Short barreled 7mm ??? Help me pick - people with experience please

[Ernie]

Even a 17" 280Ai with factory Nosler ammo with 140 AB's (NOT a great bullet for distance) has a MV of 2961 fps.
at 7K elevation, I have a Impact Velocity of 1821 fps at 675 yards!

 

[Ernie]

A newbie to distance shooting my 280AI XP with 140 grain AB factory Nosler ammo at 595 yards.

 

[codyadams]

That info helps. I would go by the manufacture recommend velocity needed for proper bullet expansion. For Hornady ELD the last I checked was 1800 FPS. If a 7MM Rem Mag Launches a 175gr ELD bullet from a 26" barrel at 2850ish FPS and if you loose roughly 35ish FPS per inch ) I have seen up to a 50 FPS loss on magnum rifles ) of barrel length thats 280 FPS loss out the gate. That puts you under 7-08 performance. Ouch!! We will go with your selection of cartridges you gave us. Now that 175 grain bullet will be in the 2500ish FPS range. That will limit you out to 600 yards at 7000 ft above sea level. At 600 yards it will carry right around Hornady's recommended 1800 FPS for proper expansion. That is a bit shy for elk out to and past 1,000 yards. It would be different if you were talking target shooting. Sense your talking about taking the life of something than we need to stick to Hornady's recommendation FPS needed for proper bullet expansion. Or whatever bullet maker you choose. Hope this helps.

2850 with a 175 in a 26" 7 mag?


I DO reload, not just shoot factory ammo......ha ha

The last 3 26" 7 mags I loaded 175's to 180's for were at 2975 to 3080 for their accuracy load, using Retumbo, H1000 and RL26. As stated, the 20" barrel 7 max I am loading for is shooting 175's at 2906.

Anyway. The SMALLEST of the 3 cartridges we are considering will have around 1400 ft-lbs and be going around 1900 fps at 1000, under the worst case scenario for my typical shooting conditions. That is with loads out of a 20" barrel with said smallest cartridge and proven loads. The purpose for going with a bigger cartridge would be to get a fatter margin from the "minimum" and have better external ballistics.

I liked this thread better when it was ending with memes.....lol

 

[Lee Goodwin]

No, I have a .284 barrel

280 Ackley improved.?

 

[Ernie]

280 Ackley improved.?

No, He has a 7mm/.284 blank barrel.
It could be chambered for any 7mm cartridge

 

[Stgraves260]

2850 with a 175 in a 26" 7 mag?


I DO reload, not just shoot factory ammo......ha ha

The last 3 26" 7 mags I loaded 175's to 180's for were at 2975 to 3080 for their accuracy load, using Retumbo, H1000 and RL26. As stated, the 20" barrel 7 max I am loading for is shooting 175's at 2906.

Anyway. The SMALLEST of the 3 cartridges we are considering will have around 1400 ft-lbs and be going around 1900 fps at 1000, under the worst case scenario for my typical shooting conditions. That is with loads out of a 20" barrel with said smallest cartridge and proven loads. The purpose for going with a bigger cartridge would be to get a fatter margin from the "minimum" and have better external ballistics.

I liked this thread better when it was ending with memes.....lol

That's pretty hot for 175-180 grains even in a 26" barrel. I load my 168 grain Berger's over Max with Retumbo and I'm getting just north of you. So to get those velocities with a 20" barrel Im surprised your gun is not exploding. Work that magic.

 

[Stgraves260]

Seriously...this is ridiculous.
You are not doing a fair comparison, since he will likely go with a 28 Nosler (Not a 7RM)
The 7 Dakota is a smaller cartridge than the 28 Nos, and I know for a fact of a couple of SP guys that have 18" 28 Nosler's, and they out run my Dakota by about 50 fps.
But let's just stay with a smaller cartridge than the 28, the 7 Dak with 175 grain ELD-X's at 2900 fps at 7000 feet elevation.
This is a proven load/18" barrel, and Cody will likely be about 100 fps faster than me, with the 28 and just 2 more inches of barrel.
Let's just take my load at 7000 feet of elevation:
at 1000 yards I have 1902.1 fps
At 1125 yards I have 1793.1 fps
Your numbers are way off for what Cody is considering

The numbers I'm reading on here are the same as when people are claiming 3000 FPS from a 6.5 CM and a 20" barrel and 143 grain ELD's. That why my last statement said " Be cautious with your choice. Stay safe " I was trying to stop a argument before it started. The only thing is, you can't stop a argument when someone is looking for it.

 

[codyadams]

That's pretty hot for 175-180 grains even in a 26" barrel. I load my 168 grain Berger's over Max with Retumbo and I'm getting just north of you. So to get those velocities with a 20" barrel Im surprised your gun is not exploding. Work that magic.

Na, it's pretty typical in a 7 max and 20" barrel. The numbers I was saying with a 7 mag were 26", as stated

 

[codyadams]

The only thing is, you can't stop a argument when someone is looking for it.

Ya, I agree. This thread was essentially finished back around post # 149-151.

 

[Lee Goodwin]

No, He has a 7mm/.284 blank barrel.
It could be chambered for any 7mm cartridge

I still vote for 277 fury....284 fury?

 

[WahooYahoo]

7 SAUM all day. I have the max and the saum. I'd take the saum. Shooting 180's 2,980' and 175's at 3,010 fps out of a 22" proof 8.4 twist. Liked it so much I made 2 more for my kids to have.

What SAUM characteristics stand out over the max? don't read any sarcasm or smarty-pants into the question. Pure curiosity as they are very very close to one another.

 

[Reelamin]

giving a bit more throat does have some speed upside but it's way less than most people think and or should be thinking. Generally (IMO) if one is adding length to a throat to get more speed then they're really working it hard to get it. Pretty much the same old thing as going AI.

I'm 63, I've been loading for centerfire for 51 years. My one and only one item on my wish list for us loaders is that some day we have available to us pressure measuring systems that are trust worthy and cost effective (IE sub 1K dollars).

I expect that when the day comes that we have pressure testing equipement at our disposal we'll all be learning some lessons. Kind of like back pre LRF everyone would routinely make 400 yard shots, then when good LRF's become common place people were routinely making 255 yard pokes...

I'd say build it, and let primer pocket life and speed be your guide.

But, please don't build a 7/08.............sorry couldn't resist.

have a great day all!

(last Q, Cody were you able to sort out anything with the goat tag you had or was it just a goat rope?)

Hey, Hey, Hey, back that bus up will you? I really don't want to know how over pressure my loads are. I over think stuff way too much....happy just knowing its not blowing primers. LOL

 

[Longtine88]

What SAUM characteristics stand out over the max? don't read any sarcasm or smarty-pants into the question. Pure curiosity as they are very very close to one another.

Yes they are so close there's really no difference what I have found. The sherman uses the same 7saum brass. Biggest thing is you don't have to fire form brass. The saum is more available and common in the market. I get 180's to 3,000. I can get 195's to 2950. 175's to 3,080 or so. I get 3,150 out of 168's. I get better performance out of the saum than I do even my 7mm rem mags. I just don't see the advantage to the max. There are some I'm sure but I'll stick to the saum.

 

[JAYgs8163]

I just finished a 7mmWSM 20", 8.25 twist proof. Have not had a chance to shoot it yet unfortunately but will very soon. Secured some new Hornady brass and annealed and prepped it all. Have numerous test loads planned for it.