I found a Ruger No. 1S in 7mm Remington Magnum that I am thinking about buying. Over the years, I have had rifles in .280 Remington, 7x64, 7x65R, 7-08, 7x57, and 7-30 Waters, but I have never seen the need for a 7mm Remington Magnum for my own hunting. So anyway, I really like the rifle, but I am looking for a good reason to buy it. It would mostly be used as an open country deer rifle, with maybe occasional use on elk.

I own one, have taken a lot of game w/ it and like it. To say that it is 'better' than a .270, well, you can shoot heavier bullets. To say that it is better than a 280, not by any measurable difference. Better than a 30/06 ? I do not believe that. The o6 can drive even heavier bullets.
As for speed, I have not been able to achieve published speeds out of my rifle. Is it accurate ? Very, but not any more accurate than a whole host of my other hunting rifles.
Is it a good cartridge ? Yes
Is it all that it was cracked up to be (or that Remington wanted it to be ? Maybe from a marketing standpoint, but not from a performance standpoint.
I really like the Ruer #1 and own several. My experience w/ the #1 in 7 mag was a bit different. I could not get it to shoot the load that I had worked up that shot well in 4-5 other guns. It did not want bullets less than 162g.

I think it is as good as anything for an all around caliber. With good shooting and good bullets it will be fine. Caliber is over rated, shooting skill and bullet construction are far more important.

That has been my go-to caliber for years...140gr for Deer, 160-175 for Elk.

The 7mm Magnum has always seemed neither fish nor fowl. It is a bit on the heavy side for smaller big game like whitetails and antelope (although it does just fine on those), and it doesn't offer quite what the .30's do on larger game like elk or moose (although it is no problem to kill an elk or moose with a 7mm Magnum using the appropriate bullets.)

Like a few other popular calibers which have been chambered in many different rifles, the ammunition companies now download the 7mm RM, presumably out of fear that their ammunition may be used in some substandard guns. As a result, ballistics of factory rounds tend to disappoint. Handloaded to optimal velocities the 7mm RM is a very good performer.

I can tell you, however, that rifles chambered in that round tend to be among the slower movers on the market, presumably because there are so many of them around and just about everybody who ever wanted one already has one. I suppose it is a victim of its own success. Or as Yogi Berra liked to say, "That place has gotten so crowded that nobody goes there anymore".

If it were a bolt rifle you were talking of I'd give you many reasons why it'd be better in 280 Remington, 270 WCF or, even 30-06.

But as this is a Ruger No1 then I think that...providing it has a 24" plus barrel length...that it is a good calibre for a single shot rifle.

As there is no side issue of an extra cartridge in the magazine, feeding reliablity or similar.

No. I'd think that if you want a medium calibre Ruger No1 and a flat shooting round that 7mm Remington Magnum is a good choice.

I'm no fan

I hunted with a 7mag for 14yrs straight.While hunting one day,a thought came in my mind.I asked myself a few questions.
Have I ever felt over gunned? No. Have I never felt under gunned? No.Do you feel like it is about the perfect all round choice for most hunting needs? Yes it is. Why? Large bullet selection,plenty of power,hits very hard,very flat shooting,moderate recoil,very accurate in every rifle I own(I have three 7mags) and all in all it's a great choice for a one rifle battery.You can shoot 120's and 140's for small stuff,150's and 160's for medium stuff and 160's and 175's for larger stuff.If you reload for it,it's even a better round than what's on paper.My rifles seem to be quite easy to load for.What shoots good in one,usually will shoot good in the others. Most published and factory loads are around 58,000psi,which is a light load in my opinion.If you kick it up a little higher,say around 63,000-65,000psi,it will hang quite well with the bigger 7mms.All in all,is it a good choice?Yes it is.

I've never owned one,but I'd say it's in the same class as a 30/06: a bit too much for deer and a bit too little for really big critters.

Never owned one. Shot exactly one shot with a borrowed rifle. Took a running nilgai behind the ear at 200 yards. He died. I'd say the cartridge is effective.

You'll find a reason to move on from this one, too. 7mm's don't seem to turn your crank. Look for a 30 caliber maybe?

2 cents

The 7mm Remington Magnum was an instant success as soon as it was announced. The cartridge was designed by Les Bowman a guide and outfitter who observed that most hunters could not shoot the 300 magnums well and a 7mm Magnums recoil was about all they could handle.

I had a early Ruger #1A chambered for it and I wore the barrel out.

I am shooting one in a custom and also a 7mm WSM.

Here is my 7mm RM.

quote:

Originally posted by BNagel:
You'll find a reason to move on from this one, too. 7mm's don't seem to turn your crank. Look for a 30 caliber maybe?

2 cents

.300 any mag.....trumps the 7

I used one for several years. Like everything in physics, there are always trade offs. Being one of the lesser caliber Magnums I found the recoil to be rather sharp. But if the recoil doesnt bother you then I dont see what there is to not like about it. It shoots flat and hits hard and is a proven performer in the field on all sorts of game.

