Sensible Cartridges

[Blkram]

Read an interesting article on-line the other day about sensible cartridges; IIRC it was a Chuck Hawkes website article written by another writer.

It listed the 257 Roberts, 6.5x55, 7x57, 300 Savage, 338 Federal and 358 Win in the article.

How many here have owned, shot or used these cartridges?

What other sensible cartridges do you believe should/could be added to this list?

Personally, I have owned, shot or used the following:
257 Roberts (currently own,Ruger No.1 KRSI but have not yet shot or hunted with)
6.5x55 (currently own, my 4th rifle in this cartridge, Sako 85 LH Hunter, and hunted with a fair bit. Have spent more trigger time with this cartridge than any other centerfire cartridge; love it! have taken whitetail, mule deer, caribou, moose, elk and stones sheep with it)
338 Federal (currently own custom Winchester Model 88 and have taken a caribou with it; excellent cartridge)
358 Win (currently own Browning BLR pre-81 and have shot and hunted with it extensively for over 15 years, taking moose and a number of elk with it. It is my main backup rifle when guiding, atv/horseback hunting and archery hunting.)

I would think that the following cartridges could also be deemed sensible, for a variety of reasons:
6mm Creedmoor
250AI or 2Fity Hillbilly (either almost identical to a 25 cal Creedmoor) (currenty own former)
6.5 Creedmoor or 260 Rem (currently own former, have owned latter)
270 Win (have owned)
7mm-08 Rem (currently own)
308 Win (have owned)
9.3x62 (currently waiting for my rifle to arrive)
376 Steyr or 375 Raptor (currently own former, thinking of owning the latter)

 

[hseII]

Read an interesting article on-line the other day about sensible cartridges; IIRC it was a Chuck Hawkes website article written by another writer.

It listed the 257 Roberts, 6.5x55, 7x57, 300 Savage, 338 Federal and 358 Win in the article.

How many here have owned, shot or used these cartridges?

What other sensible cartridges do you believe should/could be added to this list?

Personally, I have owned, shot or used the following:
257 Roberts (currently own,Ruger No.1 KRSI but have not yet shot or hunted with)
6.5x55 (currently own, my 4th rifle in this cartridge, Sako 85 LH Hunter, and hunted with a fair bit. Have spent more trigger time with this cartridge than any other centerfire cartridge; love it! have taken whitetail, mule deer, caribou, moose, elk and stones sheep with it)
338 Federal (currently own custom Winchester Model 88 and have taken a caribou with it; excellent cartridge)
358 Win (currently own Browning BLR pre-81 and have shot and hunted with it extensively for over 15 years, taking moose and a number of elk with it. It is my main backup rifle when guiding, atv/horseback hunting and archery hunting.)

I would think that the following cartridges could also be deemed sensible, for a variety of reasons:
6mm Creedmoor
250AI or 2Fity Hillbilly (either almost identical to a 25 cal Creedmoor) (currenty own former)
6.5 Creedmoor or 260 Rem (currently own former, have owned latter)
270 Win (have owned)
7mm-08 Rem (currently own)
308 Win (have owned)
9.3x62 (currently waiting for my rifle to arrive)
376 Steyr or 375 Raptor (currently own former, thinking of owning the latter)

The .260 Remington does it for me.

~10 grains less powder than my old .270 Winchester shooting 140 grain accubonds & I’m getting within 100 FPS.


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[coop22250]

I’m all for the sensible cartridges. I own one WSM, the rest are 308 and below. I just don’t enjoy the larger ones. I’ve had 325, 338, 375 and just didn’t enjoy them much.

308 is my favorite, 110-200 gr gives you a lot of options. I own and have owned a few.

338 Fed/ 358/375 Raptor from the 308 are on my radar. I’d like to shoot one of each before committing.

260 I’m ordering for my wife I’m afraid I’m going to like a lot and use a bit.

6.5x55 should have been as big here as it has been over seas for a long time. If the 6.5 bullets would have progressed 75 years ago it probably would have.





