Oh god, not another caliber debate thread.

[42769vette]

Im stuck between 7mm RUM, 28 Nosler, 7mm STW.

Im going to build a do all hunting rifle. I know I want a HOT 7mm which has led me to these 3 options (if Im missing a no brainer speak up). I dont care much about barrel life, being a hunting rifle it will take 10 years to shoot 1000 rounds. I have other rifles that I will shoot match's, etc with. What I do care about is

Brass avaibility
Speed
Recoil (distant 3rd)

I will use a 24/26 inch barrel.

Thoughts?

 

[fisherman983]

A 7mm-338 lapua is your huckleberry.

 

[mikea5232]

I have a 7 STW. Amazing caliber to say the least. A nosler rep i talked to a year or so ago told be that the 28 was no improvement over the 7 STW being i had one already and i hand loaded for it. The RUM burns a fair amount more powder for the little bit of gain. Nosler makes both 7STW brass and their 28. Not sure where or how available the RUM brass is. This forum would not have a dedicated section for the 7STW if it wasn't something great imo.

 

[Alaska2006]

STW all the way.

 

[MudRunner2005]

7 STW or .28 Nosler gets me vote... But I am a bit biased as I have 2 STW's...

 

[WeiserBucks]

STW for sure, unless you have a grudge against belted cases . The RUM is just as good, but fading away. 28 Nosler is the latest craze. All of the above will do anything you could ask from a 7mm .

I'm partial to the STW as it was my 1st high performance cartridge and accounted for my 1st elk and my best mule deer.

 

[adam32]

Lazzeroni Firebird, 7mm-300 Winny, 28 Nosler, 7mm RUM, 7mm STW, 7mm Dakota, 7mm-338 Norma, 7mm-338 Lapua. In that order.

 

[Dosh]

7 STW or .28 Nosler gets me vote... But I am a bit biased as I have 2 STW's...

The 7 STW has more pluses over any 7mm I've seen. Can't beat it. Good luck

 

[HARPERC]

28 Nosler it's new and shiny.

 

[mikea5232]

The 7mm300win (or practical) seems to be a great round as well. 300win brass should be plentiful.

 

[Rich Coyle]

42769vette,

I had a 7STW on a 28 " barrel. On a whim I had it rechambered to 7RUM without setting it back. I worked up both the same way to a maximum load. I gained a whopping 25 feet per second with the RUM. Not worth it.

I had Dave Manson at Precision Reamers make me a reamed for a wildcat but have not used it yet. Since I like long necks I had him make a .338 RUM shoulder length with a 7mm neck .100" longer than the a .7-.338RUM. That way I could use 7RUM or .300RUM brass to get a case that hold about 110 grains of water and lasts longer than any of the cases you mentioned. If you want to use it I would be pleased to loan the reamer to you.

I did make and use this same case idea but necked to 6.5. On a 28" barrel I worked up a 140 grainer going 3,419 feet per second. It holds 109 grains of water to the mouth. Ben at Hornady named it 6.5RUMLN because I didn't have a name for it when he made the forming and loading dies.

 

[J E Custom]

Brass seems to be a big factor now days and it is about the same price for the three you ask about, so the choice has to depend on what you want/need.

The 28 Nosler is a good round, the 7 STW is also a good round that has a large following (For a good reason) and has been around for a long time.
there are plenty of components and loading data for it and it is very fast and flat with 140 grain bullets. The 7 RUM is a big cartridge that will send the bigger bullets very fast, but it uses more powder than the other two with only a 100 to 150 ft/sec advantage.

So if you want speed, the 7 RUM (Or a wildcat based on it) will get it.
If you want a proven round with lots of possibilities, The 7 STW would be a good choice for an all round 7 MM. and has a slight edge in velocity 50 to 100 ft/sec over the 28 Nosler, It is the new kid on the block and is not as proven as the others yet. There are wildcats that will out reach even the 7 RUM but they come with more issues and are not the best choice as far as I am concerned.

I am all for "New" cartridges if they can fill a niche, many have subtle Improvements that improve efficiency, but in many cases they are Just another "Designer" cartridge and have nothing to offer over existing cartridges.

Like others, I would recommend the 7 stw even though I have many other 7s including the 7 RUM.

Just my opinion
J E CUSTOM

 

[cornstalker]

STW, unless you are tight on mag length.

 

[adam32]

Do you need to have factory brass or are you ok with having to form/fireform?

Lets look at the capacity numbers...

7mm/378 Wby - 130gr
Lazzeroni Firebird - 126gr
7mm-338 Lapua Improved - 120gr
7mm-338 Lapua - 113gr
7mm RUM - 112gr
7mm-338 Norma - 105-108gr
7mm STW - 100gr
28 Nosler - 100gr
7mm Dakota - 93.5gr
7mm-300 Winny - 92gr

So as far as factory available brass/ammo, the Firebird has the next closet beat by 14gr. The 7mm-378 Wby bests the Firebird by 4 grains but will take custom dies and forming brass to do it.

There's no replacement for displacement...especially when shooting big heavy bullets. The Lazz has approx 26% more capacity than the STW...