I'm about to start another bolt rifle project, and am thinking about a 7X64 Brenneke. What's your thoughts on this calibre ? How does it stack up against the .280 Remington or the 7MM Rem. Mag. ?

I really loved mine. It was one of my main hunting rifles during a time in my life when I hunted pritty much most of the time. I'd have to think hard about how many big game animals I took with it somewhere around 20.
I parted with that rifle after I entered my accuracy phase and decided it wasen't accurate enough. I'm sure all those deer and other game (some out to 300 yards) would have argued that but at the time my mindset was tat if it didn't shoot 3/4 M.O.A. I didn't want it. I'm sure that any lack of accuracy that rifle had was the rifle and not the caliber.

I have one in a Brno. It will do whatever the 280 will do. - dan

I really like my 7x64.

The 7x64 and her rimned sister 7x65R are the most common german hunting calibers! They do every thing the .30/06 will do and on longer distances a bit more!

I had one but it was very light and no pleasure to shoot -the muzzle flew all over after each shot. Husky swears by this caliber but I think his rifle has a better balance.

It is a great cartridge, an absolute classic in Central Europe. That said, unless you are looking for some way to be different, I see little point in choosing a 7x64 if you live in the US. The .280 Rem is the ballistic twin, and offers definite advantages in components, reloading gear and factory ammo. The 7x64 might impress your buddies on the range more, though.

- mike

If you're going to the hassle of building a custom rifle you should make it as unique as possible. For all practical purposes the 7x64 is identical to the 280 Rem ballistically and dimensionally (though not interchangable). I have a Sako AV in 7x64 (love it)and I handload. It's no more difficult to find brass online for the 7x64 than the 280. It's always fun to have something a little different in camp. Lou

quote:

Originally posted by Dr. Lou:
If you're going to the hassle of building a custom rifle you should make it as unique as possible.
...
It's no more difficult to find brass online for the 7x64 than the 280. It's always fun to have something a little different in camp. Lou

I guess people have different perceptions of the benefits of being "unique". I admit, I take a rather "practical" view on the consequences.

I made a quick comparison of 7x64 vs. 280 Rem dies with Midway. They list a total of 19 dies or die sets for the 7x64 - all except for one FL die set is either out of stock or listed as "special order". That compares to a total of 43 die entries for the .280 Rem, I gave up counting how many were actually available right now - quite a few. I admit this could be a moot point, if all you want is any old set of dies, and hey, they will probably work as well as the next.

In terms of brass, Midway solely lists Norma brass for the 7x64 - at about 1$ a piece. RWS could probably be obtained for about the same price from places like Huntington. You might also be able to pick up S&B brass - possbily for a lower price, but that brass is also of lower quality than either Norma or RWS. For the .280 Rem, Midway lists a total of 4 manufacturers of brass (maybe other dealers sell additional brands?) - with good brass such as Win or Rem going for as low as $0.35 per case. So yes, you can find brass for both, but being "unique" definitely comes at a price.

As far as factory ammo is concerned, Midway lists 5 entries for the 7x64 (not bad, I thought). For the .280 Rem, Midway lists 22 entries. But perhaps it would be more interesting, to guess at the probability of being able to find loaded ammo in some far corner of North America, when your handloads were lost by the aircarrier that delivered you there. The .280 is probably found less often than the .270, but my guess is it will still be WAY ahead of the 7x64.

But hey, anybody can make up their own minds about the price worth paying for being "unique".

- mike

/

The ONLY advantage of a 7 x 64 in North America is that it cannot chamber a 270 WCF round by mistake unlike the 280 REM which can.

Even here in Europe, if I had a choice, I would choose the 280 REM. However the case capacity of the 7 x 64 is slightly greater than the 280 REM.

But the price is far greater! My local gunsmith sells AMERICAN MADE 280 cases for about UK£40.00 per 100. EUROPE MADE 7 x 64 cases for about UK£100.00 per 100!