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[JD338]

Gil,

I had a 700 Classic in 257 Roberts but gave it to my daughter Danielle. Great round!
Others that I have owned that didn't make the list
243 Win
280 Remember
30-06 Spfg

JD338

 

[HAWKEYESATX]

My all time favorite cartridge is the 6.5x55!
It's an amazing performer for how old it is!
Not flashy, or super fast. Just gets the job done.
I've used the 7x57 as well, and I like it a lot.
I've recently switched to the .270, and will see if it can be as good as the 6.5 Swede, or the 7mm Mauser.

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[HAWKEYESATX]

I almost forgot to mention that I do currently use the .300 Savage, and have seen the virtue of the "mild" cartridge itself.
It's pretty decent in an Old Savage 99 with a 24 inch barrel.

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[Slimfinn]

I guess it would depend on what or how it is considered sensible. I dont own nor have shot any on the list but find it interesting they could have just as easily built it off all 308 based cartridges 243win, 260rem, 7-08, 308, 338fed, 358win.
Agree with RD338 with having the 30.06 and 243win on the list. I own both and i am a very sensible man lol
I also have a 260rem and 25.06(not as sensible but fun) and have my fingers crossed on recieving a 257. Have hunted and shot a 35 Whalen.
So do you add 22LR and 223 to the list...

 

[Anonymous]

I'd also add the .300WM- which can do just about anything you need to do with a rifle at almost any practical range.

I've seen folks shoot from small deer to bull moose and wolves to Kodiak brown bears with it...and from the muzzle to more than a 1000 yards away.

Hard to beat the .300 for versatility.

 

[Blkram]

I am quite sure that there are other sensible cartridges that did not make the list...the first ones mentioned above were those the author listed. Correction; the 6mm Rem was also included in his list

As far as the 22LR goes, it deserves a revered spot in every rifle battery! I would think it insensible to not own and use one!LOL

Even in the cartridges I listed that I thought were sensible, I was trying to fill in some other caliber gaps. I put in the 270, as I wasn't confident enough in my knowledge of the 6.8 SPC to include it here. Perhaps someone with experience with it would add it to their list of sensible cartridges.

He actually did talk about the 270, 308 and 30-06 being sensible cartridges in his article, and why he didn't include in his list.
There just isn't too much non-dangerous world-wide big game hunting out there that cannot be accomplished with a battery of cartridges based off of just the 308 or 30-06 family of cartridges.

As I am also not familiar with the 8mm's and 9.3x57, I did not include any in my list either...I will let others with those experiences share their opinions on these cartridges. I know that there are those out there that use and think highly of them.

I included the wildcat 25's in my list as they are both basically Creedmoors necked down to 25 cal, and believe they have merit, even though the 25 might not have high BC bullets available for standard twist rates offered by rifle manufacturers. But 3200 fps with a 110gr AB is pretty good performance with less than 50 grains of powder.

I did include the 375 Raptor as there is a company offering brass and ammo for this wildcat, and the numbers from testing are looking good, even from short barrels. May not make the cut for African dangerous game, but makes a sensible cartridge for many other big game animals.

It all makes for a great conversation!

 

[Blkram]

Found the link to the article mentioned...my correction; it was written by Chuck Hawkes (I was thinking of one of the articles linked in his article, written by another author)

https://www.chuckhawks.com/sensible_cartridges.htm

 

[Europe]

sensible to whom ?

6.5 x 55, 300 H /H, 375 H/H works for me and the older I got the fewer rifles I needed to "know" was a plus.

these are not hard recoiling calibers which was one of his arguments and I never ever thought omg I am using more powder in the 300 H/H, than I would in the 300 WSM. I need to change immediately. However, if one of my three is not sensible by his standards it would be the 300, but not because of recoil or killing power, but because of the extra powder in comparison to others in the same group ( mid ) Just my thoughts

 

[HAWKEYESATX]

The Chuck Hawkes article reminds me of an article written in the late 80' s by John Wooters, in Petersen's Hunting.
John wrote that budding hunters should use the .257 Roberts, .25-06, 6.5x55, 7x57, .30-30, .300 Savage, because they have ample power, with little kick to harvest deer cleanly. He didn't list the .243, because to him, it was a more of a specialized cartridge, and should be left to more experienced hunters. He didn't put the .270, .308, or .30-06 in the mix, because they generated more recoil than a new Hunter could manage. He might just have something there.
Myself, I've used a .243 for years, and find it to be very proficient in killing power, but I don't use it out of its range of capability either.

