Confused ............ Why the sudden upsurge in interest in the .257 Wby?

[Brithunter]

Just reading down here and see quite a few threads about folks getting new rifles in .257 Wby.


So what's the deal?


Why the sudden upsurge in interest in this cartridge?


To say that I am confused by this would be an understatement.

[ChrisK]

I have wanted one for a long time. I finally was able to get one. I wanted something that I didn't to have to worry about elevation for the most part from 0-300 or so yards and I would be able to hunt anything that I could afford to shoot and use the same rifle.

[S.S.]

You might find that some folks here (myself included ) are getting a bit long in the tooth!
You get to within a few years older or newer of the half century mark and you start looking for something
that don't kick you around quite so much. That would be one reason I'll wager.

[swifty22]

Brit- SS has it I think.  The local Big R had the cheap ones a year ago for $299 but I have a Mod. 70 25/06. I was really tempted but the 25 is approx. 95 percent of the 257 Wby. which uses about 70 gr powder and the 25 about 56. I figured that the drop @ 400 yds wouldn't make much difference so I didn't go w/the 257 W. I/m guessing that the cheap ones are the reason for the popularity now days. THINK how much the ammo costs for the Wby. vs the 25/06 for factory loads before you spend the coin on the Wby. I have had a 340 Wby. for about 25 years and have never bought factory ammo (look how much they are @ Cabela's or any where else) You WILL be impressed. I was going to make the 257 Wby. cases from 7 Rem Mag. if I bought one but it was not even close to being economical compared to ANY 25/06 cases/loads ect., my thoughts-Muddy

[Brithunter]

Hmmm as some one who will never see 50 again I can understand the older bit. I acquired a 25-06 in 2010 a new chambering for me but still did my last hunt with an old 270 Winchester that was made the year I was born  .


You would not want to see the prices of stuff like factory ammunition here in the UK. Heck handloading powders nearly need a loan to buy now. Hodgdons H4350 costs about $57:50 per 1lb tub now a box of Sierra 100 grain .25 cal bullets is about $45. The last factory ammo I brought was a box of 280 Remington Corelockt and they cost about $45 for a box of 20 rounds.


God only knows how much Weatherby ammunition would be or who would stock it.

[roper]

Just reading down here and see quite a few threads about folks getting new rifles in .257 Wby.


So what's the deal?


Why the sudden upsurge in interest in this cartridge?


To say that I am confused by this would be an understatement.

What happened was Rem and Vanguard are making rifles in 257Wby that cost lot less then Wby 257Wby.

[mcwoodduck]

The 257 WBY does what the 264 Win Mag was supose to do.
Varmints to big game and everything inbetween and shoot like a lazer beam.
I does what the 7mm mag can do for you average open area big game with out the recoil and Americans like the quarter bore but have a problem with the 6.5 for the most part.
All the 6.5's are great rounds from 6.5X54 MS to the 264 WM the few inbetween. 
 
 

[Brithunter]

Just reading down here and see quite a few threads about folks getting new rifles in .257 Wby.


So what's the deal?


Why the sudden upsurge in interest in this cartridge?


To say that I am confused by this would be an understatement.

What happened was Rem and Vanguard are making rifles in 257Wby that cost lot less then Wby 257Wby.

OH you mean Remington and Howa are making rifles chambered for it!




Hmmm they must have perceived a market for them.


The only .257 I ever got to handle was one I was offered for sale a fancy grade Mk V Weatherby. The owner a well heeled (wealthy) twit had been playing with hand loads with dubious bullets and got on jammed in the bore. Where he got these bullets from no one knows but they seemed to have either been early attempts at solids or they were tungsten. Anyway the gunsmith at one shop had a quick go at removing the offending bullet then passed it on to another. Who had to make up a cutter to drill out the bullet it was jammed so tightly. Of course it left a tell tale mark in the barrel.


The rifles owner belonged to one of the clubs I was a member of and was offering it for sale at a shoot. Having heard of his "Mishap" I asked to see it and sure enough looking through the bore the mark where the bullet jammed was noticable. On pointing it out he got all uptight and stomped off. We did not see him at shoots fro a while and it seems he managed to palm the damaged rifle off on an unsuspecting dealer.


Not the rifles fault but a daft and even stupid owner. That is not the only dodgy thing he did and in fact he was asked to leave that club.


I never got to shoot that rifle but have shot other Mk V's and do not like them much. The stock style is not right for me.


