Got all my money wrapped up in another build rite now but I would love to have itLee,
Why don't you but it and you can have twin Laredo LRH 7mm STWs like I have twin Sendero 7mm STWs!
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7mm STW Brotherhood - For those who shoot the 7mm Shooting Times Westerner
- Thread starter The7mmSTW
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etisll40
Well-Known Member
We should plan a 2013 hunt for 7 stw rifles somwhere where we have about 40,000 acres in the middle of the country or an area that has deer and hogs. It might be fun picking of feral hogs for practice and then a whitetail contest. A campsite would be great. Live off the land and bring your own food to accompany evening feasts.
Sounds like a plan to me
After adding some forearm pressure I loaded some 180 Bergers with 78 Retumbo with the bullet on the lands along with the new Barnes 168 LRX using RL22, RL25, and Retumbo. One grain less than max for the LRX and also set them on the lands.
Center spot is the bergers, outer spots are Barnes. It took me 5 shots after switching from Berger to Barnes to get on paper at 100 yards. Off the paper to the right and low. I think I better just stick with Bergers 'cause nothing else seems to shoot. I could set the barnes to box length but I'm not sure there would be enough room for powder, these things are long. Oh, one grain less than Berger 168 max is about max for the LRX on the lands, .7 less than Berger max and it's a bich to get the bolt open.
One thing I noticed, the Bergers had that "boom" sound and the Barnes had a crisp "crack" at the shot. Just one of those odd things I noticed.....
Center spot is the bergers, outer spots are Barnes. It took me 5 shots after switching from Berger to Barnes to get on paper at 100 yards. Off the paper to the right and low. I think I better just stick with Bergers 'cause nothing else seems to shoot. I could set the barnes to box length but I'm not sure there would be enough room for powder, these things are long. Oh, one grain less than Berger 168 max is about max for the LRX on the lands, .7 less than Berger max and it's a bich to get the bolt open.
One thing I noticed, the Bergers had that "boom" sound and the Barnes had a crisp "crack" at the shot. Just one of those odd things I noticed.....
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Looks like the Bergers are the ticket for that rig......Looks like its coming to you now and the "crack" was most likely the RL22, it has a distinctive sound
lizardsinep
Member
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- Sep 6, 2010
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try the barnes 10 - 15 off the lands , they tend to like to "jump"
Big Jake Duke
Well-Known Member
Dano1
Well-Known Member
Sorry, I missed this one.....
I'mnot sure about the Gibbs vesion. Some folks feel that it's an improvement over the 6.5-06 AI. It does have a small amount of case capacity increase over the Ackley. Fireforming for the Gibbs is diffrent as a false shoulder has to be made to headspace off of and has to be done just right.
I'm sure it's a fine cartridge, but I'm happy with the performance of the 6.5-06 AI. I personally don't thik it's worth it over the Ackley.
Incedently, I sold that rifle to my father, (I needed a comuter car really bad.....dang it, I'll get it back one day) I still load for it though and it is an impressive cartridge for it's class.
Dan
Dijon
Member
Dijon,
From what I've seen so far, SOCHEM S385 is similar in Burn Rate to our Hodgdon 4831 and is a fast burning powder for the 7 STW. I'm not sure of a starting load for this powder as I've never heard of SOCHEM powders before. Maybe some one with more experience with this powder can chime in.
I see that SOCHEM does have a slowder buning powder called B-12.7 and according to the burn rate charge is most similar to our Retumbo and H870 and would be good fothe heaviest of bullets.
If you are limited to S385, I'd stick with a lighter bullet around 150-165g. as you are not worried about bullet construction and accuracy is your pimary goal, I'd lean toward a Match style bullet. Sierra Matchkings are the easiest to get shooting and are extremely accurate. They make a 150g, 160g, and 168g version. A 168g Berger would serve you well.
The "Silver" brass is Nickel plated and can be reloaded just the same as the Remington brass. Just make sure that you apply enough lube to he case neck and body when resizing them. They are a harder metal than the Yellow brass casings and aren't as forgiving when sizing.
As for perfect grouping loads, I'm still on my own Journey for them....
Hope this helps,
Dan
Dan,
Thank you for the info. I will definately try the matchkings from Sierra then. Like I stated previously, shot placement adn accuracy is the most important factors which I am going for with Hammerhead.gun)
Am I right in my assumption that for heavier bullets, you need slower burning powders and vice versa?
I have read a little and it seems that the S385 and S365 from Somchem works the same in the applications for Magnums of this sort. Maybe if you can help me in this area too?
Bush greetings from SA!
lizardsinep
Member
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- Sep 6, 2010
- Messages
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Yes , but it depends on your barrel lenght, a longer barrel will get the most out of a slow powder..... its finding a mix that works ,, Iave also seen a difference on how much the bullet is crimped , tighter crimp= more vel
Dijon
Member
Dan, you are going to think that I am a num-nut but I am seriously new to all of this reloading jargon and technicalities. What I do have is a steady and sensitive trigger finger, good slow breathing and very good sight. I can take a rifle and shoot well. I am at the mercy of people whom have done this reloading science a while and I am to glad that you guys put up with novices like me.
