Another 257 Roy thread

[Outcast]

Allright i didn't want to highjack the "premium bullet craze" thread so I'm starting one. I've got a couple of questions about this caliber and I see there is few that play with one on this forum.

I killed a bull elk with a 120 gr partion from one of these babies and the results were amazing. This is not to say that this gun will become my mainstay elk gun now as my 338 will adorn my shoulder for many Wapiti hunt to come. However if I need to push it I want this gun to be able to do it all.

Now I am not sold on the super premiums (TSX) so what would happen with a bullet like the 120 grain Hornady, which I love in my 25-06, at 257 velocities at say a 50 yard impact. Heck they factory load 115 grain ballistictips in this cartridge and I here guys talk about them like they are the best thing since sliced bread. Do I need to stick with a bullet of at least a partition grade. I do say that with the utmost respect towards partitions.

The other question is why do so many that shoot this caliber seem to prefer the 100 grain offering.

This really parallels the premium bullet craze thread in the sense that I am starting to wonder if I really need to be dumping money into these premium bullets. This could be somewhat cartridge specific though as the 257 is a race horse among quarter horses. Then again TSX didn`t exist when Roy first started loading this round and those 100 grain Hornadys seemed to sell just fine.

[catnthehat]

Originally Posted by Outcast

Now I am not sold on the super premiums (TSX) so what would happen with a bullet like the 120 grain Hornady, which I love in my 25-06, at 257 velocities at say a 50 yard impact. .

The critter is going to die, period!
I can't tell you if the bullet will hold together or break up, but it will kill the animal, that is for sure.....
Cat

[bobinthesky]

I've been shooting the .257 Roy for two or three years now and I've found that it's not particularly fond of the heavier bullets. It seems to have a real dislike for the 120 grain Speer Spitzer SP and the 117 grain Hornady SST, but I've yet to find a 100 grain bullets that it dislikes, thats the main reason I stick with the 100 grain bullet weights.
My rifle shoots the TSX's very well and after shooting a couple of deer with them, I'm seriously reconsidering my bullet choice. The TSX worked ok, don't get me wrong, but I don't think that kind of penetration is really needed, even on these heavy bodied Alberta Mulies. Haveing said that, I think the TSX would be my first choice on Elk or Moose since the .257 Roy is fast enough to put that tough bullet to good use on larger animals.
The bullets that I shot the deer with were never recovered, heck, I'm not so sure they even slowed down very much. Just in one side and out the other, gone! They did however, leave an impressive exit wound though, I credit the great expansion to the velocity of the Roy, at slower speeds, I don't think this bullet will expand properly. I wouldn't even consider this bullet in a cartridge with less than 3000fps at the muzzle and preferably a lot more! I believe that you need velocity to give you proper expansion.
I saw dismal performance on game with Balistic Tip bullets years ago and got soured off them. Rapid expansion, bullet comeing apart rapidly, and no penetration. I'm told that Nosler put a heavier jacket on them a while back and it seems that people are raveing about them these days, maybe they're worth a try.

[noneck180]

My 257 Roy likes 120 partition 61gr 4831 and nosler recomended length does not like 115 VLDS shoots 115 tsx alright but not like the partitions.

[Kelly & Beth]

My 257 likes 117gr hornady interlocks pushed with 71gr of RL25. I shot a couple of deer with it this year one of them was a good size mule buck that went about 15yrds after it was shot. The bullet went into its lungs and made a 2"+/- exit hole after hitting a rib, the deer was about 200yrds away. I am very happy with the results of these bullets and use them in every gun I have.

[Outcast]

This is what I'm getting at guys. I like the Hornady bullets as well and have performed well for me in various cartridges...However none of those bullets were leaving the barrel at 3400 fps. i have no doubt that at 200 yards with velocities dropped, that I will not have an issue with them doing their job. Heck thats where they will shine. Problem is what happens when I've got a big Alberta deer at 50 yards and that same bullet impacts the shoulder?

I like the idea of the TSX but hate dealing with the copper fouling. I know I will here the "there not that bad" "I get 30 rounds out of mine before..." Point being all the experiences that I have had with them show this not to be the case. Also I like a little explosive nature in a bullet.

I did like the performance of the 120 Partition on the elk this year but I bought this thing to shoot as flat as it possibly can so was thinking about 100 grainers. Hows the 100 Grain partition? I've played with the 100 grain Hornady in this baby and they are a little to soft for the close range stuff if needed.

If I end up going 120 grain it will probably be the Hornady. Just don't know how it will hold up in the short range shots that happen even though you are prepared to "reach out and touch something"

All your experiences are appreciated guys.