I agree with Stonecreek that their resale isnt what it used to be. But that is more of a reflection of what is trendy as opposed to the actual performance of the round. I am a huge fan of the bullet selection in that caliber as well.

I liked it well enough that I have been thinking about re introducing one to my arsenal. Some call it neither fish nor foul. I prefer to think of it as very versatile and IMO it is based on the best belted mag case going. Personally I would rather have a 30/338 or Norma then a 300 WM. From a performance standpoint there is not enough difference in them to add up to squat. Which is why the WM case just never made sense to me.

quote:

Originally posted by ted thorn:

quote:

Originally posted by BNagel:
You'll find a reason to move on from this one, too. 7mm's don't seem to turn your crank. Look for a 30 caliber maybe?

2 cents

.300 any mag.....trumps the 7

Can you name one scenario where there is enough difference to matter? Either one will kill anything from coyotes to Grizzly's from the same distances.

A 30-06 will give same energy, with a larger diameter.
However at long distance the 7mm will shine.
Normal hunting distance, '06 it.

quote:

The 7mm Magnum has always seemed neither fish nor fowl.

I would venture to say that it is still one of the top two (other one being the 300 Win Mag)cartridges in the US by a long shot. Bullets make the cartridge - poor bullets give poor results - good bullets give good results. A 160 gr TSX bullet in a 7mm Rem Mag will do the job just fine in the right spot. Bad shots do not count as that is a hunter problem and not a bullet problem per se.

Santa Claus

I have owned a 7 mag since the early 70s and think it is an excellent round for game up to and including elk.

I have owned four Ruger #1 rifles and with out exception they were poor accuracy wise, even after lots of after market upgrades.

Keep your comments coming, thanks. As to the Ruger No. 1, I have been able to get all of the ones I have had over the years to shoot 1-1/2 inch or smaller groups at 100 yards, and have had three that were consistent sub-1-inch guns, so I am not worried about the rifle. I have always had a soft spot for 7mm cartridges, I have just never played with a 7mm magnum. I figure that at worst, if I don't like it, I will rebore the gun to .358 Norma or .358 STA.

My favorite caliber EVER. I have made a bunch of meat with my Rem 700 in 7mmRM! (gasp). I shoot 168 grainers at 2990 at everything. Mild recoil easy to load for ammo is everywhere.


.

Well, in Europe it is known as an paper tiger when factory ammunition is used (chronographed).

And it is an ugly belted cartridge...

I wanted one so I bought one. I didn't angst over whether is was more or less than any of the other rifles I had, I wanted one and I bought one. I've used it on antelope, mulies, and elk. Its worked every time. Does it kill an animal deader than a .280? Or less dead than a .300WM? Can't say either way.

I shoot a Model 70 in 7mm magnum, middling load with 140-grain Noslers and IMR7828. Good enough up to elk, so far. The point-blank range is about as good as the 6mm-284, hard to argue with.

I had a 7mmRmag and hunted with it also rebarreled one two times.I also hunted with a 270win and the 300wmag.The 300wmag is the real thing.You wont recover bullets with the 300wmag if shooting caribou size game.The bullet will go through and the bou will go down right there.If you use a TSX the bou will die before it hits the ground.The 7mmRmag cant do that-its your choice.

If it goes bang is reasonable accurate and the price is right I would by it.

Better yet would be if it was a free market gun.

But the right bullet in the right place it well kill just fine.

7mm Mag........ I love it.

And they will shoot through and/or flatten a caribou with a decent shot and bullet

quote:

Originally posted by loud-n-boomer:
I found a Ruger No. 1S in 7mm Remington Magnum that I am thinking about buying. Over the years, I have had rifles in .280 Remington, 7x64, 7x65R, 7-08, 7x57, and 7-30 Waters, but I have never seen the need for a 7mm Remington Magnum for my own hunting. So anyway, I really like the rifle, but I am looking for a good reason to buy it. It would mostly be used as an open country deer rifle, with maybe occasional use on elk.

For what you want it for it would work fine. I've never owned 1 because I've always had an -06 and with the bullet selection in 308cal, never saw the need for a 7mm. You seem to have a 7mm jones and there is certainly nothing wrong with that.

lnb, I shoot a 270 and a 338-06AI. Happy with both. But that 7RM is a great cartridge. It can pretty much do it all. It kinda fits into that category that if you could only have one rifle. There's a 30 that I would also consider for this category. Can't go wrong with the 7mm. Great ballistics for most if not all hunting situations. Just my 2 cents.

It's a very nice cartridge to shoot.

I've owned 2 customs in the past and loved shooting them.

Here is my take on the 7mm Remington Magnum.

First let me say that I have hunted, and killed game with with the 257 WBY, 264 Win, 7mm Rem Mag, 300 Win Mag, and the 300 WBY.

