What do you think is the major "sleeper" cartridge out there?

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.35 Remington. 200 gr @ 2250 fps will take any North American game. Lots of rifles chambered in .35 Rem in 1940's -1960's. Manageable recoil with great knockdown power. Don't see the caliber much today, but a great cartridge.
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The Marlin 336 is still chambered for it & Remington's Custom Shop will do the Model 7 in 35. Very under rated, very deadly on North American deer of every size. I'd take mine for moose in a second.
 
USSR said:
.280Rem/7mm Express. D@mn near perfect case capacity to bore ratio.
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I completely agree, and would add the .260Rem. for the exact same reason. IMO they are the two best general purpose cartridges; I find it mind-boggling that other similar cartridges are significantly more popular.

Other honorable mentions include the 9.3x64mmBrenneke, .375H&H (both are better choices than the ever-popular .338WM for large/dangerous game IMO), .35Whelen (just enough thump), .460S&W/.410cal Scattergun (in a SxS, dual-chambered like the "Judge"), and .357Sig (would be perfect if chambered in carbines). The 7mm-08Rem. is starting to catch hold, but I still can't fathom why it hasn't completely beat the .308Win. out of the market (though I believe the .260Rm. is better than both).

:)
 
I must agree with blackops with the 7mm WSM. Never hear about it and is a very impressive round. I do not personally have one, but a friend shoots it in a Savage. Very impressive.

Vince
 
Howard Roark said:
The .260 is not ignored by competitive shooters. It was used to win the nationals this year at Perry and set a new high score record. The same person used it to set the record for the highest 800 point and 1000 point agg scores ever shot across the course.
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The 260 is only ignored by rifle manufacturers.
 
The 280 is stuck between the beloved 270 Win and 30-06. I dont see it ever being popular. If a shooter wants a 284. almost all will buy the 7mm mag
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That may be, but don't discount the .280Rem. or the .284Win., they afford a better BC and SD than the .270Win. (which is almost identical in diameter), while maintaining the same velocities.

:)
 
.260 Rem would solve a lot of todays needs on the battlefield, hunting, and target shooting. The 6.5x55mm for obvious reasons would be my 2nd choice.
 
30-06, because nowadays every one seems to think you need a 300 remington ultra mag to get the job done, you can load it hot, low, heavy or light and kill everything effectively with the same rifle!
 
How about the .25-06?!?

Accurate with lighter recoil. And a great deer round.
 
I dont consider a 25-06 to be a sleeper. A whole bunch of people that know you dont need a 300 mag for deer and antelope already use one.
 
The .480Ruger was not marketed properly or well received by shooters. It will do 90% of what the mighty .475 will out of sixguns that cost a fraction what a custom .475 does. From a carbine, pushing a 420-430gr to 1500fps, think of it as a 150yd sledgehammer that will take anything on planet earth.

I don't think the 7mm08 or .260Rem have been as popular as they deserve to be.
 
Right now I'm thinking it is the 6.5x284 Norma, esp. since Savage is chambering for it. One of their Weather Warrior's in this caliber would be mighty fine. The round has proven long-range capability, and those 6.5 bullets have superb ballistic co-efficients and sectional density for hunting. On top of that, Savage is chambering it in a long action, which means it will accomodate the long bullets.

Holy cow! I already have a .280 Remington, 6mm Remington, .25-06, .30-06, 444, and .45-70! Maybe I'm a sleeper magnet!! :)
My .280 is in a 7600. It keeps my 2 7mm Rem Mags company.
(And 28lx is right...the .25-06 is may well be one of the most efficient, effective cartridges out there.)
 
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Actually, I would like to see a lightweight pistol-length carbine in .440Corbon. I'm thinking that it would make a legitimate 200yd deer/elk/moose hammer but would still be shorter and lighter than a .444.
 
Beacon :D

Craig, the 444 is one I have a bunch of brass in, I was going to load them for the 410 shotgun I have, and push the pressure some:what: have not done it yet...

Gary
 
No doubt about it, the .280 Rem is the sleeper cartridge of the past century. It has greater ballistics than the .270 Win, with bullets heavier than 130 grains, hits harder, and has better trajectory than the .30-06 with a bet less recoil. It was called the 7mm Express for a while. The only reason it's not more popular is that the .270 Win was first and they're so similar, the .280 Rem couldn't gain ground on it.

Another great cartridge that is a sleeper today is the .257 Roberts. It's a hard-hitting cartridge eclipsed by the .25-06.
 
Looks like an interesting topic so I will add my 2 cents. I went thru every page of this thread and never saw anybody mention the 256 Newton which you can reload Charles Newton was the father of high velocity 30 years ahead of his time in 1906. And also the 8MM Mauser is quite a round.
 
IMO, there are way too many cartridges out there. It seems as if the gunmakers have focused on cartridges rather than advancement of firearms. I think it would be easy to get down to 20 or 30 cartridges that would cover almost everyone's need. As it is, I get annoyed by all the various cartridges I feel that I must keep in stock at home in case I want to take something out for shooting or in case supply gets to be a bit hard. Having said that, I've tried really hard to minimize cartridges (30-30, .308, 30-06, 223, 22 LR, 45-70) and it still feels like too many.
 
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