hey y'al found a 280 rem great condition tang safety aftermarket syn. stock for $300 and am seriously consider buying but this got me on the 7mm research. i want a moderate recoil good mpbr moderate preasure round so can anyone make a case (no pun intended)for one round over another in 280 rem 7mm saum 7mm wsm 7mm-08? thanks for the input also i will be handloading

All are grat, I like .280 Rem. Reasonable recoil.easy to reload with great results.
Judge Sharpe

I concur with Judge Sharpe

quote:

Originally posted by boom stick:
hey y'al found a 280 rem great condition tang safety aftermarket syn. stock for $300 and am seriously consider buying but this got me on the 7mm research. i want a moderate recoil good mpbr moderate preasure round so can anyone make a case (no pun intended)for one round over another in 280 rem 7mm saum 7mm wsm 7mm-08? thanks for the input also i will be handloading

I have a 7mm-08 that suits me to a tee, but if you want to use bullets much over 150 grains the 280 Remington would be the way to go. I think the 280 w/160 gr. bullets is a hell of a good cartridge.

I have a 280 that I am very pleased with. 7lb rifle and recoil is definetely not a problem and I use a full range of bullets from 115 - 175gn.
As for the other cartridges there is problably not a significant difference between them when shooting in feild conditions.
I wouldn't swap my 7mm for another.

can the 7mm wsm do 175 gr pills??? can
the factory throats accomodate these cofortably???

Must be an older Ruger you have found? I like the .280 a lot, almost as much as my .338-06 . It's a good balance of lt. wt. rifle, good perf. & little recoil. Mine weighs in 7 1/4# ready to hunt & even w/ the Neidner butt plate, recoil just isn't there w/ 140-150gr pills. I like the older Rugers too, my .338-06 is a tang safety.

boom stick
I just went through the same thing about three months ago. I looked at the 280, 280 AI, 7mm SAUM, and 7mm WSM. I finally built the 7 SAUM, I got 280 AI velocities in a short action rifle.

The only drawback with the WSM or SAUM and heavy bullets is the mag. length, to get rounds to fit the mag the heavier bullets have to be seated pretty deep.

Boom Stick I don't have any experience with the 7mm SAUM or the WSM but I have 2 7mm08's & 1 280AI. I think that it depends on what you will be using the rifle for. One of my 7-08's is a Rem. 700 MTN Rifle & the other is a VLS. My 280AI is built on a VZ-24 action. The MTN rifle is great for hunting white tails here the south. It is a very lite & easy handling rifle in the woods here & plenty of power for what i use it for, but it is not my first choice when I go to the range & punch paper. The 9 or 10 pound VLS on the other hand is a joy to shoot from the bench. I would hate to carry it through the woods though. My 280AI fits in between weight wise but you can tell it has alot more punch that the 7-08. I intend to use this for bigger game like elk if i get the chance to out west. I don't think you can go wrong with either of rounds. If you fell that 280 you have found is a good deal I would not be hesitant to buy it.

Depends on how much recoil you want, How much powder you want to burn, and what length action you prefer.

The Recoil in similar weighted rifles is going to be 7/08 on the light end and then, 280, 7SAUM, and 7WSM. Only long action is the 280. The 280 and SAUM are relly close ballistically. The 7/08's going to be the slowest and the WSM the fastest.

I really can't see getting a SAUM because they are just not popular at all. Brass is hard to find for them unless you order it and Not too many rifles are chambered in the SAUM line. I could definitely see the SAUM line becoming extinct in factory produced rifles. Winchester just plainly got the jump on them w/ the WSMs.

Reloader

o.k., its down to 280 rem and 7mm wsm. how is the wsm on heavy bullets? i want basicly 2 loads, an elk load 175 gr. and a 140gr boat tailed long range load

thanks for the info, keep it comming

from looking at reloading info it seems to me that the 280 rem and the 7mm wsm are even on the 175 grainers but the medium to light weight advantage of about 150 fps goes to the wsm i guess because of lack of room with those bigger pills in the case. am i wrong?

Boom stick wrote:
"from looking at reloading info it seems to me that the 280 rem and the 7mm wsm are even on the 175 grainers but the medium to light weight advantage of about 150 fps goes to the wsm i guess because of lack of room with those bigger pills in the case. am i wrong? "

That'd be correct. That's what I found w/ the 300 WSM however, it still pushes the 180s about as fast as my 300 WM (W/ less powder to boot). Those 180s seat Deep in the case. Your magazine length will probably inhibit you from reaching the lands depending on which rifle you go w/.

