280 Rem thoughts

[Blueranger]

SO sitting at home under Colorado's stay at home order, errr, and my mind is wondering. I have an Encore 280 rem 24 in that has not shown a lot of promise with factory loads. I'm bouncing between a 120 grain, BT or TTSX, deer load or a 150 grain, AB or Scirocco, elk load? Anyone have any experience with loads or performance with these weights and or bullets? I an open to powder options, though I have read good things on Superformance, RL19, and RL 22. Thanks in advance and good luck in your draws. Stay safe.

 

[Southern Elk]

I have a .280. I killed elk, deer, and antelope with it this year. All with factory loads Federal Premium with 150 grain Nosler Partitions.

 

[Hatchie Dawg]

My favorite cartridge.
RL19 here under 140 gr Accubonds. Deadly.
HD

 

[Bambistew]

54gr IMR 4831, 200cci and 160 accubonds or Sierra GK
57gr RL22, 200cci and 160 accubonds or Sierra GK
59gr RL22, 200cci, 140 accbonds
winchester brass

These are on the warm side of factory data, but no issues in the 280's I have. The first two are my go two, and shoot extremely well in both my rifles. I haven't played with new powders or loads in probably 15 years, so you might find newer powders may get higher velocities, and be more "stable" if that's something you're worried about. I hunt in pretty varied conditions, and don't' shoot long range, but one thing is for sure when the 280 is pointed at something it ends up dead every time...

 

[std7mag]

I've gone to 150gr ABLR over a charge of Alliant PP4000MR.

 

[JLS]

131 grain Hammers over RL16 and CCI 250 primers.

 

[Big Slick]

I asked a reputable gun smith about the .280 Rem back in or about 1988-89. He told me he didn’t know anything about them. I bought a .30-06. We didn’t have all the information at our fingertips then, I missed out. Good luck getting the load your gun prefers.

 

[shoots-straight]

Usually factory ammo in a .280 are loaded on the low side. If you can load your own, work up a load using Barnes TTSX in a 140, get the bullet seated right, and see how she shoots.

 

[Salmonchaser]

The .280 is loaded on the light side commercially. Really shines with reloading. Certainly appropriate for Elk with 150/160 class bullets.

 

[Gary]

The .280 is loaded on the light side commercially. Really shines with reloading. Certainly appropriate for Elk with 150/160 class bullets.

Probably due to Remington offering it in their autoloaders when it first became available (as the 7mm Rem Express).

 

[oklahunter2]

I use H-4831 and 160 Partitions and factory federal 150 partitions .
I have killed deer and elk. I think it’s a great caliber!

 

[ClearCreek]

I asked a reputable gun smith about the .280 Rem back in or about 1988-89. He told me he didn’t know anything about them. I bought a .30-06. We didn’t have all the information at our fingertips then, I missed out. Good luck getting the load your gun prefers.

A "reputable gun smith" in the late 1980's did not know about a 280 Remington??

Then there was the gun store owner, at about that same time, that told me he had never heard of a 338 Winchester Magnum.

I guess those types are out there.

ClearCreek

 

[Big Slick]

A "reputable gun smith" in the late 1980's did not know about a 280 Remington??

Then there was the gun store owner, at about that same time, that told me he had never heard of a 338 Winchester Magnum.

I guess those types are out there.

ClearCreek

There shop has been there since 1949, three or four generations have ran the shop.They were not familiar with the .280, apparently. I see where you were going with this, a lot of guys were shooting the .270 for black tail deer.

 

[klampson]

Took my first elk with a 280 Rem, and many animals after that, great cartridge! Nosler 140 gr Flatbase was my go-to bullet. Lately, I've been loading 140 gr Barnes TTSX with RL 16.

 

[Knight.54]

I’ve been happy with the Nosler factory loaded 140 gr e-tips, took a couple of deer and a handful of pronghorns with them. Great caliber! Also have a handload of 120 ballistic tips that shoot like a laser.

 

[88man]

I always just think of a 280 as a 7mm-06

 

[Seamaster]

I used to use 140 grain bullets for deer and pronghorns, and the excellent 160 partition for elk. A while ago I found that a 140 grain AB does everything on that list, so I use it for everything. Both IMR 4350 and IMR 4831 have proven to be good choices in powder for my best loads.

 

[1_pointer]

I've long thought that a 280 Rem heavyish sporter rifle with a fast twist barrel to shoot some of the really long/slick bullets would be a neat rifle to have.

 

[antelopedundee]

A "reputable gun smith" in the late 1980's did not know about a 280 Remington??

Then there was the gun store owner, at about that same time, that told me he had never heard of a 338 Winchester Magnum.

I guess those types are out there.

ClearCreek

In 1975 a "local" gun store never heard of a left hand bolt action either.

 

[6mm Remington]

I had a Remington 700 MTN Rifle in 280 Remington and the only bullet I used for elk, deer, antelope, and coyotes was a 140 gr. Nosler Partition. That's only because the 140 gr. Accubond had not been developed yet. I would try both of these and hunt with the one that your rifle shoots the best and never look back. The 280 Remington is a fantastic cartridge. Glad to see you have one. I used IMR4350 in my rifle.

I now have a 280AI and I shoot either the 140 gr. Partition or the 140 gr. Accubond. My rifle likes both of those bullets amazingly with the same powder and charge weight. I'm using IMR7828SSC for that load. I used my 280AI and ONE 140 gr. Accubond on my grizzly bear last fall. He died almost instantly with a bullet placed behind the shoulder in the lungs.

Grizzly Bear Hunt 2019

www.hunttalk.com