I want a new rifle in 7mm and am considering the 7mm Remington magnum and the 7mm Weatherby. In the books the 7mm Weatherby has a 200 fps advantage over the 7mm RM. The 7mm Weatherby is also loaded to higher pressure. If I load both cartidges to the same pressure level in a rifle with a 26" barrel will they have similar velocity? What is the case capacity in grains of water of the two cases?

Have you considered a 7mm WSM?


Bytstar

I bought my dad a 7mm Weatherby mag not realizing it was not a 7mm rem mag at the time. Other than new brass is harder to get I can’t see any big difference. I can’t tell you about grain of water, but I did fill the Weatherby cartridge with rifle powder and emptied it into the 7mm rem mag cartridge. It filled it to the same level. Neither was trimmed to length they were new factory brass that were not shot.

I hope this helps.

I went to quickload thinking there would barely be a difference but QL says the capacity of 7 rem mag is 82.0 and weatherby is 87.5. So there is some difference plus the fact that weatherby rifles have freebore which seems to help get velocity before pressures go off the scale. I shoot alot of 300 wby and the max velocity you usually see in guns without freebore with a 180 grain hovers around 3150-3200 while the freebored weatherbies seem to get another 100fps. So, if I were to venture an opinion I'd say there is probably an equal gain between freebore and case capacity.....
BUT in the real world I wonder if the 7mm weatherby really can outrun a 7mm mag by 200 fps!!!!

The WSM mag version of the 7mm is a good alternative to those options.

I have two friends that have 7mm Weatherby's and I also have two other friends that have the Remington versions. Weatherby is a good round but it's really hard to tell the difference with power unless you see numbers or you feel the recoil from the Weatherby.

I find that the recoil is very close to my .300 wm in the Weatherby and if you are going to handle that type of recoil, which isn't bad, either shoot a 7mm STW or the 7mm Ultra or step up and shoot a .300, any version except the 30-.378 and the Warbird, they are whole differnt animals.

From what I've seen from my friends that are 7mm nuts is that they think that stepping up to the .300's is a huge recoil increase until they found out my .300 was no different than their 7mm's.

Basically,IMO, if you are set on the 7mm and you don't mind a small increase in recoil then atleast get the most for your money with the STW or ULTRA.

I have both and would choose the 7 Rem Mag of the two for several reasons. The 7 RM has readily available factory ammo if in a pinch, The 7 RM is alot cheaper to buy reloading supplies for (Dies, Brass, etc.), and you don't have the excessive FreeBore w/ the 7RM. The Weatherby factory ammo is priced ridiculously high and is limited in certain areas. Once you've aquired the dies and brass for the Weatherby the loading cost are basically the same.

They are very close in case design and capacity. W/O Weatherby's Free Bore they would be almost identical in ballistic data. If you had Free Bore in a 7 Rem Mag that matched the Free Bore of the Weatherby line, you could probably have identical results.

The Weatherby is indeed faster my 7mm Weatherby shoots 140 grainers at 3390 fps. w/ below max charges of IMR 7828, I haven't even attempted to go faster.

If you want a fast 7mm that will equal and better the 7 Weatherby, I'd go w/ the 7 STW.

Good Luck!

Reloader

I already have a 300 WM and want a new 7mm. I want to shoot 150 grain bullets in this rifle. The recoil is about 20% less for the 7mm RM (compared to my 300 WM) when loaded to max book, but the big advantage is higher BC for the same weight bullet. The BC in a 7mm is 0ver .5, in a .308 it's barely .4. Energy is about the same at looong range when you compare the 150 grain bullets. If I want to shoot bullets in the 180 grain range I'll use the 300.

The 7mm Ultra is not very efficient. I don't want to burn 100 grains of powder for very little gain in velocity. I might consider the 7mm STW.

When handloading I don't think the 7mm WSM will keep up with the belted magnums. It also won't fit very well into the long action I plan on using. I'm planning on rebarreling a 300 WM (I have 2) and I can switch to the 7 RM or Weatherby wihtout changing bolt faces or changing feed ramps etc..

Reloader-

Your words echo a lot from what I've heard also and as from my post, I second the decision on the STW. You get brass for it pretty easy now and dies also.

The STW and the ULTRA are kissing cousins in velocities and they are whole different monsters from the original Remington Magnum. Had a friend kill a huge bull in N. Mexico last year with an STW with 150gr. Swift-A-Frames and the bullet went through and through at about 400yds.

Food for thought....

quote:

Originally posted by elkhunter:
I want a new rifle in 7mm and am considering the 7mm Remington magnum and the 7mm Weatherby. In the books the 7mm Weatherby has a 200 fps advantage over the 7mm RM. The 7mm Weatherby is also loaded to higher pressure. If I load both cartidges to the same pressure level in a rifle with a 26" barrel will they have similar velocity? What is the case capacity in grains of water of the two cases?

Yes. they will have similar velocities. There's only one thing that allows a 7mm Weatherby to beat a 7mm Rem. Mag., (true of ALL Weatherby chambers) and that's freebore! If you freebore a 7mm Rem. Mag. chamber, you can overload it too and not blow up the gun.

I have a 7mm Rem. Mag. Ruger No. 1B with 26" tube, and it will get 3350 with 140-grain bullets and 3050 with 175-grain bullets at useable pressures (cases last 10+ reloadings). The trick is to use the right powders!

Sounds like someone just wants a new gun!! (Which is a-ok). I'm a 30 cal guy and my buddy a 7mm guy. We used to have endless arguments about which was better. I used to print off ballistic charts with enery and drop and we'd rib the heck out of each other. Bottom line is that the 300 win mag can and will shoot as flat as the 7mm mag and hit with more energy but you are correct you will pay more price in recoil. It's pretty much the "which is better a .280 or an '06 argument. There isn't enough difference for most any practical argument. Maybe it isn't just time for a new caliber as much as it's time to consider and get more of what you are looking for in the rifle itself. Ie if you might value lightweight a tikka t-3 in a 7 mag could be real sweet. Or maybe you're looking for something a little heavier for stand type shooting. AGAIN NON OF MY BUSINESS--just trying to give you some thought towards alternatives.

I have owned several 7mmremmags,three 7mmstw's and one 7mmultramag and have chronographed two 7mmwby mags as well.With 140gr bullets and 26" barrels on all rifles, the 7mmwby mag gains about 50 to 75fps over the 7mmremmag.The 7mmstw adds about 175 to 200fps and the 7mmultramag adds another 50 to 75fps.My favorite of all four is the 7mmstw as it is a decent gain over the 7mmrem and wby,yet is very close to the 7mmultramag yet burns significantly less powder.

I'd like to stick with the 7mm RM if I can get similar velocities due to the availability of brass and dies. Basically I want 3150-3200 from a 150 grain bullet from a 26" barrel. I want to stick with a pressure where I can get 4 loads from my brass before I have to replace it.

I also am a fan of the 7mag. Just bought a cdl in 7mm rm, and it is fantastic to shot. Compared to my 06 it's like a mosquito bite compared to a horse fly. Oh and what a beutiful rifle. I think the 7 mags are as good as it gets for long range all purpose shooting.

Stubble is right, you'll get about 75fps gain w/ the Wby. If you are talking semi custom, a 7m Dakota is an efficient cart. giving STW vel. w/ a tiny bit less powder. Brass is pricey though, for all that, I'ld rather run a .280 w/ 140-150gr bullets. You can get close to 3000fps w/ a 150gr bullet from a 26"bbl. .280. Out to 400yds, the diff. isn't much. If 150gr bullets were all I wanted to shoot, the 7WSM would be a good way to go too.

If dies and brass were any cheaper I'd build a 7mm Dakota. It's the best cartridge, but not worth the cost. Has anyone tried to form 7mm Dakota brass by trimming and forming 7mm RUM brass?

For all practical purposes I simply don't see that much difference between the two in terms of hunting application.
The 7mm Weatherby is a little harder hitting and somewhat faster. I've killed a couple of bull moose with the 7mm Rem. Mag. and feel quite certain they couldn't have noticed the difference. Just one mans opinion. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

elk, the brass is a bigger cost problem than the dies, I mean, you only buy them once. I haven't tried to make brass from anything else. I just layed in 100 cases when I ahd the rifle done. The cases last quite along time. I think I am on my 5th firing & everything is still tight. It's a nice round.

7mm Rem mag is fine!! No need of anything that says WTHBY. Freebore makes for inaccurate comparisons.

You're going to see alot more than 50-75 fps gain in the Weatherby vs. the Rem Mag but, They are both great rounds. The 7 Rem Mag will give you 3150-3200 w/ 150 grainers but, you'll probably be at max+ loads.

I don't think 4 firings will be hard to get at those velocities/pressures in the 7 RM. I'm Currently going 3100 fps w/ 150s in my 7RM and 4 firings per case is easy. R22 and IMR 7828 are good powders w/ the 150s.

Good Luck!

Reloader