why not the 257 wthby

[elkregulator]

no high bc bullets available

I think we would see a lot more 25-06, 257 wthby, & 257 stw if there was some good bullets made for them.

[crittrgittr]

As I mentioned I am somewhat new to this world, but I assumed that most of the "favorites" for the other calibers: 6.5x284, 260, 280, 308, etc.... were also available for the .257. Am I not correct in this? If not what would be looking for as far as a long range bullet for this caliber?

[royinidaho]

Performed a bit of a terminal performance test a couple of years back.

Final result was surprising.

On the large side was the 338 RUM for kicks and giggles the small side happened to be a 25-06.

Berger's 257 offering in 115 gr penetrated the body only about 2" less than the 338 in shoulder hits in the test media. Impressive to say the least.

BTW the test media was a real find.

We then decided to try the little Bergers in bone. Much Much more impressed were we.

Those Amazing Bergers

[crittrgittr]

So if I understand correctly the bullets are available and the performance is there. Sounds like a darn good cal. over all. Hope to hear more input from all.

[winmag]

A lot of L/R guys like high BC high SD bullets with some weight behind em. I have no doubt whatsoever that the ol' quarter bore can get er done, even on elk, but .25 cal, 115 gr bullets aren't excatly the "go to" for L/R on big tough game at distance. Yes they will work. & Yes shot placement is key, but the .25 caliber is and unfortunately always will be considered a "cross over" caliber from varmints to deer because that's the niche' it fits best in. The quarter bore shines brightest in that arena like the big .338's shine brightest on bigger critters, farther away. While a person could use a .338 LM on squirles & take his .257 Wby elk huntin, it just makes more since the other way around.
Don't get me wrong please. The .257wby is a fine cartrige, with a big following. They shoot flat as a laser too, but there are more appropriate tools for certain jobs. The .257 Wby will get the job done, but there are other cartriges that overshadow it for LR on big game.
Heck, the same can be said about my .270wsm, or even my .300wby when you put em up against a .338 LM on elk at 1k. You'll find that most of what goes on here is people getting to know thier equipment intimately, & using it to the best of thier ability at a range where they are confident they will make a solid hit & a quick kill. If you choose to do that with a .257wby then do it to the best of your ability. Your peers here will respect your shooting skill not just the cartrige. Heck we all have our own favorite cartriges, that for our individual hunting styles & ranges. Who's to say the .257 Wby can't do it?

[Freebore]

I really like the 257Wthrby and have 2 of them. My UL I shoot the 115 Balistic tip with a full house of H-1000 and it shoots 1/2MOA at 200 or better. The other a Lazermark I shoot the 100 Barnes. I have taken a very large Caribou bull at 337 yards (pic is in 2007 Wthrby catalog pg 9). That 115 Bal-tip broke the right shoulder, the spine and the left shoulder. He dropped in his tracks. I did have bullet failure by some peoples thoughts as I only recoverd the jacket against the outerside of the hide on the left shoulder. The Barnes just gels everything inside as does the Bal-tip if you take lungs only. I never had to track an animal shot with this cartridge. Shot placement is where its at so pratice is very import as you will read here on this site. A 100 yards is nothing. Go to 2-300 and pratice here, the 100 is then a no brainer and technique is most important for distance then move out to 600 and the .257 will do this well. There are 'better' longrange cartridges.

Now let's talk Weatherby. They are made to be one shot rifles, the first shot period. You cannot sit and punch bullets downrange unless you have a stovepipe barrel (very heavy wall) so your talking custom now. Alot of longrange deer/elk have and still are taken with the .300 Weatherby cartridge.

With a factory Wthrby rifle you have to, have to wait (should any factory rifle) go cold that means cold steel not oh it's cooled down now. I mean cold steel cold. So don't go to the range to shoot alot unless you have all day. It is the 1st shot that counts with any rifle.

The velocity is really what makes the .257 weatherby Magnum shine. It is one bad-ass cartridge for deer/antelope hunting. I salk to 400 if I can and shoot from there. No need to blow a stalk. I have shot deer at 50 yards too here in Pa. woods heading to the longrange fields. This is not longrange by this 'boards' standards. But works for me. I love my .257 Wthrby's. bullets are obviously an important consideration of what your hunting and the distance. I have not tried the Burgers. the jacket seems to be right on for my distances/velocity for my hunting requirements.

I use a .300 custom magnum for elk 'cause they are just really big critters period. I saw one take 4 rounds of Federal Premium 7mag 160TBBC's before it went down and that was at 225yards. The .300 just seems to put the smack on elk. This will probably bring some responses. Yup I know of guys killin' elk with .270's too but not longrange.

If you get one, no more than 3 shot groups and cold steel cold before the next group. You''ll love it. Factory ammo ain't too bad either if you can afford it. my2c.

[crittrgittr]

Thanks for the replies guys. I do have a 257 now I just need to work up some loads for it. I should have clarified that I only plan to shoot deer and smalller game with it. I've got a 300wm I use on larger game. I've actually shot a muley at 586 yds. with that already; my longest shot to date. I was very impressed with myself with that shot. I did practice to 500 before going to WY which made all the diff. in the world. So I am planning to use my 257 for yotes to deer up to 500 yds. I do realize there are limits to any caliber and would not try larger animals at longer distances.