As for the cartridge ................................. Hmmmm now having a 25-06 plus a slew of 270 Winchesters (have four of them) and a 280 AI for me I cannot see a place for the Weatherby cartridge.


It still seems strange that after 64 years the cartridge is suddenly re-discovered.

[Lloyd Smale]

Same can be said for the 300 wby. I agree with the other poster that its the availability of guns reasonable priced. Most guys just dont have 1200 bucks or more to spend on a rifle and in my case if i had 1200 dollars I still dont want a markV at least not one that doesnt have one of the rarer classic stocks. the weatherby stock just never did fit me. Most guys here are interersted in performance. Its why we handload. We may not push pressures into unsafe areas but most want the most they can get out of the round there using. If noting else most guys that dont even push velocitys over factory ammo are looking to improve the round by bullet selection and are allway searching for more accuracy. Id say a comparison can be made with cars. Put a 400 horse motor in a 75k corvette and only a few will stand in line. Put that same motor in a camero and sell it for 30k and theres a croud lining up. You will always get the nasayers that claim they burn barrels because there so overbore and this goes for the 264 too. thing is most of this bunk is stuff people read that was wront back in the 60s before some of the newer powders came out. Most who have worked with it know it will give you an honest 200 fps and maybe 300 over a 2506. Sure it takes more powder and brass is more expensive. But its the american way. How many guys go out and  by a full sized truck with a 6cyl motor in it anymore. they know that a big v8 will use more fuel but there more then willing to pay the extra to get the performance. Just look on the road and see how many of the newer diesel trucks are running up and down the road with no extra load other then some chrome on them. Its like tim allen would say MORE POWER is never a bad thing.

[Savage_99]

Perhaps the .257 Weatherby is just a fad.  We like something 'new' to keep our interest up.  Only a few years ago the 22-250 was promoted as something so special.  It was supposed to be more accurate than some other cartridge and other baloney.  Now it's no longer a topic.

I go back to the early 50's on handloading and rifles.   To be frank I could never stand anything about Weatherby except that they were guns.  The Weatherby's were/are gaudy.  Remember those inlays?  Uck.

The so called  Weatherby shoulder shape and freebore and yes, the belts are more I can't stand about Weatherby. 

On the other hand if someone is hunting with a .257 Weatherby I could not care less.

[Dave in WV]

As already posted there are more than one brand of rifle chambered for the 257 WBY now and the latest rage is long range hunting and shooting. That's my take on it but YMMV.

[nomosendero]

Several reasons, many already mentioned.
 
Availability of lower cost rifles.
 
The round has been promoted a good deal by writers lately, partly because of those rifles, but partly because it's a very nice round.
 
Better, yet affordable optics,/Rangefinders, which help folks utilize the velocity over std. 25cal rounds.
 
The interest in longer ranger shooting, even though this cal. lacks high BC buleets, it shoots flat at the distance you should hit stuff with a 25 cal bullet. That same interest it appears will result in a 6.5 surge as well.
 
It offers this flat shooting out to 600 or so & good terminal performance for Deer size game especially with less recoil than other rounds that would yield a similar result.
 
Lastly, why not for those that want it.
 
 
 

[Brithunter]

Sadly barrels still burn out. I brought a nice looking P-H 1200C in 25-06 and had some trouble with groups being consistent. Finally really gave the bore a really deep cleaning and got the bore scoped. The first 10" of the bore is heat crazed which is not helping matters. Oh well I was working on the loads.

[Lloyd Smale]

Ill add this. Kill a couple dozen deer with it out past 300 yards and you too will find a little soft spot for it in your heart. It should be renamed the 257DRT. It is the wickedest killing round that recoils so light a women or young hunter can still shoot it without fear. Step up to the 7mags and recoil takes a bit of a jump. Personaly i throw the 264 mag into the same boat. Both of them have become my favorite long range whitetail rounds. there both rounds that catch critisism but rarely from those who have actually used them.

[nomosendero]

Ill add this. Kill a couple dozen deer with it out past 300 yards and you too will find a little soft spot for it in your heart. It should be renamed the 257DRT. It is the wickedest killing round that recoils so light a women or young hunter can still shoot it without fear. Step up to the 7mags and recoil takes a bit of a jump. Personaly i throw the 264 mag into the same boat. Both of them have become my favorite long range whitetail rounds. there both rounds that catch critisism but rarely from those who have actually used them.

Lloyd, I agree!! In the lighter weight bullets for the 264, such as the 120 BT vs the 115 in the 257WM, these rounds are tit for tat. They are very user friendly for Deer/Antelope for most people & the Wea. has great fact. rounds for those who do no load their own.
 
