.257 Roberts LOUD!!!

[ADKTIM]

OK All Here's question. I recently aquired a Kimber 84M in 257 Roberts. Before getting the rifle i researched it and found that some shooters were having problems with accuracy sitting the whippy barrel and the lack of versatility in setting depth due to the magazine length. After receiving the rifle i was amazed by how light it was and the fit and finish was very impressive. The previous owner also supplied all documents with the rifle and one thing in particular indicated the rifle was shipped back to Kimber with accuracy concerns. My first hand load was a winner right off the bat. 80 grain Barnes TTSX the recommended top load from barnes, using H380 and Fed Mag primers. The rifle was topped with an old Leupold 16X for load development. first shots out were 3/4 and 5/8 3 shot groups, No pressure signs, all OK. i let the rifle cool for 30 min and the next group was 1 inch. I put the rifle away and my next trip to the range produced 3/4 1 1/8 1 inch 3 shot groups. OK looks like i have a winner.
I mount a Leupold 2-8 on it and give it a good cleaning. (I never cleaned when i received the rifle). Nothing earth shattering in the fowling department, only a slight amount of copper. Go to the range sight in the new scope all's great, good groups. NOW THE THING ......This gun is loud I mean real loud Louder the the 257 W'BY I had. I need ear plugs and muffs to comfortably shoot this thing at the range. Can any one give me a good reason why this thing booms? I have a model 600 Rem 243 that is not as loud........Thanks for looking.

 

[STOMP442]

Whats the barrel length?

 

[Kurz]

Whats the barrel length?

That will be part of the clue.

This emphasis on smaller, lighter rifles is forcing the makers to use shorter barrels with lighter contours. The contours has no bearing but shorter barrels and ball powders like H-380 make for a poor combination. Your load creates a bunch of plasma, super heated gases, which does not have enough barrel length to cool off so the report is bigger, louder. Worse is that the H-380 is not even all burning in your barrel. You need a slightly faster powder such as VVN-135 to control some of this problem.

 

[xswanted]

22” barrel and a fair amount of powder is why it’s loud. I have the same rifle. Mine shoots 87 TNTs very well and 100 grain TSX pretty decent.

Great rifle.

 

[ADKTIM]

Thanks for the replies. I was never a lover of ball powder, but after hearing such dismal testimonials about the model 84 and the 257 Roberts, I thought the stars had alined and i stumbled on some magic combination. Perhaps some more load development. Thanks again

 

[Stickler]

Don't fret too much... shooting without hearing protection will eventually quiet down the rifle's bark

 

[ADKTIM]

Say Again

 

[Ackman]

Don't fret too much... shooting without hearing protection will eventually quiet down the rifle's bark

Except it hurts like hell getting there.

 

[Kurz]

Before getting the rifle i researched it and found that some shooters were having problems with accuracy sitting the whippy barrel and the lack of versatility in setting depth due to the magazine length.

This necessarily is that same drawback to the drive for lighter rifles. Smaller and now shorter contours creating those 'whippy' barrels. We should never be deterred by these features but learn how to minimize the problems brought on by them.

Take the barreled action out of the stock to examine the bedding (if applied) and whether or not there are any places where it contacts the stock.

From the Kimber website:

Accuracy is ensured by the match grade barrel, chamber and trigger, along with pillar bedding on all models and glass bedding on rifles in big game calibers.

This does not imply that their bedding or pillars are sufficient for you. It might behoove you to remove the bedding and have it done professionally or even consider using a tiny bit of upward pressure using a pressure point at the front of the forearm.

Seating depth is a fixed dimension because you either make use of the magazine and it's given length or choose to make it a single shot. A very cursory search yielded no dimensional information for the magazine interior. One comment regarding the magazine by Kimber stated that it was minimized for the.308 cartridge.

 

[ADKTIM]

I Personally have no problem with this rifles accuracy, I shoots like a dream. But before i received the rifle i researched it and many of the comments were very negative. Not one to let some one else's comments deter me i got the rifle..... and love it. I checked the action screws, 65 lbs as per Kimber. stock was free floating with a little forend tip contact. I usually will remove that and load develop with a totally FF barrel ( if no good i can add some marine tex and replace the contact) I do generally like to seat my bullets .005-.010 off the rifling but when i "jammed" this one .040 off. I expected the worst But this rifle shot good right off the bat. BUT LOUD with the most accurate load tested. Barnes 80 gr TTSX and 47 gr of H380 and Fed Mag primers. Your previous comments enticed me to continue with further load development. SO.....I loaded H380 with a 100 gr bullet hopping more powder will burn in the barrel and reduce blast? I had poor luck with IMR4350 So i'm excluding at this time. i'm also trying RE19 with both the 80 and 100 grain bullet. I could not find load data for VVn135 If you have a personal recipe or could point me in the right direction I'll give it a whirl. I hope to get to the range soon and i'll give an up date.
Thanks for the help....and hearing related humor. But no joke..... When i was chronoing this beast the blast blew off the first sky screen.... 10 ft away.... no damage but WOW.