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[gbflyer]

All of them[emoji1]

If a person had about anything based on the .308 case, or there about, you’d be set for America. Alaska...35 Whelen. Africa...never done it but 375 H&H seems common.

 

[Elkman]

I am of the ilk who believe that we really haven't developed anything really new in the last 60+ years. If you question that, dig out one of PO Ackley's original loading manuals and you will see why. The .308 is a tremendous but so was the .300 Savage (several years older) the .257 Bob has been around for ever as has the 06 and 300 ouch and ouch, add the 375 in there and tell me what newer cartridges are more sensible?

 

[Anonymous]

I am of the ilk who believe that we really haven't developed anything really new in the last 60+ years.

I'd agree with that. Some of my favorite rifle cartridges basically recreate what was available near the beginning of the 20th century. The 1900 version of the 6.5x55 is basically the 6.5CM in a bigger bottle and the .300WSM is the equivalent of the .300H&H from 1925, albeit in a smaller case.

The real improvements in shooting technology have been in bullets, powder and optics. There were a lot of great cartridges conceived back in the day that the bullet and powder technology just wasn't developed for yet and those old scopes couldn't take advantage of what was available.

We'd probably be terrified of what you could accomplish with some of those old cartridges taking advantage of modern pressure limits with current powder and bullet designs. I know IMR 4955 and the 145gr ELD-X makes my .270 something that O'Connor could only dream about in 1925.

 

[ozarkpugs]

I was reluctant to mention the 6.8 but since you brought it up I will add my 2¢ . The 6.8 went from almost obscurity to what I consider one of the most important new cartridges in over 50 years . The 6.8 is hands down the best short action ( youth size ) caliber . It has a shorter action and is more powerful with less recoil than a youth .243 it is inherently accurate with sub minute of angle with factory loads with quality barrels . Since the cartridge is designed for 14"-18" barrels you don't loose a tremendous amount of velocity going to 12.5 pistol length . Best of all it has helped make AR15s legitimate hunting guns . Face it ,a lot of people who claim to be second supporters only care about keeping their hunting guns and a lot of anti second say "We don't want to take away hunting guns" . Now we have Modern sporting rifles in deer calibers that are super accurate and very little recoil . The 6.8 has replaced my 7/08 & 30.06 for deer & my .243 and .223s for varmints .

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[Thebear_78]

The fact that the 308 isn’t on that list is a crime against ballistics!


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[wvbuckbuster]

Of all the calibers listed at the start of this thread the only two I've tried were the .257 Robts. and the 6.5x55. The .257 was in a Ruger long time back that didn't want to group anything over a 75 gr bullet so I traded it for something else. The 6.5x55 is a Win Mod 70 Fwt which I still have and like very much and will group bullet weights from 100 to 140 gr all well under and inch. Dan.

 

[Blkram]

The fact that the 308 isn’t on that list is a crime against ballistics!


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While it may not be on the list, it and the 30-30 and 30-06 are recognized as a sensible cartridges in the article.
Left out as they are well recognized and documented. He was looking at less obvious choices.

 

[Blkram]

I was reluctant to mention the 6.8 but since you brought it up I will add my 2¢ . The 6.8 went from almost obscurity to what I consider one of the most important new cartridges in over 50 years . The 6.8 is hands down the best short action ( youth size ) caliber . It has a shorter action and is more powerful with less recoil than a youth .243 it is inherently accurate with sub minute of angle with factory loads with quality barrels . Since the cartridge is designed for 14"-18" barrels you don't loose a tremendous amount of velocity going to 12.5 pistol length . Best of all it has helped make AR15s legitimate hunting guns . Face it ,a lot of people who claim to be second supporters only care about keeping their hunting guns and a lot of anti second say "We don't want to take away hunting guns" . Now we have Modern sporting rifles in deer calibers that are super accurate and very little recoil . The 6.8 has replaced my 7/08 & 30.06 for deer & my .243 and .223s for varmints .

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This is what I expected someone to say, as it pretty much echoes what I have read about the cartridge. I just have not played with it at all, so cannot comment from first hand experience.