dsculley
Well-Known Member
I like the 168 Bergers in my 7RM. If the rifle is light, get a Limb Saver pad for it. You will like that recoil pad.
Browning X-Bolt 7mm Rem Mag -- Heaviest Bullet Weight?
- Thread starter Brydawg512
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Brydawg512
Well-Known Member
So how do you go about determining a suitable bullet Construction? Thank you for your help.
rwbowser
Well-Known Member
I have a 7 mag A-Bolt II Medallion with the Boss brake. Shoots 160 gr Barnes Vor-Tx, solid copper rounds, sub MOA. I'm new to hunting but I took an elk with it at 352 yards this past season. The round expanded beautifully.
BallisticsGuy
Well-Known Member
For bullet selection you really want to look at the game at hand, the expected maximum range you'll take a shot and some level of personal preference about rapidity of expansion (up to and including fragmentation) vs. penetration. I prefer a bullet that will exit and leave a ragged bleeding hole but which will also give good expansion. Most of my game shots have been relatively close so bullet fragmentation has been my biggest enemy on big game.
More fragile bullets like Nosler Ballistic Tips and things with exposed lead tips and tip skiving will open up faster at high impact speeds associated with close range shots which can sacrifice penetration. At longer ranges with lowish impact velocities they're more likely to expand reliably (at low speeds this sacrifices penetration as well). I like these on deer size game.
A little tougher, like A-frame/partition bullets, bonded bullets and some other designs with aggressively tapered jackets are more likely to get deeper penetration and good expansion. Even if the nose fragments from high impact velocity, the base is pretty heavy and will help get a little more depth. For everything above deer this is where I like to start. It's also a little of the best of both worlds... up to a point.
A lot tougher and you're into mono-metal bullets like Barnes/Hammers/GMX and now you're getting into a zone where things can get sensitive to impact velocities getting too low at long range causing failures to expand much or at all. Even in the monometals though there are gradations of design and performance and things have advanced considerably over the years since Barnes first offerings some decades back. If I want to make as sure as possible to get an exit hole I'd be looking for a shot at medium range on something elk size as long as the cartridge can bring the necessary amount of snot to the party.
More fragile bullets like Nosler Ballistic Tips and things with exposed lead tips and tip skiving will open up faster at high impact speeds associated with close range shots which can sacrifice penetration. At longer ranges with lowish impact velocities they're more likely to expand reliably (at low speeds this sacrifices penetration as well). I like these on deer size game.
A little tougher, like A-frame/partition bullets, bonded bullets and some other designs with aggressively tapered jackets are more likely to get deeper penetration and good expansion. Even if the nose fragments from high impact velocity, the base is pretty heavy and will help get a little more depth. For everything above deer this is where I like to start. It's also a little of the best of both worlds... up to a point.
A lot tougher and you're into mono-metal bullets like Barnes/Hammers/GMX and now you're getting into a zone where things can get sensitive to impact velocities getting too low at long range causing failures to expand much or at all. Even in the monometals though there are gradations of design and performance and things have advanced considerably over the years since Barnes first offerings some decades back. If I want to make as sure as possible to get an exit hole I'd be looking for a shot at medium range on something elk size as long as the cartridge can bring the necessary amount of snot to the party.
Jeffery1122
Member
agreed!
Like BallisticsGuy mentioned, for Elk you need tougher bullets, like Partition or Accubond, if you want to go longer maybe the Accubond Long Range.
At 500 yards the Accubond will have a better BC, but a Partition will do the job and then some.
Bullets like the Nosler Balistic Tip, a Hornady SST or other lead tip bullets like a Sierra Game King are more explosive on impact and cause a large initial wound but the core and jacket can separate and even desintegrate and fail to penetrate enough to produce a fast kill. This is more likely at fast speeds at close range. At 500 yards they will work good but not great, but if that elk pops up at 150 years the bullet will blow up on impact and not penetrate, therefore the animal may walk or run a long distance before it expires.
