7mm STW Brotherhood - For those who shoot the 7mm Shooting Times Westerner

[7stw]

I'd have a call in to Remington.........then maybe Tubb Final Finish if Big Green doesn't do right by you.


I've had a couple 7STW's. The last was built on a brand new 7mm mag Winchester model 70 Classic. I bedded it on a Richards Microfit stock I finished myself and it loved the 140gr Nosler CT bullets at 3400fps.

When the barrel was shot out around 1700 rounds, I went full custom to my liking.

Same action with an Obermeyer 5R barrel in Remington Varmint contour (1:8.75). Macmillan A5 stock (70% black 30% med gray) with KMW Loggerhead hardware. Bedded and floated by yours truly. Jewell trigger. Speedlock firing pin. Aadmount rings (good grief these are awesome) on a Nightforce 20moa rail. Sightron SIII 8x32 with MOA reticle.

Only about 20 rounds down the tube so far. Been cleaning after every shot (all debates aside, I'm a fan of "break-in" for 50 rounds) and every round prints in the same place at .75 moa (168gr Berger VLD, 162gr A max, 162gr SST). Once I start shooting on a fouled bore and work some powder charges, I expect things to tighten up. If not, I'll be ordering a Wyatt magazine box since I'm limited to 3.630 COAL.

Glad to be part of the brotherhood.

Very nice hardware, and I really like the Winchester " pre 64" design. Most of my STW's are on a Remington action, but I recently purchased a M70 Custom Sharpshooter. This rifle is awesome in every sense of the word. Long story short, I have became a Winchester fan as well. The only thing, and it's really not a big deal, but as you said, the max OAL I can get is 3.630. Whereas, with the Remys, I can get 3.665-3.670 and fit in the box. However, I really dosen't matter, because the thing still shoots .75 groups @ 200 yards. This is a hunting weight rifle, so I have NO complaints. I like that laminated stock. I have re- kindled a fondness for wood as of recent. I recently built a custom STW, and elected to go with a Bobby Hart LRT laminated. It resembles a " A 4" design, but is laminated instead of synthetic. It shoots as good as it did when it was temporarily in a HS precision.
Anyway, very nice rifles, and in a truly awesome caliber. I too enjoy the 140 CT bullets @ 3400. Deer don't like them very much though. Welcome to the Brotherhood, and enjoy those jewels.

 

[gamehawker]

Very nice hardware, and I really like the Winchester " pre 64" design. Most of my STW's are on a Remington action, but I recently purchased a M70 Custom Sharpshooter. This rifle is awesome in every sense of the word. Long story short, I have became a Winchester fan as well. The only thing, and it's really not a big deal, but as you said, the max OAL I can get is 3.630. Whereas, with the Remys, I can get 3.665-3.670 and fit in the box. However, I really dosen't matter, because the thing still shoots .75 groups @ 200 yards. This is a hunting weight rifle, so I have NO complaints. I like that laminated stock. I have re- kindled a fondness for wood as of recent. I recently built a custom STW, and elected to go with a Bobby Hart LRT laminated. It resembles a " A 4" design, but is laminated instead of synthetic. It shoots as good as it did when it was temporarily in a HS precision.
Anyway, very nice rifles, and in a truly awesome caliber. I too enjoy the 140 CT bullets @ 3400. Deer don't like them very much though. Welcome to the Brotherhood, and enjoy those jewels.

Hey Bob,

If you had the choice would you shoot the 140 grain CT bullets or the 140 grain AB bullets in your 7mm STWs?

The BC is the same on both bullets so I would think they would be comparable in groupings and velocity.

For a 140 grain bullet in my 7mm STWs I love the AB for groupings and velocity. I can't wait to try out 160 grain AB when it gets cooler.

 

[7stw]

Hey Bob,

If you had the choice would you shoot the 140 grain CT bullets or the 140 grain AB bullets in your 7mm STWs?

The BC is the same on both bullets so I would think they would be comparable in groupings and velocity.

For a 140 grain bullet in my 7mm STWs I love the AB for groupings and velocity. I can't wait to try out 160 grain AB when it gets cooler.

Gamehawker, I have killed deer with both bullets. The kills with the CT's are spectacular, and SOMETIMES a little messy. The Accu- bond, is a little less explosive, and usually give complete penetration, and decent size exit. I guess I would say, that " all things being equal", if you can get the Accubonds to shoot as well as the CT,or BT, by all means go with the AB.
When the weather gets a little cooler, I will debuting the 140 AB in my latest build, and will try them in my Sharpshooter as well. But, so far, they both really like the 140 TSX. So, I will give the 140 AB a whirl, but if it shoots like it did the last time I shot them, those TSX bullets are tough to beat.
In your situation, as I said earlier, if the AB shoots for you, look no farther, they will not fail you. And I'll guantee that you have a blood trail, but you probably won't need it!!!! It's getting to be that magic time of year pretty soon!!!!

