What's you favorite obsolete or obscure round.

I have some of the 8x56R, but it's probably more common than my .41 Swiss Rimfire... I only have three rounds at the moment, so my 1869/71 Vetterli has more or less become a pretty wallhanger.
vetterli1869-71-1.jpg
 
I like the old 8mm mauser, the 303 british, the 762x54R mosin nagant, 6.5x55 swedish,7.5 swiss,6.5 carcano,. in non military I love the 300 savage.
 
303 Wichester, also I belive there was a .32 Special-both looked like the 3030.
 
I really like the .256 win mag. I started out with a ruger hawkeye, then had a martini built in one. Someday I want to have a winchester 92 chambered in it. At present I only have a TC contender in it. I also load 22 jet, 22 K-hornet, 7X57, 30/40 & .300 H&H. My all time favorite handgun caliber is still .44 special and have 6 guns in it. 4 smiths and 2 colt SAAs.
 
Originally posted by Jack Flash:
I have two:
For rifles, the .303 British (I hope that's obscure enough!) which I shoot in a variety of surplus rifles.

For handguns, the .455 Colt (Aka .455 Webley Mk I)
ColtNewService.jpg

303 & 455 obscure?
I shoot them all the time - but then I live in the UK :-) Can't get milsurp 303 any more and 455 is classed "as not commercially avaialable" which means I can keep 455 pistols at home along with me .30cal Mauser C96 - but then .30cal can be obtained from Foicchi - hot stuff too - cycles my old Broomhandle well.
But then I re-load a LOT - and you guys must have mentioned at least 5 or 6 cals that I reload for.

My "Obsure" round is .375 Holland & Holland.
got the brass but haven't got the gun to with it...seen a Ruger No 1 Tropical(?) in 375 H & H but the previous owner has taken off the rear sight and lost it :-(
but if I ever had the oportunity of using 375 H&H for what it was designed I think I'd want option of more than one shot...

DCC
 
7.5 mm Swiss-Army-revolver blackpowder-cartridge from 1882.

P9260607-1.jpg


1882-Ammo-20.jpg


Swissman
 
8mm Mannlicher Schoenauer & 9.5mm Mannlicher Schoenauer

6.5x53R Mannlicher in a pre war sporter built on a M93 Romanian action

Most recently 32 Remington Auto in a Model 8
& 9.3x74R in a German double rifle.

One 'merican round out of the bunch ain't bad...
 
DCC:
Here on this side of the pond, .455 Webley (Mk I or II) is pretty obscure. You can find it if you really look hard, but then be prepared to pay through the nose when you do locate some. I don't think many folks would argue that it's also obsolete.

For the .303 British, I'm using my own self-created definition of "obsolete" - "No currently manufactured firearms being so chambered". If you disagree, I'll not argue. I do admit that there is a lot of freshly manufactured .303 Brit available State-side. Surplus is still out there, but not like it used to be. I found a 32 count box made at Radway Green in the '50s for $17 and considered that a good buy. A few years ago, it would have been $7 or $8.
 
.348 Winchester, everyone thinks it's "just another 30-30", untill you touch one off. Big bang, lotsa thump at both ends. With the 250's works fairly well at keeping the hippo's out of the wife's petunias.....
 
For me it's the .300 Savage. The round is still manufactured, but can be hard to find on dealer's shelves. It's been a lot of years since a rifle was manufactured in that caliber, which is why Savage 99s are constantly going up in value. It's in the .308 class and has always been a reliable killer on critters up through elk at reasonable distances.

A couple years back my eldest son (now 38) showed up at a Texas hunt and surprised all his youngblood buddies with presumably hotter rounds by using his granddad's Model 99 to take a five-pointer.

Grub 348: FWIW, a family friend who manages a gun shop in the area reports that lots and lots of Mexican-American guys come into the store looking to buy .348 ammo, presumably for hunts south of the border, where I gather it is a pretty popular round.

Since neither the Winchester 71 nor the later Browning lever action have been made or chambered in that round for quite awhile, I have to guess there are also a lot of real old-timer conversions kicking around south of the border. Something originally chambered for .405 probably would do to start, since the .348 is based on the .405 case necked down.

Bill
 
I have a Star Super Modelo in 9mm Largo that I just love to shoot.

It's virtually identical to 38 Super (which will load, fire and eject easily in my gun with a Wolff Extra Power recoil spring). Though not recommended, I have no problem doing this.

DCC: Are you allowed to keep your .455 in your home? If so, I'm happy for you... better to be armed with a so-called "antique" cartridge than nothing. After all, it's the man, not the cartridge that makes the difference!
 

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