Ace Quackhunter
Well-Known Member
264 mag, better bullets
257 Weatherby or 264 Win Mag next rifle build
- Thread starter Double Dropper
- Start date
Help Support Long Range Hunting Forum
Nomosendero
Well-Known Member
I expected a difference, but I am really surprised it would be 2-300fps!!
That is interesting, but the 257Wby and 264 Win mag, and 25-06/AI are all the same length. It usually does come down to what's better between 2 ends up being number 3.
Double Dropper
Well-Known Member
SAUM is a wildcat unfortunately and yes I would be reloading whichever cartridge I decide on. I would also tailor the twist rate around the bullet so a store bought 257 Weatherby will not suit the 131 grain bullets. I would also tailor the 264 around 140 grain bullets.
Yep, I have the 6.5 PRC and it is amazing, but that wasn't the question. If I was building a one rifle be all end all it wouldn't be the .257Wby. or .264 win mag. If I was building a 500 and in rifle for deer and antelope and mt. Goats and sheep, it would be a .257 Weatherby. I have used the 264 and love it. I love the 6.5 PRC and the 7 mag and the 300 Weatherby. I'm no professional hunter, but I have killed stuff with most standard cartridges and half a dozen wildcats from .338-378Wby down to .223Rem. Personally in the open and wind I like the 257Bee best of all. You just don't need super BC under 500 yards when you have half the flight time. And when a 100 grain TSX or 110 grain Accubond gets there the effects are spectacular. I'm not saying the .264 pills don't kill effectively, but when you get into the heavier bullets, even the softer ones the effect is not the same. My second favorite when it is blowing 100 miles an hour is the 300 Wby. with 130gr TSX at just under 3800FPS. Horrible BC, but at 300yards I have seen the bullet shudder the shoulder before the scope jumped off the animal and it seems that all happens before the muzzle blast reaches your ear. You get a 1.5" exit and it always just amazes me. Now past about 450 yards things really start to change for the worse fast, but I am happy to let that be the limit.
My favorite hunting rifle is a 300 Savage chambered in a 99 lever action..I've got all kinds of rifles in different chamberings..got a 308 Norma mag chambered in a really nice manlicher shoenauer..but I honestly hunt with either my 300 Savage or 243 chambered in model 99 Savage..I've taken black bear..mule deer.. antelope..elk..whatever nm has has fallen victim to these two rifles..when I go to Alaska I take either my 7 mag or 264 and one of the 30 cal magnums just to be legal..I have to be honest..the 264 or the 7 mag are the only ones that ever get used..but I take one of the 300 magnums just in case they want to push it
But don't get me wrong.. when I was younger I used to hunt in Alaska all the time with a 270 winchester.model 70..had a Parker Hale chambered in 308 Norma magnum necked to 8mm as my legal gun..hell I've even hunted with just an 8mm Mauser over there..but my favorite rifle of all time is the model 99 Savage.. something about the setup of that particular Savage design just suites me..but like I say..it stayes in the lower 48..I was almost lunch for a large ****ed off brown bear in Alaska one time carrying my 270 Winchester..it took 3 shots from the rifle and 2 shots from my 357 mag to put that bear down..and the rifle shots were all lethal shots..it finally dropped around 100 ft from me and if I remember correctly I probably had to clean my drawers out..that's the last trip that 357 has made..last time for the 270 also..it just takes one time..might as well go prepared and not have to count as much on your marksmanship when you have 1200 lbs of ****ed off barreling down on you
But back to the question..the 264 is my pick..after that could possibly be the 257 Roy..I don't know because I don't have much experience with the round other than dialing in my dad's..the nearest to it that I own is a 2506 and that is a fine round
Ace Quackhunter
Well-Known Member
Amen Brother, better to have it and not need it, than looking for a tree to climb.
Wild Monkey
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Oct 16, 2017
- Messages
- 403
Thanks for Sharing Jerry. I bet you've got a ton of Stories. Maybe you could start an Alaskan thread in General discussion? /// The .257 Weatherby has more capacity than the 264 IMO.
Ballistically my 2506 Ackley improved falls just short of the 257 Roy..I don't own the 257 but have friends that do.. around 100-150 fps difference..it's according to how they load..so Ive never been interested in having another similar round in my collection..but I won't take the 2506 to Alaska either after the 270 about got me eaten..of course the 264 has taken everything from moose to brown bear..polar bear.. whatever lives in Alaska the 264 will handle it with room to spare..so my pick of an all around rifle cartridge is the 264 or the 7 mag
Double Dropper
Well-Known Member
Post is getting off track, you cant compare the 257 Bee with a stock twist, you need to look at the ballistics with a 1/8 twist barrel and 130 grain bullets. The high BC and 33-3400 fps from handloads with a custom barrel.....sorry the 25-06 or the improved version falls short. I cannot load 131 grain bullets out of my 25-06 in fact any ballistic 115 or more does not shoot well. I read a fantastic article on the 6.5 PRC last night but its just another cartridge that pumps out 140 grain bullets at 2950-3000 fps, it falls in the 6.5-06 category, oh ya wait I know my handloads are going 4000fps I get that your rifle is this fast and who knows how you deem "safe" for your loads, but in respect my shooting buddy hammers 140 grain bullets out of his 264 Win Mag @3300 with RETUMBO so here we have an ancient cartridge that still outperforms the latest flavor of the month.
