257 Roberts

the roberts realy shines in a long or intermedit actions, short actions require the heavier bullets to be seated deep to feed. and its a reloaders caliber as factory ammo is way underloaded for older rifles. i,ve killed deer with a the 117 gr hornady sst bullets at 2800 fps in a remington 722.

Where did you order it from?
I’d be interested in one.
I’ve got three Mod-7’s. (Not in .257).
Also a custom .257 built on a Spanish LaCorouna M98 action. It’s taken over 100 whitetail deer, a Mule deer, several dozen prairie dogs.

The short action/throat isn’t that big of a deal if you have a short throat. You’ll still be able to utilize the powders that make the Roberts so good. (H4831, IMR4831, IMR and H4350, H414 and H380.

Biggest problem will be finding brass. I suggest sizing down PPU 7mmMauser brass. Available from Grafs.

With the M7, I’d start with the Hornady 100gr Spt seated to cannelure (~2.775”oal) over 45.0gr of IMR4350. It’s THE classic load for the Roberts. Non +P.
44.0gr of H4831 Under a 117gr Hornady BTSpt for a heavier bullet load.
The M7 will without a doubt handle heavier powder charges but these will get you started!

Thanks! I’m familiar with them.

My 257 Roberts is a Remington 700 Classic. I don't shoot it much but my Deer load is IMR 4350 and a 100 grain Sierra.

The kimber in 257 caught my eye but the money is not with me.

I shoot a Rem 700 CDLSS in 257. It is my 'go to' gun.

I have a Ruger M77 red pad gun in 257 bob and man is it a shooter. 117 gr pills for her as well. Topped with a Leupold 3i 4.5-14 40 mm. Varmints and deer alike don't have a chance.

I have two rifles in .257 Roberts; a Ruger No 1 International Carbine and a BRNO commercial rifle. Shot the Ruger enough to know it shoots fast and well. I have to wait for spring to do any work with the BRNO; too cold and windy for serious work. My only gripe with the caliber is the limited bullet weight. A 140 grain bullet would have over .300 sectional density and give the round more oomph. Considering .264 bullets go up to 160 grain, i don't think it outlandish.

army_eod said:

Well if anybody knows where I can get ammo or brass, please let me know.

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Powder Valley has PPU 7X57mm brass in stock, available to be necked down as the original parent case of the 257 Roberts.

https://www.powdervalleyinc.com/product/prvi-7x57-mauser-50/

Since I do have a sufficient supply of both 257 Roberts and 6 mm Remington, I’ve not tried but you might be able to neck up 6 mm Remington to 257 Roberts with little difficulty.
Worth a try if you get desperate.

Either necking up a 6mm or necking down a 7x57 Mauser is as simple as lubing the case and running it through a .257Roberts sizing die.
Just be sure to check case length before going further.

I’ve been blessed with Roberts brass. A shooter gifted me 300 cases of Federal Premium OFB 35yrs ago. Still haven’t loaded some of it...

troy fairweather said:

The kimber in 257 caught my eye but the money is not with me.

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I had a Kimber Hunter in the Rob. Didn't shoot to suit me so I sold it. Nice rifle and a excellent whitetail load, but 2" groups don't get it done at my house.

My first one is a Remington 700 of some sort. Killed many deer

Ks5shooter said:

I have a Ruger M77 red pad gun in 257 bob and man is it a shooter.

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Same here. I bought mine new on 9-29-75 for $188.52 and it has a Weaver "MicroTrack V7", 2x7 powered scope mounted on it. I like 120 grain bullets for deer hunting in Michigan and Pennsylvania.

army_eod said:

I bought this Model 7 as a pure investment piece. It will go in the safe as an unfired new rifle. Maintained but unused.

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cannot like.......IS GUN! GUN. MUST. SHOOT!


Sounds like a sweet rifle, probably very nice to just play with and look at.
Honestly, Id probably get frustrated with an M7 in .257. The magazines short for the cartridge. If I buy/build a M7, its gonna be fast twist .250AI

I have shot probably close to a thousand rounds of 257 Roberts so far this year, and think very highly of it. I generally buy my brass from Powder Valley or Grafs, whenever they have a seasonal run. I have bought both Winchester and Hornady brass, and for my non-critical use both have proven adequate.

I am a sucker for old fashioned tapered cases, even though I know that in terms of internal ballistics they are less efficient than more modern short-n-fat cartridges.

I commonly shoot / build Savages, which give me a magazine length of 3 inches. Excepting the 115gr+ VLD bullets, most all of my loads still end up using an overall length closer to 2.8” simply because of bullet design.

Are there any intermediate length actions common today which could reasonably fit a roberts with 120 gr. pills? Or is long action pretty much it.

rbernie said:

I have shot probably close to a thousand rounds of 257 Roberts so far this year, and think very highly of it. I generally buy my brass from Powder Valley or Grafs, whenever they have a seasonal run. I have bought both Winchester and Hornady brass, and for my non-critical use both have proven adequate.

I am a sucker for old fashioned tapered cases, even though I know that in terms of internal ballistics they are less efficient than more modern short-n-fat cartridges.

I commonly shoot / build Savages, which give me a magazine length of 3 inches. Excepting the 115gr+ VLD bullets, most all of my loads still end up using an overall length closer to 2.8” simply because of bullet design.

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You are using the Savage "short" actions then for your build?

mshootnit said:

You are using the Savage "short" actions then for your build?

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Correct.

army_eod said:

Well I just found some Hornady 117 SST ammo and bought it. I will keep my eye open for brass.

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This is how I accumulated brass until the seasonal production run hit the shelves.

I always thought the .257 Remington Roberts was a good medium and if I were a hunter, I would want one... or a .256 Newton.

It is about the most extreme case of needing to be "loaded to its full potential" that I know of, though. Few of the theories about its factory load design hold water.