.257 Weatherby vs. Whitetail Deer

[Hired Gun]

I was thinking the same thing. I carry no ammo in my rifle and keep 3 in my pocket. Three in case I get in the $h!t. Five would be for a week long safari. I have been this way since my first .22. It was a 10-22. A lot would say, I bet you go through a lot of ammo. Nope. A box of Stingers meant 45-50 dead squirrels. When hunting I hate missing. Only thing I have ever missed on was varmints because I was pushing my limits. On big game I have never missed and I intend to keep it that way.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Criticize all you want, but i carry extra ammo b/c i have had situations happen in the woods with packs of wild dogs that will attack you and i just carry more than 3 rounds b/c hogs are a nuiscence and we try to cull them out of the area too.

And no, i dont go through alot of hunting ammo. Just about 5, maybe 10 rounds a year...A five shot group to make sure im sighted in, and possibly a second group. The only ammo i go through alot of is 5.56x45 and .45 Auto since those are my main hi-cap weapons.

Just forget i mentioned a lighter weight setup if yall are gonna nit-pick the way i spent my money several years ago.

Apparantly a $1,000 scope isnt considered a "good piece of glass". Sorry its not a $3,000 Swarovski......

 

[Buano]

Criticize all you want, but i carry extra ammo b/c i have had situations happen in the woods with packs of wild dogs that will attack you and i just carry more than 3 rounds b/c hogs are a nuiscence and we try to cull them out of the area too.

And no, i dont go through alot of hunting ammo. Just about 5, maybe 10 rounds a year...A five shot group to make sure im sighted in, and possibly a second group. The only ammo i go through alot of is 5.56x45 and .45 Auto since those are my main hi-cap weapons.

Just forget i mentioned a lighter weight setup if yall are gonna nit-pick the way i spent my money several years ago.

Apparantly a $1,000 scope isnt considered a "good piece of glass". Sorry its not a $3,000 Swarovski......

Please don't take what I said as insulting your equipment. Each is a great piece that I would be proud to use in the right application.

I took it that YOU were finding this outfit too heavy for YOUR application. My comments were based on that premise. Acceptable weight of a rifle depends on hunter & application. On some stationary, open-ground hunts yours would be considered a lightweight rifle, while climbing the Rockies all day it would feel like a ton of lead.

A Zeiss is an excellent piece of glass! 56mm just adds weight most don't need. It weighs about 26 ounces, versus 17 ounces for a 50 mm Conquest. I was saying that good 50 mm lenses are enough in most hunting situations, not that a Zeiss 56 mm is cheap glass. My first choice for a scope on a .257 Weatherby, if price was no issue, would likely be a Zeiss Victory Diavari 4-16x50, and I believe that uses the similar glass & coatings as the Conquest line. Zeiss is very good, even their lower priced scopes are better than most ever own.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Thats cool. Yeah. Its a perfect setup for hunting where i used to hunt which was tall open hills with deep long bottoms. At some points shooting from hill to hill would be over 1,000 yards. It was great sitting up on a hill watching down in the bottom. But alot of times the other guys would go walk around with our guns mid-day to see if we could spook up any deer. That AccuMark gets kinda hefty after humpin a few miles through muddy or sloshy or broken terrain.

I wish i could find a Remington LSS in .257 Weatherby, since thats my favorite action, and my favorite deer caliber. Anyone got one for sale?

 

[Buano]

Thats cool. Yeah. Its a perfect setup for hunting where i used to hunt which was tall open hills with deep long bottoms. At some points shooting from hill to hill would be over 1,000 yards. It was great sitting up on a hill watching down in the bottom. But alot of times the other guys would go walk around with our guns mid-day to see if we could spook up any deer. That AccuMark gets kinda hefty after humpin a few miles through muddy or sloshy or broken terrain.

I wish i could find a Remington LSS in .257 Weatherby, since thats my favorite action, and my favorite deer caliber. Anyone got one for sale?

If you go to the Remington LSS you will likely be replacing the trigger immediately & still have a rifle unlikely to outshoot what you now have.

Why not keep the great rifle you have & lighten it by going to a lighter scope, Talley lightweight mounts, and possibly a lighter stock and or bipod? If you have the money you could shave a couple more pounds going to a carbon-wraped barrel.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Oh no, you're mistaken....I dont ever sell guns. I collect. And i never buy anything that i dont plan on keeping forever. So, no matter what i buy, i wilk always have my .257 Accumark. I was simply saying a lighter .257 Weatherby rifle would be nice for days i will be walking.

 

[roninflag]

Don't you have a .257???

You reload too, don't you?

Why not try it?

When I get my gun, and I get my reloading setup, then I can do the same, and we can compare results.

I just don't really know enough about reloading as to even make a semi-educated guess, as to what would allow a bullet that heavy fly properly???

