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Post by hughree on Aug 21, 2023 18:21:56 GMT -5
I had lunch today with a non-reloading friend who inherited a Ruger 77 in .257 Roberts. He is a Texas deer hunter and is trying to find enough ammo to get him through several deer seasons. I have checked my usual sources but old stock is gone and new offerings, including +P, are sold out.
I think his best bet would be small town gun shops or hardware stores that might have a dusty box or two on a back shelf. If any of you run across some while haunting your favorite shops, I would be delighted to obtain contact info to pass along to him.
Thanks.
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jeffh
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Post by jeffh on Aug 21, 2023 18:50:45 GMT -5
I am a big fan of the 'Roberts. wonderful cartridge.
I think the best bet for that round is, and always has been handloading. Assuming he's not a handloader, he might buy a set of dies, brass, some IMR 4350 and some 100 grain soft-points/spitzers of his choice and find a mentor with a press to walk him throughvthe process.
It is WELL WORTH the effort, as that cartridge would be a fine one for Texas deer.
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jeffh
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Post by jeffh on Aug 21, 2023 21:18:46 GMT -5
My previous reply was from a tablet, so void of detail. Back at a keyboard now.
I shot the 257 Roberts for many years - two loads; 100 grains at 3000 fps and 75 grain HPs at 3300 fps and both at moderate pressures. It's a great round and shameful that it's been pushed back into near obscurity by the marketing boys' wonder-cartridges which do NOTHING it won't, but at much higher pressures. Based on what I've READ about Texas deer, they aren't usually 300# monsters. The mannerly 25s of years past are perfect for this.
I suggest finding a handloader mentor, sensing that the new owner of the rifle is not a handloader. Maybe he doesn't want to become one, but pairing with an experienced and well-equipped handloader could get him through the initial load development and he could then load some quantity of ammunition for the future. The experience will be worthwhile whether he takes up the hobby himself or not.
Commercial 257 ammo was loaded to fit through a short action. Ruger made the 257s on long actions. Even more ideal is the Mauser-length actions, which were suited to the parent case, the 7x57, a child of the 8x57, upon which the action was based.
If there are varmints on the menu of this new 257 owner, the Sierra 75 grain HP is pretty devastating on Ohio woodchucks and surely on similarly-sized Texas vermin. The 'Roberts is a greatly under-appreciated cartridge in this day of 6.5 this and 6.5 thats. Don't get me wrong - I'm a fan of the 6.5s, but the older ones which achieved what some of the newer ones do with less pressure and less hoopla.
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Post by potatojudge on Aug 21, 2023 21:39:34 GMT -5
No help here on the factory ammo- try gun shows and old gun shops I suppose.
If he's in DFW I've loaded the Roberts for a lot of years and could help him get set up, even if it's just a Lee Loader and powder dipper sort of deal. Getting into one cartridge/one load isn't too difficult.
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nicholst55
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Post by nicholst55 on Aug 21, 2023 23:35:47 GMT -5
Run a Google search; there are some places that have it in stock. Be advised, however, that .257 Roberts ammo has gotten EXPENSIVE! Prices start at about $50 for 20 rounds and go up fast!
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Post by hughree on Aug 22, 2023 4:06:47 GMT -5
Thanks gentlemen. My friend reloads for shotguns as he shoots sporting clays regularly. As a hunter, he has taken more deer over decades than I can count, using a couple of favorite rifles chambered for readily available commercial loads (e.g. 270, .308, 7mm). As I understand it, he recently inherited a few rifles that include the Ruger in .257 "Bob" as he calls it. He would like to shoot it to determine if he wants to add it to his favorite hunting rifle rotation or let it go. Two or three boxes of .257 Roberts ammo would meet his current and, likely, future needs.
I've searched the usual sources (Ammoseek, Grafs, Midsouth, Midway, Natchez, SGAmmo, TargetSports, etc), old standbys like Old Western Scrounger and Gunbroker - nothing to be found but scammers using old photos and wanting digital payments. He is a member of a Facebook group for .257 Bob enthusiasts who are all apparently on the same quest for loaded ammo and new brass.
I don't Facebook.
That brings me back to my effort to help him locate a few boxes of forlorn .257 Roberts that may be waiting for adoption in a small gun shop or two across America. I used to make it a practice on road trips to stop at gun shops I spied along the way that had antlers over the front door and signs that advertised guns, bait, taxidermy and deer processing. On more than one occasion, I've discovered dust covered boxes of Remington, Peters, even Herters ammunition in once popular calibers like .222, .250 and 300 Savage, .45 Auto Rim and, once, even scored ten dusty boxes of 350 Remington Magnum off a shelf in a long-forgotten shop somewhere between Texas and Florida. I gotta believe there are still a few overlooked boxes of .257 Roberts in log cabin gun shops in small towns that have a town square, maybe a bandstand, and still have parades on the 4th of July.
