Anybody here shoot a 280 Remington?

[KahrMan]

I am a sucker for deer rifles. I have found a pretty good deal on a Remington 742 in 280 Rem. I have always wanted one of the semi-auto remingtons. Why you ask? Because I do not have one. I have also wanted a 280 for the same reason.

It looks like the 139gr 280 flies faster, flatter and hits harder than the 270 and almost matches the 150gr 30-06 load.

Would love to hear some feedback from anyone who has any experience with either this gun or cartridge.

[deerslayer]

It's a fine round, but unless you reload, I would stay away from it. Ammo will be tougher to find, and will offer fewer choices when you do find it. It's basically a .30-06 necked down to 7mm, and for whitetail deer, has practically no advantage over a .270 or .30-06. Yes, its trajectory is flatter than a .30-06, and it may hit harder than a .270, but after reviewing a few ballistics tables, you may be suprised at how little the difference is. I'm not knocking it; I actually think it's a pretty neat round, and I wish it would catch on more. Back during the 70s or early 80s (I think), Remington introduced the 7mm Express. It flopped, but years later 7mms became the bullet to shoot, and several 7mm cartridges were introduced. One was the .280 Remington, which is merely a 7mm Express with a new name (a simple marketing ploy). The .280 is kind of a 'tweener--everybody thinks a 7mm Rem. Mag. will sweep a moose off its feet at 1000 yards, but on the other end of the spectrum, the 7mm-08 is the 7mm to have if you want a short action. The .280 is sort of the odd man out.

As for the rifle, my dad had a 742 back during the 80s in .30-06. So did our neighbor. Neither rifle shot particularly well, and our neighbor (who was a TN state rifle team high power shooter) was especially negative about the 742. Both eventually sold them and got bolt guns.

[KahrMan]

Thanks deerslayer. That's why I like this site. There is almost always someone here who has the info when you have a question.

I think you may have just saved me a little money.