Most Obscure/Rare Caliber Owned?

[VanceInWA]

On another thread there have been some very interesting responses to the question, "Largest Caliber Rifle Owned?" In fact, many responses have been educational, for me at least. For example, never before heard of the 577 Snider, or the 585 Nyati. Based on that, this thread sort of dovetails with the question, "What Is The Most Obscure/Rare Caliber Owned?" which may include both handgun and rifle. Something tells me I'm in for a LOT more education!

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[Andy54Hawken]

With ammunition availability being what it is where I live...That can be almost any caliber...
Never thought I'd see the day when .30-30 and certain types or brands of .22LR , 20 gauge and 12 gauge were difficult to find on the store shelf.

With that said calibers that I have owned that are obscure :

I once owed a Sporting carbine , based on the Gewher 88 action...
It was in 8mm Mauser...but used the .318 bullet .
It was a beautifully done Pre-War World I sporter.

I have also owned a few 1898 and 1899 Krag Rifles and Carbines....caliber .30-40 Krag.
Andy

 

[The Heretic]

I don't go for obscure calibers.

What I have doesn't qualify as obscure, only not very common - either 5.7x28 or .460 Mag (handgun not rifle). Most people have heard of these cartridges but not many have a gun chambered for them.

 

[Bobbygun]

I don't own anything truly exotic. My calibers least likely to be seen in most gun cabinets would probably be .218 Bee, .222 Remington Magnum and .480 Ruger.

ETA: I should say cartridges, not calibers.

 

[bionic knees]

not terribly rare or obscure but not everybody has one. .257 Roberts, .327 Federal mag, .270 WSM

 

[PORSCHE928S4]

It seems like most all calibers are a bit obscure at this time !

 

[TTSX]

I would say a .29 caliber would be the answer, though I do not own any. Everything I own is pretty basic, though I've considered getting a wildcat quarter bore once or twice. .25 doesn't seem like it's especially popular outside it's fanbase and .27 is just starting to pick up a real head of steam lately...

Just like the largest, my least common would be .510/.375

 

[kmk1012]

I recently picked up a custom bench gun package at a recent gun show. It chambered in 221 Cub Cadet, basically an Aclkey Improved 221 Fireball. I still haven't taken it to the range as I want to go through the trigger first, as it's scary light.

 

[bionic knees]

221 cub cadet?? doesn't even show up on a google search.


WINNER WINNER

 

[mobil890]

I once owned a 30-338 Winchester mag. and a .357 Herrett that I had to make the case from 30-30 brass. My father in-law had 30 newton

 

[ilostmypswrd]

.222 rem, great caliber, I loaded up on ammo about 15 years ago, and im still going strong, wish I had bought more .

 

[kmk1012]

221 cub cadet?? doesn't even show up on a google search.


WINNER WINNER

There's been very little info on it. It came with the actual chamber reamers, custom dies, a bunch of brass and loading info. As soon as I get some more time I'm going to focus on its history. It's really a neat cartridge. Maybe I'll post some pics when I get home from work.

 

[Aero Denezol]

With ammunition availability being what it is where I live...That can be almost any caliber...
Never thought I'd see the day when .30-30 and certain types or brands of .22LR , 20 gauge and 12 gauge were difficult to find on the store shelf.

^^Isn't that the truth.

For me, it is 7.7x58 Arisaka. I've never actually fired my Arisaka. Although the way things are going, I may never fire my S&W revolver again either.

 

[po18guy]

In the 70s, .220 Swift was obscure - to some degree still is.
Up to about 1990, 7.62X54R was obscure. Very odd to note that this 131 year old Czarist>Iron Curtain>Bamboo Curtain cartridge is now more popular than ever. Trivia: I have 20 Starline pre-production 7.62X54R cases, but the onslaught of Serbian and Czech brass foiled that plan.
In the 70s, 7.62X25 Tokarev was obscure.
A true orphan, and handload only cartridge is the 1986 .41X22, aka .41 Action Express. Have a Hi-Power clone chambered in that one.

 

[clanhanson]

7.5x54 French. As if 7.5x55 wasn't hard enough to find...

 

[41mag]

I wrassed with a necked down 45 acp long enough ago, forgot the name of it. Some wildcat version of 38/45. Sort of a prerunner of 357 Sig.
It was so totally unreliable enough being incapable of firing a complete magazine without some kind of jam, its wildly inaccurate POI made random rat droppings in a dresser drawer seem precision grouping by comparison. The smith that built it felt so guilty he refunded my money.

 

[oremike]

I've had a bunch of TC's chambered in do it yourself calibers. 30 Herrett, 357 Herrett, 7 TCU, 357/44 Bain and Davis are the ones that come to mind right now.

 

[bionic knees]

oh ya, I also have an 8mm french lebel.

 

[joken]

At my age it doesn't seem obscure but I own a Winchester model 53 and a Colt Army Special both in the caliber I killed my first buck with at age nine, 32-20.

 

[po18guy]

I wrassed with a necked down 45 acp long enough ago, forgot the name of it. Some wildcat version of 38/45. Sort of a prerunner of 357 Sig.
It was so totally unreliable enough being incapable of firing a complete magazine without some kind of jam, its wildly inaccurate POI made random rat droppings in a dresser drawer seem precision grouping by comparison. The smith that built it felt so guilty he refunded my money.

.38/45 Clerke?