I am having my 1st one built. It will be used for deer from 50 to 100 yards in Maine and in Georgia from 100 to 300 yards.

What would you recommend for barrel twist, bullet weight and type? My go to deer rifle has always been a 25-06 with 117 federal blue box. All the deer shot have dropped in their tracks.

What will I be gaining with the 257?

Can I get velocity over 3400,3500?

My opinion. You probably will not gain anything except higher cost for ammo and much rdeuced barrel life. The 25-06 is very effective at the ranges you are looking at. Acutually a 257 Roberts or 250 savage will work very well also. But it is your choice. My $00.02.

For the distances you cite, and if they're already dropping in their tracks, your gains will primarily be recoil, blast, and cost.

There are several actions I'd build it on.....one is the older M700 Remington, another the Howa (Vanguard) and as much as I like the push feed Winchesters, I'd opt to not use that as I've had feeding issues with them. Sako is another fine action for the job....and while one of the Weatherbys I built was on an Interarms Mauser action, I'd not use a CRF action although the Interarms action worked just fine.

Barrel twist would be the standard 1-10 and bullet to be 100 to 120 grains.....pick the one that you like.....I'd be using Barnes but it's your decision.

I've owned two rifles in .257 Weatherby, three rifles in .25-06, and three in .257 Roberts and frankly couldn't find much difference in any of them. I have sold both the Weatherbys and still use the .257 Roberts if that helps any. On paper the Weatherby looks to be the greatest thing since sliced bread but in the field, that gain in velocity gets lost somewhere or at least isn't highly noticeable.

Same for the .264 Win Mag......it's not really much more (if anything) over my 270 Winchester.

To your question "What will I be gaining?".....answer....very little over the .25-06

Agreed with the others. For 300 yard max and deer, I would not step up to any magnum personally. If you do end up with the .257 mag, I'd look at the 100 TTSX or equivalent.

I have a 257 WBY (Weatherby Ultra light) ,25-06 and a couple of 257 Roberts. The WBY is my go to rifle for Antelope and I use the 110gr Accubond in all three rifles. At the distances you mention I'm in agreement with the others that there isn't much to gain in the WBY. If you don't re load the WBY ammo is expensive. I saw a box of 115gr NBT at over $100/box at the local sporting goods store. How many chances do you really get at 300 yards? Thats nothing the 26-06 can't handel.

I'm not trying to rain on your parade but if you want a custom rifle (and who doesn't) I would look towards something different. For the expense the three calibers aren't that far apart.

For the application you are suggesting, a 257 Weatherby is definitively not the best option. If you like the 25s, try an 06, or Roberts or even a Savage and as far as actions, I'd stay away from 700s.

I's have to agree with all the other posts, but the best reason to own any rifle is because you like it. Like trumps all other considerations.
And to answer your question, a standard 1-10" twist is just fine for the 257 Weatherby.

If you're going to build though you may as well twist a bit tighter to open certain options.

A .257 Wby, with a 100gr bullet ( either Partition or TTSX) will be more then sufficient to drop deer at the ranges you listed. Sighted in properly you could hold on hair and pull the trigger and not need to worry about much. 1-10 twist will be fine and might as well make it light enough to carry as a .257 does not kick much. I think I would avoid Ballistic tips just because of your relatively short ranges and the destruction that they bring. JMHO.

All of the above.

OP- you didn't mention barrel length but your velocity question should be easily achieved using the above two bullets.

Standard freebore? Factory ammo?

Mine is a PF M70 with a 26” Shilen 10 twist. I’ve shot caribou and whitetail deer as well as coyotes with it. I like the 85gr Ballistic Tip and the various 100gr bullets. You can easily get a 100 grain bullet to 3700fps. I don’t think the 257 is necessary at the ranges you cite but necessity has nothing to do with custom rifles IMO. You’ll find that it kills like lightning, not unlike your 25/06.

