I'm batting a thousand on deer using factory 120gr NP's.


J Scott

My 257 Wby is a little fussy on bullets. Best groups by far are with the Hornady 120 Gr Hp. I've taken several deer and antelope with it and have been very pleased with this bullet.

I've just started playing with mine, it seems like it's going to like factory Wby 120 NP's real well. If it does, I plan on sticking with those.

The 120 Hornady hollow point..........as previously noted.

It's a fine deer bullet.

Thanks jorge, Sounds like good info. So the good old 100 gr bullet will do the job. I load them up to factory spects also. I have shot deer with fast bullets before but none with the 257 yet.The fast bullets destroys some meat that I would not to eat so it trashed. But the 100 gr does it all with a shoulder shot. Good to no.

Switch that bullet to a 100 grain partition and I am sure you will save some more meat and have less meat damage.

It sure made a difference in my 260 which I shoot at 3350s fps at the muzzle. A balllistic tip at 300 yds, still wasted an entire shoulder on the far side of point of impact.

Dropped the deer before I lost sight picture in the scope because of recoil, it destroyed it that quick. Repeat that feat with a 100 grain Partition at close to the same range and this time no meat loss.

My second picks would be the 117 grain RN or the 120 grain Sierra HP if they are still making that one. ( after the partitions of course).

I am not necessarily a big partition fan, but in high velocity smaller bores, they sure hold up and don't destroy as much meat as any other bullet, if a good old round nose is not available.

Cheers and happy holidays
seafire

I would say that I am more of a meat hunter than a trophy hunter. I am also a nosler partition fan. I reload everything that I shoot, and typically eat every thing I shoot. Over the last five years I've probably shot twenty deer (axis, sika and whitetail) and over sixty hogs that weigh anywhere from 60 to 300 pounds. I shoot numerous calibers including 257 weatherby, 7-08, 7 mag, 308, 30-06, 300 ultra mag and 338 ultra mag to name a few. I've shot sierra in both spitzer and hollow point, nosler ballistic tip, partitions and accubonds, hornady sst's, and interbonds, Barnes xlc's and triple shocks. I've shot animals as close as 30 yards and as far as 590 yds. I want a bullet that will pass through an animal and leave a blood trail in case I have to track an animal. Ballistic tips and sst's are to frangible. Accubonds, tripleshocks and interbonds give great penetration but seem to do more damage to the meat than partitions. For my money the partitions give the penetration I want but do the least damage.



I typically like heavy for caliber bullets. I don't think you can go wrong with 120 gr. partitions in your 257 weatherby. In the last couple of years I have shot two large boar hogs with my 257 accumark, using the 120 grain partitions. One weighed approx 250 lbs and the other weighed right at 300 lbs. Shot one at approx 120 yds, the other at approx 175 yds. Shot the bigger boar head on, between the ear and shoulder. Shot the other broadside behind the ear. Dropped both like a bad habit, dead on the spot.

kTrout, I just recently came back from a boar hunt. I got a 200 LB boar with my 7mm mag. while he was running.Man that meat is delishous. Shot him with a Nosler Partition. 100 yd shot. I have a 338 Rem Ultra Mag also. I don't like barns Bullets they put to much copper in my barrel when shot,really heavy in my 416 Rem. So I don't use them. My 300 Win. I'm having a new barrel put on it, shot out two so far. So you think the 120gr bullet would be a better choice?

I am on the opposite end of most of these posts. I shoot light for caliber bullets in my 257 WM. I have used 75 gr X bullets in the past but now shoot 75 gr Vmax and 85 gr BT's at 3800 to 4000 fps. Frontal shots, neck shots, shots in the ribs behind the shoulder of Oklahoma whitetails(150 dressed) drops them in their tracks. Never lost one, never had one even walk away. No exit wounds and total devastation in the vital organs. These are just my experiences and what works for me....Shoot what you feel does the job for you...that you are confident in. Good luck and the 257WM is a great whitetail caliber.

jro45,

I've had the same problem with standard barnes bullets. I tried them in numerous rifles and calibers in the past. I never could get them to group consistantly. I had a 300 win mag in ruger #1 that shot the 165 gr. barnes XLC's (coated bullet) into less than an inch at 100 yds.
However, the new Barnes Triple Shocks seem to work fine. I've shot them in 7 X 57, 7-08, 7wsm, & 300 WSM. They consistantly group at 1" or better at 100 yds in my rifles.
Since the first of October I have shot two deer, three hogs and a Javelina with the 7-08 using 140 gr. barnes triple shocks. The axis deer I shot was a 185# buck. The buck was facing me at an angle when I shot him. The bullet broke his right front shoulder and I recovered it against the hide at the back of his left hind quarter. Thats over twenty inches of penetration. I did not recover the other bullets, as two of the hogs were shot behind the ear. The other hog and deer were shot behind the shoulder and the bullet passed through. The Barnes triple shocks are devastating. However I will probably go back to the partitions as they do not do as much meat damage.
As to your other question about bullet weights. I don't think you can go wrong with either 100, 115, or 120 grainers in .257 partitions. As to the thirty caliber, the way I read my reloading manual, the 180 grain .308 bullet delivers more foot pounds of energy than either the 165 or 200 grain bullet. Once again though, I don't think you can go wrong with partitions from 150 to 180 grain in your 300 winchester. If you reload, try several different bullets and load densities to see which one your rifle likes.
As an aside, I have found that the .308 165 gr. sierra Hollow point boat tail bullet shoots mighty fine in my 30 caliber rifles. This bullet has a hardened point and is not frangible like many hollow points. I've had excellent results in both my 308 and 300 wsm with this bullet, on hogs and deer, and it is very accurate.
Good luck and good shooting
kTrout

I have not used one for years, because it just jellys up the whole side of a deer and ruins a lot of meat....I would use the toughest and heaviest bullet I could find, but it is still going to bruise a lot of meat IMO....

AZ, I think you are right, I have one of those Vanguard 257 wby mags, and mine is very accurate. It is shooting factory 100 grain SP's , 100 gr TSX and 115 gr TSX handloads to the same point of impact. Groups are all under an inch with a 3x9x40 Leupold VX-II scope on it. I couldnt be happier with the rifle and it's accuracy. Weatherby did a wise thing releasing the 257 wby in a Vanguard, and I doubt the deer will know I have a 24 inch barrel.

I agree I don't think the deer will know the difference.I haven't shot mine thru a conagraph yet I've just been using what the load book says and my reloads go 100gr 3500 fps and 117gr 3300 fps and a little slower doesn't make any difference to the deer.