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

Gamehawker, I have killed deer with both bullets. The kills with the CT's are spectacular, and SOMETIMES a little messy. The Accu- bond, is a little less explosive, and usually give complete penetration, and decent size exit. I guess I would say, that " all things being equal", if you can get the Accubonds to shoot as well as the CT,or BT, by all means go with the AB.
When the weather gets a little cooler, I will debuting the 140 AB in my latest build, and will try them in my Sharpshooter as well. But, so far, they both really like the 140 TSX. So, I will give the 140 AB a whirl, but if it shoots like it did the last time I shot them, those TSX bullets are tough to beat.
In your situation, as I said earlier, if the AB shoots for you, look no farther, they will not fail you. And I'll guantee that you have a blood trail, but you probably won't need it!!!! It's getting to be that magic time of year pretty soon!!!!

+1
I'm using the 140 AB with rl25 lately. The 171 barnes matchburner proved too flaky with any powder at the speeds an stw can go.
BTW, on another thread they said that rl33 is finally shipping. I may just have another favorite powder in a month or two. I'll post up any luck when i finally get some.

 

[Lycan]

Gamehawker, I have killed deer with both bullets. The kills with the CT's are spectacular, and SOMETIMES a little messy. The Accu- bond, is a little less explosive, and usually give complete penetration, and decent size exit. I guess I would say, that " all things being equal", if you can get the Accubonds to shoot as well as the CT,or BT, by all means go with the AB.
When the weather gets a little cooler, I will debuting the 140 AB in my latest build, and will try them in my Sharpshooter as well. But, so far, they both really like the 140 TSX. So, I will give the 140 AB a whirl, but if it shoots like it did the last time I shot them, those TSX bullets are tough to beat.
In your situation, as I said earlier, if the AB shoots for you, look no farther, they will not fail you. And I'll guantee that you have a blood trail, but you probably won't need it!!!! It's getting to be that magic time of year pretty soon!!!!

Concur.

140 CT's hit like the hammer of God. Deer rarely move after impact. I used the 160 AB for elk and it was probably overkill. On deer it would leave a quarter sized exit hole and sometimes they would take a few steps. I prefer DRT.

But.....I typically start with whatever bullet shoots the tightest and go from there.

 

[oldfamily]

You would think that with the amount of people having the stw and reloading for it. Winchester would add it back to the line up for brass. I think we might need to start emailing winchester trying to get them to start making it again. Just an idea.

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

You would think that with the amount of people having the stw and reloading for it. Winchester would add it back to the line up for brass. I think we might need to start emailing winchester trying to get them to start making it again. Just an idea.

Heck, I don't think olin makes any of the long action belted Winchester brass anymore. The Win head stamp stuff is good, but I think rem works as well. I went to win because my initial couple hundred rem brass got beat up and I blamed the brass since the loads were book. Turns out the loads were warm and the brass simply wore out.
If you want other brass then rem, nosler makes brass and norma 375h@h are easy to re-form to 7stw. I've done a couple of hundred rem 375 down to 7stw already. If I can't source 7stw head stamped brass when I'm done with the 4 hundred I have, I'll go that route.

 

[7stw]

You would think that with the amount of people having the stw and reloading for it. Winchester would add it back to the line up for brass. I think we might need to start emailing winchester trying to get them to start making it again. Just an idea.

Way back when the STW was first legitimized, Winchester produced the STW brass , and it was as good, if not better than any one elses. I actually had excellent luck and longevity with it, and fired some of my absolute best groups as well. Well, I recently found a box that I had hid from myself, and loaded it of course. I fired it in my Sako 75. I actually got 6 loadings from that brass, before the primer pockets got a little loose. The point is, that WAS good brass, but I fear that if they were to produce it again, it probably would not be as good. I have some of the newer brass for my 7 mag. Brass life is very poor even with that round.
I kinda like the idea that Lefty has, fire form Norma 375 brass, and really have some GOOD brass.
Welcome aboard!!!!!!!

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

Way back when the STW was first legitimized, Winchester produced the STW brass , and it was as good, if not better than any one elses. I actually had excellent luck and longevity with it, and fired some of my absolute best groups as well. Well, I recently found a box that I had hid from myself, and loaded it of course. I fired it in my Sako 75. I actually got 6 loadings from that brass, before the primer pockets got a little loose. The point is, that WAS good brass, but I fear that if they were to produce it again, it probably would not be as good. I have some of the newer brass for my 7 mag. Brass life is very poor even with that round.
I kinda like the idea that Lefty has, fire form Norma 375 brass, and really have some GOOD brass.
Welcome aboard!!!!!!!

