260 Remington History
The 260 Remington centerfire rifle cartridge was introduced to the shooting public in 1997 by Remington. Remington’s 260 rifle cartridge case is based on the popular wildcat cartridge a 308 Winchester case necked down to accept .264″ caliber bullets. Jim Carmichael and Remington working together completed the development of the wildcat 6.5mm-308 Winchester cartridge.
The 260 Remington is an excellent, accurate, low recoil, flat shooting cartridge and it is more than capable of taking most big game animals in the lower 48 states at various ranges.
The 260 Remington when handloaded with 140 grain bullets at a velocity of 2,800 feet per second, will deliver a little over a ton of bullet energy at the distance of 100 yards.
The 260 Remington when loaded with 120 grain bullets recoil is quite tolerable, pleasant enough to shoot for most shooters that are recoil conscious and recommended for young shooters and hunters wanting a little more powerful cartridge than the 6.5×55 Swedish Mauser or a slightly heavier bullet than the low recoiling 243 Winchester that is based on the same cartridge case.
To achieve maximum accuracy from your 260 Remington rifle there are several things you need to do correctly that will help increase your rifles overall accuracy capabilities.
First: Properly mount your riflescope.
Second: Properly break-in your rifle barrel.
Third: Properly sight-in your rifle.
To accurately calculate ballistics for your rifle with ballistics programs you need to measure your rifle’s scope mounted height.
| These are down range trajectory charts for the 260 Remington cartridge with the scope mounted 1.8 inches above the bore center line plus if you were using these loads, their effective hunting bullet energy range with well placed shots on; Predators: Such As, Bobcat, Cougar And Coyote. Deer Size Game: Such As, Antelope, Blacktail Deer, Hogs, Javelina, Mule Deer And Whitetail Deer. Elk Size Game: Such As, Caribou, Black Bear, Sheep And Elk. | |||||
 Good Predator Hunting Load:260 Remington rifle cartridge manufacturer: Nosler. Bullet weight: 100 Grains. Bullet ballistic coefficient: .350. Bullet muzzle velocity: 3,200 Feet Per Second. Bullet muzzle energy: 2,274 Foot Pounds. Bullet trajectory is set at 1 inch mid-range rise. Rifle true zero is 185 Yards. Maximum point blank range is 215 yards. | |||||
| 120 Grain Bullet Down Range | At 100 Yards | At 200 Yards | At 300 Yards | At 400 Yards | At 500 Yards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trajectory in Inches: | + 0.9 | – 0.5 | – 6.9 | – 19.2 | – 39.0 |
| Energy in Foot Pounds: | 1,891 | 1,565 | 1,285 | 1,046 | 843 |
| Predator Effectiveness: | + | + | + | + | + |
 Good Deer Hunting Load:260 Remington rifle cartridge manufacturer: Federal. Bullet weight: 120 Grains. Bullet ballistic coefficient: .417. Bullet muzzle velocity: 2,950 Feet Per Second. Bullet muzzle energy: 2,319 Foot Pounds. Bullet trajectory is set at 2 inch mid-range rise. Rifle true zero is 215 Yards. Maximum point blank range is 255 yards. | |||||
| 120 Grain Bullet Down Range | At 100 Yards | At 200 Yards | At 300 Yards | At 400 Yards | At 500 Yards |
| Trajectory in Inches: | + 1.8 | + 0.6 | – 6.0 | – 19.2 | – 40.2 |
| Energy in Foot Pounds: | 1,980 | 1,682 | 1,421 | 1,192 | 993 |
| Deer Effectiveness | + | + | + | + | – |
 Good Elk Hunting Load:260 Remington rifle cartridge manufacturer: HSM. Bullet weight: 130 Grains. Bullet ballistic coefficient: .552. Bullet muzzle velocity: 2,784 Feet Per Second. Bullet muzzle energy: 2,237 Foot Pounds. Bullet trajectory is set at 3 inch mid-range rise. Rifle true zero is 242 Yards. Maximum point blank range is 285 yards. | |||||
| 130 Grain Bullet Down Range | At 100 Yards | At 200 Yards | At 300 Yards | At 400 Yards | At 500 Yards |
| Trajectory in Inches: | + 2.6 | + 2.0 | – 4.4 | – 17.4 | – 37.8 |
| Energy in Foot Pounds: | 1,981 | 1,749 | 1,539 | 1,348 | 1,177 |
| Elk Effectiveness: | + | + | – | – | – |