Will it help if I give you details of my gun?
Bought(imported) original Remington Sendero SF. Lenght of barrel and twists are unknown too me! Can you give me this detail because I cant find it on the Remington webpage?
After the conversion to what is now called Hammerhead, what is left of the original is the barrel, action and trigger. The barrel has been lenghtened with the break at the front and measures 12.6cm or 4.96". All that extra weight which I wanted comes from my stock and maybe a little bit of weight also in the mercury tube. Hammer is really at this stage what we call here in SA, a PLING gun, meaning that I can hold the grip and fire a round and the scope does not move from the target, somehow like my little 22-250 does, the recoil is probarbly also on par.
Give the info you have on Hammer, what do you think I must do for a startup load. I like the idea of match bullets to give me the best consistency with groupings. I dont know if I must worry about massive velocity for the distances which I want to reach?
Ideal world, I would like to shoot a 150-160gr match type of bullet as fast and flat as possible to a distance of 750m and still have enough energy to put down up to an Eland or Gemsbuck in the head or neck-probarbly wishfull thinking but that is where I want to be.
Chat soon
PS: You know I am from SA, where do you live?
7stw
Well-Known Member
RANGE REPORT! SHARPSHOOTER!
Hi guys, Ive been out of the loop for a couple of days, my motum power supply cord crapped out, got new one, all better. Tried to shoot Saturday, but had problems with scope bases. Needed to shim rear mount to get me on the paper. Went back Sunday, in 86 degree temps. Well, long story short, ambient temp, and barrel heat were a big issue. I shot three powders, and two bullet weights. Hornady 162 A max, and 154 spire point. It did not like , RL 22, or H1000, but did show promise with RL25. I got a decent group at 200 yards that measured 1.192. This was a perfect pyramid group which typically indicates that it may be made to shoot better with a little tweaking, or maybe shoot it again when it is not so hot. The barrel got pretty warm even after one shot. Not really ideal conditions for bugging out a shooter load. My favorite temps are between 50 and 60 degrees. That way you won't have so much variance on the high and lower temps. Reloder powders are temp sensitive anyway, but I was getting the same with the H1000. I am surprised the RL 25 shot as good as it did. I think that I need to wait for better conditions to really wring out the potential, but if I can catch a cool morning on the weekends, I will try again.
On another note, I have noticed that this barrel does not foul hardly at all. It cleans very easily, and with no effort. Trigger is very nice and crisp, no creep, and lite. Take care to all, and nice to be in the loop again!!!!!
Hi guys, Ive been out of the loop for a couple of days, my motum power supply cord crapped out, got new one, all better. Tried to shoot Saturday, but had problems with scope bases. Needed to shim rear mount to get me on the paper. Went back Sunday, in 86 degree temps. Well, long story short, ambient temp, and barrel heat were a big issue. I shot three powders, and two bullet weights. Hornady 162 A max, and 154 spire point. It did not like , RL 22, or H1000, but did show promise with RL25. I got a decent group at 200 yards that measured 1.192. This was a perfect pyramid group which typically indicates that it may be made to shoot better with a little tweaking, or maybe shoot it again when it is not so hot. The barrel got pretty warm even after one shot. Not really ideal conditions for bugging out a shooter load. My favorite temps are between 50 and 60 degrees. That way you won't have so much variance on the high and lower temps. Reloder powders are temp sensitive anyway, but I was getting the same with the H1000. I am surprised the RL 25 shot as good as it did. I think that I need to wait for better conditions to really wring out the potential, but if I can catch a cool morning on the weekends, I will try again.
On another note, I have noticed that this barrel does not foul hardly at all. It cleans very easily, and with no effort. Trigger is very nice and crisp, no creep, and lite. Take care to all, and nice to be in the loop again!!!!!
Dano1
Well-Known Member
Dijon,
I certianly don't think you're a "num-nut"....all of us had to begin reloading sometime and no questin is a dumb question. If you've loaded other cartridges with success, I'm sure that you can handle the 7 STW.
My biggest concern is the fact that I have no frame of reference for the powders availble to you. Who maufacturers SOCHEM powders???? I've been looking on the internet for some information and I've had no luck other than finding a burn rate chart that tells me the approximate burn rate of SOCHEM powders compared to the powders that I am familiar with.
Do you happen to have a Web site that I can look at???? I don't mind sites in forgein languages either....
The Hammer head has a 26 1-9.25" twist bbl so you can stabilize bullets up to 168g with out any problem. As far a starting load, I'm not quite sure yet.
I must ask you about the powder (SOCHEM S385).....is it a stick or ball/flake powder? I know tha burn rate is similar to H4831 and a starting load for it depends on the bullet weight.
This burn rate chart also shows a SOCHEM powder called S371 which is a little slower still. Is it available to you???? I would actulally be even better....
Are there any other brands of powder like Norma or Vihtavuori that are available to you???
I favor a heavier bullet for consistantcy at long ranges and energy retention as well as the higher ballistic coeffient.
Decide on a bullet and find the info on the powder and the company that makes it and then we will go from there.
By the way, I live in Idaho, in the United States.
Dan
