Hello,
I am concidering a 7 MM'S and was wondering if amyone has compared the 7mm Rem with the 7MM WSM as to ballistics, recoil, and field knock down power.
Old Timer

Winchester has. You can go to their site and find that they show that the 7 MM WSM like their other short mags is more powerful than the older cartridge. There may be claims of less recoil.

This is just what the Ackley Improved gang does and the exact same details are ignored. The WSM's and by the way Remington makes the same claims for their forgotten SAUM's are a little smaller than the 7MM Rem Mag and .300 Win Mag for instance.

Now the WSM's are a little handier, the bullet travels thru a 1/2" more barrel and the short fat case provides an excellent combustion vessel. They also headspace better as they do it on the shoulder and don't suffer as much from damaged webs when they fireform for the first time.

But as far as effect on game goes nobody will ever be really able to tell the difference as it must be so slight as to be hidden by other variables.

For recoil or general shootability the old 7 MM Rem mag is of a size and capacity that make it a top all around cartridge if you want to carry around a 24" barreled nine pound rifle. It's recoil is about all that most can master without a lot of effort.

In another thread Big Stick and others made the point of why not have a handy well balanced rifle with say a 22" barrel that's fun to carry but also own a long barreled hammer in an extreme cartridge? This is a good point.

To illustrate this I commented in yet another thread to imagine that it's just before dawn and you have two rifles in the vehicle. One is a flat shooter with a 22" or less barrel. It's well balanced and scoped it goes less than eight pounds in fact if you spent some bucks it might be close to seven! Next to it is a long rifle in a max caliber. It might go nine with it's big scope and heavy ends it's just not handy.

I would pick the light rifle and make it do if I had a ways to climb or I was going to still hunt.

If I only had to walk a ways to a lookout and could see forever then the maximum rifle is the one to take out of the vehicle.

Hello! I can't coment on the 7"s but i did somthing simular with the 270 wsm.I've used the old 270 for some 40 yrs,i was ready for a change,i can tell you the difference i found between the two. using a model 70 laminated,i found just a touch more rec,28% flatter traj,200 fps. vel,give or take. Using the same bullet,bullet wt. powder.Love the results,very glad i made the move. I would look for same basic results with the 7mm. Basicly we are all looking for a little difference,a little edge if you will i feel these new wsm's are worth the $ if your looking for somthing a bit better than norm don,t wait.Good luck!

Gentlemen,

I think the 7mm WSM is a good cartridge, but as for on-game performance, it doesn't do anything that a factory-loaded 7mm RM can't do. Handloading the 7mm RM can bring out a fairly substantial velocity edge. I have a good 7mm RM, and I'm not looking to change any time soon.

If you find a WSM that you like and have confidence shooting, then that is a great rifle for you. Good luck with your choices.

Joel Slate
Slate & Associates, LLC
www.slatesafaris.com

7mm Rem Mag Page www.slatesafaris.com/7mm.htm

According to winchester and browning advertising the short magnums are faster and more powerful than the full length magnums.In the real world the short mags are actually slightly slower than the full length mags when loaded to equivalent pressures.Slick advertising and outright deception have done their job as some people actually believe what browning and winchester are telling them.

Thanks everyone
I was looking for a cal with a little authority and easy to carry, I have .284 bullets and of course 7MM rem dies, but my old 7mm were of the 26" tubes and a little heaver.
Old Timer