Africa, circa 1910.

George Grey, a British gentleman hunter, is stalking a lion in the dense sub-Saharan bush. In his hands, he holds a 280 Ross rifle, one that shoots a light bullet at previously-unheard-of velocities. He is confident in this new-fangled cartridge, one that the whole hunting world is raging about. But this “rage” wouldn’t last long.

Suddenly, the beast appears from a clump of trees. It sees Grey and, knowing that it’s being hunted, immediately charges. Grey fires one shot, hitting the lion square. But the lion does not stop, increasing the speed of his charge instead. Another shot. Too late. The lion springs on Grey and in a blur of fangs and claws all is over. Within seconds, the lion melts away in the bush while Grey, lying in tatters on the bushveldt grass, sighs his life away.

This true story is a typical “campfire story.” In it, the animal, the hunter and his cartridge are all equal players – the outcome being the mere result of a good or (in this case) bad combination.

This is why cartridge selection is so important for riflemen and rifle hunters. The right cartridge at the right time can spell success and give you bragging rights for a lifetime – while the opposite can lead to unpleasant results, from a costly disappointment (in the form of a lost trophy) to paying the ultimate price.

In a less dramatic sense, rifle cartridges are also used to express a hunter’s preference for a certain concept (e.g. more bullet weight is better than more velocity). Having understood how personal a caliber choice is for hunters, manufacturers have always tried to come up with new concepts that would either create a new fad (e.g. WSM cartridges) or take advantage of an existing one.

How many rifle calibers are there out there?

Many authors have attempted to identify and list all the rifle cartridges ever made (in every country) from the 1870’s to today. The result was nothing less than a true encyclopedia – although many cartridges were still missing as a result of choice or oversight. Simply put, rifle calibers can be counted in the thousands.

So, how do we decide on a limited number of cartridges for Sako and Tikka? For starters, we weed out:

Then, we narrow down the choice to:

What do all those numbers and words mean in rifle caliber nomenclature?

There are no universal rules about cartridge nomenclature. However, in the USA it is normal to use the first numeric to designate the bullet diameter; the second designation (another number or a word) can indicate many different things, such as the parent case or the manufacturer who introduced the caliber.

A few examples:

How does a cartridge kill – or fail to kill?

The elements that make a cartridge suitable for a certain kind of game are:

Therefore, a good rule of thumb is that rifles shooting light bullets very fast are good to hit small targets at a long distance (=varmints) but not for stopping big game at close quarters – as George Grey found out. Conversely, a heavy bullet going relatively slow may be good for stopping a large beast out to 150 yards, but it will lack the “flat trajectory” to hunt lighter game over long distances.

What is a Magnum?

Magnum is a word borrowed from Champagne! Around the third quarter of the 19 th Century, rifle manufacturers started marketing large, powerful cartridges called the “Magnum” version of pre-existing ones. Just like a Magnum Champagne bottle, these cartridges were huge because they needed to pack a lot of powder in their brass cases.

Today, the word Magnum is used rather loosely to indicate a cartridge that packs a lot of power compared to another of similar bullet diameter. E.g.: the 300 Winchester Magnum shoots the same bullet as the 30-06; only, the former has a larger case that holds more powder, and it is thus a faster cartridge.

What are the main classes of cartridges?

This is a very basic distinction, but one that can help sort out different cartridge types. Let’s start with the lowest and proceed upwards.

As you can see, pretty much all cartridges we chamber in Sako and Tikka rifles are listed here. In the future, every time a “hot” new cartridge is introduced, we will try to include it as a standard chambering for our rifles.

Why do manufacturers keep coming out with new calibers?

Because new concepts sell. Take the WSM. Nothing new ballistically – for all practical purposes, the 300 WSM and the old 300 Win Mag perform identically. But the short, stubby case of the 300 WSM suggests “efficiency.” Winchester markets this cartridge for its efficiency and people respond by suddenly needing “efficiency” – and buying rifles chambered for the 300 WSM.