.280 Caliber
 

I have the opportunity to pick up a Sako 75 Finnlite in .280 caliber at a great price. However, I am not that familar with the .280 and I do not hand load.

This gun would mostly be used for deer (whitetail and mulies). Would I be satisfied with this caliber?

RE: .280 Caliber
 

Great cartridge especially if you handload. I believe factory ammo is loaded to less than safe maximum due to Remington chambering their auto-loader for it. Ammo can be a little hard to find though.

RE: .280 Caliber
 

The 280 Rem. is a very good cartridge but not as popular as the 270 Win. The 280 can be used for deer, elk or moose hunts depending on the bullet. If you could reload this cartridge, it could be reloaded from 120 grain all the way to 175 grain bullets. You should be satisfied with the 280 depending on the availability on what they keep in stock at the sporting good stores.

RE: .280 Caliber
 

I have a finnlite in 7mm mag. Fabulous rifle. The .280 although very similar is a better round than both the 06 and .270 in my opinion. Buy it you won't regret it!!!!

RE: .280 Caliber
 

Excellent cartridge, factory ammo can be had just not as much choice as say 7 rem mag, 270win, etc. For a handloader it has great potential as their is a wealth of .284 bullets to choose from without the recoil and blast of a rem mag. However since you really want it for deer you should have no trouble tracking down appropriate factory ammo to use(Winchester, Federal, Rem, Hornady)...if you said moose or elk then the choice narrows somewhat in OTC ammo.

RE: .280 Caliber
 

Hi bb122,

The .280 Remington will do nearly exactly anything the .30-06 or the .270 will do, no more.........no less! It has fewer factory loads than either of the other two simply because it is not as popular.

You should be very happy with it based on your proposed uses. (Don't let anyone tell you it is either better, or worse than either of the other two named cartridges. It is only a matter of preference!)

Hope this helps.

Dave

RE: .280 Caliber
 

I second akbound, the 280 is not better, no worse than the 06 or 270. Same casing different bullet caliber. I look at it this way, it did not really take off when introduced so either folks didn't like it or more likely it didn't offer any advantages over the existing cartridges. Don't know about your area but in mine it would be hard to walk into any shop and have hopes of a selection of factory ammo on the shelf. If you buy this rifle, learn to handload or stockpile your ammo.

RE: .280 Caliber
 

You won't be sorry with that caliber,I have a 26" Encore in the .280 and it's a great for all of the game you want to use it for...;)

RE: .280 Caliber
 

According to "Ammo & Ballistics II 2nd Endition" there are 17 different factory rounds that range from 139 gr. to 170 gr. Good luck.

RE: .280 Caliber
 

7mm remington express will chamber in a gun marked for .280, somewhere I heard you can shoot a 7mm remington express through a .280, but you cant shoot a .280 through a gun marked for 7mm remington express.

RE: .280 Caliber
 

BB122,

If you are looking at this rifle at the same place I am, the seller is a real gentleman I bought 4 rifles from him so far and his prices are great. But if you want it, dont wait they go fast and when there gone there gone.

GOOD LUCK

RE: .280 Caliber
 

It's a good medium caliber, its a good compromise between the 06 and 270. Wont hit quite as hard as the 06 but will shoot flatter, wont shoot quite as flat as the 270, but hits a little harder ;you wont be disappointed w/ it on deer sized and down, if you take it after elk, it'll do fine also just keep in mind that it's marginal for elk and pass up any ify shots. ENJOY IT:D

RE: .280 Caliber
 

7mm remington express and the 280 are the exact same thing. it used to be called the 7mm remington express however when people started confusing it with the 7mm mag and sales weren't good they changed the name to 280 remington. at least this is what i have heard/read.

the 280 would be my choice over the 270 and 30-06. it can shoot heavior bullets then the 270 and holds a higher muzzle veliocity then the 270. it is a little faster then standard 30-06 loadings and dosen't drop as much at farther ranges.

if you ask me i think the only reason that the 280 didn't take off in sales is because you could get the 270 and it will shoot flatter or you could get the 06 and shoot heavior bullets.

i don't own a 280 but i really want one and i have shot them a lot in the past

RE: .280 Caliber
 

My "light weight" bolt action rifle is a 7 express Rem.. The reason i went with 7 express over a 270 Win., is because you can shoot much heavier bullets in a 280. That's a huge avantage when hunting bigger game like moose, or maybe run up against a grizzly when carrying it.

The reason i didn't go with the 30-06, is because the lighter bullets in a 280 penetrate better than the 30 cal bullets of the same weight, and lighter bullets means less recoil. Keep in mind, this is my light weight mountain rifle, not a std weight sporter..

Any way, i've taken caribou, bear, white tail and black tail deer ect.. with my 7 express, and i'm very happy with it's performance!!

Drilling Man

RE: .280 Caliber
 

The 280 is a great round for deer sized game and factory ammo is readily availiable everywhere i shop at.

RE: .280 Caliber
 

I dont see it, this table shows the 270 to be superior to the 280. Its faster at long range ,hits harder at long range and is flatter shooting.

270 280 comparo here

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RE: .280 Caliber
 

zrexpilot,

You can't compare the Remington Express grade ammo with the Premier grade and expect the 280 to equal the 270.

RE: .280 Caliber
 

I have owned a 280 for over ten years. In my opinion there isn't a better deer cartridge in exixtence. The 280 has manageable recoil even from a light rifle and it is flat shooting and accurate. There are more factory loads availble for the 280 today than there have ever been. The 280 is enough for elk if you choose the correct ammo and practice good shot placement.

RE: .280 Caliber
 

I have a NEF in 280. It is the best shooting gun that I have owned. Have taken many wt with it from 50 to just shy of 400yds. None of them ran more than 20yds after being hit. It is a good flat shooting and hard hitting gun.