Does anyone have a 7mm Rem Mag with a 26" barrel? What are the actual chronographed results you are getting? How do they compare to a 24" barrel?

I like the versatility that the 7RM offers but I don't know if the extra kick and thunder is worth it compared to a .270 or .30-06.

Published ballistics only list the results from a 24" barrel, and the difference is not material, however, if I went with a 26" barrel would the magnum breeding shine through?

Thanks y'all!

quote:

but I don't know if the extra kick and thunder is worth it compared to a .270 or .30-06.

IMO it's not.

The extra you get going to a 26" barrel (from 24") is about 25-40 '/sec.....

The 7mm Mag will do nothing the .30-06 won't do and if the game is deer and targets under 400 pounds the .270 will do it better.

Nothing wrong with a 7mm Mag.....it's just not truly any better than the old standbys!

I've always been a .30cal and up guy so I'm biased.

But in all reality, the 7mm rem mag is only slightly flashier than a 30-06. I agree with Vapo's comments.

I think most people who don't frequent these sites and shoot a whole lot buy the 7mm remmy because it sounds cool.

There is one guy at work who heard I was into rifles. He told me he bought a 7 mil (his exact words). I said which one. He says there's only one #7. I said no not the number, the cartridge, Remington, Weatherby, Dakota, Mauser etc...

He says Browning!! I said go read your manual and the side of your gun.

My point being, it sounds cooler than saying you own a 30-06.

The 7RM is by far my favorite cartridge, so I'm alittle biased. That said, I own and like quite a few standard carts and magnums as well and still the 7RM is my all time favorite. I currently have 3 7RMs and love every one of them.

I've probably taken nearly as many animals with a 30-06 as the 7RMs and IME there is a difference, the 7RM is a much better choice for my needs.

My 26" tube will give 3300 fps with 140s. Compare the SD with .308s and lets just say a 150 in the 06, the best I can get from the 06s I've owned was around 2990-3000 fps with max charges under 150s. Run those differences on a ballistic calculator and you'll see what I'm talking about. Then compare a 160 in the 7RM to a 180 from an 06. The 7RM will push the 160s at 3100 fps while the 06 goes around 2700 with the 180s. Run those numbers as well and again, you'll see what I'm refering to.

The 7 is a "Magnum" the 06 is a "Standard." That's a whole diff debate, I've killed enough game to know there is a difference period.

If you want a flat shooting rifle that carries enough energy to get the job done at long range yet doesn't have terrible recoil, look no further than the 7RM. It's been around long enough and the volume of sales currently speaks volumes of it's popularity and effectiveness.

Back to the topic, My 24" pipe pushes 140s to 3275, 150s to 3150, 160s to 3100. The 26 only poushes them slightly faster.

That said, you may get a slow bbl or a fast bbl as with any other rifle cart on the market. I've owned fast and slow tubes in several carts. I even own a 26" tube 7RM that's slow, it's a Abolt and only pushes 150s a hair over 3000, but I can't complain because it shoots less than 1/2 MOA so it will definitely hang out in my safe for many years to come.

Knock on wood, I have never loaded for a 7RM in any make factory rifle that would not shoot accurately. I well know that has to do with the quality of the rifles themselves, but I just flat can not make that statement for the other carts I load for.

You will not find a better cart for NA than the 7RM IMO. That's MO and I'm sure others feel diff.

Have a Good One,

Reloader

I have a 7mm rem mag in a 700 CDl with 26 inch barrel. Frankly...it is wasted on me. I don't load my 7MM anywhere near its potential...I shoot 160 gr Barnes or Nosler AB's at about 2850 FPS from a load of 63 grs of RL22...No more recoil or blast than an 30-06 or 270.

I like it 'cuz it is deadly accurate, a pleasure to shoot and kills deer very very well.

If you need every last foot second of velocity..than maybe the 26 inch barrel is worth it. For me, since 400 yd shots are not on my menu...I could get along fine with a shorter, lighter rifle...

If you have a nice 30-06 or 270...I would not get a 7mm...too much overlap with what you currently shoot.

If you don't have any of them...I think you would be very happy with a 7MM.

Cheers.

Reloader & fellas--what velocities do you see with 175 gr. partitions?

What powders do you like w/ 175 partitions?

Thanks

friar

Reloader is right on.I've been shooting a 7mag for fourteen years and I'm getting about the same velocities as he is out of my 26" tube.I don't think factory ammo does the 7mag justice.They serverly underload it to the point to where it is comparitable to the 30-06 or 280.If you load it up to it's potential,you bring it up to a whole other level and you have an awesome hard hitting,flat shooting round that far exceeds the published charts for this round.You can say what you want and believe what you want,but until you've tried a 7mag that has been loaded up to it's full magnum status,you will never be able to truely appreciate what a great round it is.

