Cartridges We Really Want

[Harold50]

WIN358

What I great topic for those of us that love rifles.

Regarding the 17HMR. No one "needs" one, BUT, having said that, let me tell you about mine.
NEF Sportster bull barrel with a Mueller 4X16 Tactical scope. Loves the Federal 17 grain load. It will consistently hit the 9  ring of the 50 ft .22 rimfire target at 100 yards, IF, there is no wind  and I haven't had a third cup of coffee.

It is quiet - very difficult to hear.
Ammo is becoming reasonable.
It will not replace the .22WMR for foxes and coyotes I expect - but it'll kill'em under the same shooting conditions that one uses to kill deer with a .223Rem.

What that little cartridge does to crows is obscene - and they never expect it coming from a brushpile 110 yards away.

Check out www.varmintal.com for a full analysis.

I am working now on a Mauser G.33/40 in 8mm. Got it cheap many years ago all buggered by a DIY gunsmith. It'll never be a collectors item. I've got it shooting 2.5 inch groups at 100 yards consistently using Sierra 175s at @ 2400. Changing from IMR-4895
to IMR-3031 today. My goal is 2". Has an 18" barrel and a mannlicher stock. Will take off the 3x9 when load development is over and put on a 1x4 of some description. Should hit a deer like the Hammer of He** and be very good for Eastern moose in the spruce thickets.

Also working on a Featherweight 25WSSM using 120NPs. it is a very fussy endeavor but the rifle starts out at 6 lbs. Should be worthwhile when I'm done.

My favorite rifle is a 1972 Remington 700 ADL in .270 Winchester - first rifle I ever bought new with my own money. I took it to Alaska 12 years ago. It is not "pretty" but likes 90 grain hollow points over W760 and 130 grain Sierra GKs over IMR-4831. The trigger is adjusted "just so".

I am in lust over a .35 Whelen in a 7600. Do I need it?

Best wishes,
Harold

[358Win]

Hi Harold50:

   As far as I'm concerned if you have lust for a rifle, you really really need it.

Hi All:

   Well I didn't have to look too far to find cartridges with approximate rim/head diameters of 0.445.  Of course there are the short Russian ones 7.62x39mm, 22 PPC, 6mm PPC.  Then there is the Swift mentioned earlier also.  An interesting case that almost fits the bill is the 240 Weatherby which is just over .450 in front of the belt.  It could be left full length and have just a bit less capacity than the 30-06.  Or you could cut it down to short action size and have a belted 308.  As for bore diameters anything between 22 and 338 should work just fine.

   But I won't have to design a regular case with ~ 0.445 rim/head diameter.  The Italians and the Austrians beat me to the punch on that task over a 100 years ago.  Both the 6.5 Carcanco and the 6.5x54mm MS have the basic 0.445 rim/head diameter and enough length to get a decent powder charge.  While the cartridges are almost identical their reputations are miles apart due to the rifles they originally came in.  The Italian made Carcanco with very few exceptions are junk.  While the Mannlicher-Schoenauer rifles are a fine piece of craftsmanship.

   Now that Remingtion has revived the Mauser action it would be tons of fun to have a 6.5x54mm MS to shoot tiny groups with.  When loaded with the looong 160 grain bullet in a good strong action you should be able to get up to the magic Rigby velocity of 2,400 fps with about a 22 or 23 inch barrel.  In good hands that should be fantastic for Moose, Elk, Bear.  The 140 grain should be able to get up around 2,600 fps and be fantastic for Mule Deer.  The 120 should go about 2700 or 2,800 fps and be lighting on Whitetales and Antelope.

[Con]

Cartridges I really want and only some I have ...
1. The 358Win ... love it to death in my rebarrelled Win M70 pushfeed action with 2.5x Leupold. This has become my "reach for" rifle and the only one I keep my dirty little fingers off! Strictly no tinkering (other than loads) is allowed on this rifle! And I ALWAYS have a few boxes of Win factory ammunition stashed somewhere.
2. 300/221Fireball (300Whisper) ... the "next project". I'll be rebarreling a Rem700 to this small cartridge in the coming months as I start looking for very mild centrefire suitable for small to medium game out to 150m. Hoping to use the 110gr V-max, 125gr Nosler BT for hunting as well as medium-heavy cast projectiles in the 180gr weights. Really looking forward to this one as it should make a great short-range varminter as well as a perfect "boys big-bore rifle".
3. 411 something ... I'm refurbishing a sporterised M17 and have a Ruger S/S 7mmRemMag and everytime I look at them both I'm reminded how much I want a 411 something for EXACTLY the same reasons mentioned by 358Win. Luckily a friend has been bitten by the 416Taylor bug ... so I've sent him some 458WM cases to run through his Lee FL die with the expander removed. If they size down enough to hold a 0.410 projectile then I'll start saving my $$$ for a reamer. I've eyed off a shortened RUM case for this wildcat caliber, plus the new 375Ruger case ... but custom reamers AND dies cost too much. Fingers crossed the Lee die idea will work.
4. 7.62x39 ... how many realise its held to approx 40k psi? I'd love to have a .308 barrel (not 0.311) chambered for this cartridge and then load it to 50k psi in a Rem700 action. No sloppy tolerences either ... cut a tight chamber (not a Clymer 0.311 to 0.308 hybrid) and see what it can really do with match projectiles. I'm fascinated!
5. 257STW ... somewhere in my life I feel that I need to own at least one honest barrel burner, and this is the one I really want to try, again built on a Rem700 action with 26" #4 contour barrel.
6. Other cartridges I really want to try ... 358NormaMagnum, 35SAUM, 303-35 (preferably on a P14 action but a No4 will do ), a fast-twist hot .22cal, an 8mm on the 338WM case (rechamber a take-off 8mmRemMag barrel I already have).
Cheers...
Con

[Don Fischer]

358win, you said that the 257Roberts was P.O.Ackley's favorite improved cartridge? I thought it was the 250Savage? I may be wrong, not sure now? I thought I read in his handbook where the 250Sav gave the greatest increase in velocity with the smallest increase in powder. Either one would be alright.

As for lists, I'd start with a 222Rem, super accurate and fun to shoot. Next would be probally a 243 win. Not a big fan of them but think they make a better long range varmit cartridge than the 22's or the 25's. @5's are to violent for much shooting for me. I love 25's and am on,,,,,,,,,,,sorry, my son is on my 2nd 25-06 now. But I believe that for hunting, the 6.5's are better. Better bullet's for hunting purposes. On my 3rd 6.5x55 and my first 6.5-06 amd love them both. Anything the 25-06 will do, they'll do a bit better. Never had a big itch for 270's but love the 7x57 and the 280 Rem.

I'm a big fan of the 308 Win but cool on the 30-06. I think the 30-06 has fathered better cartridges than it really is. The best that's missing I believe to be the 338-06. It comes within 100fps of the 338 Win Mag in my books and out runs the 35 Whelen with equal bullets.

Now in closing, everything I said aside, I'd like to have one of everything!

[nomosendero]

Con, it looks like some of us have this same disease. I guess I need to get on another thread before my wife see's this one!! 

[358Win]

Hi Con:

   Good to see you on here again.  Keep us all up to date on how your 411 Taylor project works out.  With all the bullets for the 41 Mag. + all the bullets for the 405 Win. + I'm sure I'm missing one.  You should have plenty of cheap projectiles for plinking / small game and then have the wonderful 400 grain Woodleigh for really heavy work.