Weatherby rifles and cartridges

[7ultra]

I was just looking over the Weatherby site, pretty interesting stuff. My only question is, how do they perform. Mainly I would be lookng at an Accumark or maybe the stainless fibermark. Any experiences with these rifles. Would it be worth it to go with the sub-moa package? Now on to cartridges, looking at the family of Weatherby magnums, I'm most attracted to the 257 or 270 Weatherby's. Any preferences? It looks like the 270 packs a little more power, and the bullets have a little more BC behind them. Again, any insight is helpful.

 

[RBrowning]

I have enjoyed my 257 Acumark. After the 15th I hope to report how it does on white tails, but so far it has done well on paper and clay pigions. When I first got it I bought a box of each of the loads that Weatherby offers and found the 115 grain X bullet grouped the best. I believe that this is due to the fact that Weatherby has freebore to reduce pressure and Barnes asks you to load their bullets .050" off of the lands. The design requirements for the bullet seems to match the design of the barrel.

Good luck with your project.

 

[brian b]

I am sure that I will catch a lot of flack on this one but here goes, a Weatherby rifle is exactly like owning a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. if you are into the GLAM. and social scene they are great. If you are into what really works awesome without the fanfare you will look elsewhere IMHO
B

 

[Sask_Hunter]

the wby cartridges are about as good as they come. somer are faster but they are good. my dad shot a big bodied muley buck and he gave up the ghost at 366yrds with a 130TSX. i dont care for their rifles but a re-barreled 700 in 257 or 270 would be the ****.

 

[Reloader]

I've shot 3 different Mark Vs and I've been around quite a few others, they are the most accurate Factory Rifles I've ever dealt w/. Some claim the Weatherbys will not shoot worth a flip but, I beg to differ. The Weatherby's I've shot, shot better than any of my Remington, Savage, and Browning Factory rifles.

When a rifle will shoot factory ammo at less than a inch at 200 yards, that says something.

IMO you would have a better range of capability w/ the 270 Weatherby Mag. You would have a better selection of bullets and you could take any game animal in the NA cont.

Good Luck!

Reloader

 

[Whitewolf393]

I have never shot any Weatherby before, but they also make the Vanguard rifle, which is a cheaper price...I don't know how that performs compared to the other Weatherbys, however.

 

[Varmint Hunter]

Many years ago I got caught up in the Weatherby zip & glitz Mark V rifles. The wood stocks would move (warp, swell or what-have-you) almost every year causing the pressure points to create major accuracy problems. I have sent the rifles back to Weatherby on more than one occasion. Weatherby did correct the pressure point problems but the accuracy would not hold from season to season.

Eventually, I brought the rifle to Wally Hart. I had him float the barrel and bed the action. Boy did that turn out to be a bad move. The rifle shot so poorly that I eventually sent it back to Weatherby again. They would not work with the hogged out stock and recommended a replacement. You can imagine what that cost. I had them install a new stock and sold the rifle at a significant loss.

Weatherbys that have thin barrels, pressure points and wood stocks will never find there way back into my rifle cabinet.

I might add that Hart scoped the bore and told me that it was loaded with tool marks.

Just my experience with Weatherby rifles.

VH

 

[dafooge]

i had a weatherby ,,it was the cheaper model the vangaurd,but it came with a nice rosewood stock and ebony inlay,,270 mag,and it shot very well while i own it, kinda sorry i sold it..

 

[Hoolie]

Hey 7Ultra,
The MK V Accumark rifle is a very accurate rifle. I have (2)in .257 WBY.Mags. and they love the 87grn. and 100grn. Factory Ammo shooting 1/2" to 3/4" groups at 100 yds. with either bullet weight in either rifle.
The recoil is about like a .270 Win. but the trajectory is a no brainer. I sight in at
+ 1 1/2" @ 100 yds. and impact is at -2" on the 300 yd. target. The only, I mean only, drawback is the price of the ammo in comparison to standard cartridges. But, some of the newer rounds provided for standard cartridges are not far off of the Weatherby Ammo price. Shoot what you want to shoot, period! I've shot Pronghorn, Whitetail, and Elk with the .257 Weatherby. All were one shot kills and some very long ranges.
I have the .270 Win., .25-06 Rem., .308 Win,
and a few others. I like them all. But when the range possibility could be long on any given hunt, I always grab the .257 Weatherby.
Good luck with your decision..Good Hunting!

 

[Nighthawk]

I also beg to differ on the fact that Weatherby's are inaccurate. I have had two Accumarks," the first was a .300 Wby Mag and the second a .30-378 Wby Mag. I reloaded some with 220 grain Mk's and my dad got 1/4" groups or better. The .30-378 did about as good. Mind you that these were just testing loads with a factory barrel. The only thing I might change is a thicker barrel, the stock one as good as it is with flutes. I think it could be a little thicker. Thats debateable. Blowing up oranges was fun at 100 yards. Both rounds pack a very big punch so beware.

 

[7ultra]

Thanks for the advice and the experiences so far. It's always fun to mull this stuff over in my head. Thanks again,
7ultra

 

[Michael Eichele]

Well my advice is buy one and try it. I have HAD 2 and loved the way they looked, felt and such but hated the way they shot. They didnt shoot worth a crap for me. But I fugure that out of 2 one should have shot well. I meen one was a SVM in 308. If I cant get that WBY to shoot then I am sure I could never get one to shoot. The other was an Accumark in 30-378. Both are top end rifles. Just like shoes or vehicles some will fit one and not another.

The point here I am trying to make is that I dont think there is anything wrong with the rifles and I dont think there is anything wrong with my ability to shoot in general but obviously WBY and I DO NOT get along for unknown reasons. Some shooters will shoot them well and others wont. Who knows maybee I had the 2 worst turds they ever made

but I use what works for me personaly and they arent Weatherbys.

 

[Shark Bait]

I bought a Winchester Model 70 stainless Classic in .300 Weatherby and just love it. This cheapo gun (<$600) shoots under MOA at 100 yards, even with the cheap synthetic stock it has. I was planning on replacing the stock with a McMillan but have decided to hold off given the great accuracy and light weight. My point is that if you want a .300 weatherby (the best round in my opinion) you can find it in other Mfgs. guns. Also, if you are considering a .270 I would suggest looking at the Tikka T3 in .270WSM. Mine is a tackdriver and it falls right on the heels of the .270 weatherby in speed. Good Luck!

 

[erikljoh]

I own an older Mark V (Jap made) I believe it is the one they called the Alaskan, Nickel plated or whatever, fiber stock, factory installed removable muzzle break. Chambered in 300 WBY, probably one of the most accurate guns I have ever owned. I have shot mainly Weatherby factory ammo but on occation have shot the Remington 180 gr corelokts, both with great results (<1"@100yds), especially Hornady 165 gr SP, whitetails hate those. Great gun and caliber.