There should actually be two 7mags, the factory and the homebrewed version.
The factory loading is the biggest hoax ever pulled over on one box a year shooters..
Lets see here,, put a belt on it, call it a magnum and then load it down so anybody can shoot it and think they are monster killers.

Or you can load it to where it really needs to be running and it flat assed blows any 30-06, 270,280 load out of the water.
But then it is not so mild of voice or smack either which kind of shoots the "everybodys magnum" farce out of the water.

Bottom line is that it kicks ass if you will load it where it should be, and yes it is a FAR better round.

I can't comment on a 24" barrel, but my 26" tubed model 70 leaves nothing to be desired. Few "magnum" cartridges offer as much without punishing recoil, and even fewer off as many bullet choices as does Remington's big 7.

I am a firm believer in heavy for calibre bullets, and the 7m/m offers two great choices: 160s & 175s. My 7m/m reliably places 160 grain Sierra SBT and Nosler partitions in the same spot when using the same load data. Velocity is always 3070ish and there is room for more, but I don't push it since it is such an accurate reload. I have other loads with more steam that are just as accurate, but they won't place both bullets as accurately as the above mentioned.

That said, the only other "magnum" I've seen that comes closest to Remington's big 7 is Weatherby's 270. I know the 264 boys will cry foul, but I've owned all three and the 7m/m is the hands down winner on the shy side of thirty calibre.

I own 270s, a 30.06, and 7mm Rem Mag. I like them all equally. I've hunted with one even though one of the others would have done the job. I simply like the variety.

I wouldn't hesitate to build another 7mag. My current rifle has a 24" barrel. I think the longest bbl I'd go with would be 27" but a 25" more likely.

Don't forget, there are theories out there that the canted or "Russian" style lands will produce better velocities than the standard lands. I will leave that fight to those who have proof, but the theory is believable. So, I suppose it is conceivable that a 7mag with a 24" "R" or "C" bbl may produce velocities equal to a 26" standard land bbl.

Friar,

I've never loaded the 175s as I've had no need for them. With todays tough bullets and good 160 in .284 is all a man needs in NA imo.

That said I would expect at least 3050 in my 26" tube with IMR 7828 or R22/25.

Have a Good One,

Reloader

quote:

Originally posted by Reloader:
Friar,
With todays tough bullets and good 160 in .284 is all a man needs in NA imo.

Reloader

Typically the cost of shooting the extra 15 grains is about 100'/sec....One has to wonder if this is really all that important either way.

I'm with Reloader here, a 160 grain .284 is worthy of most all NA game.

I have a Brown Precision 7mm RM 24in. bbl. and get an honest 3100fps with the 160 grain Nosler Partition and shoots them into 3/4 inch. I can't ask for a better set up. 80 Grains of H-870 does the trick.

quote:

I have a Brown Precision 7mm RM 24in. bbl. and get an honest 3100fps with the 160 grain Nosler Partition

That's bad news for anything from rabbits to moose IMO.

Had a long chat with a guy not too long ago that was very fond of the 160 NABs on Moose and Elk. He had some pretty impressive penetration stories of the 160NABs on some nice bulls.

I shot a large bodied bull in 06 with a 160 NAB and was quite pleased with the results. Taken some nice mulies and large whitetails with the .284 NABs as well without a hitch. I think of them sort of like a partition with a pretty tip

Have a Good One,

Reloader

quote:

Originally posted by Reloader:
Taken some nice mulies and large whitetails with the .284 NABs as well without a hitch. I think of them sort of like a partition with a pretty tip

Have a Good One,

Reloader

I think of them as a partition that doesn't shed the front core.....the pretty tip is a bonus but not what I'm looking for.

I now shoot them (180 Gr) exclusively in the .308 and .30-06 even though I still have a few A-Frames left!

I get 3300fps out of my 26" Browning A-Bolt. It's stupid accurate and kills deer dead. Longest shot is right around 450 yards.

Mine only shoots light bullets well though. I really want a 26" 7mm RM that'll shoot anything well, I really want to see 175gr shoot MOA "just because". If I were to do that though, I'd probably make it a Weatherby Magnum and stick it in a Mark V "just because".