Good Luck!

Reloader

so on this used rifle in 280 rem i have to see if if feeds properly in the 175 grainers? guess i better find some 175 grain ammo and try it out is that correct? thanks

My .280 is my backup on elk/deer trips. I settled on the 160gr bullets as an all round weight. You can get 2800fps w/o bending anything & it will work on elk fine as long as you aren't trying 400yd shots. I think the short mags suffer a lot using long for caliber bullets, they seem designed around the short-med. length pills.

I'm a big 7-08 fan. If you need more reach I'd go with the 7mmwsm. The 7-08 will do 90% of what the 280 will do, in a shorter, lighter, more efficient package. Surprised you're going with 175gr. bullets. A well constructed 160grainer will drop an elk all day. Not saying 175's are a bad choice at all, you just don't seem to hear of anyone using them anymore.--2MG

.280

quote:

so on this used rifle in 280 rem i have to see if if feeds properly in the 175 grainers? guess i better find some 175 grain ammo and try it out is that correct? thanks

Boom stick,

I was actually talking about the WSMs. Since they are a short action the clip length is pretty short and seating bullets out to the lands may be impossible. Different Manus have different clip lengths so, you may be able to seat to the lands in one rifle brand vs another. My problem is that my clip length is very short so, I can't get anywhere close to the lands and when seating the heavier bullets (180s in a 300wsm) the bullet seats very deep into the case, Too deep IMO.

If you get the 7wsm you may have to seat those 175s real deep which, IMO is why the WSM's velocities suffer w/ long heavier bullets.

That 280 probably wouldn't have a problem w/ 175s feeding.

Good Luck!

Reloader

thanks reloader...

i was thinking the 175s for better bc and extra weight for momentum down range and better sd for penetration. the long pills go deep.

Just curious, Why was the 7mm Remington Magnum left out? It'll do what you want without any trouble.

Terry

I'm with Terry. Of those you DIDN'T list, I'd go with the 7mm Rem. Mag. There would be no second-choice.

I don' think the 7mm WSM or 7mm SAUM is long for this world; I've had a star-crossed personal history with the 280 Rem., and I want more reach and power than the 7mm-08 provides, plus the widest possible ammo and brass availability.

So for me the excellent 7mm Rem. Mag. is the obvious choice, and the fact that it is a belted case doesn't bother me in the least. In fact, I like it better that way, and mostly to annoy the anti-belt theorists...........

AD

quote:

Originally posted by allen day:

So for me the excellent 7mm Rem. Mag. is the obvious choice, and the fact that it is a belted case doesn't bother me in the least. In fact, I like it better that way, and mostly to annoy the anti-belt theorists...........

AD

The well dressed cartridge wears a belt, but I still like the 280...

If you can come up with a good rifle in 280 Rem., you're well-dressed, no question about it!

AD

yes i dont like belts and i was thinking of a less recoiling rifle that i can shoot all day long. the 06 and the 7mag recoil the same from what i hear, that is why i left it out. if i didnt care about the recoil factor i would go with the 7rum and maybe still will get one down the road.

I bet there isn't ten cents difference in recoil between a 7WSM and 7mag.

If you don't like belts that's another issue. They never bothered me in the least.

Terry

quote:

I bet there isn't ten cents difference in recoil between a 7WSM and 7mag.

Quite True! The lower weight in the Short Mag will make up for the difference and add to in some instances.

My light weight 300 WSM kicks a good good bit harder than any 300 Win Mag I've owned or shot. It took several mods to get that baby to quit slamming my shooting glasses every time I pulled the trigger.

Reloader

I have several 7 m/ms at the moment, including the 7/08; 7x57; both Rem & Wby Mags; 7x65R; and a .280. The 7/08 is a bit the least powerful , but virtually all of them will do what most hunters need to have done.

My 7 m/m Wby (Rem M700 w/factory take-off bbl) will shoot 1/2 MOA, the 7m/m Rem Mag (Ruger No.1 w/original bbl) is dependable sub-MOA rifle, the 7x65 (Paul Marquart bbl) is 3/4 MOA with RWS factory H-Mantles, and the .280 (Hart bbl'd Armalloyed MkX action) is another genuine 1/2 MOA rifle. Only my 7/08 is not particularly accurate anymore, but that is likely because it has over 5,000 rounds fired at metallic silhouettes through it. It will still knock the Rams down at 500 meters, though.

I use both 120 & 140 gr. Barnes X bullets in all of them for hunting, except the 7x65R. Decent BC, good expansion, hang together.

