7mm or 30 cal? Just for curiosity’s sake

[sodakota]

Difficult
I've owned sooo many 30-06's. I have 4 300 magnums, I've owned many 308 carbines, 30-40 Krags, 30-30's, 303's...
But I really like my present and past 280's, 280AI, 7mm RM's, 7mm-08, 7x57's, 7mm International, 7mm TCU...
I'm sure I'm missing some.

I don't think I'll play the game on which one I'd eliminate.

 

[Backcountry sports]

Question says it all. The 22s, 6mm, 6.5, and .338 bore are all pretty common here but it I think it's safe to say the big 7mms and 30s are the unchallenged all range all purpose hunting versatility kings. I bet pretty much everyone on here has at least one 7mm or 30 caliber rifle.

im a 30 guy myself, .300 win mag being my favourite cartridge to play with, .30-30 being what I learned to shoot centerfire rifle with.

but I only bought my first .300 because my other rifle was a .270 win and I wanted a more significant difference in performance than what a 7 would gain. No regrets. But if I didn't already have a 270 I may have gone 7mm mag and had no reason for a .300 or a 270, who knows?

the 7mms are objectively the best of all worlds for long range hit probability. The 180 eld m for example has a bc of .79. There are no similar bc bullets of lesser diameter that I'm aware of and to exceed this bc significantly starts at the 250 atip or such. That's a huge jump. Not to many 30s, if any, will be launching a 225-250 grain at comprable speeds to a 7stw or 28 Nosler with that 180, and if they do it won't be in as portable or pleasant to shoot package.

that said, I maintain the big 30s hit and affect big game very noticeably harder than the 6.5, .270, and 7mm cartridges so they get the nod from me

Now for the just for fun question. If you could only own and shoot either a 7mm or a .30, not both, which would you choose?

I have 3 7mm all are perfect and a 7saum it's great also just hard to find ammo but I reload

 

[Skimbleshanks]

Ive got 4 30s and just recently got my first 7mm. So im kind of a 30 guy.

 

[sveltri]

My first rifle was a .270, one of the best days of my life was the day it sold. When my grandpa passed he left me his .300 WBY mag. I've killed more elk with that gun than any other. Unable to leave well enough alone, I picked up a 7 mag which I really like. In my experience that 300 hits so much harder and elk just anchor when hit. If I had to choose it would be the 300, but like everyone else I'm **** glad I don't have to choose just 1.

 

[cardon1122]

Great pic's and congrats to your wife and you to be able to hunt together, my wife would love to be able to still hunt with me but time and arthritis has done us in, still love to read all of the post on LRH . We found a Rem youth model left hand in 7mm-08 that will shoot lights out for her.

Sorry to hear about your wife's limitations. We're getting there. My wife just had both hips replaced right after fall hunting season which will hopefully buy us some more years. Would hate to lose my favorite hunting buddy! When we finally have to give up the big game hunting I hope we can still do the prairie dogging. We drive the truck near a colony and I set up a pivoting shooting table on a high point and we take turns picking off dogs at long range. She loves shooting my 204 Ruger, 22-250, and 6 Creedmoor which are all suppressed. When I got my 6 Creedmoor she was fine with the purchase as long as I got the huckleberry stock Attached a picture of the 6 Creedmoor and a picture of my wife after she picked off a milk jug with it at almost 600 yards with her first shot.

 

[JC in Calif]

Question says it all. The 22s, 6mm, 6.5, and .338 bore are all pretty common here but it I think it's safe to say the big 7mms and 30s are the unchallenged all range all purpose hunting versatility kings. I bet pretty much everyone on here has at least one 7mm or 30 caliber rifle.

im a 30 guy myself, .300 win mag being my favourite cartridge to play with, .30-30 being what I learned to shoot centerfire rifle with.

but I only bought my first .300 because my other rifle was a .270 win and I wanted a more significant difference in performance than what a 7 would gain. No regrets. But if I didn't already have a 270 I may have gone 7mm mag and had no reason for a .300 or a 270, who knows?

the 7mms are objectively the best of all worlds for long range hit probability. The 180 eld m for example has a bc of .79. There are no similar bc bullets of lesser diameter that I'm aware of and to exceed this bc significantly starts at the 250 atip or such. That's a huge jump. Not to many 30s, if any, will be launching a 225-250 grain at comprable speeds to a 7stw or 28 Nosler with that 180, and if they do it won't be in as portable or pleasant to shoot package.

that said, I maintain the big 30s hit and affect big game very noticeably harder than the 6.5, .270, and 7mm cartridges so they get the nod from me

Now for the just for fun question. If you could only own and shoot either a 7mm or a .30, not both, which would you choose?

I own both 7's and 30's. The two largest animals I have taken were with a .300 Win Mag. Love the cartridge, shoot it in a Ruger No.1. So, the .300 would be my choice.

 

[cardon1122]

Unless my eyes are fooling me, I don't see a brake on that rifle. Your wife needs to come to Va and show my 15yr old Son how it's done. He's fixated on recoil, and thinks a brake is mandatory on anything he gets behind. Although it's probably my fault....when he was really young I bought a super light little single shot .243...I can't recall but it couldn't have weighed more than 4.5lbs.....and I promised him it would not kick. Well it did, and 9-10 yrs later he hasn't forgotten.

It doesn't have a brake. Recoil bothers her a little from a bench but not a all in the field. Her favorite gun is my 6 Creedmoor. It's suppressed so is quiet with little recoil.

