Remington Revived

By Jeff John

Fans of the Remington Model 14 and Model 8 have been left with dormant guns for more than a decade. The .30 Remington had been discontinued, and it was the parent for the .25 and .32 Remington rounds, themselves discontinued for half a century or thereabouts. Those three cartridges ballistically duplicate the Winchester .25-35, .30-30 and .32 Special in rimless versions suitable for the self-loading Model 8 and pump-action Model 14.

Without ammo, prices of these Remington rifles have stayed reasonable. I was able to get a killer deal on the like-new Model 14-A used in this test a year or more ago, and was contemplating sacrificing some of my long-hoarded .30 Remington brass to make ammo, but the dies were spendy, and I wasn’t sure how much I’d want to shoot it.

Long introduction to Graf & Sons offering of loaded .25, .30 and .32 Remington ammo in newly made brass with the correct headstamp. The .25 Remington ammo tested is topped with a Hornady 117-grain roundnose bullet. The brass is available, too, and appears to be of very high quality, with a smooth, blemish-free finish.

According to Graf’s, they are the exclusive distributor of this ammo loaded by Precision Cartridge in Hobart, Indiana, and plan on keeping it available. Santa didn’t bring me a gun this year, but did bring me two boxes of .25 Remington ammo. Being able to fire up long-dormant old rifles was a treat! The ammo loaded and fed well. My final 50-yard group after monkeying with the sights was 1-1/8 inches. Recoil was negligible and, strange as it may seem, the .25 Remington was a pleasant introduction to the quarter-bore world of cartridges for me. I foresee reloading the .25 Remington will prove equally as rewarding.

The price per box of 20 loaded rounds is a reasonable $34.99. Hornady, Redding and RCBS list dies. I think I’ll lay in enough .30 Remington (the basic case for .25 and .32 Remington) to replace my aging Remington brass. In case there is another horrific drought such as we experienced over the last 8 years of Barack Obama, it would be good to keep my old Remingtons running. The Model 8 rifle hovers near the top of my “fun” gun list. Heck, maybe I should get one in .25 Rem, too!

Three 3-shot groups at 50 yards with the long dormant Remington Model 14-A in
.25 Remington prove it was just waiting for a chance to sing. Two sight corrections
ended in a group of 1-1/8 inches right over point of aim. The large white Birchwood
Casey Shoot-N-C targets are easy to use with the fine iron sights of the Model 14.

Graf & Sons has loaded the long obsolete .25 Remington cartridge in a boon for
owners of Remington Model 8 and 14 rifles. Graf’s offers the entire line including
.30 and .32 Rem as well. Loaded ammo correctly headstamped as well as brass for
reloads is available, too.

.25 Remington Ammo

Maker: Precision Cartridge, Hobart, IN
Distributor: Graf & Sons, Inc.
4050 S. Clark, Mexico, MO 65265, (573) 581-2266
www.grafs.com
Price: $34.99/box of 20

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