Is it blasphemy to rechamber my Ruger #1, 7x57 to .280 Rem? I have a couple of other rifles in .280 and would really like to keep things simple with ammo selection. I am a hunter and shooter, not a collector. What do you think?

Yes,
and the neck of the 7X57 may be larger leaving an ugly step on the cases that can crack.

7x65R!

quote:

Originally posted by The Slug:
Is it blasphemy to rechamber my Ruger #1, 7x57 to .280 Rem?

Yes

quote:

I have a couple of other rifles in .280 and would really like to keep things simple with ammo selection. I am a hunter and shooter, not a collector. What do you think?

Good point. Sell the 280s or have them rebarreled to 7x57. Problem solved.

Well, you could really move to the Darkside and just rebarrel them all to something practical like the .270 or the .30/06 ...

i too second the 7 x 65r after you shoot that you will get rid of those oddball 280's and stick with a world class caliber

i think those rugers are more "classy" with a rimmed round...

Don't do it.

I'm seeing opinions without solid reasons. I'm not a reloader so the cases being damaged won't bother me. Why the negative opinions on the .280? Why is the .270 more practical than the .280?

actually the 280 is a better round than the .270 mainly due to a better selection of bullet weights.If you reloaded there would be little difference in the 7x57 and .280.Its your rifle do whatever you want.w/regards

If you're not a reloader, then IXNAY on the 7x65R...go to 280 if you must...but the 7x57 is a most excellent round!

quote:

Why is the .270 more practical than the .280?

The 270 is better if only because there are many more choices in factory ammo sold in many more places. The 270 does the same work (and all the work most fellas need done) as the 280/7mm Express/7x64 until you go heavier than 150 grains. I daresay the only more generally useful and widely available cartridge is the venerable 30'06

I wouldn't put another dollar into a Ruger.

Sell it and buy a #1 in .280.

George

I've got a #1B in .280 already. And a '98 Mauser, an H&R Ultra, and a Remington Mountain Rifle. No other rifles in 7x57.

quote:

Originally posted by ACRecurve:
7x65R!

Wholeheartedly agree. Have one which now has 6 elk to its credit. Is my favorite.

It won't do anything my other 7's won't do, but it seems to do it more smoothly, with less fuss, easier to throw loaded rounds into and get them out of. Also easier to securely hold a couple of extra rounds between the fingers without having them slip out, when manipulating the gun rapidly (because of rims). Plus, H-Mantle bullets are factory-loaded by RWS and are great game killers (for factory ammo).

I've got 7x57, .280, 7 m/m Rem Mag, 7 Wby., and a couple of others. Would take the 7x65-R all over again if I had to choose between them all.


P.S., another thought for you. As you are talking a Ruger #1, one properly done extractor will work without alteration for both rimmed and rimless rounds. That being the case (pun intended), you could just get the back of the chamber cut to take 7x57-R ammo. Then you could use either rimmed or rimless rounds in it, at your pleasure. (YES, that's safe. I do it all the time with my 9.5x57 Ruger #1.)

Slug,

Just a question about your .280 H&R, how does it shoot? I have an H&R that I was thinking of buying a .280 barrel for. I enjoy shooting mine in .223 but would like a larger cartridge for bigger game.

taylorce1,

It shoots better than I can, about an inch or so at 100 yards with Winchester Silvertips. I use it for hunting in bad weather but it would definitely do the trick just about any where, any time.

Here's an analogy --

I have about five gallons of ice cream in the freezer. Most of it is plain vanilla except for one gallon which is some other really great flavor.

You think I should trade the great flavor at some considerable expense for another gallon of vanilla so that all the ice cream in the freezer matches?

I have heaps of chocolate sauce, and I don't make my own ice cream.

My $0.02, but then I have duplicate calibers, and different calibers, and I reload. 8mm Mauser and 30-06 take some paying attention to ensure the ammo/brass doesn't get mixed up. So far no problems, not even a "close call."

I have picked up a lot of 40 S&W brass thinking it was 45 ACP.

Save your money and buy another rifle.

The .280 is a fantastic hunting round but it does not have the history, class, or romance of the 7x57. The 7x57 in a Ruger #1 is a very classy and efficient hunting combination. I wouldn't do it.

I also like the romance of the old 7x57 but your right esthetics arn't eveything and practicality makes life easier.

A word of warning. A freind of mine rechambered a 7x57 to 280 and at the first shot the rifle exploded and he lost his left thumb.

of course this rifle had a very slinder barrel and I'm not saying this would happen with all barrels. I would be concerned with the #1A not because they have a super light barrel but the screw holes for the rib are very deep on the #1.

Okay, you guys have scared me enough to decide I'm going to leave it alone. I bought 3 different boxes of loads today so I can figure out which one shoots best in my gun.

quote:

Originally posted by The Slug:
I'm seeing opinions without solid reasons. I'm not a reloader so the cases being damaged won't bother me. Why the negative opinions on the .280? Why is the .270 more practical than the .280?

I see no reason NOT to do it. Aside from the possible difficulties of finding .280 ammo in the boonies, (and the fact that the .280 is sadly UNDERLOADED by the factories), it is an excellent round. With a proper handload using a 175-grain Nosler Partition bullet at 2800+ FPS MV, it will perform as well as a .30/'06, and beat both the 7X57mm AND the .270 Win.

(The way the eractor works on the No.1, I believe a No. 1 could be chambered for the 7X65R, and still be able to handle the rimless 7X64 case as well, so either the rimmed or the rimless round ould be fired in it interchangeably - an experiment I'd like to try!

It could even be done with a .30/06, if one made a rimmed version of the .30/06 case from 7X65R brass.......

quote:

Originally posted by ACRecurve:
7x65R!

Has according to my knowledge a sligtly more narrow base diameter, thus will not lend it self to a straight forward rechamber jobb, one will have to pull the barrel and do an all out retread and rechamber job.

However if that is done then you have a round that will reach out and touch everything that you will whant to hunt with a 7mm bullet.

Best regards Chris

I like the .280. I would rechamber if it is straght foreward and I wanted to. I would re-barrel If it was not so easy. Or I might leave it as it was and just use it as an excuse to have another bunch of amunition, and reloading dies to sit around. If I really wanted to simplify things, I would sell all but one rifle and all of my other junk and get a divorce. But I don't really want to.
Judge Sharpe