25 WSSM History:
The 25 Winchester Super Short Magnum is a relatively new center fire rifle cartridge developed in partnership with Browning Arms Company and Winchester ammunition. It made its debut and was introduced to the shooting public in 2004.
The newer .257″ short magnum cartridge was originally chambered in Winchester’s Model 70 bolt action rifle.
It is a commercial cartridge based on the 404 Jeffery cartridge case, shortening and necking down to .257″ caliber and sharpening the shoulder angle to 30 degrees. The 25 WSSM cartridge has more than enough case capacity for its intended dual purpose use.
25 WSSM Uses:
The 25 WSSM cartridge achieves its useful purpose as a very flat shooting varmint cartridge and as an excellent deer cartridge as the .25″ caliber is a time-proven caliber for deer size animals.
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The 25 WSSM factory loadings show a velocity of 3,470 feet per second for an 85 grain varmint round and 3,060 feet per second for a 115 grain bullet for deer hunting.
This translates to very low recoil for the shooter with plenty of bullet energy at the 700 yard mark for varmints and predators and the 400 yard mark to harvest any white-tailed deer size animal.
The 25 WSSM cartridge is a well thought out cartridge as Winchester is no stranger in .25″ caliber cartridge development. Winchester has developed 4 cartridges in this caliber over a 111 year time span;
(25-20 in 1893)
(25-35 in 1895)
(256 Winchester Magnum in 1960)
(25 Winchester Super Short Magnum in 2004).
The 25 WSSM cartridge, chambered in a super, short-action, light-weight rifle may well be the ultimate combination for the 1 gun hunter of strictly varmints, predators, and white-tailed deer size game.
25 WSSM Ballistics:
Rifle barrel length: 24 Inches.
Ammunition: Winchester 85 grain Ballistic Silvertip bullet.
Bullet diameter: .257 inch.
Bullet weight: 85 grains.
Bullet ballistic coefficient: .333.
Rifle zero: 200 yards, 1″ mid-range rise.
| Range | Muzzle | 50 yds. | 100 yds. | 200 yds. | 300 yds. | 400 yds. | 500 yds. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bullet Velocity: | 3,470 fps. | 3,309 fps. | 3,155 fps. | 2,864 fps. | 2,590 fps. | 2,333 fps. | 2,090 fps. |
| Bullet Energy: | 2,272 ft.lbs. | 2,067 ft.lbs. | 1,879 ft.lbs. | 1,548 ft.lbs. | 1,266 ft.lbs. | 1,027 ft.lbs. | 824 ft.lbs. |
| Bullet Drop: | – 1.8″ | – 0.1″ | + 0.9″ | 0 | – 5.1″ | – 15.4″ | – 32.2″ |
Rifle barrel length: 24 Inches.
Ammunition: Winchester 115 grain Ballistic Silvertip bullet.
Bullet diameter: .257 inch.
Bullet weight: 115 grains.
Bullet ballistic coefficient: .446.
Rifle zero: 225 yards, 2″ mid-range rise.
| Range | Muzzle | 50 yds. | 100 yds. | 200 yds. | 300 yds. | 400 yds. | 500 yds. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bullet Velocity: | 3,060 fps. | 2,951 fps. | 2,845 fps. | 2,640 fps. | 2,444 fps. | 2,256 fps. | 2,077 fps. |
| Bullet Energy: | 2,391 ft.lbs. | 2,223 ft.lbs. | 2,066 ft.lbs. | 1,779 ft.lbs. | 1,525 ft.lbs. | 1,300 ft.lbs. | 1,102 ft.lbs. |
| Bullet Drop: | – 1.8″ | + 0.5″ | + 1.7″ | + 1.0″ | – 4.8″ | – 16.4″ | – 34.9″ |
25 Winchester Super Short Magnum Reloading:
Bullet Diameter: .257 Inch.
Maximum Case Length: 1.670 Inches.
Trimmed Case Length: 1.660 Inches.
Primer Size: Large Rifle.
Maximum Cartridge Overall Length: 2.360 Inches.