Im new to reloading this caliber and was wondering if there is a bullet weight more inherently accurate for this cal.Will be used for deer and will be used to shoot through dense cattail cover however if I can reload to optimum accuracy hope to use at longer ranges in evenings with the more sniper mentallity as I have been doing with my 270Cal shooting off backpack while laying down.Hoping this bullet CF would show good performance in wind and longer distances . Plan on starting with reloader22 and going from there.I know there are always better choices for a bullet but that is my plan.Would like to hear from anyone using this bullet weight as well as any accuracy load you may discovered that works well for you.

i'm using 61 gr of RL22 with the 162 SST, WIN case and CCI 250 LR primer. sub moa in my rifle. i haven't killed a deer with this load, but i would avoid angling away shots as some posters on here have been disapointed with penetration with this bullet. good luck!

quote:

if there is a bullet weight more inherently accurate for this cal.Will be used for deer and will be used to shoot through dense cattail cover

Well...inheritantly accurate is a misnomer.....there's only what is accurate in your rifle and it's up to you to try different bullets to find out.

I'd be reluctant to use an SST to shoot thru those cattails but then I'm not sure any bullet will do that with ease.

I no longer have my 7MM Mag as I'm now exclusively a 30-06 fan but when I had mine I used the 140 for deer and liked it.....I used Hornady's interlock.

If you think a few cattails might get between you and the deer I'd be looking at the 175 grain interlock. It might give you a bit of an edge.

The 7 Mag ideally shoots the 175 very well but it's up to you to see what your particular gun handles.

I understand each rifle being an entity of its own but more so found interest in you statement that you have found the 7Rem to perform well when fed the heavier 175gr fodder which I wondered if they would stabilize as accurately out at these farther distances.I may be an exception but the 130gr SST has performed standing shot kills in my 270 at 365yds and out nly.Will probobly keep using it until it proves me otherwise although as I stated without a doubt there is always better available but a heavier bullet with a larger B.C. should give a little advantage when you begin to reach out farther distances.I appreciate reload info. on RE22.Will back off a few grains and start from there.

drifter,
My comments were heavily weighted with the information that you furnished about shooting through cattails.

Other than that it really don't make a lot of difference what weight you shoot for deer as they're really not tough anmimals to drop. Any of the 140 to 162 will do fine for you. This includes the SST as well.

My complaint with the SST is that it's somewhat less likely to produce exits. If one must track a wounded deer for a short distance the exit hole helps leave a better trail.

I've used alot of the 154gr interlocks in the 7 mag,with great results on elk. The heavier sst in 162grs will probably hold together better then the lighter bullets,becuase of slower impact velocities and more bullet weight. At any rate deer are a push over and can be killed with just about any of the 7mm bullets from 120 on up.

Any time you shoot through something,even cat tails.You risk deflection regardless of bullet type,especially an sst which is designed to upset easily.

vapodog- I totally agree with your observation that SST will seldom leave an exit hole.My experience has been when bullet is placed in the heart or lung area it literally explodes so to speak totally destroying those vitals and leaving a large amount of blood in frontal cavity area.I guess Ive always liked that feature as it means less meat destroyed with blown out shoulders or ect.Just the same I can see where it would be a drawback in a tracking situation.Again its hard to achieve the best of all worlds but it is sure enjoyable trying is it not?Nice talking and appreciate the input.

The hornady 162 grain SST, with one of the highest BC's around for any hunting bullet, would be superb for long range shots at big game when launched from a 7mm mag.

But I would be hesitant to use it on game at closer range where it will be travelling too fast and over expand with loss of penetration.

I use this bullet in my 7mm-08 and it is superb at all ranges, i shot a big pig from behind at about 80 yards a few years back and this bullet penetrated over 3 feet and exited his chest, but this bullet was launched at about 2600fps, at 7mm mag speeds that would have been a different story though.

This is also my favorite bullet for silhouette and is the best that I have used at knocking over rams at 500 yards.