I haven’t seen any really bad meat damage even shooting shoulders with the 85 Nosler though I’m sure it’s possible with the speed available. The doe I shot this past fall did have the most internal damage I’ve ever seen in scores of big game animals I’ve seen die, strangely the shoulder the bullet broke when it exited was fine aside from a 3/4” hole through it. Everything in the ribcage was soup though.

I want one too even though I just did a 25-06 and know that in my hands I won't gain much as I rarely shoot past 400 with 300 being more typical. Twist rates: my 25-06 is 1 in 9 and I would do the same for a Weatherby. In the 06 and smaller 25s some 110 and heavier bullets will not shoot as well as the lighter ones with a 1 in 10 twist. The velocity might make up the difference but it might not especially with 115 and up VLDs and custom heavy weights. But many only use the 100 grainers and 1 - 10 is fine for these.

Although I know it is not true I feel like a 24 inch barreled Weatherby is a loud 25-06 so I would go 25-28 inches especially if in a single shot for the longer barrel. I could see having a light weight 25-06 and a medium weight Weatherby as a good combo depending on how much stand hunting versus walking your doing.

I used to own a .25-06, currently own a Wby. Mk.V in .257 Wby, as well as a .257 Roberts. If your maximum range for deer is 300 yards, you will gain nothing by using the Wby. I own mine because I live here in the western US, where opportunities for long range shots at antelope, deer, and elk are common. It's the reason I sold the .25-06- IMO, the Wby does a better job for me. I shoot Barnes TTSX 100 gr. bullets in mine, driven at 3700 fps, and they hold together at all distances. With that bullet, I have taken whitetails, mulies, pronghorns, and elk, several of these at ranges well over 300 yards.

If you have plans for doing hunts down the road for pronghorns or mulies, there is probably no better round than the .257 Wby. If you intend for all of your hunting to be in Maine or Georgia, a .257 Roberts would be a sensible choice, if you are just looking for a different .257 caliber rifle.

If you want one just because you are a rifle loony then by all means go forth. I did one on a Remington action sent to PacNor for a #2 conture SS Super Match barrel and it is a laser beam and I love it. BUT I have also owned a couple 25-06's and for what your need is that is your huckleberry. MUCH cheaper to shoot, less recoil, less noise, and MUCH longer barrel life. My 25-06 shoots 100 gr. TSX at 3316 with 25 grains of powder less than my 257 wby at 3700. Big difference. YMMV

My one uncle had a .257 wby with a 28" gain twist barrel that was a velocity over achiever, With less then full bore loads it was plenty fast and very accurate. His was a short throated camber that was a demon on the Ghog population with 85 gr BTs

I have the ultimate .257 Weatherby, actually have 2 but I'd tell you not to do it for you're applications . 25-06 will do what you need in spades with out the expense of the Roy

Well, you're using a .25-06 to do what can be neatly done with a .223 already....:). I think you're nuts to go with the Roy....do what I do, go with a .25-06 AI for more loading fun, less increase in performance and...??? Then again, I've kinda thought my next rifle might be a .257 WBY. Live it up.

If you want it, build it.

As a reference, my 7 Wby will do 3650 with 120’s, 3400 with 140’s, 3200 with 160’s.

I don’t own a 257 Wby.

Nice rig! I have yet to see a 257 Wby that would NOT shoot like that.

I shot deer past 300 yards with the little 250 Savage...worked fine.

Thanks for all the great feedback.What bullet and grain would you recommend that would give the best overall performance and speed for either caliber at ranges from 100 to 300 yards for deer?

What is lacking here? How do you improve on this?

I guess you could call me a rifle looney. Always looking for something different and helping to justify buying another rifle or trying out some different ammo😋 To many guns blessed with enough money from a great job and not enough sence😊Most of all I have a very understanding wife...

For your application there appears to be no justification with respect to a performance oriented, logical question.

So what? If you can swing it then get a new rifle because you want one.

