Thinking of buying one of the Weatherby Vanguards for a wolf/coyote and possibly whitetail rifle. Looking at the .257 Wby. Any experience with this rifle? What are your thought on the .257 Wby vs some of the other 25cals like a .25-06 or .257 Roberts?
Thoughts on a Vanguard in .257 Wby?
- Thread starter montaggio
- Start date
The .257 Wby is a great caliber, but if any rifle needed a 26" barrel, I thin one in .257 Wby would be it. The ones I've used always had 26" barrels, and other than the Vanguard, I don't know if they were ever made with a 24" tube. At any rate, they are flat shooting and have low recoil. With a 120gr Partition it makes a fine deer/sheep rifle. I'd even shoot an Elk or Moose with it if the opportunity presented itself. Ammo is expensive, so I'd highly recommend reloading.
OUCH! Good point on the ammo - hadn't priced that out. I hate reloading, so its off the shelf for me. Just priced it out at Wholesale and about double the price of .25-06 or .257 Roberts. Will definitely have to take that into account as well!
Yeah the 'weatherby' by design are higher than 'average velocity'....and the 24 inch barrel will lose 200 + - FPS....as for ammo shop around as Im sure other companies carry/make weatherby cartidges.....If your heart is set why not go for the 270/7mm weatherby....same ammo cost + - and a lot more flexibility ???
PS....Dont let the ammo prices scare you....I think 5 rounds per season is the average...3 to sight and 2 to hunt !?!?!?!?
PS....Dont let the ammo prices scare you....I think 5 rounds per season is the average...3 to sight and 2 to hunt !?!?!?!?
If you aren't going to spend some time and ammunition learning the actual trajectory of the load and practising with the rifle,You will never be able to take advantage of the flat trajectory offered by the 257wby.
As to other companies producing 257wby mag factory loads,good luck.
I've got a 300 Wby that will handle any of the big stuff that I might want to hunt. Do you think the 270 range is getting a bit big for wolf / coyote? Thought a 25 cal might be just a nice bridge between a wolf / coyote (for the range - they are awful wary around here) and whitetails.
Ammo price is a sticker shock thing for me - once I get my mind around it, the cost isn't going to be an issue - I was just a bit surprised at how much higher it is.
Ammo price is a sticker shock thing for me - once I get my mind around it, the cost isn't going to be an issue - I was just a bit surprised at how much higher it is.
I agree Stubblejumper. I won't scrimp on ammo (might cough a bit when I have to fork over the cash at the shop!), but I find you get what you pay for, both in loadings and precision.
Do you think a 257 Wby is too big for wolves? Would a 240 Wby be a bit better compromise between wolves and whitetails?
By the way 1899, why do you feel it should be 26" vs 24"? Could be easily rebarrelled longer down the road if it was worth it.
Do you think a 257 Wby is too big for wolves? Would a 240 Wby be a bit better compromise between wolves and whitetails?
By the way 1899, why do you feel it should be 26" vs 24"? Could be easily rebarrelled longer down the road if it was worth it.
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If you are going to rebarrel - a $500-600 job, then why not just get a synthetic Mark V? The .257 holds lots of powder, and a longer barrel is important to burn it. I was getting ~3975fps out of mine with a 75gr Barnes X. But to do that, I was burning 76.0gr of RL22! Max load for a .338 with 250gr X is 75.0gr of the same powder. If you look at the volume of the barrel, and the time it takes to get the bullet out of the barrel, you'll see the .338 has much more time+volume to burn less powder. Or how about this: 7mm RM with 160gr X, max load with RL22 is 62.0gr. The .257 with 115gr can take 69.0 of the same powder. You see what I mean?
To be honest,I was very happy with the 257wby cartridge but I was less than happy with the accuracy of the mark V rifle.After much load development it just would not better 1moa which I feel was not great for such a high priced rifle.I finally rebarreled it and it became an honest 1/2 moa rifle.If I was to do it again,I would buy a used 700 with a magnum bolt face and have a premium 26" barrel installed.The total cost would be less than that of a standard mark V with better accuracy potential.If I didn't handload,I would just go with a 25-06 or the new 25wssm.
Okay, that makes sense. Not being a reloader, I am not that sensitive to powder types and charges. Much better understanding now. Thanks for that. One thing that does come out of this in my mind though, is how incredibly versatile the caliber can be, if someone took the time to reload it. Might have to rethink the reloading thing!
Warning : Weatherby Vanguard
Do not use this model until the company performs a safety upgrade to the bolt. The rifle can accidently discharge without the bolt being fully engaged.
PM me your serial # if you would like me to check if its in the effected serial number ranges.
( Info from page 1198 of 2003 Standard Catalog of Firearms 13th Edition)
Do not use this model until the company performs a safety upgrade to the bolt. The rifle can accidently discharge without the bolt being fully engaged.
PM me your serial # if you would like me to check if its in the effected serial number ranges.
( Info from page 1198 of 2003 Standard Catalog of Firearms 13th Edition)
If you like the rifle buy it. Yes this is probably the time you need the most barrel you can get but 2" less barrel means nothing. I'd be very suprised if you lost 100fps. It'll still go plenty fast. Plus muzzle flash counts for something.
