CptnAwesome
Member
I'm gonna go with 257 Weatherby Mag with 117gr Sierra Gameking. Fast, flat shooting and carries a lot of energy....
What is you favorite caliber in 125 grains or less?
- Thread starter viking499
- Start date
- Status
WestKentucky
Member
7-30 waters shooting a 120gr Sierra handgun hunter bullet over 3031. Those bullets are hard to find now, and I’m slowly being pushed up in weight to the 140gr that is easy to find.
Yes it’s a pistol barrel but it’s a rifle round.
2nd pick would be a 60gr JHP in a .256 Winchester Magnum Marlin 62. It’s a pistol round in a rifle platform. Based on 357 mag.
3rd pick would be the other Marlin 62 in 30carbine. 110gr bullets are the for sure go-to but I haven’t actually loaded any yet, I’m still shooting up the cheap ammo I bought when I first got the gun, but I have brass saved, have dies, have bullets, and I’m sure I can use one of the powders I have on hand.
4th is 62 gr ballistic tips through the 223AI contender barrel.
5th will be the 30-30 contender barrel with the same bullets I will be shooting through the 30 carbine. Those should be really fun somewhere around 2500 FPS.
those top 5 are surprisingly close in the amount of fun I have with them. Maybe one day I will build a 32 long garden gun.
Yes it’s a pistol barrel but it’s a rifle round.
2nd pick would be a 60gr JHP in a .256 Winchester Magnum Marlin 62. It’s a pistol round in a rifle platform. Based on 357 mag.
3rd pick would be the other Marlin 62 in 30carbine. 110gr bullets are the for sure go-to but I haven’t actually loaded any yet, I’m still shooting up the cheap ammo I bought when I first got the gun, but I have brass saved, have dies, have bullets, and I’m sure I can use one of the powders I have on hand.
4th is 62 gr ballistic tips through the 223AI contender barrel.
5th will be the 30-30 contender barrel with the same bullets I will be shooting through the 30 carbine. Those should be really fun somewhere around 2500 FPS.
those top 5 are surprisingly close in the amount of fun I have with them. Maybe one day I will build a 32 long garden gun.
Last edited:
GooseGestapo
Member
- Joined
- Jan 6, 2003
- Messages
- 6,149
#1- 257Roberts
#2- 6.5Grendel
I’ve got .22Hornet, .218Bee, 223’s, .22-250, .243, .25-36Marlin, .257Wby, and .260Rem.
My 1983 Custom .257 on a M98 action still remains my favorite.
Only better deer cartridge is the 7mm08. Then only by a razor thin margin.
#2- 6.5Grendel
I’ve got .22Hornet, .218Bee, 223’s, .22-250, .243, .25-36Marlin, .257Wby, and .260Rem.
My 1983 Custom .257 on a M98 action still remains my favorite.
Only better deer cartridge is the 7mm08. Then only by a razor thin margin.
marksman13
Member
Caliber? .25
Cartridge? 257 Weatherby Magnum
It’s an absolute laser beam. I’ve got a Ruger No. 1 chambered in 257 WM and it is like a lightening bolt. I think the next rifle I buy will be a bolt action in 257 WM just to wring out the accuracy this cartridge is capable of.
Cartridge? 257 Weatherby Magnum
It’s an absolute laser beam. I’ve got a Ruger No. 1 chambered in 257 WM and it is like a lightening bolt. I think the next rifle I buy will be a bolt action in 257 WM just to wring out the accuracy this cartridge is capable of.
Offfhand
Member.
- Joined
- Apr 12, 2009
- Messages
- 2,442
I could name a couple dozen calibers and rifles that could be my almost-favorites in this category but in terms of history/legend and actual hunting experience my No.1 choice has to be the .257 Weatherby, The pronghorn antelope is one of my favorite game species, and no caliber has done it better for me than Weatherby's .twenty-five Mag. Especially when I'm hunting with this early production Weatherby rifle. The vintage American made Bausch & Lomb scope makes it all the sweeter.
.
.
Last edited:
lysanderxiii
Member
.30-06 with a 110 spire points, because, why not?
25-06 for me.My Wilson barrelled 700 is crazy accurate with 100 grain Matchkings for varmints and it shoots Nosler Partitions of the same weight to the exact same zero for deer.Flat shooting and accurate enough for me,it's one of my all time favorite rifles,and because it's the first one I ever put the barrel on myself,it's kinda got some sentimental value.
Jeff olson
Member
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2019
- Messages
- 934
55 gr. 22-250. Has always been my favorite. 2nd would be 100gr 250 savage. But then there's the 80 gr 220 swift.
