Looking for advice from .257 Roberts fans

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I have an old Ruger M77 tang safety in .257 Roberts, still one of my favorite rifles. I am 65 now and all my rifles in calibers larger than .308 have been moved to the back of the safe, I will soon give them to my 2 nephews. I am treating myself to a newer model in .257 Roberts, my old one will not shoot the newer ammo and prefers the old round nose Core Lokts. I am looking at a Winchester Model 70 or a Kimber model 84. The Winchester is hard to find and I've heard a couple negatives about the Kimber. I know the .257 is pretty much a forgotten caliber but I just hunt deer and hogs. Any input from .257 Roberts admirers?
 
Do ya wanna chat about 257 Roberts, or choice of rifles? I can do either. :)

I've loaded up and shot probably more than a thousand rounds worth of 257 Roberts over the last 12-18 months. I buy the Hornady Superformance ammo, shoot it as fouling shots, and reload the brass. Favorite powder is mostly H4895; my range / varminting load uses a 75gr Hornady, my basic hunting load uses 100gr Speer, and I've been playing for a bit with 115gr ELDs. I have a hundred 117gr SSTs loaded, but they're pretty much intended for the heavier game.

Last that I checked, Winchester wasn't building the Model 70 in 257 Roberts. Kimber does, but I found the KImber to be too whippy / front-light for my taste; it needs a bit more barrel mass to balance properly.
 
I am treating myself to a newer model in .257 Roberts, my old one will not shoot the newer ammo and prefers the old round nose Core Lokts.

I'm not sure why that is. My Ruger Model 77, chambered in .257 Roberts, purchased new in 1975, handles all factory Roberts loads well. I wouldn't think bullet configuration (as opposed to weight and type) would make all that much difference in terms of accuracy. I guess if it does, it does; hard to understand why.
 
I have a couple remington 700s in 257 Roberts. My most carried is an old mountain rifle. Pretty sure ruger still makes the No.1 in 257 as well.
 
My 721 Remington hates the 117 gr light magnum Hornady and 120 gr partition loads from Federal, but it loves the 100 gr stuff from just about anyone (I’ll guess it’s the twist rate).
Ammo-bullet preference is one of the quirks guns have from rifle to rifle.

A question; is your hunting ok with the Round Nose Core Lokt .257 Remington ammo or are you having to pass up shots because of lousy trajectory or wind drift? If your old trusty-rusty is in good shape and has been handling business with the RNCL bullets I would just stick with those. They have done a number on tons of deer-hog sized animals for decades.

Or if you’re a handloader, you can work to develop a handload that your gun likes with more modern streamlined bullets for those longer shots. :thumbup:

It’s a great caliber that does so much on the lower end of the recoil spectrum, it’s too bad it’s (still) fading away into obscurity.

Stay safe!
 
Whaaaat? Negative have you heard about a Kimber 84 that you haven’t also hear about a Win 70?

Either will be great choices. Get the one that is configured more to your liking.
 
I've owned a 257 Roberts but eventually went to a 25-06 because the 117 grain bullets were faster. The only thing I can say about buying one is that if you are going to reload your own ammunition buy a rifle with a longer magazine box because some of the earlier rifles required heavier bullets to be seated deep into the case. When 117 grain bullets are seated further out it improves the performance of the rifle. I'm a Winchester fan so I would recommend a Model 70 if for no other reason it has a good 3 position safety and the bolt works smoothly.
 
You might find a M-70 by watching Gunbroker. Remington chambered some 700's in 257 also. Ruger #1's are classy looking rifles. Or do like suggested and rebarrel your Ruger. I shoot 100 gr Sierra's in mine over IMR 4350. Rather dated, yes. But it still works.
 
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