It's kind of easy to get wound up loving plastic tipped bullets. They look downright sexy and who want's plain vanilly when the Playboy centerfold is available. But the truth is that its quite likely that if your gun shoots a good old lead tipped bullet slightly better than the plastic tipped there might be no difference in the trajectory. A sexy sleek bullet wobbling slightly as it's going downfield most likely will lose it's bc to a tight grouping "plain vanilla" lead tipped bullet.
I'm kind of drawn to the accubond lately as it shoots good in a couple of guns. But I also have a 270 wby that just plain shoots those stubby 140 swift a-frames into tiny groups. If I have a good rest you DO NOT want to be what I'm shooting at out to 400 yds with those a-frames.
Shoot the bullet that shoots best for superior downrange accuracy....not what looks best.

Also,,,,here's a place that sells small quantities of different bullets reasonable if you want to do some experiementing.....

http://www.bulletdudes.com/bulletdudes-7mm___30_Cal.php

Try the 140 gr Accubond over RL 22 66-67 gr my most accurate load of any bullet in my 7mm Rem Mag. Its also very flat at 3300 FPS

Another option, if you are concerned about the SST terminal performance, would be the 162gr Interlock BT. It's a great bullet and the BC is still an excellent .544 (vs .550 for the SST)

quote:

Originally posted by olarmy:
Another option, if you are concerned about the SST terminal performance, would be the 162gr Interlock BT. It's a great bullet and the BC is still an excellent .544 (vs .550 for the SST)

The 162 Interlock combined with a muzzle velocity of around 2900fps is a deadly combo on deer. My 7MAG likes this bullet.
My 7MAG also like the 140gr Nosler Partition. My hunting load for this bullet has a modest 3150fps muzzle velocity.

Ive shot the accubonds in my 300Mag and factory accubonds in my 7mm and would have to agree they perform without comparison.Although Im not super tight but I have a problem paying the higher prices of some of these such as the swift a frames and some others expecially when used on deer sized critters which as mentioned earlier do not require much to put down and keep down.Without a doubt if I were doing elk,moose, or bear ect. I would not even consider any form of a SST.I always struggle to try and keep a load shooting as flat,accurate and deadly for the game intended with the least amount of money invest.Lets me shoot more also.Can attest a sst in a 270cal performs really well on P.Dogs out to long ranges and lots of fun too if you get a chance.Lot of fun to experiment with these things.

With my 7 Rem Mag I shot my boar running using a Nosler Partition 160 gr. I use H1000 for powder for that bullet, very accurate.

Plains drifter,

I don't think you will have any problem taking deer successfully w/ those bullets in you 7RM. I hate using the lighter SSTs due to blow ups but, I've hunted w/ guys using the heavier SSTs at slower MVs and they did well.

I also like the 162 SPILBTs from HDY, they are fabulous deer bullets. They penetrate well in whitetails and "knock the snot out of them." I took a couple of nice bucks w/ the 162 SPs a few years back. One of those weighed over 200 and the 162 went through both shoulders, the bottom of the back bone, and exited.

My favorite load w/ 162s or 160s is 66 grains of R22 lit by a Fed 215 GMM primer. My rifle shoots that charge pushing Sierra 160s, HDY 162s, and 160 NAB from 3080-3100 from a 24" tube and all 3 print well less than an inch.

You should prabably start at 63-64 grns of R22 and work up.

Good Luck

Reloader

quote:

Originally posted by jro45:
With my 7 Rem Mag I shot my boar running using a Nosler Partition 160 gr. I use H1000 for powder for that bullet, very accurate.

I usally like to stop and plant my feet before shooting boars, but I'm glad everything worked out .
I'm sorry, I couldn't resist. It just sounded too funny when I read it the first time.

On a serious note...H-1000 has worked excellent with 160 & 162 gr bullets.

Its a shame they dont make it in an interbond version.
ON the Conley .280rem chart below you can see it is at the top of the heap when it comes to downrange numbers.
Even if launched from a 7x57 under 2700fps, she stillhas impressive numbers at 300yds.

http://www.cpcartridge.com/280B.htm