If you find yourself in one such trading post while on a personal quest to find a .45 Auto Rim shellholder for your original Lee priming tool or a box of Speer Shot Capsules, let me know.
Potatojudge - my friend does live in Dallas. I will pass on your generous and much appreciated offer. Like me, he is a retired lawyer so I will apologize for his behavior in advance.
Thanks to all.
Hugh
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Post by bisleyfan41 on Aug 22, 2023 7:03:41 GMT -5
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Post by hughree on Aug 22, 2023 7:31:11 GMT -5
Bisleyfan41 - Wonderful! I would never have thought Doubletap loaded this round. I will share the link immediately. Thanks so much. Hugh
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Post by bula on Aug 22, 2023 8:13:17 GMT -5
Fingers crossed.. Hoping for a happy ending. These kinda ask for help threads are one of many reasons this is such a good forum.
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Post by potatojudge on Aug 22, 2023 8:50:28 GMT -5
I took a pretty good sized Axis with that 25 cal 110 Accubond loaded similarly (to the double tap site) in a No 1 Roberts. Did a nice job on a frontal chest shot and eventually lodged itself in a scapula with the deer dropping straight down.
I also have an M77 in 257, unfortunately it's not the lightweight version or it would see more hunting because I really do like the old M77 actions for their slickness and speed.
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Post by hughree on Aug 22, 2023 9:06:53 GMT -5
Fingers crossed.. Hoping for a happy ending. These kinda ask for help threads are one of many reasons this is such a good forum. Bula - I forwarded the Doubletap tip (Doubletip?) to my buddy. He already responded and asked me to share his appreciation for the lead.
And I agree. The knowledge, experience, character, integrity and willingness to help or share a burden exhibited by members of this forum make it my favorite.
I don't hit gun shows that often anymore but I am online a fair amount. I would be happy to keep an eye out for things other members are or have been searching for if there was a list available. For example, in my time I have searched for copies of specific reloading manuals, old books or Gun Digests, magazine articles with reviews of guns, ammo or gear, shellholders or die parts, parts for old Lee Loaders or Lyman Tong Tools - the hunt was sometimes as rewarding as finding the object. I know there are dedicated "Want To Buy" areas on many outdoor forums but I generally don't check them if I have nothing to sell at the time. Maybe a "Want To Find" list where members could share potential leads or links they stumbled across might be popular? I know a lot of members stop at shops when they travel and haunt pawn shops, flea markets and estate sales. I imagine some have access to regional gun shows that have more vendors than others. I would personally enjoy the opportunity to help out members of this community locate gun grail before the overlords attempt to ban all good deeds.
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Post by hughree on Aug 22, 2023 9:15:24 GMT -5
I took a pretty good sized Axis with that 25 cal 110 Accubond loaded similarly (to the double tap site) in a No 1 Roberts. Did a nice job on a frontal chest shot and eventually lodged itself in a scapula with the deer dropping straight down. Potatojudge - I will share your field-tested experience with my friend. Thanks. BTW, my local FFL in Rowlett had a No 1 in .257 Roberts when I was in there last week.
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nicholst55
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Post by nicholst55 on Aug 22, 2023 10:29:01 GMT -5
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Post by bisleyfan41 on Aug 22, 2023 14:38:35 GMT -5
Bisleyfan41 - Wonderful! I would never have thought Doubletap loaded this round. I will share the link immediately. Thanks so much. Hugh You're welcome, Hugh! I love chasing down hard-to-find stuff. It's the pursuit, so much fun. I'm glad your friend will get the ammo he needs. I agree with your idea about a section of "want to find". Except, I'd never get anything else done! Shane
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jeffh
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Post by jeffh on Aug 22, 2023 16:50:47 GMT -5
Remington sort of hobbled the 'Roberts (I despise the diminutive "Bob" as being too condescending for such a classic round) right out of the gate. I've never shot a single factory load from a 257 Roberts, but have little faith that they will load it to it's optimum, since they chambered it in short actions. I don't know, but it is possible that the factory loads available are meant to cycle through short actions. It may be OK or the bullets may just be way too far off the lands. I'd hate to see someone turn their back on the gun/cartridge because factory ammo isn't loaded to suit the rifles which were made for it. Factory ammo may be just fine, but I'm skeptical.
EDIT: By the way, I'm not trying to discourage anyone - I want this guy to fall in love with the gun/cartridge, and think he will if it gets a fair chance.
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