Thing with the 7mm RM, it's only a little bit better than a .270 when shooting 140's compared to the 130's from a .270. Sure there is a little more frontal area, velocity, and weight, but the game those bullets are designed for won't notice the difference and the trajectory won't be too far off, either.

And when you get to heavy bullets, the 175gr may have the BC/SD but the touch more weight and frontal area from a hot-loaded .30-06 shooting 180gr bullets are likely a little more useful for really big animals that require the weight.

Loading RL-22 in a 24" .30-06 with 180gr bullets is the ticket for heavy game, especially so for bears - bigger holes are better and there is no doubting the penetration of a 180gr .30cal at over 2800fps!

So it's kind of an in-between. It's excellent for long range deer hunting and quite good for elk and moose but doesn't specialize in either, really. I think it's popular because it can take most big game quite well, doesn't kick too hard, and is still a Magnum in name which has some sway over the general shooter.

In all honesty, it's one of the best rounds out there. It just depends on what is really best for your specific application.

I shoot the 175 partitions at 2901 fps with RL22. H870 will go faster, but I never got it to shoot as well and is dirty as hell. I could put up with that if it shot as well as RL22. Mine is an old Sako with a 24 in. barrel. By the way, if you can tell any difference in recoil between a .30-06 and a 7RM you are more sensitive than I.

Interestingly,
I don't think of my 7mm as an elk or moose rifle. I have a .338 for them. For medium game though, its a death ray.

It will push heavier bullets better than the .280 Rem - which is its largest advantage. It has higher sectional density than a .30 caliber in similar weights, so will give you the penetration you want -- especially with premium bullets. It will give you an advantage in energy of about 100 yards (ie, you see at 200 yrds what an '06 will give you).

Dan

Use 180 grain Bergers with a stout load and it will whoop a 30-06 or 270. Or 168 grain Bergers for that matter.

However, some wouldn't use that bullet for bigger game.

Thanks fellas--good info as always!

One question--I've read that the accubond is designed to shed about 1/3rd of its total weight, similar to the partition, no?

As to penetration, I'm glad to hear the 160 7mm has turned-in good performances. I myself have had mixed reviews in terms of penetration with the .277 140 grain accubonds (and, who knows, that may just be the vagaries of shooting animals in the real-world).

Many thanks,

friar

quote:

Reply

I think you guys are unnecessarily harsh on factory fodder for the 7mm. Except for the 30/06 it comes in more factory loadings than anything else. While not maximum loads some of them will prove satisfactory for just about any purpose you can find short of buffalo.

quote:

One question--I've read that the accubond is designed to shed about 1/3rd of its total weight, similar to the partition, no?

I've yet to see it stated by the folks at Nosler and frankly I believe such claims as "designed to lose weight" are pure bullpucky.....especially when the statement is made that the partition is designed to shed it's front care.......if that is so then why is Swift doing so well selling the same bullet with a bonded front core?

I can't quote velocities because the only chrono I own is somewhat suspect, but I will say this about my BDL 7RM: 79 grains of AA8700 lit with a Federal 215 shoots the discontinued Nosler Solid Base 162s to one hole at 100, and well less than 2" at 200. I would have no second thoughts about shooting anything on the NA continent with that rifle out to 400, with the exception of maybe a grizz.

I have a fast barrel 270 that gets me 3150 (another guy's chrono) out of a 130 Speer GS. That is plenty fast, and I would probably grab it for deer, pigs, and even sheep if I were young enough to hunt them. But for the bigger stuff, give me the "big 7".

Vapo, I had to go back to look at the Nosler page to make sure I wasn't imagining I'd seen something about loosing 1/3rd of its weight. Here's where I came across it (ignore the p.r. bit in the first paragraph).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nosler AccuBond®
The Benchmark of Bonded Bullets
*NEW FOR 2008 - 270 Caliber 110-Grain, .338 Caliber 250-Grain, .375 Caliber 300-Grain*

A serious hunting bullet designed to typical Nosler standards, AccuBond® represents the most advanced bonded core bullet technology to date. Through a proprietary bonding process that eliminates voids in the bullet core, AccuBond® marries Nosler’s traditional copper alloy jacket with its special lead alloy core. The result is a bullet that flies true, penetrates deep and retains its weight—and won’t cause extensive barrel fouling. Nosler's AccuBond®--the benchmark by which all bonded core bullets will be measured.

For detailed reloading information click here.

To order online click here.