 

[Sending156s]

Unless my eyes are fooling me, I don't see a brake on that rifle. Your wife needs to come to Va and show my 15yr old Son how it's done. He's fixated on recoil, and thinks a brake is mandatory on anything he gets behind. Although it's probably my fault....when he was really young I bought a super light little single shot .243...I can't recall but it couldn't have weighed more than 4.5lbs.....and I promised him it would not kick. Well it did, and 9-10 yrs later he hasn't forgotten.

Bullmark, the young man will work it out if he loves shooting, but the potential for flinching will never go away. Gladly give him his brakes. My 1st gun, a H&R SS 12 gauge was bigger than me at 9. It drove me backward 3-4 paces every shot. We were so poor and ammo was so hard to get I promise when the trigger was pulled game died. Though I had to fight flinching. It has never went away. Shooting got me through the military & I consider myself a shooter today I still have to exercise trigger control. Set him up with good rifles and make him aware of the flinching problem and how to practice trigger control. He will have to love shooting to overcome it.

 

[big johnson]

As I find myself getting closer to 70 and after 2 knee replacements I sold my 6 lb. 6.5 cm. I still like my 300 WM ,but I seem to like to reach to the back of the safe and grab the rifles inc. 280 ai, more often. If I had to choose my brain says 300 or 338 rum, but my body says 280 ai. !!!!!!!!!

 

[orifdoc]

I play in Africa from time to time. The .30s reign supreme for plains game. The nice folks over there tend to favor big, heavy bullets and long-range is rarely a consideration. That skews my thoughts a bit. For actual long-range hunting in the US I still like my .300 WM. The 7mm might be theoretically a bit better beyond 800 yards or so, but the difference isn't all that great and I would only shoot at animals that far if everything was perfect.

 

[Huntz]

I don`t want to be labeled as caliber phobic ,so like either one equally ,and lots of other calibers also.

 

[northernexposure]

My vote goes to the 30cal. Owned many calibers larger and smaller... the 30cal is one I always go back to. My rifle and caliber of choice is the Tikka T3 I bought. Stainless, heavy barrel and 300 WSM. I'm still perplexed as to how Tikka called it a varmint rifle.

 

[longgun505]

Question says it all. The 22s, 6mm, 6.5, and .338 bore are all pretty common here but it I think it's safe to say the big 7mms and 30s are the unchallenged all range all purpose hunting versatility kings. I bet pretty much everyone on here has at least one 7mm or 30 caliber rifle.

im a 30 guy myself, .300 win mag being my favourite cartridge to play with, .30-30 being what I learned to shoot centerfire rifle with.

but I only bought my first .300 because my other rifle was a .270 win and I wanted a more significant difference in performance than what a 7 would gain. No regrets. But if I didn't already have a 270 I may have gone 7mm mag and had no reason for a .300 or a 270, who knows?

the 7mms are objectively the best of all worlds for long range hit probability. The 180 eld m for example has a bc of .79. There are no similar bc bullets of lesser diameter that I'm aware of and to exceed this bc significantly starts at the 250 atip or such. That's a huge jump. Not to many 30s, if any, will be launching a 225-250 grain at comprable speeds to a 7stw or 28 Nosler with that 180, and if they do it won't be in as portable or pleasant to shoot package.

that said, I maintain the big 30s hit and affect big game very noticeably harder than the 6.5, .270, and 7mm cartridges so they get the nod from me

Now for the just for fun question. If you could only own and shoot either a 7mm or a .30, not both, which would you choose?

Have always liked and shot extensively the 300 as it was a common sniper community caliber. Cartridges aside, the 30 caliber projectile will likely remain a staple among many nations snipers for many decades to come. It is effective! That said, I no longer own the 300WM or the like. I've always opted for every edge I can get in the long range game. As for killing power (terminal ballistic performance), I've not seen one instance where the 7mm projectile was lacking to the 30 cal. In my experience, higher BC's get to the target with more authority. What incrementally small diameter I sacrifice for that terminal contact speed is almost always made up for in retained KE and bullet degradation. Longer projectiles quite often present quite spectacular yaw when passing through soft tissue mediums, especially after impacting obstructions such as shoulders or ribs. (I'll take fleet yaw over mushrooming projectiles at distance ANY DAY. I most definitely have witnessed that phenomenon in 7mm over 30 and 338 projectiles more often. I have long loved all three of the above projectile cal's, and do still own the 338 in a Win Mag. It is however set up to shoot only one projectile out of a more nonstandard set up for above average speed from factory standard.
In closing, I would say nothing you will ever shoot will be able to attest to the difference between the 30's and 7's given careful selection to the set up you construct, as long as it is sufficient for the target set you are engaging. Projectile selection and shot placement does trump all! Physics is not just a good idea, it is the law. And I'm sure every hunter who has engaged animals at long-distance can attest to the fact that a bad shot at the end of the day, is still a bad shot regardless of caliber. Either of the projectiles will astound you at times, and leave you scratching your head at others. I wish you good luck with your choice, and please share with the forum as you go down this road. I would be very interested in your set up and performance this season, and beyond.

 

[UCzO___]

Got a 30-06 in the 8th grade. Bought a 308 10'ish years ago. Got a 7mm Exp/280 Rem from my Grandfather's collection after he passed and I haven't touched a 30 cal since. 7mm-08 and 7mm Rem Mag added to the stable and currently working on a 7SS.