I don't own a 7mm but I've thought about adding one. I'm a fan of the 30-06 length action. It just feels right for me when racking a bolt but if I were to buy a new 7mm I'd go with a 7-08. I don't need a magnum as I hunt in ontario and I prefer to get as close as I can instead of sniping a deer at half a kilometer. Not knocking those that do but I find it more sporting when stalking the animal and even at the slow speeds of the 708 a 140gr bullet thru the lungs will drop any animal in NA. I admit for grizzlies I'd leave the 7mm behind in favour of something a lot bigger
best 7mm cartridge
- Thread starter WhelanLad
- Start date
7mm Rem mag with 160gr Barnes TSX for me. 7mm-08 with 120gr TSX for the kids. 7mm-08 ammo is really hard to find - I gave up and bought the dies and 1F brass to make my own.
7mm RM hits them like lightning. Never have to chase as long as you hit them in the heart/lungs.
7mm RM hits them like lightning. Never have to chase as long as you hit them in the heart/lungs.
To the person who said that the 7-08 only reaches its full potential with a longer barrel, although I'm FAR from an expert I'd disagree. One of my favorite benefits of the short action length is a more efficient powder burn, meaning you can use a bit of a shorter barrel length and still see decent velocity. I'm not loading for benchrest accuracy in my hunting rifles, so I tend to choose powders that suit the barrel length. In my 20" barreled 7-08 I use H4895 and without going over book maximum the 139gr Hornady SST's are in the 2800-2830fps range. Don't worry about filling up the case fully for a hunting rifle with a short barrel, try a quicker powder instead.
139gr pills at 2800 fps is a nice reasonable and low recoiling benchmark in my opinion. The 7-08 will hit that velocity with less powder and less recoil, and with a shorter barrel than the .280 rem, which is why I like it so much. Of course if you feel the need for more velocity rather than "balance" there are lots of other choices!
Red
139gr pills at 2800 fps is a nice reasonable and low recoiling benchmark in my opinion. The 7-08 will hit that velocity with less powder and less recoil, and with a shorter barrel than the .280 rem, which is why I like it so much. Of course if you feel the need for more velocity rather than "balance" there are lots of other choices!
Red
In Saskatchewan, it seems like every Tom, #### and Harry does have one.
That's what the "S" in STW stands for. The rest is a secret.bearkilr
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Nowhere, ......just past the middle
In Saskatchewan, it seems like every Tom, #### and Harry does have one.
Please, do tell us what the "TW" stand for.........
fair call from everyone,
if i had the place in the safe for a 708 i woulda have one already... for sure trust me on that... but while my cuz has one then thats close enuff for me as we hunt togethera bit.
will reconsider entirely on this, for now...
Will end up with either a 7RM or a 30WSM i rekon..
thanks for all the input, you guys do love the 708 which is a good game getter for sure!!
if i had the place in the safe for a 708 i woulda have one already... for sure trust me on that... but while my cuz has one then thats close enuff for me as we hunt togethera bit.
will reconsider entirely on this, for now...
Will end up with either a 7RM or a 30WSM i rekon..
thanks for all the input, you guys do love the 708 which is a good game getter for sure!!
Please, do tell us what the "TW" stand for.........
Throat Wear. It's also known as the 7mm Este Tabernac, due to observations of what 140 grains @ 3500 fps can do.
SMARTA**
Cool, 275 Rigby
I had to look it up.
7MM x 57
what disapointment, LOL
It was with the 275 Rigby that Jim Corbett shot the Maneating Leopard Of Rudrapyrang. After it had eating at least 125 of the locals.
bearkilr
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Nowhere, ......just past the middle
A series of fortunate events are such that I'll have a mountian contour .280 AI, and a sporter weight 7 RSAUM both arriving by months end. It'll be fun comparing them to my tried and true 7mm-08... Just gotta decide on whcih scopes and stocks to put on each...
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
Townsend Whelen stated the .280 was the best choice between the .270, .280, and the .30/06. Much water has passed under the bridge since he expressed that sentiment back in the '50s, but today it still rings true. Although I prefer the .30/06, that little gem of wisdom keeps my preference in context. Those who have read anything written by Rocky Chandler, knows he makes a good case for the 7 mag as the top cartridge. I own one 7mm rifle, and its a 7X57, if I were to own another, it too would probably be a 7X57, although I might call it a .275 Rigby if I was feeling snooty.
Are you judging that from the manuals soft loaded 280 specs?
There's no reason a 280 cannot be loaded to 270 pressures in similar rifles.
My 280 shoots 139s @ 3100fps all day long with zero pressure signs
The thing is SAAMI spec is very low for the .280. Remington introduced the cartridge to have .270 ballistics at a lower pressure (more suitable for the autoloader it was originally designed for). a .280 can be safely pushed signifigantly above book max. It's the same case as a .270 (obviously different diameter in the neck) and it can run at the same pressure as a .270. Book max for a 160 grain with H4831 is ~53-55grains depending on the book. I'm running 57 grains with no major pressure signs.