Fully tapered, heavy alloy jacket is bonded to the special lead alloy core through a proprietary process designed for controlled expansion, deep penetration and a 60-70% weight retention.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I found the above at http://www.nosler.com/?p=3&bullet=5

As to whether a person "buys" that line of reasoning is the beauty of a free market!

friar

friarmeier.....thanks for the link.....and yes you're right they claim "designed to lose weight".....(more correctly "designed to retain 60-70%")

Please understand that in no sense at all am I condemning Nosler's bullets.....neither the partitions nor the Accubonds.....my goodness I've just loaded a lot of .300 H&H and .30-06 with accubonds for the upcoming hunting season.

I'm saying only that the claim of lost weight is to show that they don't lose more.....

and the claim ( I've never seen made by Nosler) that the partition is designed to shed it's front core is unfounded.....the darn things work!!!!! And a lot of bullet companies wish theirs worked as well....

However I read the statement of retaining 60-70% of their weight as the inverse of losing 30%.....they'd like it to retain more if they could! It appears a tradeoff to get mushrooming and weight retention and Nosler has made their trades.....

The only better bullets was the Northforks and I dearly wish someone would pick up the line, even at double the money.....A-Frames and TBBC bullets are also high on the list but Nosler's accubond has earned a solid place in the lineup IMO

I look at the 7mmRemMag as "Deer weight bullets" in "Varmint bullet trajectories"

the 7mmMag with 140's handloaded to 3300fps mimics the 25-06 launching 100gr bullets

But remember that the sectional density of a 140gr .284 bullet is most like that of a 165gr 30cal.

I like the 150-160 grain bullets also. You can launch the 140's a bit too fast for average deer bullet impact distances and radial destruction can be a bit much even with premium bullets. I like the 150 grain Ballistic Tips, 160 grain Nosler Partitions and Accubonds in mine. I usually just try for 3000 fps with these bullets and get it with Reloder 22 no problems. Excellent accuracy too.

I've used an A Bolt Medallion LH for fifteen years in 7 Rem. Taken dozens of deer with it and also used it on a plains game hunt in RSA in '05, shooting factory Rem. 160 A Frames. Had one shot kills on kudu, gemsbok (300 yds), zebra (175 yds), and a few others. It was amazingly effective and the accuracy has always been equally excellent. I see no need for an 06. I own two 7 Rems and enjoy them very much. One is going back to Tanzania next year as my light rifle.

I hear what you're saying, Vapo. I have some vague memory of someone from Nosler commenting that the weight loss of the front core (or the 30ish % of the Accubond) was desireable in that it added shrapnel to the wound-channel.

I suppose this is true. Of course, if the first 6" of wound channel are through shoulder muscle or paunch, then there is (I presume) significantly less trauma than, say, if a clean, double lung shot is taken.

And if the real world always presented a clean double lunger--then there would be no need for anything more than ballistic tips!

If for these reasons only, I'm going to shoot a 150 gr. A-frame out of my .270 WCF for moose this fall. I'll be giving up much of this "shrapnel" effect, but on a moose with an admitedly "adequate" caliber, I'll err on the side of penetration!

Great thread, everyone--many thanks!

friar

I use my 7 mag like a 270. It basically makes an extra 100 fps by burning 15 grains more powder.

The only load that my gun likes is the 140 grain TSX at 3000 fps. But because I may use it here in the California no-lead zones, I still keep it.

The 7MM Rem Mag is the most popular take off barrel around here. They are found by the dozens in new condition. I guess the take off are not popular either because it is rare to see one sell.

I have one of the uncommon Ruger #1S in 7MM Mag. It has presentation grade wood and I got it used but as new for a bargain. I have shot it a little but I am going to rebarrel it. I have no real use for it other than I have huge supply of 7MM bullets to plink with.

quote:

Originally posted by vapodog:
friarmeier.....thanks for the link.....and yes you're right they claim "designed to lose weight".....(more correctly "designed to retain 60-70%")

Please understand that in no sense at all am I condemning Nosler's bullets.....neither the partitions nor the Accubonds.....my goodness I've just loaded a lot of .300 H&H and .30-06 with accubonds for the upcoming hunting season.

I'm saying only that the claim of lost weight is to show that they don't lose more.....

and the claim ( I've never seen made by Nosler) that the partition is designed to shed it's front core is unfounded.....the darn things work!!!!! And a lot of bullet companies wish theirs worked as well....

However I read the statement of retaining 60-70% of their weight as the inverse of losing 30%.....they'd like it to retain more if they could! It appears a tradeoff to get mushrooming and weight retention and Nosler has made their trades.....

