What's the best 7mm cartridge?

Rhino Hunter said:

Not enough? I think the 7mm Wby Mag Mark V is 1 in 10", in the 7mm RM it's 1 in 9.5".

What is optimum for this a 7mm Wby Mag for hunting?

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Depends what bullet you want to use. The 1:10 will top out around the 160class 7mm bullets. Nothing wrong with that, but some of us are lr obsessed and want to use 180s or heavier, requiring 1:9 or faster twist

Canhunter35 said:

Depends what bullet you want to use. The 1:10 will top out around the 160class 7mm bullets. Nothing wrong with that, but some of us are lr obsessed and want to use 180s or heavier, requiring 1:9 or faster twist

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I would also add brass is another negative with only Norma as a supplier

morning, I own a 7mmwbee. the rifle is custom made. hart #6 ss barrel
H&S combat stock. very good wbee trigger. Warne steel rings and mounts
wbee german action. sniper grey ceracote. Bushnell very long scope.
I shoot the Barnes 150TSX, 215 fed's wbee brass and ramshot mag.
powder. if is an elephant I will not shoot, anything else.
freezer meat. the 7mmwbee has not experienced the popularity of the
other wbee rounds. I lie this round a lot. I like Roy's
calibers. 2-257's 1-7mm customs. and 1-340. the 340 is
my favorite. accu-mark accu-brake. fun to shoot. justme gbot tum

Canhunter35 said:

I would also add brass is another negative with only Norma as a supplier

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That's one of the main reasons why I suggested he rebarrel to a RemMag over the Wby. He won't be giving up anything, but he would be gaining a lot in other aspects, like cheaper, better, and more plentiful brass supplies, better factory ammo with more bullet options, more common brass & ammo, etc...

Having 7 7 Millimeter rifles and having shot and owned more. I would recommend the 280 AI because it could fill all of your needs without being hard on barrels, less recoil and better brass life. I competed with a 7 rem mag at 1000 yards and it performed great. but was rough on barrels and brass, and had plenty of recoil. and If I were going to build a Dedicated 1000 yard match rifle it would be a 7 STW.

But with all of that said, For an all round cartridge with lots of versatility, good barrel life, case life and 7 mm RM performance, I would build a old style 280 AI that can shoot factory 280 ammo accurately while fire forming to 280 Ackley. It uses a standard bolt face, a 30/06 action and mag, dies are readily available for it and the 280 handles all 7 mm bullets well with proper loading. Its case capacity is suited to lighter bullet loading But can propel the heavies at 7 rem mag velocities and is capable of meeting the larger cases performance with less powder. Loading is straight forward.

Whats not to like.

J E CUSTOM

My lone 7 is a 280 AI. If I need to really get further or hit harder I have a 300 RUM. I really like the 280 AI for most of the reasons mentioned before. As a straight up hunting round it was and continues to be my top pick of the 7s. As also mentioned if you like something different the 7 wby is interesting as well. A friend I hunt with shoots a 7WSM w/ 180 bergers and have been very impressed with it as it was part of the push for me to add a 7 to the mix.

morning, to each his own justme gbot tum

do you plan on hunting out to 1k yards as well?? if so what are you hunting that far?? for deer sized game .284 should do, or a 7mmRM. Elk, moose, bear, etc I would look at other cartridges....

7mm08 would also work and be cheaper to shoot (lighter recoil so you can have a lighter gun for hunting) unless recoil has null effect on you.

I was a big fan of the 7LRM that Gunwerks had pioneered. However, Hornady brass killed it with their poor brass quality. With that said, l would now recommend either the 7 MM or the 7 STW if a bit more performance was needed.

Good ol 7mag is all you need. Ive built several that push the Berger 195 right at 2940-2960fps. Low recoil, very easy load recipe and way cheaper brass compared to 28Nosler (I build them too.) At 1000yds, still going 1935fps with 1620ft lbs of energy. Easier on Barrels

28 is shooting 195 at 3100fps, 2010 fps and 1745 ft-lbs of energy at 1000 yds Guns are throated for the 195 bullets. Have had no problem getting any of them to shoot 3/8moa or better.

I shoot a kimber mountain ascent 280ai with 162eldm at 2950 fps. Its great to shoot, light recoil and its a hammer. Killed my mule deer st 656 yards last year, one shot DRT. I also have a 7saum barrel for my desert tech and shoot a 180 berger at 2900 and it is also a hammer. Killed my whitetail at 554 yards one shot drt also. Ive shot 2 barrels out chambered in 7rum with the 195 berger also at 2950, and those were absolute laser beams but they definitely bark. I think you will be happy with just about any .284 caliber out there. I really like the 7 saum especially throated long to utilize case space and that would prolly be my vote. And no matter which one you choose i would get it in an 8 twist.

Ltsheets said:

So I've decided that the next rifle I have built will be 7mm variant. I'm leaning 28 Nosler, 7mm STW, or a good ole 7mm mag. I'm open to any and all suggestions. It will be for both steel shooting out to 1000+ yards and hunting. I just want to hear any and all opinions of the pros and cons of any 7mm cartridges you guys like. Thanks in advance.

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I'm still a huge fan of the 7mm STW, it is my all time favorite.

The 28 Nosler is a great round and Ruger/Hornady will almost certainly be coming out with a 7mm PRC any day now.

The 7LRM is a good cartridge but you are limited to proprietary brass from one source, it's over priced and availability is spotty at best.

A straight 7mm-375 Ruger which is what the LRM is based on would be a much better choice in my mind over the LRM because you are then not trapped into buying the overpriced Gunwerks brass and you can easily just neck down to 7mm in a couple of steps using a couple .338RCM and .30RCM neck dies. It also will gain you a few extra grains in case capacity over the LRM.

There are reamer specs out there already as quite a few people have been building wildcat 7mm-375 Rugers.

The 7mm-300wm is also becoming a very popular option.

I'd stick with the STW or the 7mm-375 Ruger if it were me, the first because I love it and the second because I love the case.

Hornady or Redding will build you custom dies for around 175-185.00 if you provide them the specs. I have a set of Hornady custom dies and I've really enjoyed them.

I cannot tell you what is best for you but here is The way I chose a 7wsm. I wanted to have as many hunting bullet options in the .600+ BC department as I could find while also being able to shoot them at 3,000 fps +. I started running numbers through applied ballistics and eventually it came down to 7mm WSM or 28 Nosler. Since I had a sako 75 finnlight laying around I had my smith pop a krieger 1:8 #5 on there. I hunt with 162 ELDx or 180 Bergers in that rifle. She likes bergers better but I like the performance of the ELDx better on game.


Long story short, decided what ballistics you want to achieve and run the numbers on the velocity and twist it'll take you to get that load. Then I would pick a caliber that comfortably achieves the speed you want

I do not have any 7s right now, but it will be my next build. I have done a lot of research and just need some help. First off, I do not want to mess around with a belt. I have just had bad experiences with belted magnums. Secondly, I would like something somewhat unique, while at the same time being able to find components. I want something with a little more horsepower than the 7 rem mag that can shoot the 180-195 grainers at or above 3000 fps. I have thought about the 7lrm, 28 nosler, 7mm dakota, and 7-300 win mag (I now it has the belt). I would rather not burn my throat out quickly, which scares me with the 28 nosler. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks!