RIfle Cartridges That Should Die, Rifle Cartridges That Should Live On Forever?

[WisBorn]

We have a couple of threads going about CARTRIDGES that we like and dislike for no reason. I thought we can take it a step further.

Remember this is opinion that is built with experiences. DON'T ATTACK ONE ANOTHER. It is for fun...

 

[WisBorn]

I started the thread, so I will start.

8mm Remington Mag.... It should die. There is not enough companies loading ammunition for it and nobody making reasonable priced rifles for it. The 300 and 338 magnum rifles will cover all of what it will do...

8mm Remington Magnum.... should live forever. It fills a nitch between the 300 & 338 magnum cartridges. IMO is probably the best elk size game rifle cartridge and should be offered in modest priced rifles.

 

[lightman]

I'm not sure if "should" is the right word but I'll play along.

1. 30 AR
2. Most of the WSM's
3. All of the WSSM's
4. Most of the Nosler's

There are probably a few more that slip my mind at present.
These are good cartridges but they don't have a lot of support. None of my gun buddies have or want a 30AR. None have a WSSM. A few have some of the various WSM's, including me. None have any of the Nosler's.

 

[Hartkopf]

45-70 should die but it sure is easy to reload and there’s data for trap door/mild recoil and data for elephant.(not literally, just saying heavy recoil) Since the cartridges fairly recent comeback, I bet it sticks around for quite a while longer. Since it’s been around forever, I bet it sticks around forever.

 

[mcb]

No cause (or cartridge) is lost if there is but one fool left to fight for it.

 

[Moparnut]

I don't know that I want to see any cartridges die. Some that I think should be relegated to specialty only status though would be of the .22 variety. 220 swift, 221 fireball, 222 Rem and about 4 more fairly redundant type of cartridges. Maybe I just don't understand them?

One that should never die or be out of production. The 30-06, it just does alot things pretty damn well.

 

[someguy2800]

30/30 should die because it’s an archaic dinosaur of a case design that makes no sense to still be using and I don’t like it.

45/70 should live forever because it’s an archaic dinosaur of a case design that makes no sense to still be using and I do like it.

 

[someguy2800]

One thing that should definitely die is 223’s and 22-250’s with slower than 1:8 twist.

A few cartridges that are on life support but deserve to get a breath of life breathed back into them,

444 marlin
338 federal
30 Remington
35 Remington
22 K hornet

Someone should take the 35 Remington case and neck it down to 338, 308, 6.5mm and 6mm and load it to 55,000 psi in a bolt action. It’s the perfect intermediary between the 308 and 223 case size, just a little bit more than the 6.8 spc case. Then make an AR15 .150” longer and put them in that too.

 

[someguy2800]

270 winchester can also go ahead and take a dirt nap to be replaced by 6.5C and 280 AI which are both better.and bracket it perfectly in performance.

 

[daniel craig]

All the Weatherby and noser calibers should die.

 

[cfullgraf]

Most new cartridges are born to stoke someone's ego or pad their pocket book.

A big problem these days with developing a new cartridge, there is not much that can be done that has not been done before with the currently available materials and components.

The shooting public will decide which lives or dies by whether they open their wallet or not.

 

[BigBlue 94]

Anything Creedmoor can go to H E double toothpicks. Too many fanboys.

Ive got a number that might as well be dead, like 22 savage high power, 30 and 357 Herrett, 220 swift, 300 savage, 221 FB, 6mm Rem... But i like obscure cartridges so i dont really want any to go away. As long as there is a gun chambered in it, nothing will truly die.

223, x39, 30-06, and 243 will live forever. And probably 50 BMG.

 

[JCooperfan1911]

The Sixer Fife Creed Critter needs to go.

.30-06 should live on forever. It is the medium bore central fired bottlenecked rifle cartridge perfected.

 

[entropy]

Any short magnum. 6.5 Creedmore, just so the manbun crowd will shut up.


.30-30 and .30-06.

 

[BigBlue 94]

Any short magnum. 6.5 Creedmore, just so the manbun crowd will shut up.


.30-30 and .30-06.

