Who likes the 7X57

[IvW]

Who does not has never used one or seen it in action....
Brilliant caliber

 

[PARA45]

I own a Ruger No in 275 Rigby, that I bought from Ses. Planning on hunting deer with this rifle this season.

 

[Clodo Ferreira]

My rifle

 

[xausa]

You got rid of an Al Biesen 7x57 .......................... ....................... because it was a little bit long ..................... !

I bought the rifle without ever having it in my hands first. I am sure that Al Biesen's name played an important role in my decision to buy it in the first place.

However, once I had it in my hands, I concluded that the rifle barrel is too long, the fore end is too long and the overall length is too great. Rather than alter it to fit my concept of how a rifle should look and feel, I passed it on to someone who feels differently. If that is a crime, I willingly plead guilty.

 

[Trail Rated]

I recently picked up my second old Mauser in 7x57. I love that round for deer & hogs.

 

[xausa]

You got rid of an Al Biesen 7x57 .......................... ....................... because it was a little bit long ..................... !

I bought the rifle without having handled it. When I did have that opportunity, I concluded that the barrel was too long to suit my needs, the fore end was too long and the over all length of the rifle was too great. I decided that rather than modify an original Biesen creation, I would pass it on to someone who feels differently. My tastes have changed over the 60 odd years that I have owned guns and what I once thought normal, I now find objectionable. If that is a crime, then I willingly plead guilty

 

[Witold Krzyżanowski]

I agree, its a fine cartridge.

+1

 

[CJW]

I picked up a sporterized Chilean a number of years ago for cheap. While I haven't killed anything with it, I do love shooting it because of that mild recoil. I would use it on game up to kudu without a second thought. Maybe eland if I were shooting 175's and the shot was good.

 

[NE 7x57]

Yes I like the 7x57. I have two, both Ruger #1s.

 

[nztimb]

A 1908 I did a lot of the work on during the build. It loved the 160gn Woodleigh PP at 2700fps and a 160gn soft nosed, hard shanked (bore riding) cast bullet at 2400fps that killed a lot of goats

 

[Wyatt Smith]

I love that butt plate @Von Gruff

 

[nztimb]

I love that butt plate @Von Gruff

Easy to do Wyatt. Scribe some lines, drill holes and clean up the edges, then set over end of butt.

 

[Tgood1]

You have a tendency to make many things seem easy. I second it that the buttplate is unique and fantastic

 

[Ray B]

I like the 7x57 but find I have more use for it when it's necked down to .257.

 

[Longwalker]

I like the 7x57 very much. I have three, a Brno 22F carbine and two others for the rimmed version, a Krieghoff drilling and a Merkel O/U combination ( BBF) both also equipped with 16 ga. barrels. The 7x57 matches perfectly with the 16 ga. - both very capable cartridges for hunting a wide range of species, both becoming somewhat obsolete, both perfectly suited to light trim sporting arms, and both enjoy a lot of history but little current popularity.
I have used my 7x57 rifles to take moose, elk, whitetail and mule deer, wolf, and coyotes. Actually all our local game with the exception of black bear and pronghorn antelope. It would have worked well for them too.

 

[Hank2211]

I have a Rigby Highland Stalker in .275 Rigby and used it (exclusively) on my most recent trip to South Africa in April of this year. Those who have read the (long, long) hunt report will know that I took 85 animals with it on that trip. The smallest was springbuck and the largest were two eland, both shot within a minute of each other. One was dead after the first shot, while the other took two. The problem with the latter eland was not the fault of the cartridge, but poor shooting on my part. When I took a moment to calm down and shoot properly, the second shot dropped it in its tracks.

While I wouldn't use a .275 on dangerous game, and I continue to think it's not the best caliber for the larger, tougher antelope, you can certainly use it with confidence on the those antelope (and zebra) if you can reliably place your bullets where you want them.

And best of all, recoil is virtually non-existent, and the rifle is light enough to carry for long stretches without tiring you out. My next-largest calibre is .300 Win Mag, and while I love it too, I can't even imagine what it would have been like to take 85 animals in two weeks with that rifle.

 

[Wyatt Smith]

What bullet did you use @Hank2211

 

[Hank2211]

What bullet did you use @Hank2211

I'm in Canada and we really don't have a lot of choice when it comes to ammo, particularly unusual calibers, which seems to include the .275 or 7x57. I used Rigby branded bullets, which are really 140 gr Hornady Interlocks and then Remington Cor-Lokt from South Africa.

All performed well, but I would normally look for Barnes VOR-TX or something similar.

 

[rdog]

This is my 7x57 a Ruger 77, it was a 270 win purchased second hand with a damaged barrel, had it fitted with a Shilen no 3 profile 1-8 twist barrel it is a sub MOA 5 shot rifle using PPU brass & 150
grain Remington corlokt projectiles . I have 2 sons one has a Winchester 70 Feather weight 7x57
& the other son has Shultz & Larson 7x57 We have shot a lot of Pigs with these rifles over a few years.

I rate the 7x57 one of the great cartridges right up there with the 6.5x55

 

[CJW]

Easy to do Wyatt. Scribe some lines, drill holes and clean up the edges, then set over end of butt.
View attachment 428302

Did you start with a raw piece of steel or are semi formed blanks available?

I've always thought that skeletonized butt plates and grip caps look super classy on a rifle. Steel forend tips have their place as well.