25-06 v 260

[TPCKRT]

Out of curiosity where do people stand on this.

[boyou]

What's your quarry?

As a rule of thumb I'd say 25-06 as a hard hitting varmint cartridge.

260.... I'd rather have a .308

[Monty]

I must say, I can't really find a place for the .260

Overkill for varmints, and under powered for larger game.

25-06 for the critters and like boyou said, I'd be looking to take it up to a .270 min if going for boar, deer and larger animals.

Better yet 7mm-08 or .308 for larger game.

[SendIt]

I must say, I can't really find a place for the .260

Very popular cartridge for Whitetail in the states.

Less relevant here though due to laws and the size of our breeds.

[AusC]

Out of curiosity where do people stand on this.

What kind of targets you thinking? What weight pills needed?

[Hardcast]

I just ( this very day) did some reading on the .260, and am of the opinion that it doesn't hold much if anything over the old 6.5x55 Swede.

If you're looking for something in that size, then look closely at the 6.5 Swede.

Grab yourself a book like 'Cartridges of the world' or an old SPEER reloading book (it shows ballistics and bullet drop at 300 yds, with a 200 yd zero), even Nick Harveys reloading book which shows the maximum 2" point blank zero, and compare the real life statistics of your favourites. The Swede compares very favorably with them both.

I had a lovely Factory Carl Gustaff left handed Sporter in 25.06 and with 90/100 grners, was a very flat shooter, and was a great Goat, Fallow Deer rifle out to 300 + yds. With 120 Sierras, it was devistating, but no better than the 6.5 that had less recoil. The 25.06 is not known for it's abillity to shoot much heavier than 120 gn. where the .260 and 6.5x55 will most certainly.

So in my humble opinion, ............ buy what you want, they're all good.

[TPCKRT]

ive got no real target. im just after an mid way calibre. something nice to fill the void between my 204 and 300wm.
25-06 has a good write up in the sporting shooter mag, but ive also read good things about the 260 also. im looking at. bullet weights between 75-120gr

[brand]

.243 win?

I see you're in VIC. With .243 you'd still have in legal calibre for us for a few deer if you came across the right ones.

[TPCKRT]

the 25-06 is legal aswell. i had a 243 awhile back.

[Chickenhawk]

If Deer Legal is a factor and you're considering .260 you might as well go up to .270 and be legal for all breeds.

Still a middle ground between your .204 and 300 win mag.

[dayzmagnumhunter]

I love to 260 rem I use it on all sorts of game
including ..
fox
feral cat
goat
pig
deer
and for fun even the odd rabbit
It can be a all round calibre if you load it right. for varmints I load mine with 100gr projectiles and for deer I use 130gr projectiles.

the 25-06 is also a good calibre it shoots a bit flatter than the 260rem and has a bit more powder in it than the 260rem.
but my choice is the 260 rem

[yoshie]

"just ( this very day) did some reading on the .260, and am of the opinion that it doesn't hold much if anything over the old 6.5x55 Swede.

If you're looking for something in that size, then look closely at the 6.5 Swede"

The Swede is an intermediate cartridge and won't fit in I standard length action, if you were looking to rebarrel a 308 you couldn't do a 6.5x55 and yes the Swede is balistically equal to the 260 if you load the 6.5x55 to 260 pressures it will slightly exceed the 260.

[tiki]

but my choice is the 260 rem

My Savage is chambered in .260 too and it's my favourite

[yoshie]

but my choice is the 260 rem

My Savage is chambered in .260 too and it's my favourite

Me too, it's a great caliber. I've been using 120 grain Speer hotcores, what's everyone else using?

Whats the availability of .25 cal bullets like?? Are they mainly hunting or target??

[MeccaOz]

I was looking for a mid size cartridge recently myself. I love the 25/06 over the .243, but the .243 holds the edge in barrel life. The 7mm-08 is also a cartridge I love but with ammo availability you may as well go the .308 which is kinda the upper end of the mid sizes IMO. In the end Ive decided on a 308, great barrel life, great ammo availability, lots of info out there, and if you load it right you get a rifle that will do pretty much anything you want. If you want to shoot bunnies, get a ,22 or a .223 if you want to shoot buffalo get a .375 H&H anything in between a properly loaded .308 is a great all rounder .... Just my 2c

[Vati]

Not that I have a 7mm-08 but my locals always seem to have 7mm ballistic tips in stock.

As far as brass goes you can always buy .308 brass which is readily available and neck down to 7mm easily.

Stock up on bullets for it when you see them and ammo availability for it shouldn't be much of an issue.

[1sikxt]

Iv got a 260 and love it it split the different between my 222 and 30-06 nice best 5 shot group so far is .45 at 100m using hornady match ammo and I'm a hack shot

[wheedle]

Not that I have a 7mm-08 but my locals always seem to have 7mm ballistic tips in stock.

Ditto.

Seems to be about the only thing they stock in it actually... In 7mm that is.

At least they're good bullets I suppose.

[teekay0]

I've shot a 25-06 and .257 before, both great mid size cals for small to med game and bigger game with the right shots.

But I shoot a .260 Rem now, and wow! Best groups so far are 0.215" at 100m with Berger 140VLD, 0.240" with 140SST and 0.280" with 139gr Lapua.

Now every .260 Rem I know of shoots well.

But we owe that to the Father case "308" which in my opinion the 260 Rem out shoots and has all accuracy of its little sister the .243W

I use 100grers for small game like dogs and foxes and 120, 130 , 140 and 160 for the rest.

.260 Rem rules.

tk0

[Aster]

.260 seems like a bit of a rising star at the moment.

More than a few guys here picking them up lately.

[billy-jingo]

I have a 204 and a 300wm. My middle gun is a 25-06, can't recommend it high enough! It's my goto gun for all hunting except sambar and big game of the north. Never used a 260 so can't comment on it.

[yoshie]

I've found the penetration of my 260 is better than a 308 and recoils less. It's trajectory is quite flat.

And bullet selection is quite good, target and hunting. I've been using it hunting, fallow, pigs and dogs with Speer 120s and Barnes 120s and it's work great. I think it would be good on red deer as well.

Field rifle, Fly and sporter weight benchrest, Sierra 140s and Lapua 145s, are pretty good. I do need to push the 145s to stabilise tho.

I can hit a Fclass target 5 out of 5 at 700m. I think it's a great calibre

[tucked]

I've found the penetration of my 260 is better than a 308

Less energy expanding the bullet on impact I guess.

Not that it matters, whatever does the job