PEAX Equipment

Forgotten Calibers

Losing_Sanity

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I've read quite a few posts dealing with calibers and one post wanting you to list all you own or have used. I'm interested in the fact that the 7mm STW has all but went away. I don't think you can even get a factory rifle in that caliber any more. Shame, it's really a nice 7mm to have and can shoot into the next county if you have a mind to. Interesting that it never reached popularity, even though everyone I have met that owns one likes it.

What are your thoughts?
 
I still am still really intrigued by the 338 Federal, but its tenure was very short.

I agree. I've thought both the 338 Federal and 338 RCM seems like awesome elk calibers. A shame neither caught on. I came very close to buying one of the RCM's when they were clearanced out, by my recoil aversion won out.

To the OP, a guy I work with recently got a new Cooper in the STW.
 
.22 Hornet is becoming a lost gun.

I love this little 200 yard gun.

Minimal pelt damage and not overbearingly loud. Cheap to shoot if you reload them too.
 
The 35 Whelen is a fantastic mid-bore cartridge. I love mine.

33 Winchester & the 348 Win are great woods cartridges.

300 Savage is the parent of the 308.

The German/European offerings are all fantastic. 8x68 for example, was the 8mm magnum for decades. The 7x64 was the 280 AI before the 280 AI was ever thought of. the 9.3x74R has been dropping Buffalo, Moose and Elephant since the early 1900's. The 450 NE was the precursor to the 470 NE, etc, etc.


I'm sure Brent will remind us of all the old black powder cartridges that reduced game populations across America to nothing in the 19th century. :)
 
I agree. I've thought both the 338 Federal and 338 RCM seems like awesome elk calibers. A shame neither caught on. I came very close to buying one of the RCM's when they were clearanced out, by my recoil aversion won out.

To the OP, a guy I work with recently got a new Cooper in the STW.

I still keep my eyes peeled for a Kimber Montana in 338 Fed on the used racks and gunbroker.
 
The 7mm STW got a reputation as a barrel burner it could never shake. Some dying cartridges were probably due to timing like the 260 rem which arrived right before the wsm, rum, craze happened. Why the 243 win became a success vs 6mm Remington that slowly faded, even though they are similar. Why did the 7x57 and 6.5 x 55 never really catch on, but the 6.5 creedmoor and 7mm 08 are now chambered in most models. Marketing? Timing? Americans aversion to using cartitridges developed in other countries?
 
I think there are few if any new cartridge's that came along in the past 50 to 75 years that have actually improved on what we already had for hunting. Exception in my view would be the 260 Rem/6.5 CM. The big advantage there being they fit in shorter action's and I do like the 308 length action. In the 6.5 cal there are bullet's that will handle most anything in N. America and there is the 308/30-06 for everything else. Most the newer cartridge's are magnum of one type or anther. That means they will likely eat barrels at a greater pace and recoil a lot more for what doesn't amount to a great deal more ability to kill. Perhaps with the bit move velocity you get you will get and increase in usable range, if you would rather shoot long range. But, there reach's a point with every single cartridge where more important to a good shot is shooter skill and a big cartridge cannot over come that! The 260 Rem and 6.5 CM come to mind as other than the 6.5x55, there are no small capacity 6.5 case's readily available in this country. Truth be known, the 6.5x55 need's a 30-06 length action. For some reason, the 25 cal has been all but ignored also. The 250-3000 has all but gone away, 257 Robert's not remotely common and only thing keeping the 25's alive seem's t be the 25-06. It would seem to me the 250-3000 and maybe the 25 Souper (25-308) wuld be worthy additions but I doubt they would do well these days. These days it about velocity and little else.
 
280 Remington: Man what a fantastic cartridge and it is a shame it is not chambered in many rifles currently. I built a 280 AI for myself after considering going the 280 Remington route, but I would be just as happy with the standard chambering if I had gone down that road.

6mm Remington: Man they got it screwed up when they first came out with the 244 Remington and had a 1-12 twist in the barrels. The 6mm Remington is a better designed case than the beloved 243 Winchester and has better ballistics. It is also as accurate on average or more so. Folks we need to make sure the 6mm Remington is kept alive as it's just too good to die. The 6mm Creedmore does not have any ballistic advantage over the 6mm Remington and the only thing it does have is the barrel twist rate is faster for those long bullets. Twist a 6mm Remington like the 6mm Creedmore and the 6mm Remington will come out ahead!

338-06: It was made legitimate but not enough folks started to chamber for it. Much to good of a cartridge to completely disappear.

These are my picks.
David
 
I agree. I've thought both the 338 Federal and 338 RCM seems like awesome elk calibers. A shame neither caught on. I came very close to buying one of the RCM's when they were clearanced out, by my recoil aversion won out.

To the OP, a guy I work with recently got a new Cooper in the STW.

The 300 RCM is another one that seems to have faded away. But it really didn't do much more than a 30-06 except fit in a short action. I also have considered the 338 RCM. I think you can still get ammo for it over the counter.
 
Ok, i have/shoot 3 of the afore mentioned calibers.
Stevens 200 re-barreled with a 24" E.R.Shaw in 250 Savage.
Ruger 77 MKII in 257 Roberts.
Ruger 77 MKII in 280 Rem.

I have dies, cases for 25 Souper, 6.5mm Rem Mag. Just need to build them.
Would also like to build a 7.21 Lazzeroni Tomahawk.
 
The 7mm STW got a reputation as a barrel burner it could never shake. Some dying cartridges were probably due to timing like the 260 rem which arrived right before the wsm, rum, craze happened. Why the 243 win became a success vs 6mm Remington that slowly faded, even though they are similar. Why did the 7x57 and 6.5 x 55 never really catch on, but the 6.5 creedmoor and 7mm 08 are now chambered in most models. Marketing? Timing? Americans aversion to using cartitridges developed in other countries?
The answer to 6Rem, 7x57, and 6.5x55 all lie in the fact that they have essentially the same case capacity as a .243, 7-08, and .260Rem, but fail to fit well in a short action. Why the short action is so important to people is beyond me. The 6.5x55 and 6.5x57 do have more case capacity than the .308 based cases, but brass availability, and poor fit in short actions didn’t help. Sporterized original rifles gave dissapoibting results as well because they were throated for extremely long, blunt nosed projectiles that moved slowly and were unpopular here, but when hand loaded with light weight bullets they short poorly because of excessive throat length and barrel twist. Frankly all four cartridges are superior to the .243, 7-08, and .260Rem in my opinion, but you have to build the gun to fit them and load your own ammo to experience the bulk of their differences.

While the initial twist issues didn’t help the .244 Rem, I’m not convinced it wouldn’t have survived its revamp to 6mmRem if it fit better in a short action.
 
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To name a few that I love; and luckily either I or my father have and have dies for, 218Bee, 22Hornet, 222, both the 250 and 300Savage.
 
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