What caliber to shoot 140 - 142 grain bullets 3300 fps or more?

[J E Custom]

When the 7 STW first became known, the standard load was a 140 grain bullet @ 3500 ft/sec. A Square was the first company to offer ammo for it and their loading was 140 grain partitions @ 3500 ft/sec. My rifle was built for velocity and had a 31" barrel. I pushed it to 3800 ft/sec but bullets started shedding their jackets somewhere between 3750 and 3800 so I backed of to 3700 and found a node that shot very well.

Today's rifles don't have the free bore to handle the pressures at these velocities, so velocities like these are not possible unless some thought go's into the build. But with today's components 3500 ft/sec using a 140 grain bullet is very doable.

This thing was a Laser but was hard on barrels and brass.

J E CUSTOM

 

[JustMe2]

Just guessing, but I believe he doesn't want to calculate holdovers so he is limiting himself to 500 yards, a 250 yard zero and a super flat shooting rifle. I don't believe he wants to use a ballistic calculator, etc. to calculate holdover or twisting turrets. My guess on the motivation for his guestion.

 

[FEENIX]

I would like to shoot as flat a trajectory as practical. I'm not concerned about recoil,action length, price of brass, price of factory ammo or whether to reload. I can shoot factory loads and be happy. I just want to shoot deer, antelope and occasionally an elk to 500 yards.Any and all comments, suggestions are appreciated

To answer your title question, for the 140 grain Berger bullets, the calibers are .264, .277 caliber, .284. They can be propelled at the 3300 FPS range in various chamberings depending on rifle set-up as others have noted.

I just finished head spacing my .264 WM yesterday (26" 1:7" 5R) specifically built for the 156 Bergers but I also have 140 Bergers to try.

Below is one of my favorite .264 WM elk hunting video I have seen ...



I also have a .270 AI (specifically built for the 165/175 Matrix, 170 Berger ) with 30" 1:8" 3G might push a 140s at that range.

My 7MM STW has been dismantled for another project.

 

[FatOldMIHunter]

You didn't mention whether you were concerned about barrel wear. You will get more barrel wear pushing a 6.5mm 140 gr to those velocities than you will pushing a 7mm 140 gr but it will be longer and more stable at long distance. If you go with 150 gr for the 7mm, the barrel wear will go up a little, but I think the stability at long range will go up a lot.

 

[19 Badger]

If you want to stay away from reloading I would recommend the 7 RUM. Also, if you use copper bullets I would recommend going to a lighter bullet such in the 120-130 then those velocities you are trying to achieve is much easier. Nothing wrong with mono bullets.... 500 yards and in, BC and all the other technicalities don't mean squat. If it will shoot MOA, go hunting and enjoy.

 

[budlight]

I never jumped on the 6.5 or .264 wagon. But my buddy and I have taken 4 bison with .277. Our rifles have been 270 win. 270 AI and now his 270 WSM got two this 2019.

140's would require a 28 inch barrel to get to 3300. I've owned a barrel burner 30-378 where cases last only a few shots. So 27 Nosler makes a 150 go 3300 so a 140 might be 3400+ with their listed 26 inch barrel

 

[KS2506]

Find yourself a Sako 995 7MM STW. It will be very accurate, comes from the factory with a 3# ttrigger, 26" barrrel and will easily get to 3300fps with 140 grain bullets. Plus it will carry very easily. Put a good 4.5-14x on it, sight it in 3" high at 100 yards and 500 will be a chip shot. As said, you can also use it for elk with a heavier bullet, like a 175 Nosler Partition.

 

[vancewalker007]

A big 30 like an ultra mag, 30-,378, or a 300 Lapua shooting a 140 or 150 is going to put you way above 3300. I guess that will extended your MPBR, but you're going to suffer the typical issues with these setups. One is bullet performance. You'll need to choose a tough bullet to be sure you get good symmetric mushrooming and enough enough bullet shank left to drive straight through the vitals for clean kills at closer ranges. These popular soft LR bullets will give poor results at close ranges and super velocities. Plus inside 500 yards they are uneeded.

A copper bullet of some sort would be where I'd start since you're only going to 500 yards, a partition type like a Swift would be my second choice.

The other issue these setups usually suffer from is finicky accuracy. It can be tough to find a combination to shoot consistently accurate. It can be done but sometimes you gotta roll the reloading dice a bunch, which can burn barrels fast. But, keeping under 500 yards you could suffer 1.5 to 2 MOA accuracy and still work on a lot game shots less than 500.

Depending on atmosphere you're going to be so where in the 20-30in drop range at 500 yards, so due on holds on deer and Antelope with no correction is gonna be iffy. On Elk you could likely get away with some Kentucky windage as they say.
Recoil you said wasn't an issue, plus with a good brake that nullified.

With as easy as it is these days you range and dial elevation correction, I'm just curious why choose such a setup? With a good Rangefinder and good BDC Reticle and proper practice you could have really fast shot setups to 500 yards and shoot something a little slower and a lot more forgiving..

Just saying, but to each their own. . Good luck

 

[Calamity]

The sweet spot for the reach you want, and suitable for everything on the planet with the exception of the big five, is that window along the spectrum of calibers that includes the 7mm to the .375 magnums. In that range are high BC (>0.700), long range bullets capable of sonic velocities at extended ranges, and high enough in mass and sectional density to shoot through 3/4 inch of homogeneous steel without having an unwieldy barrel length. The 7mm's can go from 100 grains to around 200 grains, the 30's from 110 grains to 230 grains, the .338's from 215 grains to 300 grains and the .375 from 200 grains to 350 grains. Below this range, mass and energy fall off. Above this range, BC falls off. That doesn't mean that a 6.5mm or .270 won't do the job on a long range elk, it just means they are at the maximum of their performance envelope in order to do it. A .416 or .458 Magnum will certainly kill anything you can hit, but the trajectory (in anything you can stand to carry on a hunt and shoot from the shoulder) is like a football. Someone out there is ready to pounce on that and cite a .50 BMG Barrett rifle, but at 12-15 lbs., not counting optics and ammo, you are not going to trek across the western plains or climb the Rocky Mountains with it. Or, at least, you won't enjoy doing it. Six to eight lb., sub MOA hunting rifles are readily available in the caliber range I'm advocating, with muzzle brakes. Ammo is readily available in most of them. Given the parameters you say you can live with, all you have to decide on is the model and make.

 

[Quintus]

As mentioned the 270Wby would be my first choice, second would be the 26 Nosler, 3rd the 28 Nosler. You are asking about 140 or 142Gr bullets so I originally assumed 6.5, but as many have stated, there are better vehicles if the intent is 500 and in. I am actually a huge fan of the 300 Roy and 130 TSXs at 3800. At 300 yards the bullet hits the deer before the sound of the shot gets to my ears and with a Braked barrel I can still watch the hit. Pretty slick.

 

[Varmint Hunter]

7WSM and RE26 will get you there. Why use anything bigger?

 

[sedancowboy]

270 WSM I shoot 145 ELD-X at 3300 fps In a custom chambered med action.

 

[stljc2]

Loaded up some 147 gr FMJ's once (only 5) in 300 win mag. Scared me so bad I took 3 home and pulled them...Pro crono showed 4000 ft/s...

 

[shooter7]

I once shot a 168 AMax out of a 26.25 inch barreled 300Win Mag at 3398. So I'm gonna say the 300 win mag should do a 140 at 3300+ pretty easy.