I actually really like my 270 WSM. And the 243 (or was it 223) wssm my grandpa had. Still got two boxes of wssm ammo but no gun.

Manbun...

 

[Mosin77]

Needs to die? Can’t think of any. There are dozens of cartridges that make perfect sense for one exact scenario, or cartridges that are nothing special in themselves but are the given chambering in truly excellent old rifles. I wish manufacturers had the flexibility to make more frequent, smaller runs of more obscure or uncommon ammo, so that we wouldn’t be obliged to get into a feast-or-famine mentality. But I do agree the WSMs, WSSMs, and to some extent the Weatherby calibers all seemed to me to be a bit pointless.

Needs to live forever?

.30-30 and .30-06. Others too.

I’m all for the free market, BUT the relentless marketing grind leading to the continual introduction of new cartridges is not in the best long-term interests of shooters. It dilutes the market to the point where only massive online retailers or huge brick and mortar places can stock all the ammo people might want, and so there should be a handful of staples enshrined as “National Heritage” calibers, which each manufacturer agrees to support.

 

[Pat Riot]

All the we WeatherBug and noser calibers should die.

Huh?

 

[Demi-human]

Anything twenty nine caliber!

Oh for the love of sandwiches, I hate the 29 Niche!

Pathetic pandering to a tactical Timmy subset, if you ask me. Who would think of intentionally using a .297” bullet tumbling down a barrel to increase wounding? How’s that going to work with a suppressor?! What the point of a higher sectional density if the bullet is sideways?
And the bullet weights are equally odd, as in weird. 217 and 231 grain subs, 137.5 supers. And what would anyone use an 89 for, gophers? And good luck hitting it with a .308 barrel. The Egyptian sister cartridge, the 2.99 Scarab, being spec’d for a .312 barrel in an AK is worse. Just dumb.

A stubby little case that belongs in pistol, yeah, more shoulder than a Blackout, but just. And with large rifle magnum primer to boot. I imagine they provide half the power in the case. No hotrodding that thin case head.

Anyway, it’s just the weirdest little round to use in a chamber adapted 30/30 ever. If the SAMMI specs were fixed before publication, and the over all length shortened, they could have used it in an AR, instead of one of those black ugly Henrys.

So yeah, I wouldn’t miss it if the Twenty-Nine Niche were to fall off the planet.

Don’t even get me started on on 14 caliber air rifles…

 

[BigBlue 94]

Huh?

What you never heard of the 297.4 Nosey Weatherbug? Super flat shooting round and can incite tornadoes with its mighty power.

 

[badkarmamib]

As some others, all WSM can die, preferably a very agonizing death.

.30\06 can live forever.

 

[DeepSouth]

While there are a lot I really don’t care for, I’m not the only shooter in the world. For instance, the 223 (likely the most popular in the US) can go away so far I’m concerned.

so my conclusion is the ones the market concludes it’s unprofitable to continue to manufacture should go away, except for my beloved .450 Marlin… it is exempt.

 

[earlthegoat2]

For me it is nearly anything developed in the last 30 years can die…..and that includes my beloved 450 BM.

I would just revert to hot loaded 45 Colt or 454 Casull.

However, I don’t live in a vacuum and there have been hangers on to more recent cartridges. Many of them make no pretense about reinventing the wheel. For the most part, the cartridges are what the older ones should have been. Sometimes cartridges need to be developed in conjunction with rifles to shoot them best. 6.5 CM is a clone of 260 Rem…but the rifles made for 6.5 CM can shoot heavier bullets for longer range target shooting…or hunting. 260 was a medium range hunting cartridge from the start.

I think many of those reasons are why newer cartridges that have 98% overlap with others continue to be churned out. Cartridges and semi-specialized rifles to shoot them has been the norm for the last 10 or so years now. 25 caliber is probably next. 4.6mm something or another is out already though I know nothing about it.

 

[CapnMac]

No cause (or cartridge) is lost if there is but one fool left to fight for it.

Needs repeating . . .

 

[entropy]

Sorry Cap'n I dont think the 50 Cal. Mk7 is going to make a comeback.......more's the pity.

 

[jmr40]

Nothing lives forever. They will all eventually die and be replaced.