Alf, if the original poster had been from (Continental or even Germanic) Europe, the 7x64 would have been the obvious choice. Availability of components, dies, factory ammo for the .280 Rem is practically non-existant in Continental Europe, but the 7x64 is everywhere.

Perfomance wise, the 7x64 and the .280 Rem are peas in a pod. Both are great rounds. There is not much separating them from the 7mm Rem Mag.

- mike

Hello MHO,

Is the brass thats sold in Europe by Norma and RWS from two different companies ?
Why I ask is that about 6 or 7 years ago I purchased 6.5x54 brass from Graf and Son that was advertised as Norma. But they sent me RWS headstamped instead. When I inquired they said Norma and RWS is all made by the same company-RWS. Sorry to get off the main subject.
Bob

I have a Brno ZG47 7x64. I make brass by running 270Win cases thru a 7x64 sizing die, then trim if necessary. The die compresses the slightly larger 270 to narrower 7x64 dimensions, and stretches the case and expands the neck to proper dimensions.

MHO, I didn't mean to get you wound up, but I think Frank's question was wanting performance comparisons, not availability of ammo or components. Further, I don't recall saying anything about price or availability, but by your own research you easily found plenty of reloading dies and brass for the 7x64 at the same site as the 280 stuff. I also never implied that there was a better selection of dies and brass, I said that it wasn't anymore difficult to find, and you proved it.

In addition to the 7x64, I have a Sako in 280 that I really like. It's just that personally, I would prefer to have something a little more different, especially if I am going to go custom. Like the 280, I have made brass for both from other 06 based cases without much difficulty. If you lose your ammo in some far corner of the planet, chances are you won't find either. While more popular in the US, it's hard to find 280 ammo on most shelves; overseas it will probably more or as difficult to find than the 7x64. Bottom line: if you want to shoot a 7x64 you can easily locate the goodies to do it from online suppliers, or by special order from your local dealer.
Lou

Lou, you did not wind me up, or at least I did not intend to get wound up. It is absolutely OK with me, if somebody would choose differently than I would. You have your reasons, I have mine.

- mike

Mike, thanks for the note. I just noticed that you're from Switzerland, it's one of my favorite places to visit. I have family in northern Italy so we travel there frequently; usually to Brig and Zermatt. Lou

quote:

Originally posted by Dr. Lou:
...I have family in northern Italy so we travel there frequently; usually to Brig and Zermatt. Lou

That is a lovely area - Swiss canton of Vallis.

Here is a picture of an old Ibex billy taken in Vallis by a friend of mine. Spectacular scenery, spectacular trophy. Sadly, these trophies don't grow on trees. Normally you have to wait for years until your application for an animal in this class is considered. In this case, the game keepers had found an old billy they thought would not survive the winter, so they called around to prospective clients, who had to turn up within a matter of hours (or perhaps a day). Tough hike to get to the area where the Ibex was spotted, and after the hunt, he had to be carried off the mountain as well...



- mike

/

Mike, thanks for sharing. That's a nice animal. I know they hunt ibex north of here in Uzbekastan. I am not sure if we have any here in Afghanistan. Where do you live in Switzerland?

(Belated thread hi-jack warning).

Alf, sadly, the Alpine Ibex are not exactly cheap either... (Guess why I have not shot one..).

Lou, in better days, Afghanistan used to have hunting for both Ibex and Marco Polo sheep (Wahkan Corridor, among other places probably). I guess these days the quarry has changed... Sadly. I'm in the canton of Zurich - just south of the German border. Not as spectacular as Vallis.

- mike

Personally, I think the whole region is gorgeous. Lou

quote:

Originally posted by ozhunter:
I really like my 7x64.

OZ you have to quit posting pics of that rifle...

I have had a few 280 remingtons and they were great but the 7x64 seems to handle the heavy bullets a little more efficiently

After getting a Blaser barrel in 7x64 that shoots 175 Hornadys so well it is scary I have aquired an Attache barrel so I will have a spare in case I wear out the first one

Graffs has PRVI ammo in 7x64 at a very reasonable price not sure about the accuracy but I have found the PRVI brass to be fairly decent