My camp mate has had great luck with his 257 Wby. and 100 grain Interlocks. Lately he's mostly been using two shorty rifles, a 7mm08 and a 243. I've been using a 308 loaded to approximate old Lake City match ammo with a 165/168 at about 2550 fps. All have been sure fire killers.

Surprised to see all the Loony's in this thread attempting to talk you out of a 257 Weatherby. If everyone thought as they did, we'd all own only 3 guns...a 22 LR, 30-06 and a 12 gauge. How frikken boring!! If you want a 257 Weatherby, I say go for it! They're an absolute gas to own and shoot. Furthermore they're a real terror in the field. It will also be comforting to know you have the ability to go beyond 300 yds if needed. Like you, I've had a few 25-06's over the years, but after picking up my first 257 Wby, the 25-06's have all been sold or passed on to my kids.

My current 257 is built on a Howa/Vanguard action with a 10 twist, 26 in Brux #4.. Had the smith reduce the freebore from the factory spec'd .378 to .250. This still allows factory ammo to be used in a pinch if needed. B&C stock and Timmney Trigger. Shoots 100's extremely well at 3650, but my go to bullet is the 115 Nosler Ballistic Tip at 3450. No issue whatsoever with stabilizing and is sub-moa out to 500. Have killed various thin skinned game from 100-425yds and have experienced zero issue with bullet integrity. It just flat hammers game. As an aside, If you want a 257 on a budget, Weatherby is now specing the new 257 Vanguards with a 26 in barrel. I've never owned a Vanguard that would not shoot. Either way, I'd stick with 26 inches as a minimum barrel length.

Good luck with the build.

the 257 weatherby has been my go to gun for 20 years killed many nice bucks whitetail and muledeer,antelope,caribou ,coyotes too "its not a good rifle too sell your coyote hide-blows the hell out of them" I have killed antelope out to 700 yards,deer to 600 yards,caribou 500 yards laying down with a bi-pod and range finder. mine is a Ruger no.1 with a custom 27 inch brux barrel shoots 1/2 groups at a hundred yards also, I do have a bigger nite-force scope with custom picatinny mounts and a timney trigger. this caliber in the hand of a handloader is by far much faster than any other 25 caliber factory cartridge. my friends now all have went to this caliber/cartridge too for a few reasons fast,shoots a long ways, is accurate and they beg me to build them ammo too. we all use 100 grain swift a-frame bullets or 100 gr. partitions. if you want more advance P.M. me Pete53

I had to scratch the 257Wby itch myself a few years ago. I'm glad I did, even though that rifle doesn't see a lot of use any more. It's a fantastic round that hits like lightning and is laser-flat out to 400yds. Mine only gets pulled out of the safe when I intend to hunt over a couple of fields where shots over 500yds are not uncommon. Otherwise I've completely gotten away from magnums of any sort and gone to mainly short action rounds.

Will it accomplish anything inside 300yds that your 25-06 won't? Nope. However, you'll always wonder what you might be missing out on until you try one for yourself.

If you plan to use it any at relatively close ranges, I'd go with the 100gr TTSX. The kind of speed a Wby generates can do strange things to normal bullets at close range. This won't be a worry with the Barnes, since you can't push them too fast.

100gr TSX/TTSX is where I start and stop for the .257 Weatherby

Heartily agree!^^^^^^^^

I have had 3 or 4 257 Wea..'s.. Killed a lot of game with them.. I would forsure have a 26" barrel.. The only draw back I would see with a Vanguard is the action.. All of mine were built on 700's.. With the long mag action bullet seating is easy.. I have a barrel for the 257, but it is a 1-12... Roy's original pick.. May stick it on an action soon.. You will enjoy the .257 I doubt you will see much difference between it and the .2506, but as some pointed out different rifles are the thing that makes shooting and hunting enjoyable...

Yep.

I'd go with a 26" tube too. I see little sense to restrictor plates on that chambering.

