Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters JB- Kimber Barrels

I have always wondered about the 260, Have had both 6.5X55 and 6.5X57. Other than the 260 will fit in an SA up to about 130g. I see no advantage at all, and the disadvantage of being limited to bullet weight. Then again I own a 338 Federal and it has about the same issues. In a Tikka T3 one can change the bolt stop and use the longer 30-06 mags and get enough room for the heavier bullets. The Tikka however is in a LA. It must be a looney thing...

The .260's advantage over the 6.5x55 is in chamber & brass consistency and US brass availability.

But unless you are a target shooter, you wouldn't care about that either.

Funny thing about brass availability. Lapua 6.5x55 brass has been available pretty much non-stop through the recent buying panic, 260 brass much less so.

Back to an earlier subject: I looked at my Kimber .22 rimfire rifle, made in Yonkers not Oregon, and it looks like the barrel might have been pressed in.

That wasn't the case when the 260 was introduced. In those days, 6.5x55 brass was pretty much limited to spottily-available Norma brass and crappy neck-downs of '06 brass.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=364653924

Here is a picture of two barrels supposedly taken off of Kimber 8400 rifles.

Have thought about a 260 Rem rifle myself. The purpose would be however a light, short action rifle for game no bigger than 100 kilos or so, for which I reckon a 120 to 130g bullet would be good enough.

For bigger game I would also go the long action route and something in the 277-308 calibre range.