I bought a new Winchester M70 Featherweight 257 in 1979 when I worked for a gun distributor as the Featherweights were re introduced during the period between Olin's sale and the organization of USRAC, and Winchester brought the 257 & 7x57 back on market. That Roberts was the only rifle I kept after blowing a disc in my neck and being told I would never shoot again, on the faint hope that I would recover enough to hunt again ...and the Roberts was the best compromise for an under 250 yard deer gun of the 9 SAKO's & 2 other rifles from 223 thru 338 that I owned and shot 3-4000 rounds out of a year.
I was able to tolerate the recoil after 4-5 years and as long as I could find the non +P Win 100 gr Silvertip Ammo I could almost write my name on a target with that rifle, that Roberts was that accurate, 1/2"-5/8"ths groups were common and boring. When it was announced that the 100gr ST's were no longer available and everything was going to +P's I already knew that my Roberts would not shoot the faster loading and heavier bullets very well so I bought the last 5 box's of the ammo I could find as I no longer had the time or patience to reload and do the proper accuracy workups. When I ran out of the 100 gr ST's I was in trouble because the best shooting factory ammo in that rifle of the then available factory stuff, Hornady 100 gr'ers, was also being discontinued...and I bought the last 4 boxs of that I could find. I had shot that Roberts at everything from jackrabbits to turtles and of course deer and headshots on turkey during the fall, and trusted that rifle to serve me well.
I can certainly understand and appreciate the Roberts as your choice for a young shooter. The 257 is a much better bullet than anything I ever shot in a 243 and I handloaded that round for over 25 years as a 243 SAKO was my 21st B-Day gift from my Grandfather in 1965 and I shot it at everything for many years. IF you can find a Roberts that will shoot the heavier 117/120 gr bullets, the Roberts will make a lifetime rifle for your daughter. My M70 would never get better than 1 3/4"s (Hornady 117'ers) to as much as 3 1/2" groups (Rem 117 RN), and that broke my heart. People will tell you that groups that size are acceptable for hunting deer, antelope and hogs ...and they are ... but I demand better than that because I can shoot better than even today with shot nerves and high blood pressure problems to go along with the still screwed up neck. OBTW my longest one shot kill was made with the Roberts & 100gr ST's on a Wyoming Antelope at a measured 444 yards, leaning across and braced off the hood of a Bronco with a PH calling the distance at 450 with a 50 power spotting scope. The Roberts just ain't supposed to be able to shoot that far accurately and I only took the shot with another very experienced shooter backing me up with a 7 mag. My worst experience with the Roberts was wounding a 140lb hog with a perfect heart lung shot, and when he kept running flat out in a large circle for 3-4 minutes blowing froth ... I popped him again and took out his right shoulder joint when he slowed down for a moment, then he got up and limped into a 25 high wall of brier and a oak/mesquite thicket to a face off that by my watch was 15 minutes later and I had to put another round in the center of his chest at 50 feet when he charged me, and the final round when he stood back up at 25 feet and bristled again showeing his fight was not gone and I put one under his left eye...using Hornady 100 gr'ers. IMHO based on that experience ...the Roberts with 100gr'ers was not enough gun for effective body shots on a mid sized Texas feral hog. However....The Roberts is a Super little soft shooting rifle that would great for a young person or a small framed or recoil sensitive person as I was at the time coming out of rehab on white tails, antelope and head shots on hogs, but I wouldn't stretch it on elk.
I'd try to find a used Roberts for your girl to shoot and see if the rifle will group the available factory heavier bullets. Maybe my M70 had something about it that none of gunsmiths could find that caused the heavy bullets not to group well ...dunno, and maybe the new rifles today don't have that problem. That said, the other and probably better overall choice in a caliber suggestion I would give you for your deer hog & ELK scenario would be a 7x57...same low pressure/recoil ranges with a wide range of excellent factory ammo to choose from...and no danger that a favorite bullet weight will be discontinued any time soon. I was going to rebarrel my M70 Roberts to 7x57 untill I shot a friends 270 and realized I could handle the recoil without having to get back on the pain pills for my bum neck. Just my 2 cents worth for what it is worth.
Ron

Dave,
I have 3 rifles chambered in .257 roberts and they are a great deer caliber. You have heard folks say there are better but dead is dead and this caliber will do it. I have good friend in Riggins Idaho who uses a #1 Ruger in .257 Roberts for all of his hunting, including elk and it has never failed him. I would never list it's attributes under the heading of Elk Rifle, but would on most of our big game here.

There are plenty of loads you can get off the shelf and the +P loads work very well. I shoot 115 grain Noslers to very good velocities and excellent accuracy. I have used other rifles when deer hunting but I never needed to go to anything different than the .257 Roberts.

I say there Chic,

Good to see you again, old man. Some of us were beginin' t'think you'd run off with the babysitter or somethin'. Ahem, by any chance do y' ever consider a workin' restock instead of your usual works of art? The Perfect African Pair really need new wood once we get back from Africa but I'm terrible about bangin' things up and would hate to drop somethin' that looked like that .404 you did. Couldn't ever go huntin' with it again.

lubbockdave,
Buy the .257 Roberts and don't look back. You'll never be sorry. I've had one for over 30 years that has since been re-chambered to Ackley Improved however I have just started a project for my 13 year olds first centerfire. It's a 96 Swede that is going to be chambered for .257 Roberts. Before you 6.5 fans start screaming all I got was the action. There ain't a thing wrong with the 6.5X55 and had I gotten a complete rifle I would have left it alone. I have killed everything from prarie dogs to elk with the Roberts and never found it wanting if I did my part. It makes no difference how heavy a bullit is or how fast it is going when it misses. Get whatever you can handle and shoot with confidence and to answer your original question.....you bet I recommend it. Jim

Dave,



I love my 257 R and for anything the size of deer it ranks right up there with such great chamberings as the 270. My Dad never reloaded and he swears that his 257 was the best Deer rifle he ever owned. It is fabulous for that sort of thing. But in all honesty, if an all around rifle is what your looking for I would suggest a 7mm Mauser, which is practically the same thing but much better suited for the larger species because of bigger bullets available. It is still a low recoil proposition and well suited for deer as well.