I'm wondering if I should get a O/U combi gun. I have no defintive plan on getting one right now, but I'm looking to see if there is something like out there.

I have pretty much settled on the 7x57R for the rifle barrel. I like the rim and low pressure for a break open action.

Have any of you experiense with this round. I will hunt mostly roe and small game with it, but also some moose and red deer. I see I can get Norma factory loadings with Oryks bullets.

I would belive that this round is something close to the 6.5x55, but a bit under my 308.

Johan

[ 07-29-2002, 17:08: Message edited by: 308winchester ]

Do you mean the 7X57R or the 7X75R?? Your post cites both... There is a 7X75R, the Vom Hofe Super Express, I believe, just as there is a 7X65R as well as the 7X57R. The 7X65R is about the equivalent of the .280 Remington, and should do well for your intended uses. But so will the 7X57R. BUT, I believe the 7X75R Vom Hofe is close to a 7mm Magnum, maybe more!! There is also an 8X75R, which is about like a .300 Weatherby!! This one would make a great moose rifle.

Wops

I meant the 7x57R!

Thanks.

Johan

I own a 7x57R rifle. For a new rifle ( nearly ) nobody would buy one. Either 6.5x57R or 7x65R or .30 Blaser. 9.3x74R is something above this.

Get the x65R and load it conventionally .

Hermann

Go ahead and buy that 7x57R!! It's perfectly adequate for your purpouses!!! I've used it on roedeer and small game for ca 10 years and it works really good! With the right bullets it won't abuse you or the game! It shoots flat enough for what Scandinavians generally consider to be ethical shots. As for moose it will do the job although with a little less authority than a 9,3x62.
The 6,5x57R mentioned is an almost dead issue up here as it isn't available with heavy enough bullets to be legal for moose (thats factory loads - handloads are a different issue).
Cheers
K9

Buy a 7*57R and are you lucky with it! Here in Germany you can use it on each possible game, including wild boar, with which use correct rifle bullet choice. And your combined will be very dainty with a 20 Gauge. The only disadvantage ist shooting distance! You should not shoot over 150 to 170 meters, because it is a slow shooting Caliber! The bullet path is similar like a .308Win with heavy bullets!

I hope you can read it, because my english is not so good.

Waidmanns Heil, Herr Wheelgunner!! I wish my Deutsch was as good as your English!! I agree that the 7X57R is a plenty good cartridge!! I have owned 5 different 7X57's (Mauser-type rimless case), and consider them as good as any .30/'06 when loaded with 175-grain or heavier bullets. I have a J.P. Sauer double in 8X60RS, and would be just as happy with it if it were in 7X57R!! (This rifle was made around 1912 as a 7,8X57R, and was rechambered for the 8X60RS in 1940 by Kurt Anschutz. Groove diameter .322". It will still put a R and L barrel shot into a 2" pattern @ 100 meters, using 200-grain Nosler bullets, and cases made from RWS 7X65R brass necked up to 8mm and trimmed to 59.5mm length.) I really like German doubles, Drillings, and other combo guns!! I wish I could afford one of the new Blaser Jagdwaffen single-shot rifles!!

Johan

Nothing wrong with the 7x57R in a combo O/U.
My father used one for 30 years, in fact he was so used to the rifle and familiar with the trajectory of the round - he shot roe deer fawns (12lbs) at over 300 meters from a good rest on tree-stands. The high sightline (I mean the distance between the line of the bore and the line of the scope leads to a flater trajectory) helps a lot for long shots, try a O/U at the 300meter range - you will be surprised, He used the 8gr RWS Kegelspitz for everything up to red-deer and boar.

If you want a light recoiling rifle this is the way to go, if you are not that sensitive to recoil, I'll say the 7x65R would be the better choice. You can go up to the heaviest bullets in the 7mm and still have a resonable trajectory.

Good hunting!

Franz

I think the 7x57R is a great way to go. I've been using the plain 7x57 in Alaska and it has never failed me. It makes an excellent sheep, goat, deer and caribou round.