards ran at the shot and made it 250 yards before she tipped over. Luckily she died out in an open field and there was an easy blood trail to follow. Bullet appeared to have done minimal damage to the lungs(went through both, but no mush). I think it hit a small branch and flipped in the air right before impact, basiclly penciling through.
I have shot several deer and antelope with a 250 Savage and a 25-06(soft point bullets) and always had excellent results(all broadside chest shots).
The SGK's shoot so well and they're cheap to shoot so that's what I load. Any decent 100-120 grain bullet should do fine on deer. The 110 Accubond should be a great bullet.
My Ruger Hawkeye is a well balanced rifle and handles great. It shoots 100 gr TSX's pretty well, but it will put Hornady 117 factory loads under 1" at 100 yds.
When we go to the range I can't seem to pry it away from my daughter. I may have to find another, maybe in a Model 70 FWT.