 

[shoot4fun]

My 84M Hunter in 257 Roberts was, to say the least, a disappointment. The 115-117 grain bullets I wanted for deer hunting had to be seated so deep the case capacity was greatly limited and the accuracy was just so-so. As it was meant to be strictly a deer hunting rifle and (hopefully) all shots were to be one-shot kills the accuracy wasn't a deal killer. In fact, I did harvest one fairly nice buck with it. The deal killer was ejection problems. I sent the rifle back to Kimber and they said they fixed it but it never really did eject with complete reliability. I sold it and, luckily, finally found what I wanted in the beginning. I now have a beautiful red-pad and NIB (with box and papers) Ruger No.1 in 257 Roberts.

 

[ADKTIM]

I have the same rifle. The accuracy was not that great. I fit an Hicks Accurizer, tuned the barrel and WALA ...great shooter. But she was quite hefty and i like to walk when hunting. The 84m with a Leupold 2-8 and mounts comes in at 7.1 Lbs. But i do love the Number one's and with Ruger chambering it in many of the old classic rounds over the years it gives nostalgia junkies something to smile about. Are you shooting the rifle or is it a collector?

 

[DocCoffee]

If you just want a shooting/varmint load try 75HP's and IMR4064 with a standard primer, I use CCI200. Start 40gr, work up to 42. Somewhere in there they will likely be a sweet spot.
Kevin

 

[edwardware]

My first hand load was a winner right off the bat. 80 grain Barnes TTSX. . . OK looks like i have a winner.
NOW THE THING ......This gun is loud.

Sounds like a light bullet on a big case with a short tube.

My impression is that Kimber's rifles have a higher dissatisfaction rate than they deserve because shooting light rifles is much more difficult and technique-sensitive than people expect. I'm glad you've got yours dialed in.

 

[Knotwild]

Based solely on my experience, Kimber advertises quality, but cuts corners, i.e. plastic main spring housing on 1911's. I used two own a .22 hornet that I shot the barrel out TWICE!, with less than 400 rounds! To their credit, they replaced the barrel twice. But my gunsmith kept a piece of the barrel and gave it to a friend of his that worked for the government. Test came back the steel was of the type used for rim fire barrels.

But, maybe things are much better with them now.

 

[rogn]

Just a thought, you had good accuracy with the Barnes X family bullet which is best loaded with a o.o60" jump. One of the other type bullets that like to jump are the Berger types especially the hybrids. I assume they are available in 25 caliber.

 

[shoot4fun]

I have the same rifle. The accuracy was not that great. I fit an Hicks Accurizer, tuned the barrel and WALA ...great shooter. But she was quite hefty and i like to walk when hunting. The 84m with a Leupold 2-8 and mounts comes in at 7.1 Lbs. But i do love the Number one's and with Ruger chambering it in many of the old classic rounds over the years it gives nostalgia junkies something to smile about. Are you shooting the rifle or is it a collector?

Mine is minute of deer. I mounted a Vortex PST FFP 2.5-10 with Mrad adjustment and zeroed it in. I took it to a stand once but that may be the extent of it being out of the safe. That said, I really don't collect guns; I shoot them.

 

[ADKTIM]

Mine is minute of deer. I mounted a Vortex PST FFP 2.5-10 with Mrad adjustment and zeroed it in. I took it to a stand once but that may be the extent of it being out of the safe. That said, I really don't collect guns; I shoot them.

YES SIR.....That's what they were designed to do

 

[ADKTIM]

Just a thought, you had good accuracy with the Barnes X family bullet which is best loaded with a o.o60" jump. One of the other type bullets that like to jump are the Berger types especially the hybrids. I assume they are available in 25 caliber.

Rogn,
Thanks for the heads up. I was not aware that those bullets benefited with such a long jump. That might put in perspective the success i'm having with that barnes bullet.

 

[NC308]

I have a 25-05 with a 22” barrel. Talk about a lot of muzzle blast and loud!! A lot of powder down a short tube will be a lot louder.