250 Savage, 250-3000
The 250 Savage, originally known as the 250-3000, was the first U.S. commercial cartridge to push a bullet beyond 3000 feet per second velocity. At that time, it was a major milestone in ammunition development. It is a .25 caliber (.257"[6.53mm]), rimless, bottleneck, centerfire cartridge. The name 250-3000 indicating the caliber and velocity. Gunmaker Charles Newton is credited with developing the cartridge for the Savage Arms Company. He considered (and rightly so) the 100 grain bullet as a better choice for deer sized game. However, the heaviest bullet that could achieve the desired velocity at safe chamber pressures (45,000 CUP) weighed 87 grains. The faster bullet made more marketing sense and in 1915 was introduced for the Savage model 99 rifle. Other rifles chambered for this cartridge include the Savage model 20 and 40 bolt actions, and the Winchester model 54 and 70 bolt guns along with several others.
In 1921 Western unveiled a loading with a 100 grain bullet, Peters did likewise in 1932. Today, 100 grain Super-X® ammunition is produced by Winchester. It has proven itself an effective cartridge for hunting varmints to deer sized game. Its has a flat trajectory and the mild recoil is a bonus for inexperienced or lightly built hunters and shooters. Its ballistics were slightly eclipsed by the 257 Roberts and later by the .243 Winchester and other similar small bore cartridges. The increasing popularity of these higher performing numbers caused the 250 to slip into near obsolescence. Handloaders can find bullets from 60 to 120 grains from which to choose. Brass is readily available. The 250 Ackley Improved, a wildcat, is based on this cartridge. Click here for case dimensions for the
250 Savage
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