The only better bullets was the Northforks and I dearly wish someone would pick up the line, even at double the money.....A-Frames and TBBC bullets are also high on the list but Nosler's accubond has earned a solid place in the lineup IMO

Vapo,

The shedding is why Partitions are the very best bullet for non-dangerous game, and yes they are designed that way.

Used a 7 rem mag on two trips to Africa. Nosler 160 gr. bullet driven to 2950fps. out of 24 inch barrel. All animals dropped with 1 shot. No bullets recovered. Weight of animals up to 1000 lbs. Great round. John

quote:

Originally posted by MikeyB:

And when you get to heavy bullets, the 175gr may have the BC/SD but the touch more weight and frontal area from a hot-loaded .30-06 shooting 180gr bullets are likely a little more useful for really big animals that require the weight.

5 more grains is not worth mentioning.

I consider increased frontal area to be very mediocre at best, especially splitting hairs between a .284 and .308. Going from something like a .284 to a .338, now that's meaningful.

quote:

Loading RL-22 in a 24" .30-06 with 180gr bullets is the ticket for heavy game, especially so for bears - bigger holes are better and there is no doubting the penetration of a 180gr .30cal at over 2800fps!

If you are getting 180's out of your 30/06 at over 2800 fps, it isn't going to be by much. Average is 2700-2750 with 180's. Nothing spectacular.

I also fail to see the penetration benefit of a modern 180 grain bullet at or near 2800 fps vs. a 160 bullet at 3100 fps.

The extra 300 fps is a significant difference in trajectory and if one wants to hunt dangerous bear, the 30/06 shooting 180's isn't going to pound them any harder than a 7 mag.

Personally, I would choose at least a 300 mag. if hunting dangerous bear anyways.

When the 7 mm Rem Mag (shooting 160 Accubond) is compared to a 30-06 (shooting 180 Accubond), and all else is held constant (barrel length, max PSI 65,000), the differences are negligible. Although the 7 mm Rem Mag will be slightly flatter shooting, with modern range finders, the slightly flatter trajectory becomes unimportant.

If you really want a step up in performance over the 30-06, I'd suggest the 300 Win Mag or 300 RUM. For really big game (including African dangerous game) I'd suggest the 375 Ackley Improved or 375 RUM. The latter two, when loaded to their potential become very flat shooting as well.

Hodgon's top load for the 180 grn 30.06 is 57.5 grains of H4350 for 2798 fps at 49,300 CUP

Their top 7 mag 175 grn load is 68 grains of Retumbo for 2800 fps at 51,200 CUP

In the lighter bullets down to 130 grains there isn't more than 100 fps difference between the two rounds with the 7 mag burning 10-15 grains more powder to do it.

(BTW, I don't own a 30.06 and I do own a 7 Mag)

quote:

Originally posted by Fjold:
Hodgon's top load for the 180 grn 30.06 is 57.5 grains of H4350 for 2798 fps at 49,300 CUP

Their top 7 mag 175 grn load is 68 grains of Retumbo for 2800 fps at 51,200 CUP

In the lighter bullets down to 130 grains there isn't more than 100 fps difference between the two rounds with the 7 mag burning 10-15 grains more powder to do it.

(BTW, I don't own a 30.06 and I do own a 7 Mag)

Using my personal data, I get 2860fps with my .30-06 and 180gr bullets; my 7mm RM did better at 2950fps with 175's but they wouldn't shoot well enough for hunting use. The Oehler shows good pressures on both loads. Not a huge difference between them.

quote:

Originally posted by jsrieck:
Does anyone have a 7mm Rem Mag with a 26" barrel? What are the actual chronographed results you are getting? How do they compare to a 24" barrel?

I like the versatility that the 7RM offers but I don't know if the extra kick and thunder is worth it compared to a .270 or .30-06.

Published ballistics only list the results from a 24" barrel, and the difference is not material, however, if I went with a 26" barrel would the magnum breeding shine through?

Thanks y'all!

jsrieck:

While I no longer have it, I hunted with a Remington stainless synthetic 7mm Mag. for many years. Trust me, it is a wonderful cartridge and don't let anybody kid you, it is a lot more gun than a .270 and suitable for any game in North America save for the big bears (although I have a friend who took a polar bear with his 7 Mag.) as well as most African plains game. It shoots very flat and doesn't kick much more than your average 30-06. IMHO opinion, it is a superb cartridge and I liked it a great deal more than the 7mm Remington Ultra Mag. that I traded it for. If I recall, I had no trouble whatsoever pushing a 160 grain bullet to well over 3000 fps and using a premium bullet like a Nosler Partition, that load will do about all you will need to do. I say go for it!

Dave