I'm going to build either a 25-06 or 257 Wby. I like the performance of the Wby but the economy of the 25-06. I was shocked to see that 257 Wby brass is ~4x the price of 25-06 brass. Does it last a lot longer? I'm wondering if the extra zip is worth the $$.
The 257 Weatherby and the 25-06 are noted barrel burners. The 257 Weathery achieves those higher velocities by free boring the chamber. It is also a fact that a free-bored chamber will tend to shoot lager groups than a standard cut chamber. The reason is the amount of bullet jump the free-bored chamber allows. The Weatherby will cost a good deal more to own and shoot. No the brass will last no longer in the 257 Weatherby than it will in the 25-06. I own the 25-06 chambering and it is a fine shooting cartridge. I concentrtae on accuracy above bullet speed. Bullet speed has little value without accuracy in bullet palcement. The peak accuracy barrel life of the 257 Weatherby or the 25-06 properly cared for is about 1500 to 2500 rounds, if your lucky.
The 257 Wby will gain approximately 300 fps over the 25-06 Remington. I think that is significant. I have owned both calibers with complete satisfaction. Reloader66 has an excellent post, so I won't repeat what he has said. My recommendation is to select the cartridge you would like to experience owning and to hell with everything else. You can't make a bad choice between these cartridges. There should be no limits on having fun!
Both are great cartridges. I love the .257 Wthby if the chamber is set up properly, with a shorter throat. I have made cases for the .257 by necking down 7mm Rem Mag cases. They worked really well and much more economical. Federal was offering .257 Wthby cases also. I don't know if they still are, but they were much less expensive.
I'm with John on this one. My 257 Wby has never seen a factory Wby case. I run 264 win cases into my 257 size die,load them & shoot them.I have my size die set so I headspace on the shoulder not the belt.With some of the new slow burnning powders such as 7828,RL25,H1000 & Retumbo and bullets that will hold together at speeds these new powders can reach the 257 is a lot more cartridge than it was 10 years ago.