Captcurt
Member
It is hard to pick one. I like my 243 and had a Ruger American Predator in 6.5CM that loved every 120 gr that I put through it. It shot 120gr Barnes, Speer, Nosler BalliticTips and Accubonds pretty much in the same hole. My number one pick, though, would be 257 Weatherby. I only took a couple of whitetails with it but the 110gr Accubond put both down on the spot. One may have kicked a couple of times.
Gordon
Member
25-06, of course .243 is good too, the .25-06 is more so !
Charlie98
Member
My M1a loves the Hornady TAP 110grn... twice the bullet of an AR, but with the recoil of an AR (in an M1a, anyway.) Since that cartridge is pretty much Unobtanium right now, I've got 2 boxes of 110grn A-MAX bullet to load up and see if I can duplicate the factory load. I'm curious to see how it shoots out of my 24" Savage bolt gun.
Besides that, my new favorite is the 62grn BTHP in the 5.56mm. ALL of my rifles seem to like it, including my picky Colt H-Bar.
Besides that, my new favorite is the 62grn BTHP in the 5.56mm. ALL of my rifles seem to like it, including my picky Colt H-Bar.
SGW Gunsmith
Member
.22 rimfire. It's where I started and where I'll end:
I have others designed and chosen for a specific need, but with the .22 Long Rifle I find no need to fetch brass, reload or worry about excessive recoil. I can shoot all day long and unlike my Winchester Model 70 in .458 magnum I have no bruises after shooting 15 rounds at cinder blocks.
I have others designed and chosen for a specific need, but with the .22 Long Rifle I find no need to fetch brass, reload or worry about excessive recoil. I can shoot all day long and unlike my Winchester Model 70 in .458 magnum I have no bruises after shooting 15 rounds at cinder blocks.
Riomouse911
Member
.257 Roberts shooting Federal Premium 120 gr Partitions. 
.
Stay safe.
. Stay safe.
loose noose
Member
Ruger American Predator in 6.5mm Creedmoor, 120 grain Winchester White Tail, a real sweet shooter and all 5 rounds in one raggedy hole at 100 yards.
Anchorite
Member
I’m in the same camp. For varmints and predators, the .25 is king of the fields. Piss on the 6mm/243. That’s a bastard round. For real terminal performance, it’s .257.
giggitygiggity
Member
- Joined
- Mar 18, 2009
- Messages
- 2,251
6.5 Grendel followed by .243 Win.
TexasPatriot.308
Member
.22-250
wbm
Member
It is and me too.
243 with a 85gr Sierra HPBT. Lot of deer...actually lot of everything. Nothing ever kept moving.
Just received two boxes of 6.5CM 95gr Hornady Varmint Express. Tried them out Friday. Shot really good in a Savage Axis.
BreechFace
Member
- Joined
- Mar 2, 2020
- Messages
- 3,509
110gr Nosler Accubond in 6.8 SPCii at around 2,800fps
or 120gr Hornady SST’s in the same.
But 7.62x39 with CFE BLK would be a very close second.
or 120gr Hornady SST’s in the same.
But 7.62x39 with CFE BLK would be a very close second.
Last edited:
sarduy
Member
7.62x39
7.62x39. It's good for launching pills between 110 and 150 gr. Contrary to popular misconception, .308 bullets loaded for x39 shoot very well regardless of bore diameter.
If you take a close look at Bill Wilson's 300 HAM'r you'll see what 7.62x39 should have always been if not for serious miscalculations while establishing SAAMI standards for x39. So like the 300 HAM'r, 7.62x39 really shines if you handload.
I first used Nosler 125 gr .308 Ballistic Tips (# 30125) loaded for x39 about 1990 or 91. With that you have a high BC boat-tail leaving the muzzle of an 18.5" barrel at 2500+ fps if you want to load that hot. Factory loads made to C.I.P standards are very near that. Basically 200 fps or more above many American factory loads.
If you take a close look at Bill Wilson's 300 HAM'r you'll see what 7.62x39 should have always been if not for serious miscalculations while establishing SAAMI standards for x39. So like the 300 HAM'r, 7.62x39 really shines if you handload.
I first used Nosler 125 gr .308 Ballistic Tips (# 30125) loaded for x39 about 1990 or 91. With that you have a high BC boat-tail leaving the muzzle of an 18.5" barrel at 2500+ fps if you want to load that hot. Factory loads made to C.I.P standards are very near that. Basically 200 fps or more above many American factory loads.
J-Bar
Member
I don’t do varmints.
When my shoulder arthritis became significant I downloaded my .270 with Hornady’s 110 grain V-Max over a reduced charge of H4895. It would not be good for long range shooting but within 100 yards three deer still dropped quickly. And my shoulder appreciated it.
When my shoulder arthritis became significant I downloaded my .270 with Hornady’s 110 grain V-Max over a reduced charge of H4895. It would not be good for long range shooting but within 100 yards three deer still dropped quickly. And my shoulder appreciated it.
- Status