The advantages of these Magnums, is that they drive bullets at relatively high velocities, giving flat trajectory, and wind bucking advantages over lesser velocity calibres.

Also because of their higher impact velocities at longer ranges, you are able to get bullet expansion at longer ranges.

However, you must also consider that you might actually shoot your animal at close, or even very close range.
This happened on my last Texas antelope hunt where I shot an antelope at about 40 yards with a 300 Win Mag.

I found the 7mm Rem Mag to be a most excellent hunting rifle. Mine was very accurate with a wide variety of bullets, from 120 grains to the 170 Sierra Round Nose, and the 175 gr Nosler Partition.

I think it is one of the best all round hunting calibres, especially if your shots will be at mostly longish ranges.

While in this catagory I prefer the 300 Magnums, because I am just a 30 calibre kind of guy, [which is why I use the 308 for most of my General purpose hunting at moderate ranges],
I would have no problem using the 7mm Mag for elk, mose and even big bears with a Premium 175 grain bullet, if that was the only rifle I had.

I will say that for big bears in the thick I would use at least a 375 H&H, but a lot of big bears have been killed with a 7mm Mag.

Since you seem to like the 7mm bore, I say get the 7mm Mag Ruger No1. They are fun rifles to hunt with.

Jerry Fisher has held onto his well-worn 7mmRMag since 1964, busting a whole range of game animals including elk...

quote:

Until my last safari I had never felt the need for a 7mm. At a TSJC reunion I contracted with a classmate to build me my first custom ever. The caliber I selected was a 7x57Mauser. He built me a beautiful rifle which I then took to Zimbabwe as my Plains game rifle. Had great success with it on Kudu and Impala. Didn't use it on anything else.In my well over 60 years of building rifles and using them I have never felt any need for a 7mm of any kind.

Like the rifle, don't like the cartridge. Buy the rifle, if you like the 7mm Mag, then shoot it up, if you don't, rebarrel to something else.

Cheers.

I've owned and shot all of the following 7 m/ms for many years...

7m/m Rem Mag (got my first one in 1962)
7m/m H&H Mag
7x61 Sharp & Hart Mag
7x57 Mauser
7x64
7x65-R
7m/m-08
.280 Remington

In my opinion, the 7 m/m Remington Magnum is as good as ANY of the other 7 m/m magnums and as good as or better than the non-magnums (even though I killed my first moose with a 7x57).

Frank Martinez has a couple of mine for sale right now...my pick of which would be my favorite Rem Mag of all time, a Model 1965 Schultz and Larsen Deluxe Sporter which was ORIGINALLY made in that chambering. It is NOT a rechambering of a 7x61 Sharpe & Hart, which is a cartridge I never particularly came to like.

This Schultz and Larsen is in primo shape, and is reasonably priced for what it is...I think I asked Frank to try and get $750 or $795 for it, can't recall which without going back through our PMs to each other. All sales/trades for my stuff are negotiable anyway.

I believe the other one of mine he has is a Ruger No. 1-S which is the most accurate No.1 I have owned...a bona fide 1/2 MOA rifle with Hornady 162 gr. BTs. I don't remember the price he put on that one. If you have any interest in either, you can get pictures from Frank.

its a good round.
i have shot a few and most were accurate , velocity varied rifle to rifle by quite a lot !
...tj3006

7 mm Rem Mag is a versatile, first rate, powerful, and flat-shooting cartridge.

If the gun is priced right, in good shape, shoots well, and you like it...that's reason to buy it.

Good luck with it. AIU

I agree with everything AIU just stated: versatile, powerful, and flat shooting. I think it's a great choice for a one rifle battery (among a couple others) for NA.

Having said that, for my hunting, I have little use for it because I don't own just one rifle.

For deer and antelope, I use either a 25.06 (mostly) or a 280 Rem.

For elk, I use a 338WM or 35 Whelen, and if I ever draw my moose tag, I'll use these two as well.

So, as good as the 7mm Rem. Mag. is, for me, it is in the category of the great 30.06: a top choice for a one rifle battery, but not needed if one can afford two or more rifles.

I've owned four 7mm Rem. Mags. (Still own one) and I own six 30.06s. Great calibers. My wife and I have taken many animals in NA and Africa with these two calibers. The 30.06 is my light rifle for Africa.

Again, this is just what is right for me, but not necessarily right for you or anyone else.

I like the 7mm RM, and currently own three. I've shot more game with that caliber than any other (pigs, deer, elk).....

But, while versatile and capable, it has been rather picky when it comes to working up loads compared to some of my other calibers. Rifles seem to have a strong preference for certain bullet weights or styles....

Your mileage may vary :-)

Cheers,

Dan

I have one and like it. But no matter what bullet you shoot, it is a small bore and shares the limitations of other 270 & 7mm cartridges. I mostly consider mine bigger than necessary for deer and frequently smaller than desirable for elk. The last three elk that I've taken have been cows and all fell to a 160 gr. handload out of my 7 mag.