Anyone use the 260 Rem to hunt deer?

HotDog

Senior Member
I bought my brothers Remington Model 7 in 260 Rem. Anyone hunt deer with this caliber? I've got a buddy that had a TC Encore in 260 but he didn't like it. He was shooting 140gr Rem factory loads and had some deer get away. Now I understand that with any caliber ya got hit em in the goodies but this guy doesn't usually let deer get away. I'm thinking a hand load with a lighter bullet, maybe 120gr might be the ticket.
Any thought or ideas?
 

mrfudd

Senior Member
Nothing wrong with the .260. The Swedes use the very similar 6.5x55 to kill Moose, so the issue is not with the round. 140 or 120 grain coreloks will kill any deer-if you hit it properly.
 

redjoe

Member
260

I have a 260 and love it. In fact I'm looking to put together an encore with 260 bbl. I prefer the 120 Remington and had very good results with grouping. If you look at remingto site and compare the 120 gr in 260 and 7mm-08 you'll find their almost identical. Both rounds are based on the .308 case.
 

jglenn

Senior Member
260 with accubonds will flat do the job

my mdl 7 refuses to shoot any load over 1" most are around .5 and I like the 130 and 140 gr.
 
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Buzz

Senior Member
I use it's ballistic twin the 6.5x55. I handload and run the Remington Corelocks to about 2750 fps and also I've used the 140g Nosler Partition. Thus far I've not had a bullet fail to exit; however, I'm going to try the 130g Nosler Accubonds this year.
 

ATLRoach

Senior Member
Not a 260 but I use a 260AI. One of the best 308 cased rounds. I shoot 140 Hunting Bergers moving about 2850

Side Note: If you handload use 7mm-08 Win Brass necked down or Lapua Necked up 243 brass. Remington brass is too soft and will loose the primer pockets after 3 fires if you are getting near max loads.
 
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georgiaboy

Senior Member
I shot 140 Bergers in a 6.5-284 (which is just a faster .260). I have also used 140 GameKings with success.
 

grouper sandwich

Senior Member
If your buddy was losing deer with a 260, he needed to be spending more time at the range and less in the woods. ANY shot from that round in the vitals will result in a very, very dead deer, quickly.
 

Doyle

Senior Member
Up until recently, the only factory 120grn rounds (that were commonly available) were the Federal ballistic tips and Remington Accutips (their version of a ballistic tips). I don't like ballistic tips, so I went with the 140grn Federals. 125grn Nosler Partitions are made (I think it's Corbon that sells them), but they are very hard to find.

Lately, Federal has been making Fusions with 120grn bullets in .260. As a bonus, the Fusions are also about $10/box cheaper than other premium bullets. When my current supply of Federal 140's are used up, I'm switching to the 120 Fusions.

As a side note, this year I'll be hunting with 2 .260 firearms. I picked up a Rem model 7 with the short barrel (perfect light treestand gun) to match the Rem XP100R pistol I already had.
 

howl

Banned
120gr NBT drops them like flipping a switch and keeps on going. If you want to use anything over 130 grains you might as well get a 7mm08. Its faster with the heavier bullets.
 

Jeff Phillips

Senior Member
My son has a Ruger Compact .260 that is a sweet little rifle!

I want to try the 120's in it this year.
 

Randy

Senior Member
No reason for the 260 since there is the 7mm-08 IMO. On a side note I know of a nice buck that was shot in the neck that fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes. As the hunter ejected the shell and was sitting there admiring his nice buck, it stood up and walked off. We never found it nor nor any sign of it.
 

TreeFrog

Senior Member
No reason for the 7mm-08 since there is a .308 IMO but that said the .260 is more than enough gun for any whitetail anywhere. The gun would also be an ideal choice for pronghorn and sheep. Any .260 bullet from 120-140 grains is capable of a clean kill. I might stay with the heavier bullets if you intend to use it for black bears, elk, or similar but I recommend that you find what your gun likes best for accuracy and leave it alone.
 

grouper sandwich

Senior Member
No reason for the 260 since there is the 7mm-08 IMO. On a side note I know of a nice buck that was shot in the neck that fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes. As the hunter ejected the shell and was sitting there admiring his nice buck, it stood up and walked off. We never found it nor nor any sign of it.

That's what happens when someone makes a marginal shot on a deer in the neck and misses the spine, jugular and windpipe. My suggestion to that hunter would be to practice better shot placement in the future.
 

Buzz

Senior Member
That's what happens when someone makes a marginal shot on a deer in the neck and misses the spine, jugular and windpipe. My suggestion to that hunter would be to practice better shot placement in the future.

Yep - would have happed with the 7mm-08, .308 Win, .30-06, etc too. Classic case of poor shot placement.
 
No reason for the 7mm-08 since there is a .308 IMO but that said the .260 is more than enough gun for any whitetail anywhere. The gun would also be an ideal choice for pronghorn and sheep. Any .260 bullet from 120-140 grains is capable of a clean kill. I might stay with the heavier bullets if you intend to use it for black bears, elk, or similar but I recommend that you find what your gun likes best for accuracy and leave it alone.

No reason for the 7mm-08 because there is the 7mm Mauser (75 years before the .308) .

No need for the .260 because there is the 6.5 X 55 Mauser

Oh, wait --them's some of them infernal European calibers. I can't read no metric crap. :huh:
 

georgiaboy

Senior Member
No reason for the 7mm-08 because there is the 7mm Mauser (75 years before the .308) .

No need for the .260 because there is the 6.5 X 55 Mauser

Oh, wait --them's some of them infernal European calibers. I can't read no metric crap. :huh:

Be like me and go with a blend. 6.5-284 gives you an ol' obsolete caliber AND the metric system.

Shoulda named it the .260 Royale with cheese.
 

Randy

Senior Member
That's what happens when someone makes a marginal shot on a deer in the neck and misses the spine, jugular and windpipe. My suggestion to that hunter would be to practice better shot placement in the future.
I agree........just saying. The real point is the 260 leaves little room for bad shots. Not that that is an excuse, people kill deer with 223's every year. There is just not a lot of room for error.
 

Jeff Phillips

Senior Member
There is not a nickles worth of difference in the killing power, energy, drop, room for shot error, or any other factor, between the .308, 7-08, and the 260:huh:
 

shortround1

Gone But Not Forgotten
I have a 260 and love it. In fact I'm looking to put together an encore with 260 bbl. I prefer the 120 Remington and had very good results with grouping. If you look at remingto site and compare the 120 gr in 260 and 7mm-08 you'll find their almost identical. Both rounds are based on the .308 case.
just a little ribbing in fun::ke:, if they came from a .308 case, why not shoot a .308?:pop::cheers:
 
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