When is Widcatting Worth It?

[backwoodsshooter]

without a long winded response-

allow me to use the components i already have for new adventures.

277 wolverine uses 556 brass and .277 projectiles. both which i have

one day i'll have a sherman cartridge, it's either gonna be a 280 or 338 sherman. the thought of being able to use 270brass is very appealing.

then after that, maybe a 33 or 37xc

maybe even an Allen Mag because mach jesus

 

[WildRose]

I'm building mine for antelope and deer I guess,
It will not weigh what yours does. WOW
I grew up shooting a Rem 788 in 6mm, kinda got a thing for the cartridge but I like hot rods too

Be a rebel then and try something like the old 6.5 Rem Mag. They do runs of factory brass once or twice a year for them.

Neat little cartridge but not in the league ballistically with the .264wm and other, faster 6.5's we have today.

The only thing wrong with the 6mm Rem was the slow twist barrels that even in the day were marginally fast enough twists to handle factory ammo. That's another neat round to play with.

My only current WC is the 6.5LRM and it's bottled up lightning.

 

[oldfortyfiveauto]

20 Practical is outstanding if you are a Dog shooter

Easy mod from 223 brass.

 

[Swamplord]

So rather than discuss a particular wildcat cartridge, my question is for all of them. When is wildcatting worth it?

When I go to bed every night without a bolt in my head and all ten digits intact !

 

[WYOHTF]

@WildRose - the 6.5rem mag does not appeal to me at all, haha
The 6.5x300 PRC does.
But I have a few Savage actions to play with, and one Tikka WSM action.
The long action Savage I can do about whatever I want with, changing the bolt head is no biggie.
If I were to change it to a magnum bolt head I'd have to go with a Sherman flavor.
I have crap loads of .308 and -06 brass, all LC brass, that is why I'm doing the 6mm A.I.
Only 250-300 rounds of 7rm brass, 100 of which is ADG. The rest is Hornady- it's all spoken for in 7RM I already have. It's an ADL cheapo but it shoots to good to get mess with
And the Savage SA, I plan to help build to sale so I can build something real nice on the Tikka .

 

[WYOHTF]

Or ummm . I could do Swamplord's
.243 Coyote Killer

 

[WildRose]

@WildRose - the 6.5rem mag does not appeal to me at all, haha
The 6.5x300 PRC does.
But I have a few Savage actions to play with, and one Tikka WSM action.
The long action Savage I can do about whatever I want with, changing the bolt head is no biggie.
If I were to change it to a magnum bolt head I'd have to go with a Sherman flavor.
I have crap loads of .308 and -06 brass, all LC brass, that is why I'm doing the 6mm A.I.
Only 250-300 rounds of 7rm brass, 100 of which is ADG. The rest is Hornady- it's all spoken for in 7RM I already have. It's an ADL cheapo but it shoots to good to get mess with
And the Savage SA, I plan to help build to sale so I can build something real nice on the Tikka .

Hey, if it shoots and you're happy that's all that matters. I was just thinking of oddballs in keeping with the thread title.

 

[MagnumManiac]

It's totally worth every second when the wildcat case outperforms the parent, or allows longer case life.
I have several wildcats, some have been legitimised, but mostly stay obscure.
My list goes like this:
22-250AI, gains some fps, but the big advantage is no case trimming and brass lasts a long time.
257AI, same as above.
260AI and soon to be 7-08AI, just have to find a reamer.
338-06, should be AI'd to bring out all it's potential, but I haven't done that yet. Fills a '06 based void and performs exceptionally well.
338-416 Rigby Improved 45° degree shoulder of my own design.
Couldn't get a rifle in 338-378 Weatherby, so I designed it around what I had. Built on a CZ 550 Safari Magnum with extended mag box. Although I do not use the mag box with the custom 323g brass solid I use for steel, the hunting rounds do fit and it will hold 4 down. Brass doesn't stretch at all and the primer pockets stay tight, within reason.
375 Weatherby. Easy to fire form, brass doesn't stretch after forming and it is genuinely 200+fps faster than the H&H.
Feeds a little clangy at times due to the abrupt radius shoulder, but a few dents here or there are no big issue.
I built mine on a Win Model 70 Classic Stainless originally chambered in 375H&H.
It wears a HS Precision Sporter gooseneck stock. Compact 2-7x32 scope and slays deer with the 260g Accubond @ 3000fps, or water buff with Woodleigh 300g PP & 2830fps.

Cheers

 

[jrock]

For me, the process is good fun. The downside is that I don't store too many components. Then when the hording starts, I find myself low on supplies and have to ration my shooting. 50% of my guns are wildcats. That percentage keeps going up.

 

[del2les]

As a hobby of love, I never grow tired of wildcatting, improving, etc. However, I do understand your question, and I guess my only answer is, it depends on each person. As I've grown older, I do prefer to spend more of my time and money on shooting/hunting rather than making more wildcats and experiments, and depending on the hunt/trip, I may simply take calibers that are regionally available. Just in case. So far, I have never needed such, but stuff happens.

 

[WYOHTF]

For me, the process is good fun. The downside is that I don't store too many components. Then when the hording starts, I find myself low on supplies and have to ration my shooting. 50% of my guns are wildcats. That percentage keeps going up.

Now with all the shortages out there it's tough, I'm copying designs made from stuff I have on hand.
I just got some Lapua brass in 7mm-08 because it was pretty cheap.
Norma .270win brass is unobtanium and I can't afford RWS, been on the wait list for almost a
year for Peterson brass in a few flavors. I've all but given up on ADG.
Waiting on dies is the worst for me right now.
But….what I can do is build with what I have on hand as said above and be great full and move forward.

 

[Mad Minion]

The journey

 

[brant89]

I wanted a trainer/varmint rifle that would be compatible with my 22 cal centerfire suppressor, had to launch 75-80gr bullets in the neighborhood of 3000fps from a 20" barrel (since it would be suppressed) and still have reasonably good barrel life. 22BR fills all those criteria. 2940fps with 75 ELD's and an expected barrel life of 2k-3k rounds. It basically falls between a 223AI and a 22-250 so it's definitely a niche cartridge but oh so fun. Even took Top Team in a precision rifle event with it last May.

 

[nealm66]

I think anytime superior bullets come into the market that there's not a good saami cartridge to shoot them is when a wildcat is the best time. The .257 seems to be in this condition. Very thankful to all those who tinker to get better performance. God bless America!!