I was reading through some old posts about which cartridges are popular and why. Some comments like, "the 308 will never outsell the 30/06" and "the 7mm-08 is a fine round for women and children", are stated and ammo availability is used as a criteria for popularity.
The truth as I see it is this.
The 7mm-08 is wildly popular here in the east. Rifles in this caliber seem to go off the shelves fast. It's one of the calibers that you have to hunt for. It outsells every other 7mm out there. The close second is the 7mm Mag, but once people shoot one and realize the trouble nimrod shooters have with a big kicker, the 7mm-08 is usually their next trade. The 280 is not as popular as it should be. Only the true gun guys are aware of it's capability. Most aren't even sure what it is. With so little difference between it and the 7mm-08 and .270&30/06, it's got a hard act to follow, but it deserves way more attention as it's the best of the long action standard calibers, in my book.
The 260, shares the same fate problems as the .280. A lot of people have never seen or heard of one, and if they have they usually don't know what it is. Most have no idea that the .260 is close to the 25/06,and 6.5X55 and it's killing power is all out of proportion to it's diminutive presence. This is big medicine for whitetails and even bigger. I can't imagine why people think the 7-08 and 260 are "good for women and children", heck they're good for ANYONE who hunts. Most of the hunters I've seen aren't that great of a shot, and would do better with less recoil and more concentration. The reason some of the old standbys, like the 308, 270 and 30/06 outsell some of the newer cartridges is availability. If you go to the gun shop you're a lot more likely to find one of those than a 7-08 or .260. If buyers had a choice they'd pick some of the others, but you buy what you can find. A lot of times if you find one of these calibers, it's in a rifle you don't like, a fact of numbers and availability again. Another wonderment is why Ruger hasn't seen fit to chamber it's standard 77R in 7-08 or 260?? The stainless version is chambered in .260, which is good, but what about 7-08?
So I believe there are a lot of factors in why certain calibers are popular and others aren't. Gun makers are reluctant to put out rifles that aren't hot sellers, but it takes time to turn the tide away from the old standbys. My goodness it's only a reamer that makes the difference !!! I'll bet you one thing, if the .280, .260, and 7mm-08 had been touted and advertised and gun writers paid off to spout their praises like they did the short mags, we'd definitely have seen a lot more of them. These "reasonable" calibers will remain, because after the smoke clears, and the muzzle blast dies off, they are eaier to shoot well and do the job, with less powder.

quote:

I'll bet you one thing, if the .280, .260, and 7mm-08 had been touted and advertised and gun writers paid off to spout their praises like they did the short mags, we'd definitely have seen a lot more of them.

You got that right. roger

Bobby,
As you put it , only the true gun guys...., the negative will wear off and reality will sink in and they will come back to what has been proven time and time again, it is the individual pulling the trigger.
The other thing is it is hard turn the ship that is heading only to one port. Most of these people have listened to thier Grandpa's and Uncle's boast about "It is the only gun you will ever need" or like I heard "That little .243 is way to small to be using on deer." Ya well who's hanging meat and who aint. I do have to say though, my go to rifle is a 7mmRM just for the possibility of have to reach out a slap an animal out to around 300+ yards.
I just picked up a Tikka T3 in 25-06, another round that is not talked about much. It was a toss up between that and the Savage American Classic in 7mm-08. (that will be the next one if it fits me well) Haven't looked at the .260 yet but I do like the 7mm-08's looks for reloading versatility.

Smedley

Sometimes I really think we give to much credit to writers for selling certain cartridges. I agree most shooters with any amount of shooting experience tend to revert back, if they ever strayed from, to things that have worked for them and others in the past. If I had to pick two fairly new big game hunting rounds that became very popular, and continue to be so, in my neck of the woods it would probably be the 7mm Rem Mag and the 300 Win Mag. I suppose you could give Warren Page a certain amount of credit for the 7mm Mag but am hard pressed to know who should get credit for the 300 WM.