A Bonded bullet retains more weight because the lead core and the copper jacket are bonded together to avoid separation, this is done several ways depending on the company. This bonding causes more weight retention which means more penetration therefore causing a deeper wound including in many cases the bullet exiting the animal on the other side causing more damage and bleeding, therefore a faster death. Some bonded bullets are the Nosler Accubond and the Accubond Long Range, the Hornady Interbond, Federal Trophy Bonded Tip and Bonded Bear Claw, and the Remington Core Lokt Ultra Bonded amongts others.
A partitioned bullet like the Nosler Partition or the Swift A-frame is like 2 bullets in 1, they have a copper partition in the middle of the bullet that keeps the bottom part of the bullet together for deeper penetration, these bullets have been around for a long time and their reputation for being deadly is well established. You can't go wrong with a Partition bullet.
The Bonded and Partition bullets mushroom well on impact and cause a wider wound channel due to the widening of the bullet's front portion, this also help cause a faster kill.
Regardless all of these bullets still require a well placed shot throught the vitals. Some like to hit the shoulder and penetrate to the vitals, some like the double lung and heart hit behind the shoulder for less meat damage.
Attached is an image of a Nosler Partition bullet to give you an idea of their construction.
Hope this helps
Attachments
Are you sure you need a 20 MOA mount? You don't for 500 yards, but it depends on how far out you want to shoot targets.
I am not aware of any manufacturers of 20 MOA rings that will mount directly to the X-Bolt action. If you want it, you would need to mount a 20 MOA rail instead. EGW makes two for the X-Bolt (steel and aluminum). Talley makes one (aluminum).
I am not aware of any manufacturers of 20 MOA rings that will mount directly to the X-Bolt action. If you want it, you would need to mount a 20 MOA rail instead. EGW makes two for the X-Bolt (steel and aluminum). Talley makes one (aluminum).
Brydawg512
Well-Known Member
"Need" may not be the right word, but I would like to have the extra adjustment available to me. I'd like to be out around the 1k yard mark on steel.
nimrod_gn
Well-Known Member
You should try Hammer Bullets and call Steve at Hammer. He'll tell you which bullet will match up with your rifle's twist rate
Hespco
Well-Known Member
7 mag & a light weight rifle? The heavies in a light weight rifle will beat you up. You need to shoot one before you buy. It doesn't take heavy bullets to take elk, just tough deep penetrating properly placed. A 7 with a bullet like the 140gr Barnes TSX will take any elk from any angle. Reduced recoil also an added benefit when compared to the 160 & heavier bullets.. My 7mag Rem 700 26" stainless with the Barnes 140gr TSX & 67.5grs of Rel 22 = 3300fps. My home range goes to 550yds. This load handles my range with ease.
Get the proper weight with what twist you have in your barrel and then pick a brand. I have a 1:9 and shoots 175 Berger elites about .3 with h1000.
I shot my first bull elk with a 140 gr. Barnes out of a 7mm Rem Mag at an estimated 225 yards. The elk only made it about 35 yards, but the bullet did not exit. I've since read, and now agree that a sectional density of about .280 will exit, if the bullet isn't pure cast lead. I shoot 168 gr. Bergers in my 7mm WSM Browning Ti (weighs 6.5 lbs with scope and sling). I load it to only 2750 fps. Recoil is fine. When I shoot off the bench, I use shoulder pads, and when I hunt I never feel it. I've shot javelina, ibex, deer, bear, and an elk at 340 yards, and didn't have to track any of them. I like Bergers because they are a little more accurate than Barnes, but Barnes have always worked for me. They won't blow up at close range, and will expand down to about 1600 fps. Longer bullets have a higher b.c. My rifle kicks about 8% more than Hespco's 3300 fps. load (assuming an 8 lb. rifle), and has about 6% more energy at 500 yards (1591ft.lbs.)
I have a Vanguard with 9:5 twist. The heaviest bullet it will stabilize is 155gr.
Ditto. I have a light 270 and it helps.
