Berger 7mm VLD Hunter 168gr in 280AI need advice.

coyoteking

coyoteking

CGN frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
33   0   0
Location
SW Sask
Anyone here load this? Good accuracy? I’ve heard they perform well on game.

What kind of jump do these bullets tend to like? I’ll have to load to mag length which will be a long jump.

I’m planning on using H4831sc. I don’t have a Berger manual but some searching and cross referencing with other 168gr bullets shows that 59 to 59.5 grains is about the max. Does that sound about right? Anyone here with a Berger manual that could take a look for me?
 
I haven’t had a lot of luck with the 168 in anything, whether that just bad luck or because I don’t live right is uncertain. Oddly the 180 grain seldom fails to please.

I keep trying because for some reason I ended up with a pile of them, probably because I got a deal.
 
Dogleg said:
I haven’t had a lot of luck with the 168 in anything, whether that just bad luck or because I don’t live right is uncertain. Oddly the 180 grain seldom fails to please.

I keep trying because for some reason I ended up with a pile of them, probably because I got a deal.
Click to expand...

I was playing around on the bench last night and discovered I have some pretty significant donuts in my brass. I would have to seat these VLD’s into the donut in order for the cartridge to fit the magazine. Now I’m thinking of going to a shorter bullet.

The donut is probably the reason I was having poor accuracy with the 168 ABLR’s I had been using.

Any recommendations for a 150- 160 grain big game bullet? I use this rifle for pronghorn, deer and open country elk.
 
I haven't loaded that particular bullet but shoot lots of the 165 tgk and 168 barnes lrx. Both of those are great hunting bullets. I shoot the 165 tgk at about 2920 fps with h4831sc I think at 58 gr. The 168lrx i use 7828ssc and get about the same fps. Great accuracy from both.
 
coyoteking said:
I was playing around on the bench last night and discovered I have some pretty significant donuts in my brass. I would have to seat these VLD’s into the donut in order for the cartridge to fit the magazine. Now I’m thinking of going to a shorter bullet.

The donut is probably the reason I was having poor accuracy with the 168 ABLR’s I had been using.

Any recommendations for a 150- 160 grain big game bullet? I use this rifle for pronghorn, deer and open country elk.
Click to expand...
Maybe ream out the donut? I have only used those 168 gr bullets in my 7mm-08, where they have been quite accurate, though obviously slow. 150's and 160's in a 280 AI? Barnes or Nosler have both worked well on game for me. - dan
 
Hi, not a fan of using Bergers for hunting. Amazing bullets for accuracy. They were developed for target shooting and they didn’t do enough changes with them for them to qualify as a true hunting bullet. My opinion - they are not a hunting bullet primarily because they don’t open up dependably. They do not have a mechanism to cause them to open up such as a soft point or a large HP, or a plastic tip. Happened to me twice on deer, if they don’t hit bone on the way in through the chest cavity they will pencil through and not open up.

Please respect our game, it deserves the most humane and lethal way we can find to dispatch it in the most effective way. It’s for good reason that Billy Molls says he loves it when his clients bring Berger bullets, cuz then he gets to shoot their game for them.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom