Hi
What are the advantages and dissadvantages of these two Rounds. My brother and I want one gun for North America. Texas to Alaska. We have narrowed it down to these.
Dr B

Both need at least a 26" bbl to perform adequately. They would both benefit from a 28"bbl even. The Rum on average is 50-100 fps faster than the STW; especially with the heavier bullet weights. Generally speaking The Rum burns 5-15% more powder than the STW depending on load and powder used. Both cartridges require you to not subject your gun to sustained firing or you'll wear out your bbl in short order. 3 shots max and let er cool. Both are high performance cartridges so to utilize them to their potential you must handload meticulously, find your load for your purpose. Most want these for long range work. Then equip your rifle with high quality optics and bbl if your wallet allows. If your planning on killing at 500 yd, Practice and prove that you and your gun are up to the task. Personally I shoot the rum but either will fit the bill. Recoil of the rum isn't bad. About like a 300 win. of similiar wt. I can't speak for the STW. There are some other guys here that have owned both. Maybe they will chime in. I'm cautious of anyone telling me how many rounds I'll get from a cartridge before burning out the bbl. unless they have shot one out themselves and took good care of the bbl in the process.

The RUM requires a lot of slow burning powder just to get maybe 100fps vel. increase, more recoil. Brass is more expensive & I think soon to be gone from the shelves. I just don't see this one sticking around. Get the 7STW, either is really a handloaders round, but the STW is a bit more efficient.
I have a 26"bbl. 7mm Dakota & get 3250fps using only 74gr of IMR7828. I think this round is better than the other two & it fits a std. mag. action, but brass is pricey & only from Dakota.

First, I don't think that either is the best "all around" rifle for North America, but either will suffice. I think that the .30 calibers are better as "all arounders", but at any rate:

Despite it's slightly greater powder capacity, the Ultra is well into the realm of diminished returns. It would be unusual for it to exceed the STW by more than 50 fps with identical bullets. So in practical ballistic terms, the two rounds are essentially indistinguishable.

I think it really boils down to this: When faced with fleeing wounded game, or worse, charging wounded game, magazine capacity can be important. With the STW, you get as many as four rounds in a standard magazine, giving you 5 total shots with a chambered round. With the Ultra, although most magazines are advertised as holding 3 rounds, some guns will dependably hold and feed only two. This means a one or even two round advantage for the STW.

I once dropped a wounded, running deer with the last round in a five-shot gun. That deer would have been lost if the gun had only held 4 shots. I've never faced it, but the consquences would be even more significant if the game were Brownies and he was running to you and not from you.

Gimme the STW if for no other reason than the extra shot(s).

quote:

With the STW, you get as many as four rounds in a standard magazine, giving you 5 total shots with a chambered round. With the Ultra, although most magazines are advertised as holding 3 rounds, some guns will dependably hold and feed only two. This means a one or even two round advantage for the STW.

The remington 700 magazine will hold and feed three of either cartridge easily.

quote:

Originally posted by stubblejumper:
The remington 700 magazine will hold and feed three of either cartridge easily.

. . . . according to the catalog. Many of the early 700 RUM's would not accept the third cartridge in the magazine, although I understand that Remington has subsequently fixed this problem. An many STW's, such as two different Sakos I have owned (one an L61R and the other a TRG-s) will hold four rounds in the magazine. The AVERAGE difference in magazine capacity between the two chamberings is 1 round and the maximum difference is 2 rounds, and the minimum difference is zero. At any rate, without a special drop magazine, you'll never get four rounds in a RUM. So, as I said, on the basis of magazine capacity alone, I would prefer the STW.

I think that magazine capacity is often overlooked when people are considering chamberings. For example, the .270 WSM provides about 100 fps more velocity than the .270 Winchester when loaded to similar pressures (or about 200 fps more in factory loads). While that velocity difference may be useful in some ways, the differnce in magzine capacity may be from one to three rounds. Those additional rounds, under certain circumstances, may be much more valuable than the increased velocity. Coupled with the issue that the WSM tends to have a problem in feeding in some guns and the standard cartridge feeds like grease, it kinda makes you wonder if the short-fats offer any real advance. But I'm off the subject, and I know that's not allowed on AR

quote:

Originally posted by Stonecreek:
I think that magazine capacity is often overlooked when people are considering chamberings.

I don't know...1990 was the last time I pulled the trigger more than once to fill a tag. I think when the time comes I'd actually need the fourth round from the magazine is a time to evaluate my criteria for shot selection--or find a new hobby.

Of course that doesn't go for DGR's--but this is a thread about 7mm's....

quote:

I think when the time comes I'd actually need the fourth round from the magazine is a time to evaluate my criteria for shot selection--or find a new hobby.

I agree 100%.

I purchased an early 700 300Rum in 1998. It fits three in the magazine, one in the tube when hunting makes four. No problem. I hounded every dealer in Portland OR until one showed up and I pounced on it.

dont forget that the stw is a belted magnum and the rum is not. I own a ruger no.1 in the stw and I cannot see the added cost of powder and brass as being worth the very low amount of extra velocity. I have yet to see a problem with the belted magnum yet. you dont reload these rouds like you would a varmint caliber so brass life isn't as much of an issue

Dr B,

For additional information check out the reloading STW thread.

To me I think that they are almost the same.
I shoot a STW.