Concerning burning barrels, buy a new one of these, pick the logical bullets to try for your application, work up the loads & for a hunting round they will last a lifetime. Everyone already knows these aren't high volume target rounds.

[Savage_99]

Ill add this. Kill a couple dozen deer with it out past 300 yards and you too will find a little soft spot for it in your heart. It should be renamed the 257DRT.

LOL 

[Savage_99]

Ill add this. Kill a couple dozen deer with it out past 300 yards and you too will find a little soft spot for it in your heart. It should be renamed the 257DRT. It is the wickedest killing round that recoils so light a women or young hunter can still shoot it without fear. Step up to the 7mags and recoil takes a bit of a jump. Personaly i throw the 264 mag into the same boat. Both of them have become my favorite long range whitetail rounds. there both rounds that catch critisism but rarely from those who have actually used them.

Or perhaps your 257Rubberby makes them DRT from lung shots and other shot locations that are eventually fatal to whitetails from my ordinary cartridges.

So now the 257 Rubberby is a Dead Right There cartridge along with maybe the 264WM and they don't kick much at all for women or youngsters yet other rounds are not DRT rounds.  Well I suppose if one of us who has actually used those other rounds hit a whitetail in it's nervous system it might die as fast as your very special 257 Rubberby. 

[nomosendero]

Ill add this. Kill a couple dozen deer with it out past 300 yards and you too will find a little soft spot for it in your heart. It should be renamed the 257DRT. It is the wickedest killing round that recoils so light a women or young hunter can still shoot it without fear. Step up to the 7mags and recoil takes a bit of a jump. Personaly i throw the 264 mag into the same boat. Both of them have become my favorite long range whitetail rounds. there both rounds that catch critisism but rarely from those who have actually used them.

Or perhaps your 257Rubberby makes them DRT from lung shots and other shot locations that are eventually fatal to whitetails from my ordinary cartridges.

So now the 257 Rubberby is a Dead Right There cartridge along with maybe the 264WM and they don't kick much at all for women or youngsters yet other rounds are not DRT rounds.  Well I suppose if one of us who has actually used those other rounds hit a whitetail in it's nervous system it might die as fast as your very special 257 Rubberby. 

  
 
I can allways tell from a first post if other similar ones are to follow. You might want to look at the OP question, which has nothing to do with your comments, others have given reasons in regards to the OP.
 
He said nothing about other rounds not giving DRT results. I believe he has used other rounds for the purpose & so have I, likely more than you.
 
If you don't like Weatherby & hence none of their cartridges, then don't use them.

[ihookem]

It is something so old it's now the new. Now ya can afford the gun anyhow. Wait 10 years and you will find them on the used shelf like the WSSM, Ultra mags ETC. a decade ago. Before that it was the WIN mags. Now many are going extreme opposite, shooting elk with 243 win., hogs and deer with .223& 22-250. Funny thing is they work. With the high price of components small calibers and precision shots will win out.

[nomosendero]

It is something so old it's now the new. Now ya can afford the gun anyhow. Wait 10 years and you will find them on the used shelf like the WSSM, Ultra mags ETC. a decade ago. Before that it was the WIN mags. Now many are going extreme opposite, shooting elk with 243 win., hogs and deer with .223& 22-250. Funny thing is they work. With the high price of components small calibers and precision shots will win out.

It still is the Win Mag, a very popular round according to both RCBS Die sales & Factory ammo as well. I very rarely see a good deal on a quality used 300WM.
Your kidding, or do you actually think that the 257Wea. would be like the WSSM's & on dealer shelves? Why, when most people that actually use the round like it? I fail to see the logic in this??
 
BTW, the 257 is a small caliber & I don't get where the precision goes away just because you have a cartridge with more muzzle velocity. It didn't happen to me when I put the 308 in the safe & grab my 300WM, but I am all ears.

[Brithunter]

Actually all this talk about the .257 Weatherby made me did out my Ken Waters Pet Loads books and re-read the one of the .257 Weatherby and this in turn got me thinking ................................. bad idea that one ................................ thinking that is      . One of the comments on things folks don't like on the Weatherby cartridge is the belt .................................  sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo




The thought was what if a similar capacity case was made say from the new Ruger 375?


One could also do away with the Powell venturi shoulder and have a steel shoulder similar to the Ackley's. I wonder how the velocities would compare?




See I told you thinking was dangerous  .