I have a 257 Weatherby, i have hunted with a 25-06 . I have yet to do anything with the 257 that i could not have done just as easily with a 25-06. IMHO The only real advantage the 257 has over the 25-06 is past 300 yards. My farthest kill shot wth my 257 was an antelope at 350 yards, with my 25-06 it was an antelope at 425 yards. For the ranges you are talking about a 243 would do nicely. My 257 has a 27 inch barrel without freebore, I get right at 3500 FPS with 100 grain TTSX, and 3450 FPS with 110 grain accubonds. I could push it faster, but I decided that was plenty fast enough as it is a tac driver at those velosities.

I agree that a 25-06 may suit your needs BUT the 257 weatherby will yield quite a bit more power for long shots with a very flat trajectory.

A friend and I decided to build two 257 Weatherby customs. We chose to buy our reamer with some changes. Had freebore shortened to .100" and throat angle changed to 1 1/2 degree with the intent to use of moly coated 115 Berger VLD. Used Lilja SS 3 groove 1 in 10 twist 28" #5 fluted. Dan and I used RL-25 and got some outstanding velocities of approx 3650 fps.

We liked the combination so much we built two lighter versions with 24" and 26" #3 profile barrels, also the same 3 groove lilja.

Tim liked our rifles, borrowed the reamer and also used a 3 groove Lilja. Then his friend Allen talked me out of my lighter 257.

We then went out and killed the following with some very spectacular DRTs with ranges of 200 to 550 yds:


20 coues wt

6 elk

4 mule deer

2 antelope

I found a slightly used 3 groove Lilja with a brake on line. Got it installed on an old push feed model 70. Deason and I helped a youth hunter get his coues wt using the 115 Berger. Deason liked it so much he bought it. His daughter shot her first coues wt this past fall.

This combination yields fantastically flat trajectory with moderate recoil and it kills deer and antelope with authority. Sure ammo and barrel life are issues but this is a high performance package.

If you do decide to built one I suggest you get a custom reamer. If you want to know more about the reamer we used give me a PM.

Incidentally Bullets.com is going out of business. They have 257 Norma brass on sale $108.72 per 100:
http://bullets.com/products/-257-Weatherby-Brass-Cases-Box-of-25/BL10485

If one is going with a 25, might as well do the best. Could not afford Weatherby's as a kid. Now I'm quite fond of them.

Don't get me wrong, I love my 257 Weatherby. I have had it for 5 years, and have yet to miss with it. I no longer own a 25-06, as I have no need for it, i replaced it with a 6.5 creedmoor.

My first .257 caliber rifle was a Mod 700 Classic in .257 Roberts which I later had reamed to the Ackley Improved. I seated the 120 Hornady HP ( discontinued now, what a bummer!) way out over what seemed like a case full of IMR 4350. No idea how fast but it was awesome! I later had a Mod 700 Classic in 25-06, shot a muley with it around 80yds, used the Sierra 117sbt. Good killer. I had that rifle reamed to the .257 BEE. That rifle had a 24" barrel and shot the then available Federal Premium 115 Partition load into 1/2". I did get to clock it, and they were going a flat 3200fps. My very first kill was a nice Blackbuck right at 375yds. Laser beam and down and out! I also shot a nice Black Hawaiian at 250...shame on him time! Traded that rifle for another hunt (another Black Hawaiian) I then bought a beautiful custom made Interarms Mark X in .257 BEE with a 26" Douglas barrel with a highly figured Marble Cake English Walnut stock. I loaded Barnes 100 TSX close to 3700 and shot a realy nice Black Hawaiian ram about 150yds. I sold that rifle to the same Outfitter for several hundred more than I had paid for it! "I felt" the BEE was a quicker killer than the 25-06. They both were loud, easy to shoot, but to be honest...if 300 for sure is the furthest...do the 25-06 or at most, the Ackleyed version. The 240 Weatherby is a humdinger also for those ranges and does OK with a 24" barrel if you just want something new...Just my humble opinion...