Thanks for chiming in guys, I am enjoying it all. I got almost 3150 with the 175 Hammer from my std 338/06. I am having it reamed out to the Ackley, but its in a Mark V Ultra Lwt, making it more of a Mountain Rifle. Same with my backup, a Kimber 300WSM. Both great where and how I hunt elk. However, I learned years ago that if I hunt out on the prairies/sage flats, that Wind blows me and my rifle around terribly. My 7x57 is a rebarreled Md 70 Fwt and at 8 pds its pretty steady, but "still" a bit light in the Britches for elk, for my tastes. So even though I limit myself to 400, all the shots I've made that far were with 9 pd rifles, much easier to hold still. Shooting off cross sticks or field positions. That's where I see me using a Big 7. Last outfitter I hunted with used the 6.5/300Wby and he loved it! Now that seems like a barrel burner for sure to me, ha.
Brother, given that you're "reloading friendly", that certainly opens up the whole world of cartridges!
The other well-experienced posters here have mentioned the 7mm-300____'s and I gotta say that's where I ended up. Even my GS, who is also a Guide, used to shoot a 7mm-Weatherby (when he can obviously shoot anything under the sun, moon, and stars). I believe he shoots either a 338-06 or his fav a 300 Weatherby nowadays.
That ^ said, when I asked if he would chamber a 7mm-300 Winchester for me he mentioned he didn't actually have a reamer for it but had heard of it and was intrigued (in spite of his experience with the 7mm-Weatherby). He even paid for the reamer himself!
Initially, I chose the 7mm-300 Win b/c I had ~300-350 pieces of same-lot, 30-year-old, brand spanking new Winchester brass left over from when I began reloading but had to stop to pay for school. Also, I wanted to try a 7mm hot-rod that would hammer Elk at long-ish distance, but not quite a barrel-burning monster like the 7RUM or to a lesser degree the 7STW/7 Nozler.
For me (and even in today's volatile market), my decision was supported with the facts that new brass is everywhere, the cartridge is strangely efficient, is not terribly over-bore, and yet reaches some very respectable velocities with high BC bullets. I'm cautiously optimistic it's going to be perfect for my hunting - Elk, Antelope, and possibly Mule Deer (I strongly prefer Whitetail deer meat over Mule Deer).
So, I'm currently working on barrel break-in and looking for pressure boundaries with it. Not that I need it (I'm not recoil shy), with a muzzle break, it's very pleasant to shoot (hopefully to lure my daughter to want to shoot it!!!). For my needs, the 7mm-300 Win is a win-win!!!!