Truth be known it is pretty hard to beat the 257, 270, 7X57, 30-06, and the 375 at the high end for most if not all practical hunting purposes. Others have made certain inroads in special niches, the 30-30 and the 35 Rem come to mind, but few have been widely successful in IMHO. I really don't expect this trend to change even though I might like it to. I also have to freely admit I am part of the problem in helping this change come about and I know I have lots of company. I like "Classic Cartridges" because they work.

The 7mm-08 has taken off in New Zealand. I'm told by blokes in the gun trade that it is out selling all other calibres. The 260 is liked by, in my experience, older hunters who know about guns, cartridges and reloading and understand what a good round it is.
The New Zealand hunter is a canny fellow who sees little point in buying a rifle in 260 when its factory ammo is more expensive than the 7mm-08. Were Remington to charge the same price for 260 as the 7mm-08 ammunition then I think the 260 would be more popular.
One can't help thinking that Remington did not want the 260 to be popular.

I may have spoken too soon about Ruger, I just looked over their website and they now offer the stainless/syn version of the standard weight action in 260 and 7mm-08. Thank goodness their listening to us. I thought they should have been in the lineup all along.

And of course for us lefty's the only rifles in blue or stainless are the 25.06, 270, 30.07, 7 mag and 300 mag.

Yawn !!

As much as I'd like to blame the press for a lot of the calibre woes, it really is our own fault. Everyone wants to believe advertisers in that the new really is improved, but deep down we gun nuts are a suspicious lot, afterall it only took 100 years for us in North America to appreciate the virtues of 26 calibre.

With the lessons of the ill-fated 256 Newton behind us, Winchester still didn't understand the 6.5 as they tried to drive 160 grain bullets super fast with a twist that was marginal. Results were disappointing, but that still didn't kill the 6.5 in North America.

The way I see it, we've lost sight of the fact that those pencil shaped 6.5 bullets possess great sectional density and don't have to be driven ultra fast to work. With all that has happened to it, it's no wonder why 6.5 calibre wasn't popular from its introduction, but a sweet little surplus mauser in the form of the M-38 fixed that.

If I've learned anything about guns in the last thirty years, it's that what's old becomes new again, and new and improved isn't always what it's cracked up to be.

My 2 "go to" rifles are an Encore in 7MM08 and a Rem. mod 7 in 260. Here in the adirondacks they make perfect sense and as I reload all my own shells, one is as cheap to load as the other.
Rick

I like the 30/06 for deer and I like the 270 for deer and also the 257 and posibly the 22-250
All these rifles can do the job. But you don't here to much about the 22-250. Maybe because its a small 22 caliber. Some states it leagle.

Right on Bobby!!!

I'll take one of those "GIRL GUNS" anyday!!

Love your comment about paying off the gunwriters! I happen to really like both the 7mm-08 and the .260, have five of them altogether, and all are sweet shooters, plus they kill deer dead, period. I really think the new "short rounds" were made to market ammo and components, cause you sure cannot make them out of existing brass, and I do not see them bringing much new to the table, except possibly for the .325 Mag. Oh well, just my opinion. I like 80-100 year old cartridges anyway.
LLS
Mannlicher Collector

Here Here! As i have said before we are not trying to knock game down, just drill a reasonable wound channel through them. With 140 and 160 gr 6.5 and 7mm bullets, this can be accompliched with less than 50 grs of powder all the way out to 400 yards on any NA game short of the great bears.

Some random thoughts;

The reason that 7mm08 it so popular in the east is that it is available in compact rifles such as the Rem. mod 7. These have replaced the lever action 30-30 as the eastern woods gun of choice.

The reason for the frenzy of short action cartriges is that that the base of gun buyers, at least for hunting rifles, is not expanding. Without new hunters to sell to, the manufacturers need to convince existing hunters to replace their existing guns. Getting you to repace your 30-06/270/300 win mag with another 30-06/270/300 WM is a hard sell. The alternative is to convince you that you have to have the latest and greatest caliber. The reality is that the short action calibers are an ingenious solution to a nonexistant problem, from the perspective of the hunter or the prey that is.
Just my 2 cents worth.

TerryR