If the .280 you're looking at is in good shape with a nice bore, buy it. You'll enjoy it, and it will carry its share of the freight.

BS I worry about rems short magnums going the wayside, they seem to have been beaten by winchesters short magnums and if You'd have mentioned them I would say fine choice.

Still your pretty safe with a standard 7mm rem mag all the same, or the .280 or...................the eternally boring 30/06

$300 for a good .280?????.....whay are you talking when you should be writing the check!!!!!

As I was reading the post I wanted to see the 7mm Rem Mag mentioned since it was left out of the original group of cartridges mentioned. My 7mm Rem Mag shoots the 175gr TBBC Federal Premiums very well. Most of my handloads are in the 160gr. weight but I really like the terminal performance I've seen with the 175 grainers. I've never had any problem handloading for this caliber and really have not understood the reluctance to the belt. Just load it and shoot it.

I would be willing to bet that that 7mm-08 would suffice for all of your practical hunting needs as my magnum has really come into play only a couple of times. Just about every deer I've taken by rifle in the last ten years were less than 100yds away.

quote:

the eternally boring 30/06

Havent shot many with propper Handloads in the 180 catagorie I take it.
Apple pie

quote:

Originally posted by cal30 1906:

quote:

the eternally boring 30/06

Havent shot many with propper Handloads in the 180 catagorie I take it.
Apple pie

Actually I have !! in Australia we get to shoot a lot of animals I have used 180gr, 165 gr and 150 gr. I know the 30/06 is a great round I like it, though I do not own one at the moment. One of my favourite loads is the speer 180 gr RN in front of 56 gr of AR2209 in a Rem case and win large rifle primer. Good killer although on roo's I found the bullet to be a little to hard and justpunch straight through. Worked better on pigs however. I meant the boring remark tounge in cheek

Broom stick

You can get more information on the short mags here http://www.shortmags.org

I recon the 280 is a pretty well balanced cartridge though.

quote:

Originally posted by boom stick:
yes i dont like belts and i was thinking of a less recoiling rifle that i can shoot all day long. the 06 and the 7mag recoil the same from what i hear, that is why i left it out. if i didnt care about the recoil factor i would go with the 7rum and maybe still will get one down the road.

With that said, I've changed my mind. Get a 7X57 and never look back. The flexibility will be there if and when you decide to roll your own ammo. Brass will never be a problem and hasn't been for a century. That's something that can't be said about the short wonder mags.

7mm Rem Express in a BDL was my second rifle after a 7 Rem Mag in a Sako. Bought a 280 Rem Mtn Rifle in 1986 and it was my favorite gun in Alaska with 160 gr Nos partition...killed everything I shot it at.

In 1991 I change to a 7x57 in Mark X, 20" barrel and double set triggers with the 160 Nos part..still kills everything I shoot...fox to nice elk.

I just bought a 7mm TCU carbine barrel for my contender and have only shot paper so far...see a pattern here? The TCU is only for close in deer....but with the right bullet.....and a good angle....bigger stuff would fall too.

If you want a 7mm.... get the 280...if it doesn't have to be 7mm, then get a 6.5x55 in a nice light gun with a 2-7x Leupold compact and learn to shoot it really well and be done unless you go to the dark continent.

Bullet placement is our friend, along with adequate velocity and terminal energy....the bullet kills the animal and gravity takes em down....but then that's another story.

Having owned a 7WSM in a Model 70 and own a 7rem mag in a 700 BDL I don't see this big weight difference and I am comparing a BDL LA 700 with a 70 "Featherweight".

I own and shoot 7-08, 284 win, 7 rem mag, 7 RUM........the 280 should be on par with the .284....moderate recoil good mpbr....what are you waiting for? You can always get $300 out of the I presume ruger 77. My 7 wsm is a browning stalker and recoil is much more violent than any 7 mag I have owned. closer to fullhouse 300 win 150 loads. I think you've made your own case get the .280.

lofter..i guess that is the real question will i get $300 out of this rifle, the answer would be yes and if i fall in love with it later i can get a fancy newer stainless one

I'm glad to see so much faith in the .280, it is a really fine cartridge, and well deserving of the attention. It often gets overlooked in some's quest for more, bigger, louder, shorter, etc. It will do almost anything the bigger, faster cartridges can do in a well balanced package. I've used it and will continue to do so. I'm also a 7-08 fan, another well balanced round that performs all out of proportion to what the ballistic data suggests.
As you can see, I'm not a magnum fan, don't have much need for one, so why punish myself. Even if I did have a need, I could probably get by with a .280.