Thread: 280 ai?

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

tell him to stick to the mighty poohseventy.......the ammo selection has come ahead leaps n bounds over the last few years,spending a grand to gain MAYBE a tiny little bit more velocity and MAYBE another hundred yards out at distance where he will have to be dialing and using a rangefinder anyway so could do it with what he already has....
yip go the mighty poohseventy. at least if you forget your ammo you can still pinch his,if he bought the .280 you would forever be paranoid of getting it mixed.

Micky is on to it !

If your someone who just wants one to play with and like messing around then I reckon go for it. But if you are trying to justify it for practicality i’d say either stick with simple 270/280 or if you want downrange advantage just keep it simple and go the easy and dominant 7mm rem mag.

Originally Posted by jakewire

Factory ammo is or used to be by Hornady federal and Nosler, not sure now you'd have to check.
Whether it would be easily obtainable here I have no Idea. I have difficulty sourcing 30 06 locally let alone 280Ai .
Traditionally been a handloading proposition but he may, as above, be able to order a supply in..
It would be a great cartridge easily capable of the distances he shoots and more.

I've had a couple of ordinary 280's both lightweights . one Weatherby MK V which was a great shooter [ a forum member still does very well with this one] and one Mountain rifle which had to be worked on to shoot well but was still capable of close to Moa in my hands and probably better in another pair.
I had to swap to a Timney in the Remington though the Factory x-mark trigger was horrible.

That's pretty unusual. Every gun shop i've gone to in the sticks has at least one cheap brand and one decent one like federal for the common calibres such as 30 06

out to 500 - 600 yards the 280 or 280ai is not going to do more than you can do with your 270 - assuming you've got accurate & appropriate load/projectile that each rifle likes.
To get most out of the 280ai you need a 24in (or longer) bbl and hand load. You might get very lucky and find your 280ai shoots the Hornady Elite Hunter ammo well, then you dont need to worry about hand loads. Shot like shite in mine.
With 22in bbl I'd guess you'll loose 50 - 70fps ?
My 280ai 24in bbl I'm getting 2980 fps with N560 and 162gn AMAXs, & sub 0.5 moa groups - so long as I do my bit correctly.
In 7mm RM I'm getting 3020 - 3030 fps with 162 AMAX.
So loosing about 50 - 60 fps over the RM ..... but the 280ai bare rifle weighs only 6lbs

you can run standard 280 ammo in your 280ai if you get stuck for ammo. Would not recommend for long range but for bush hunting or ranges to 200 - 300 yds it be fine.

Also a standard 270/280 will always feed better than the sharper shoulder AI
If carelessly slamming bullets thru for follow up shots is a consideration

Originally Posted by Bill999

Also a standard 270/280 will always feed better than the sharper shoulder AI
If carelessly slamming bullets thru for follow up shots is a consideration

Hey @Bill999 do you still have that Tikka 280?

Originally Posted by Dicko

With a 22 inch barrel it will struggle to deliver more velocity than a regular .280 or .270.

Not always a velocity game

If the question was "im thinking about reaming my 280 to 280 AI but im not intrested in handloading" my opinion would be i wouldnt. But seen as its a well priced rifle already chambered in AI with factory ammo available hell yea. It'll do all hes after and more its always exciting trying new things. + down the track if he takes up handloading he can unleash the beast

Originally Posted by Boar Freak

Hey @Bill999 do you still have that Tikka 280?

Yea it's a great cal for the tikka action