I would guess super-hot powder...lots of it! And a super-hot primer???


That would be my guess...

you would have to rebarrel with a faster twist . other wise your bullets besides not groups will keyhole is they hit the target at all. there is a reason the manufacturers use the twist they do.

 

[roninflag]

MUD- i did not realize the thread was two years old. i am so enviuos of your accuMAR. WHAT have you shot with it? where are you that you have wild dogs and pigs?

 

[MudRunner2005]

Yeah, I bought it several years back after 4 of my other guns got stolen....Inlcuding my custom built .308, and my Browning A-Bolt 7mm Rem Mag (my deer rifle)...So I needed a new hunting rifle, and that was what I chose. I will build another .308 someday, and will also buy another A-Bolt 7mm Mag someday, too.

I haven't shot much with the .257 Wby. Shot a few whitetail deer, and alot of paper targets. It does an excellent job at both.

I hunt in north and south-central Alabama. The land in south-central Alabama is a friend of mine's land. That is where the wild-dog problem is. They have been known to flank you as you're walking down trails in the woods, especially if you're by yourself. They will attack unprovokingly...Which is why we usually carry both side-arms and plenty of rifle ammo if we're up there.

We have wild hogs all over the place in Alabama. They're everywhere, and we don't have a season for them....They're such a nuiscence that we can shoot as many as we want year round. They tear up crops and property, and will utterly destroy a field or road from rootin around and digging them up to find food.

 

[Buano]

Hog Problem

Yeah, I bought it several years back after 4 of my other guns got stolen....Inlcuding my custom built .308, and my Browning A-Bolt 7mm Rem Mag (my deer rifle)...So I needed a new hunting rifle, and that was what I chose. I will build another .308 someday, and will also buy another A-Bolt 7mm Mag someday, too.

I haven't shot much with the .257 Wby. Shot a few whitetail deer, and alot of paper targets. It does an excellent job at both.

I hunt in north and south-central Alabama. The land in south-central Alabama is a friend of mine's land. That is where the wild-dog problem is. They have been known to flank you as you're walking down trails in the woods, especially if you're by yourself. They will attack unprovokingly...Which is why we usually carry both side-arms and plenty of rifle ammo if we're up there.

We have wild hogs all over the place in Alabama. They're everywhere, and we don't have a season for them....They're such a nuiscence that we can shoot as many as we want year round. They tear up crops and property, and will utterly destroy a field or road from rootin around and digging them up to find food.

I would love to help with the hog problem. Are you looking for "volunteers"? If so, when?

 

[MudRunner2005]

Re: Hog Problem

I would love to help with the hog problem. Are you looking for "volunteers"? If so, when?

Nah, the hog problem is on another buddy's land, and they're funny about folks coming out there. If it was my land, I'd say come on, but it's not.

 

[Buano]

Re: Hog Problem

Nah, the hog problem is on another buddy's land, and they're funny about folks coming out there. If it was my land, I'd say come on, but it's not.

I understand completely. I'm sure you understand that I HAD TO ASK!

 

[Rhino Hunter]

I'd say you must have some "stuff" on it. I run Leupold VX3 8.5-25x50 LRT scopes on my Accumarks and they weigh in right at 10.5 pounds on my postal scale. I like the 110 Accubonds too. Weatherby makes a really nice ultra light weight rifle in 257Wby. Thats the way I would go if i needed a lighter rig.

I have a .257 Accumark, with a Leupold 4.5-14x, 30mm tube, on it and it weighs over 10.5 lbs empty. I know this because I have a digital scale that is rated up to 10 lbs., but it'll show weight up to 10.5. But it won't show the weight of my .257. It's a heavy beast, and long! It's also the most accurate gun I have ever shot. MY 1st 3 shot group was 0.25"!!!

Yeah, it's a little long and heavy...but it's accuracy makes up for it.

RH

 

[Buano]

I have a .257 Accumark, with a Leupold 4.5-14x, 30mm tube, on it and it weighs over 10.5 lbs empty. I know this because I have a digital scale that is rated up to 10 lbs., but it'll show weight up to 10.5. But it won't show the weight of my .257. It's a heavy beast, and long! It's also the most accurate gun I have ever shot. MY 1st 3 shot group was 0.25"!!!

Yeah, it's a little long and heavy...but it's accuracy makes up for it.

RH

The .257 Accumark lists at 8 3/4 pounds, Leupold VX-3 4.5-14x40 lists at 15.1 ounces, and the VX-3 4.5-14x50mm lists at 16.5 ounces.

With steel base & rings the MIGHT top 10.5 pounds, but not by much. With ammunition, it's guaranteed to top 10.5 pounds.

I would definitely use Talley aluminum 1-pc base/rings & save 1/2 pound.