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Cartridge Types with Declining Popularity

CJ6 said:
I have 3 of them and shoot at least 1 every month.
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Good!!!

But like the 250 Savage, you just don't hear that much about them in the general shooting public.

I can think of 5 people off the top of my head that have 7mm Rem Mag. (I have 2).
3 of the 5 have 30-06 also, along with 30-30.
I don't know of anyone with a 270.
 
I have a buddy who shoots a 30-06. He’s the only one I know of though. Another one I don’t hear of anyone around me hunting with or using is the 25-06.

To be honest, the first time I ever heard of the .222 was in this site. Maybe one day I’ll have one.
 
In my old age I find it amusing that the "wheel" keeps being reinvented. Yes, a lot of great old cartridges seem to be falling away, the 257 Roberts for example. Ditto the superb 222, 30-06, etc.

This is not surprising to me at all. The gun makers are good at marketing "super ballistic" new calibers which very few have the skill to realize benefit of but it nice to think so thus these new "hot rods" sale.

I mean how hard is it to take deer with proper shot placement and any caliber with the minimal required energy to cleanly fall a deer. The key is proper shot placement.

For the one-gun big game hunter who wants to hunt deer, black bear, Elk and Moose it's hard to imagine a better choice than the 30-06. My ex-boss was born and raised in Wyoming. Him and his entire extended family hunted extensively throughout the West. Their guns of choice, the 30-06 and 270 Win.
 
dgeesaman said:
I never loved the 243. It's a 6BR with ten grains of wasted powder (and less barrel life) Sorry to say that cartridge is truly obsolete.

David
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You're probably correct, the cartridge is headed for obsolesces. I won't attempt to defend the 243 Win except to say back in the mid 60's it was my first centerfire rifle; a Winchester Model 70 and I have shot the caliber for over 50+years even to this day.

Back then my family was of limited financial means so I could only have one centerfire rifle. Since I wanted to hunt eastern white tail, groundhogs and foxes (bounty on them back them), I choose the 243 Win. as a one-gun PA hunter. I installed a 3 x 9 Redfield scope on it. Its attraction back then was its low recoil and versatility to hunt deer and varmints/predators. It filled the need very effectively as I took a few deer, lots of groundhogs and several gray foxes. I never found it lacking. Could it still have value as such today for hunters on a budget?

It really started to shine once I started reloading. Eventually I found my way to the outstanding 85 Sierra Boat Tail Hollow Point bullet as my all-purpose bullet. Having one load / bullet for all your hunting has real advantages since you become very familiar with the capability of the system. Hunting varmints and predators is a great way to hone your deer hunting skills especially if you are using the same load. This bullet shoots like a match bullet with outstanding terminal performance.

The criticism regarding barrel life is valid if you shoot a lot of sustained fire. Thus, it is a poor choice for a target rifle even though David Tubb used it to win the High-Power Championship at Camp Perry and the National Silhouette Championship at Raton, New Mexico in 1993 albeit with a faster twist than the standard factory offering. As for me, I had well over 3,000 rounds though several and they still held sub 1 moa with tuned reloads but I used them strictly as a hunting rifles and range practice was restricted to cool/cold barrel shots because that is the "money" shot in hunting.

I opened with saying that I wasn't going to try and defend the 243 but I guess I did. I apologize. :rolleyes:
 
K22 said:
Can one purchase 6BR ammo at their local gun shop? Just curious.
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Lapua makes boxed 6BR Norma, but it’s mostly not in stock. If you count EuroOptic as a local gun shop then yes you can find it. I shot a box of it once when I got my first 6BRA and it shot quite well.

It is rash of me to claim the 6BR is obsoleting the 243 Win. For handloaders, maybe. For store bought options, I’d argue it’s Creedmoor doing far more rapid damage.
 
I think the shine has really wore off of the Remington Ultra Mags. The .300 and 7mm were all the rage 20 years ago. Does anyone even chamber them besides custom jobs?
 
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