[Lloyd Smale]

I personaly have never seen a belt hurt anything. Never could figure why guys were so much against them. I also never said that other rounds would get you drt performance. the 7 mags and certainly the 300 mags will do it too. My point was that they do it with lighter recoil. Sure you can argue that that 7mag doesnt kick anymore then a 264 or even a 257 but then 300 mag shooters will claim it kicks no more then a 7mag. Personaly i dont have a problem with any of them. I sure dont fear sitting down at the bench with a 300 wby or my 8mag. But what ive found is most people who dont shoot much draw the line when shooting my guns at about where the 264 or 257 are with 120s. Or a 270 or 06 shooting 150s. You want real power with not much recoil? My 7stw has a factory break. I dont care for them but if you can get over the air pressure hitting you in the face the gun does recoil less then my 257 and pack some serious horse power.
Now ill be a bit of a hipocrit for saying this because i regularily use them but in all reality even for long range shooting the 300s and even the 7mags are getting into a power level that really isnt nessisary for deer sized game. I use them because i get an oportunity to shoot alot of deer every year and it would get kind of boring using the same thing all the time. But if there what you like i sure dont have an argument against them. Ill add too that i have a soft spot for the .25s and even the 264mag. Call it nostalsia or whatever but i could live fine with a 2506, 257 or 264 for my long range hunting and a 257 roberts or 250 sav for my normal deer hunting and sure not feel deprived.

[roper]

Just reading down here and see quite a few threads about folks getting new rifles in .257 Wby.


So what's the deal?


Why the sudden upsurge in interest in this cartridge?


To say that I am confused by this would be an understatement.

What happened was Rem and Vanguard are making rifles in 257Wby that cost lot less then Wby 257Wby.

OH you mean Remington and Howa are making rifles chambered for it!




Hmmm they must have perceived a market for them.


The only .257 I ever got to handle was one I was offered for sale a fancy grade Mk V Weatherby. The owner a well heeled (wealthy) twit had been playing with hand loads with dubious bullets and got on jammed in the bore. Where he got these bullets from no one knows but they seemed to have either been early attempts at solids or they were tungsten. Anyway the gunsmith at one shop had a quick go at removing the offending bullet then passed it on to another. Who had to make up a cutter to drill out the bullet it was jammed so tightly. Of course it left a tell tale mark in the barrel.


The rifles owner belonged to one of the clubs I was a member of and was offering it for sale at a shoot. Having heard of his "Mishap" I asked to see it and sure enough looking through the bore the mark where the bullet jammed was noticable. On pointing it out he got all uptight and stomped off. We did not see him at shoots fro a while and it seems he managed to palm the damaged rifle off on an unsuspecting dealer.


Not the rifles fault but a daft and even stupid owner. That is not the only dodgy thing he did and in fact he was asked to leave that club.


I never got to shoot that rifle but have shot other Mk V's and do not like them much. The stock style is not right for me.


As for the cartridge ................................. Hmmmm now having a 25-06 plus a slew of 270 Winchesters (have four of them) and a 280 AI for me I cannot see a place for the Weatherby cartridge.


It still seems strange that after 64 years the cartridge is suddenly re-discovered.

There always interest in the Wby.  I had a 257Wby build couple years ago and 270Wby that should be done pretty quick.

I've had 300Wby build beside 257/270Wby and all three had headspaced on the shoulder and no Wby freebore and it just another way of doing things.  I got the 280AI and 284 but thinking 7mag or 7Wby.

[Savage_99]

Lloyd,

Your up late tonight or is it up early! 

Its sure fun talking up guns and cartridges.  Of late I have been into rifles more that pistols or shotguns. 

Where the belted cartridges are wrong is when they have a shoulder that could be used to headspace on instead of the belt.

What happens is that, due to chamber tolerances, there is more space at the shoulder.  Use a 300 WM for example.

When that 300 WM is fired the shoulder blows forward as its unsupported.   Its of course headspaced on its belt.  That shoulder blowing forward stretches the expansion web of the brass which is its weakest point. 

That stretching of the expansion web leads to head separations and in particular when an unsophisticated reloader FL sizes down to the shell holder.

http://www.larrywillis.com/headspace.html

The L. Willis site above has a decent explanation of what happens but a knowledgeable handloader does not need his die.

Lloyd,

You need to check your die settings and feel inside of your fired brass with a wire hook!

[Brithunter]

The thing I have always failed to understand is how ammunition makers and case makers cannot make them to the specs laid down. Especially belts as the cartridge head spaces on them they should be made to better tolerances than they are.

