List your favourite underrated cartridges

Fer me it be:

219 Zipper
25-35 Win
30 Carbine
32-40 Win
33 Win
35 Rem
9.3x57 Mauser
375 Win
38-40 & 44-40 Win
45 Colt

And a rimfire round that really came on scene a tad early for it's own good... the 5mm Rem. That was a fun little round fer critter popping, but weren't cheap.
 
Now that I think about it, the .30-30 is pretty underrated these days... I am just old enough to remember when it was a "big rifle." To some people now, if it doesn't have "Magnum" in the name it is no good for anything bigger than squirrels.
 
hoytcanon said:
Now that I think about it, the .30-30 is pretty underrated these days... I am just old enough to remember when it was a "big rifle." To some people now, if it doesn't have "Magnum" in the name it is no good for anything bigger than squirrels.
Click to expand...

You nailed it.
If it's not magnum it will not kill .
 
.22 Magnum, .218 Bee, .22 Hornet, .44 Special, .44 Magnum, .45 Colt (the last 2 particularly out of a rifle), 257 Roberts (haven't had one yet), probably most .25 caliber cartridges, 25-06, 6.5x55, just about everything .358 caliber, .35 Remington (great moderate range big game gun with a lot more handloaded potential in a 336 or stronger gun, and of course the 30-30.

Could throw the .338 Winchester Magnum in there which is weird given the popularity of the Lapua. Maybe the wrong word, as that's kind of a niche gun/platform. But there has been a little resurgence in some new small case .338, but not the bigger cartridge.

Could add most or all of the big metrics, too.
 
300 Savage.

Especially in a bolt action (if you can find one)

You can pretty well duplicate .308 ballistics with a 150 grain bullet, 2850 fps,
and .270 ballistics with a 130 grain, 3050 fps

And do it with much less powder.

I read somewhere that it's one of the most efficient cartridges of all time.
 
Last edited:
Forgot to add the 30-06. More gun than the .308, particularly when you let it shine with heavy bullets, and load it to modern pressures. Pretending that there is any difference in accuracy, other than having a short action is pretty much myth.

Way sooner take a 30-06 against really large game (especially if it has the potential to be "dangerous") than anything starting with "7".
 
hoytcanon said:
I don't feel the 6.5X55, 7X57 and 9.3X62 are "underrated," but rather they are widely respected, at least in the circles I travel in.
Click to expand...

You still can't get decent factory ammo for the 7x57. All the American stuff is watered down. It was actually easier in bygone days to get proper ammo: Dominion loaded a 140 at an advertised 2900 fps, a 160 at 2650, and Western once loaded a 140 at 2900.
 
9.3mauser said:
You still can't get decent factory ammo for the 7x57. All the American stuff is watered down. It was actually easier in bygone days to get proper ammo: Dominion loaded a 140 at an advertised 2900 fps, a 160 at 2650, and Western once loaded a 140 at 2900.
Click to expand...

Reload...
 
I think the 7mm-08 is underrated at least around where I hunt/shoot. It offers mild recoil, good ballistics and if you reload a wide variety of bullets in 7mm/.284. I've heard so many discussions over the years that all it does is wound, I've never experienced this be it coyotes/deer/elk.
 
22 Long Rifle - With newer heavier bullets and higher velocity rounds than ever before, it can really do stuff. Not just for gophers anymore.
 
SHELL SHUCKER said:
Fer me it be:

219 Zipper
25-35 Win
30 Carbine
32-40 Win
33 Win
35 Rem
9.3x57 Mauser
375 Win
38-40 & 44-40 Win
45 Colt

And a rimfire round that really came on scene a tad early for it's own good... the 5mm Rem. That was a fun little round fer critter popping, but weren't cheap.
Click to expand...
:) I like your list. I haven't kept any I don't 'like' and here's my list;
- 22LR
- 219 Donaldson Wasp
- 25-06
- 270 Win
- 7x57mm
- 7x57R
- 7x61 S&H
- 30-06
- 300 WM
- 308 Norma Magnum
- 303 Br
- 348 WCF
- 358 Norma Magnum
- 9.3x62 (.366 Wagner)
- 375 Chatfield Taylor
- 375 H&H
- 44-40
- 444 Marlin
- 45-70
- 458 WM
And, ;) Still searching:).
:redface: Forgot a few handguns
- 221 Fireball
- 9mm
- 38spl/357 Mag
- 45 ACP
- 44 Mag
- 45LC
- 500 S&W
 
Last edited:
41mag and 458wm should make the list. If you reload the 458wm is a sweetheart of a cartridge. It can be a big pellet gun with cast bullets and trailboss. It can shoot flat enough for most ontario deer hunting with 300gr hp at 2600fps. A 400gr ppsn at 2400fps shoots surprisingly flat and hits hard for big game and 480 to 550gr bullets for when big things can hit back. I love mine
 
Gatehouse said:
It's surprising how many people think that some of the most popular cartridges of all time are "underrated"

270, 3006, 4570, 30-30, 7x57 etc?
Click to expand...

Not surprising at all when marketing hype has fooled people into believing that the cartridge name has to end with "Magnum" or "Creedmoor"
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom