.25 wssm
Are rifles in this caliber hard to find? I only see two on the auction side. Also how does the recoil compare to a .243? I was thinking of getting one for the wife to use as deer/black bear gun. Any opinions on this round? Are they barrel burners like the .223 wssm?
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Not sure if anyone is currently making the super short mags. You can still find NIB 25 WSSMs as well as plenty of used ones. Performance is a little better than a 257 Roberts and maybe close to a 25-06. Recoil is about like the 257 Roberts. Chief advantage probably is that given the short action the overall rifle length is shorter than the typical 25-06 platform. Accuracy has been ok with the Model 70 I have in 25 WSSM. Suspect your wife will be just as happy with a 243 or 257 or may even a 7mm08 and when you're ready to sell it you'll probably have more value than with the 25 WSSM. Ammo will be easier to find too with the conventional calibers. I had to try one but wouldn't go out of my way to get another one. The 223 WSSM isn't really any more of a barrel burner than is a 22-250 or 220 Swift. You do have to keep them clean though to hold accuracy; really clean!
Edit: And on the 223 WSSM the light barrel configurations heat up very quickly. My Browning Stainless Stalker is pretty hot after three or four shots and groups deteriorate rapidly.0 -
It would be hard to beat the .257 Bob for light recoil and a cartridge that will get the job done out to about 250 yards. My favorite and the one I most often carry. 0 -
I currently have a Winchester Model 70 Classic, Ultimate Shadow in 25 WSSM. It has a very thin barrel, and it heats fast. It was a POS out of the box, but with some TLC, I have transformed it into one of my favorate deer rifles. By TLC, I pillar bedded the action, lapped the barrel, bedded the scope bases, free floated the barrel, and adjusted the trigger to my liking. This was one of the last model 70's to leave New Haven. It will shoot consistantly under MOA with the 110 gr Accubond factory loads.
The Browning A-Bolts are a little better out of the box.
I am betting that the ammunition will get to be obsolete with the WSSM's as there is no one currently chambering for them.
I also have another light rifle favorate deer/black bear rifle, and that is a 260 Remington. That is in a Browning A-Bolt II SS. That cartridge is just something else. It has a 308 winchester case necked down to handle the 6.5 MM bullets. It hits the shoulder like a 243, and hits at 400-500 yards, harder than a 308. Does that all while shooting as flat as a 270. I do believe that the 260 remington will be around for a while.
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Hollywood,
All of the Ganders here in Minnesota that I've seen have 25WSSM's on sale trying to get them out the door. Both Cabela's (Rogers, Owatonna) have a couple that they can't seem to sell. The Gunstop had a .25 WSSM and a .223 WSSM. They wanted a little more than I would be willing to pay though.
As far as calibers go I think this is about the best of the WSSM's. It's not really a barrel burner. And if you reload you can make it a non-barrel burner and very accurate target rifle. One thing I will tell you about the WSSM's cases in general when reloading is when they get to top pressure they GET THERE! Meaning half a grains difference between loads can mean the difference between tight groups and blown primers. With no pressure signs in between. I suggest working up in this caliber in .2 gr. and .1 gr when near the top. As far as it being a good wife/kid/recoil sensitive rifle, I think it's a good choice. I would personally also consider a .257 Rob., .243 Win, or .260. Even the 7mm-08 if you watch bullet choices with light rifles. I very much like the 25 WSSM, but I'm not sure how long it's going to hang around.
There has been a flurry of cartridge and bullet improvement in the last fifteen years that the general shooting public has been privy to. The problem is people look at rifles as a forever choice and not a whole lot of people like to buy more than one if they can help it. Again, this is kind of counter productive to what is needed when a firearm is chosen. Both to the individual and the industry. But, I hear it all the time "...If you had one rifle to choose from...". Well, it doesn't need to be that way and we the consumers decide that more than one can fill niches better than jamming one into many, we might well be better off.0 -
I agree with the above comments, but have never had a WSSM.
However, one thought that I might add is that, I have heard that sometimes the short, very stocky cartridges feed less smoothly, because of the sharp angles as they move over the magazine, loading ramp in the rifle, etc.
Accordingly, I would suggest that you test drive the rifle, with your wife doing the test driving. It seems that these short, stubby, fat cartridges sometimes need a pretty sharp bump on the bolt to get them to feed. This may not be a good feature for your spouse.0 -
I have a browning A-bolt II in 25wssm. Nice rifle to carry for deer hunting, never had a feed problem at range or hunting. Can't say that about my 204. It is touchy on what it likes to shoot well, and the sweet spot on powder load seems small. Its fun to load and shoot though, the barrel is a little thin, even for a hunting rifle. At the range after a 3 shot group I let it cool a while.
If I had to do it again I would have bought a Tikka in 260. But I still can[:)]! I still hunt with my gramp's 99's in 250 and 300 Savage. I still think of re-barreling to a 6.5 Heaton but I'm rambling now.
To sum up, I'd go 260 Rem ahead of the 25wssm. But you couldn't go wrong with 257 Roberts, 243, 7mm-08, or even the 250 Savage0 -
Love mine! - it's a browning action with model 70 coyote barrel ( threads were recut to fit the action) it shoots inside 1/2 inch all day with 85 gr or 100 gr. but...... I worry about ammo and have been stocking up on brass ( I also have a 223 wssm) as I beleive factory ammo will not be around much longer. Joe 0
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