[Lloyd Smale]

Ive been loading mag rifle rounds for 35 years. Ive never even from the start ever headspaced them on the belt. Ive allways set my dies just like i do for any rifle round using the sholder to headspace.

Lloyd,

Your up late tonight or is it up early! 

Its sure fun talking up guns and cartridges.  Of late I have been into rifles more that pistols or shotguns. 

Where the belted cartridges are wrong is when they have a shoulder that could be used to headspace on instead of the belt.

What happens is that, due to chamber tolerances, there is more space at the shoulder.  Use a 300 WM for example.

When that 300 WM is fired the shoulder blows forward as its unsupported.   Its of course headspaced on its belt.  That shoulder blowing forward stretches the expansion web of the brass which is its weakest point. 

That stretching of the expansion web leads to head separations and in particular when an unsophisticated reloader FL sizes down to the shell holder.

http://www.larrywillis.com/headspace.html

The L. Willis site above has a decent explanation of what happens but a knowledgeable handloader does not need his die.

Lloyd,

You need to check your die settings and feel inside of your fired brass with a wire hook!

[nomosendero]

I have had good case life with Belted cases, of course headspacing on the shoulder and a slight "bump" after that.
 
If you want to eliminate that initial first stretch completely just the same, here you go:
 
http://www.shootingtimes.com/2011/01/04/ammunition_st_beltedcasebull_201007/
 
Then that removes all doubt 

[yooper77]

I don't feel the hype for the 257 Weatherby Magnum or 300 Weatherby Magnum.
 
Take the 270 Winchester and Nosler 110 grain Accubond's, can easily nips the heels of the 257 Weatherby Magnum and/or 264 Winchester Magnum if desired.
 
Also the 338-06 A-Square with Nosler 180 grain Ballistic Tip and /or Accubond's, get close enough too some 30 caliber magnum cartridges if desired.
 
Both 270 Winchester and 338-06 A-Square are in a inexpensive reformed brass.
 
yooper77

[nomosendero]

I don't feel the hype for the 257 Weatherby Magnum or 300 Weatherby Magnum.
 
Take the 270 Winchester and Nosler 110 grain Accubond's, can easily nips the heels of the 257 Weatherby Magnum and/or 264 Winchester Magnum if desired.
 
Also the 338-06 A-Square with Nosler 180 grain Ballistic Tip and /or Accubond's, get close enough too some 30 caliber magnum cartridges if desired.
 
Both 270 Winchester and 338-06 A-Square are in a inexpensive reformed brass.
 
yooper77

A 338 cal. bullet with a BC of .372 vs a 30 cal. bullet with a BC of .507 traveling 100-200fps faster, doesn't seem comparable to me.
 
I have a very accurate 270 & it is a fine cartridge. If it fits your performance needs & it would for most, fine. But no, the 110Accubond is not impressive to me. I do love the 140 Accubond & it has a great BC for a 270, but it falls short of 6.5 bullets & combined with higher 264 velocities, a whole herd of them.
 
But looking at the 110 Acc/.277 you can get 3300, maybe 3350. With a 264 with the proper barrel & Retumbo/RL25 you can get 3300 with a 130 Accubond.
Now look at bullet stats:
110/.277 Acc.: SD.238 & B/C.370 It is a pretty blunt bullet as we can see
130/.264 Acc.: SD.266 & B/C.488 Great penetration & High BC, not even a close contest. And man if you want to talk long range, a 140 6.5 Berger at 3200 is amazing, the Berger 270 BC's are much lower & so is the vel.
 
The 270 is a little closer contest with a 257 110, but still falls a little short & picking the optimum loads for both, the 257 Wea. is a good deal flatter than the 270 Win.
 
 

[Lloyd Smale]

sorry but im with nomosendero you can try to make any two rounds comparable on paper but math doesnt kill animals bullets do. Im not a fan of the 270 but would be the first to admit its a decent round. But it works best with 130-150 grain bullets. Same goes for the 338/06 which is a fine round, very effiecient and a good killer but it never was intended as a ultra long range round. If i had to go and kill a big animal and i knew the ranges wouldnt be over 250 yards id say its just as effective as a 300mag. But its intention was to shoot bullets heavier then typical 30 cal bullets at moderate speeds. I guess alot of this is just to each his own. Most hunters maybe dont need the extra velocity a weatherby gives. My hunting situation is a bit differnt then most here and what ive found is when the range gets out around 400 yards there a definate adavantage if you want quick kills and flatter trajectorys.