[bobinthesky]

50 yards may just be where the tsx really shines since it needs velocity to open up! It's known fact that higher veolocity opens a bullet quicker than lower velocity.

No comment on the copper fouling though since your mind's already made up...

[roger]

youve probly perused my ramblings already, ive only killed one moose and one elk, lots of deer and such. i will be the first to tell you that it 'MAY' not be the best round for the job, but if your sitting on a cutline and a legal elk walks out at 250-300 ...i certainly wouldnt pass on it cause im feeling undergunned!
Roy also never had 7828 and other slow powders to pick from otherwise the full length wby case (or larger) would be used.the 257stw or the 257/300wby is a hybrid that is just getting a foothold in the ultrafast corral. ive used the 100's from new and only 87's once...a 100gr at 3600 kills like it has been struck by lightning.

(this is what ive read from others, not personal experience)
100's seem to be the perfect balance point with blistering speed and laser flat trajectory , 120gr is kinda counterproductive to the horsepower to weight ratio, and 87's and 75's are too flighty at 4000+fps ive found that hornady, barnes, speer all basically shot the same and interchange them regularly.

im looking to move to IMR 7828 ssc and boost my velocities to the 3700fps if the accuracy holds. i dont really care if the barrel fries, i had planned on using it for plains game in africa, but time permitted us from taking it.

[ceedub]

After playing around with loads for my new Mark V .257 this fall, I settled on Hornady 117 grain SST's behind 69.5 grains of ReLoder 25. I never killed an animal with the rifle this fall, but, my last 3 - 3 shot groups averaged .6 inches, better than any other weapon in my cabinet.

I can't wait to see what this combo will do on a critter, hoping it performs well as I'm really excited about the accuracy.

Craig

[Outcast]

Originally Posted by roger

youve probly perused my ramblings already, ive only killed one moose and one elk, lots of deer and such. i will be the first to tell you that it 'MAY' not be the best round for the job, but if your sitting on a cutline and a legal elk walks out at 250-300 ...i certainly wouldnt pass on it cause im feeling undergunned!
Roy also never had 7828 and other slow powders to pick from otherwise the full length wby case (or larger) would be used.the 257stw or the 257/300wby is a hybrid that is just getting a foothold in the ultrafast corral. ive used the 100's from new and only 87's once...a 100gr at 3600 kills like it has been struck by lightning.

(this is what ive read from others, not personal experience)
100's seem to be the perfect balance point with blistering speed and laser flat trajectory , 120gr is kinda counterproductive to the horsepower to weight ratio, and 87's and 75's are too flighty at 4000+fps ive found that hornady, barnes, speer all basically shot the same and interchange them regularly.

im looking to move to IMR 7828 ssc and boost my velocities to the 3700fps if the accuracy holds. i dont really care if the barrel fries, i had planned on using it for plains game in africa, but time permitted us from taking it.

Yes I've navigated through your 257 posts and have gathered much info on the caliber from you. Do I think this is the ultimate elk round.....absolutely not. i have drawn my own conclusions as to what this is and it works for me. All I can say as this cal intrigues me to no end. Especially after the devasting effect it had on the bull elk I took this year. Sizzlin fast and it seems to stretch the bounds of the minimum foot/lbs of energy theory that has been wrestled with around the camp fire for years.

It almost seems that a new equation needs to be drawn that doesn't circle arround velocity and bullet weight, but rather arround work that is being done over time as a bullet sizzles through an animal. I can't pretend that I could Newton this together and have you a four page report by tommorrow, however it seems that maybe we didn't solve it all in the years of yore and that maybe now with new bullet developement more people are trying things that 30 years ago would have got the old "only good for charging rabid gophers" slam "I'll use my 30-06"

Forgive my ramblings as the science behind them is minimal. The bottom line is I'm trying to develope a load for this baby that maximizes what it is and yet affords me the ability to dump an elk if need be.

Thanks for all your thoughts.

[Outcast]

Originally Posted by ceedub

After playing around with loads for my new Mark V .257 this fall, I settled on Hornady 117 grain SST's behind 69.5 grains of ReLoder 25. I never killed an animal with the rifle this fall, but, my last 3 - 3 shot groups averaged .6 inches, better than any other weapon in my cabinet.

I can't wait to see what this combo will do on a critter, hoping it performs well as I'm really excited about the accuracy.

Craig

Let me know how they work. I do have a few boxes of them however the game that I have killed with SST's,not in this caliber, have shown this bullet to open up quite quickly and prefer the standard interlocks over these....regardless thanks and share your future results as will I.