Last evening I met an old cowboy from around these parts and we got talking deer hunting and reloading. His major regret in life was hitting a hard stretch a couple of decades back and having to sell his Savage Model 23B bolt action in 25-20 WCF. He said that it was his favorite deer rifle when shooting from the saddle; for either mule deer or whitetails out to "...100 yards or so."
I shoot 25-20 from a Martini Cadet and a Winchester Model 92 lever gun and my son owns a pristine Savage 23B in 25-20 so we had a lot to talk about. I confessed to him that I'd only shot lesser game and paper with my guns but really enjoyed the cartridge for its inherent accuracy.
Now here's the thing: This gents "deer killing" load was a 82 grain home-cast lead bullet loaded over 9 grains of the old Hercules 2400 powder. As nearly as I could figure that load generated a whopping 1700 fps... if that.
That man must have been a heck of a marksman because he didn't seem the type to be a liar.~Muir
I shoot 25-20 from a Martini Cadet and a Winchester Model 92 lever gun and my son owns a pristine Savage 23B in 25-20 so we had a lot to talk about. I confessed to him that I'd only shot lesser game and paper with my guns but really enjoyed the cartridge for its inherent accuracy.
Now here's the thing: This gents "deer killing" load was a 82 grain home-cast lead bullet loaded over 9 grains of the old Hercules 2400 powder. As nearly as I could figure that load generated a whopping 1700 fps... if that.
That man must have been a heck of a marksman because he didn't seem the type to be a liar.~Muir