I've got enough brass between rem and old win(like the ones you opine about) to wipe my current barrel's throat out. My next barrel(got a no questions asked re-barreling when the current barrel is gone offer from my wife not to buy another 7stw earlier this year; I WILL use it) will need some good brass, and I'll be looking at who is making other similar belted rounds (ie. norma, nos, a-square, etc.)at that time. I hate to put more than I have to into brass and rarely go anywhere near the high dollar stuff, but in this case it may be warranted. Newer Win isn't nearly as good as win of old; they can't even get the primer pockets deep enough anymore.

 

[7stw]

I've got enough brass between rem and old win(like the ones you opine about) to wipe my current barrel's throat out. My next barrel(got a no questions asked re-barreling when the current barrel is gone offer from my wife not to buy another 7stw earlier this year; I WILL use it) will need some good brass, and I'll be looking at who is making other similar belted rounds (ie. norma, nos, a-square, etc.)at that time. I hate to put more than I have to into brass and rarely go anywhere near the high dollar stuff, but in this case it may be warranted. Newer Win isn't nearly as good as win of old; they can't even get the primer pockets deep enough anymore.

Yeah, you got that right about the primer pockets. I recently " processed" and culled a batch of Winchester brass. When I used my primer pocket Uniformer, some pockets took a lot of cutting before I reached the .122-.123 bottom . Some of them wouldnt even touch the bottom. Another thing was that some of the holes were off center as well. Very dis- appointing.
it seems that the best overall brass I have now came from resized 8mm Mag ammo that I bought and Pulled bullets, then full length resized. Even then, you occasionally Split a neck.
I have a box and a half of once fired A- Square brass that I am going to tune up for hunting season, and use it in my latest build. And I have one box of once fired nickel plated Winchester brass, that had 160 fail safes in them. I pulled the bullets and reloaded them 140 sierras to get them fire formed.I think that when I burn through this stuff, I am going to buy some 375 Norma, and fire form it. That stuff is really uniform. Lots of luck and good shooting!!

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

Yeah, you got that right about the primer pockets. I recently " processed" and culled a batch of Winchester brass. When I used my primer pocket Uniformer, some pockets took a lot of cutting before I reached the .122-.123 bottom . Some of them wouldnt even touch the bottom. Another thing was that some of the holes were off center as well. Very dis- appointing.
it seems that the best overall brass I have now came from resized 8mm Mag ammo that I bought and Pulled bullets, then full length resized. Even then, you occasionally Split a neck.
I have a box and a half of once fired A- Square brass that I am going to tune up for hunting season, and use it in my latest build. And I have one box of once fired nickel plated Winchester brass, that had 160 fail safes in them. I pulled the bullets and reloaded them 140 sierras to get them fire formed.I think that when I burn through this stuff, I am going to buy some 375 Norma, and fire form it. That stuff is really uniform. Lots of luck and good shooting!!

Good shooting to you too. I've got over 400 new or nearly new 7stw's at present(200 win and 200+ rem). I'll be in brass for a good while, but even at 10 shots a hull that's only 4,000 shots. I think 2 or 3 thousand shots is really more like it with this round for what I have in brass.
When necking down from 375 H@H I'll use a 338 win and/or a 300 win die as an intermediary, as it keeps the culls from misforming down. Just set the shoulder to the same point as you would for the stw. You will still have to fireform, but the shoulder will be started in the right place then.

 

[bobs]

7stw - I have 100 pcs new Win brass and like you, I have 60 pcs of the nickel plated Win brass, once fired. What are your thoughts on the interchangeability of these 2 types of Win brass? Also wondering if you know of any negatives in reloading the nickel stuff? I talked to one guy who was very down on it.

 

[7stw]

7stw - I have 100 pcs new Win brass and like you, I have 60 pcs of the nickel plated Win brass, once fired. What are your thoughts on the interchangeability of these 2 types of Win brass? Also wondering if you know of any negatives in reloading the nickel stuff? I talked to one guy who was very down on it.

I learned a lesson years ago about using, resizing, and CLEANING nickel plated brass. Grit, primer residue, and what have gets imbedded in the pores of the nickel, and when you resize it, it can scratch your dies. I found that if you polish it first, before you resize it, it dosen't seem to be as bad. Also, it seems to smooth out some of the high spots in the plating. As far as the interchangeability of the two, I honestly don't know. I am told, but can not prove it, that the plated brass supposedly is somewhat stiffer. I have not weighed the plated and non plated, and compared them that way, but yours is a interesting question. I am not particularly fond of plated brass, in fact I didn't know that it was plated until I got home with it. ( bought it at a gun show).
I have a full box of federal Gold Medal plated brass for my 22-250. I have had no problems with it. I do polish it frequently, and I only neck size it any way. Actually, I neck size for my STW's also. So that in itself, will keep a lot of the abrasion down. Take care , and enjoy the holiday. I can smell deer season in the air.

 

[The7mmSTW]

Just pulled the trigger on the new rifle, it's a dream