Looking for advice and or opinions on 7mm's, specifically rem mag. I am in the market for a new rifle, and I am giving hard consideration to this caliber. From my understanding, they are capable of taking various game and are relatively pleasant to shoot compared to their .30 caliber brothers. From my reading / research, it also appears that their ballistics are quite comparable as well. Any truth to that?

So, anyone out there who owns or has fired a 7mm willing to chime in with their opinion? I am considering using it for east side whitetail, possibly elk and wyoming antelopes when my hunting partner asks me to go. I've been eyeballing browning A Bolts and the like, I can't afford to drop $1400 on a Kimber, but I do want something that is quality.

Thanks for the help.

Drew,
I have a ruger mk II in 7 mm rem mag and I love it. I did a trigger job and can shoot 3 round groups the size of a quarter at 100'yds. I ve taken plenty of deer and elk with it and it has always performed well for me. That being said, some of the more "modern" calibers like the .30O wsm are worth a look. My 7 probably weighs in at more than 9# with scope, sling and full magazine. It's stainless with a laminated stock, 24" barrel. With the short mags you can lose a few inches in bbl length and action. Don't forget that you need to spend $$ on good glass! People look at the price of the rifle and then realize they need to fork over another $300+ for a good scope. Remington, ruger, Winchester, savage all make fine rifles in addition to browning. I do think that Remington 710'(I believe?- comes in a combo) is junk.

Good luck
Willy

Willy,

Thanks for your thoughts. Its funny that you mention good glass, I was fortunate enough to have santa bring me a new leupold 3x9x40 and it needs a new home.

Hi Drew...For a guy who needs but one hunting rifle, a 7mm Remington Magnum chambered in whatever factory rifle you may choose, be it a Remington 700, Kimber M 82, Savage 110, Winchester Model 70, Ruger M 77, or what have you, is a really good choice. So many options are available for factory loaded ammunition, from light weight bullets for long range varmint shooting to the long 160 to 175 grain offerings for serious big game hunting.

The 139 / 140 grain bullets will knock the chit out of any deer or antelope you will encounter at extremely long ranges. The 160 and 175 grain bullets, placed in the right spot will anchor most of the very large game animals you might encounter here in the Continental US.

The many reloading manuals I have say that the 7mm Remington Magnum cartridge has basically the same power as tried and trued .30 - 06.

The usual comparisons between the two rounds tends to go back and forth as to which cartridge has the most knock down power or which one has the best bullet flight characteristics.

For me, and just my personal opinion, I'd buy a Remington 7mm Magnum rifle and it will do all you want it to do. As a plus, if your wife ever decides to shoot it, sheese, it will not knock out the dental fillings in her teeth if she has any.

Hard not to love a good 7. Don't overlook the 280, or 7-08....

Drew, I have a browning A-Bolt in 7mm rem Mag, I have killed plenty of game with it, deer and elk. The only prob I have had is in getting good blood trails. One case in point was a 5 X5 blacktail shot at long range, approx 250 yds, put two rounds in the motor, had a foot of fresh snow and could not find blood or hair, found the deer about 100yds away. First blood showed about twenty ft from the deer where it first hit the ground. Both bullets were just under the hide on the far side. Federal Nosler Partion 160 grain factory ammo. Maybe handloads a little hotter would perform better. I've been told that the 30 caliber bullets make a better blood trail. The browning A-Bolt is very accurate and I would buy another if needed. I have a leopold 3 X 9 scope on the gun. If I was buying new today, it would be either 300 mag or 338.

That's surprising NWP. Have laced elk with 7RM and 140 gr. X-meldings over the years. Complete pass through of lungs. They didn't go more'n a few steps with raspberry jello in their chests.

As a contrast, my pappy cleanly ventilated the craniums of numerous BT bucks with a .22LR when that was pretty much the only thing available after the Depression and WWII.....

Hard to beat Barnes X bullets, tipped or the old HP variety.

You can't beat the 7mm mag. Very good knockdown power, flat shooting. My dad has been hunting elk with his Ruger since 1970 shooting 19 elk, and 4 deer. We use handloads, Sierra 170gr Round Nose, with 63 1/2 gr. of 4831. Where we hunt there are few place for really long shots, this combo puts meat on the pole. Dad did take one elk at 500 yds with his 7. I also shoot a Ruger M77 stainless synthetic stock, but this year I bought a laminated thumbhole wood stock. I really like the new stock, very comfortable.

Only reasons why I didn't list same. They're damn hard to find, and didn't want to tempt Drew with a unicorn.

Double damn....

Yeah..a kimber would be nice, but I am not sure that its in the cards at the moment, we'll have to wait and see if'n uncle sam gives me lots of money back this year..

Be it guns, rods or tits, I've been known to chase unicorns on occasion!

Well, I can vouch for ya on this! The apple doesn't fall far from the tree

Thanks??

All I can say is it is a very good round. I have been using the 7mm rem mag exclusivly for about 15 years now. I have shot a bunch of animals and they don't go far. Usually only a couple of steps and that is it. I started handloading, and once I started to use Nosler partitions in 175gr. I have not revoverd a bullet yet.

Pick a make and model of a rifle you like and can afford. And pratice with it. You wont be dissapointed. I also believe that the 7 mag is more powerful than the ol 06. But I am not going to get into any argument in that catagory. Buy one and enjoy it, it will serve you well and harvest any animal you may want to hunt, minus the big bears!

Good luck Buck

For those so inclined, looks like Barnes is making good things in 0.284 even better....

LRX

I hear good things about 7mm's.

175's are a good choise. I shoot the 160 NP in my 7 mag. Thats what it likes. I step up to a 338 for elk, and above. The 7 works, but I like a bigger hole.

I gotta go shoot my geese. but I will elaborate more on this later. Stay away from the new a bolts and kimbers. Crap...even the rems, and wins are not what the use to be. We scream we want something cheaper, ands thats what we get. Kimber doesn't necessarily mean quality. Some of their parts aren't even mil spec. I own some. I like the look of their rifles, and want one, but they better make some changes first.

Tikka, or Savage if you want a new gun. It you want a Rem, of Win. My opinion would be buy used.....

Got nothing bad to say about a Remmy 700. Been shooting 160's out of it.

Took Stick's advice and gave the Remmy 700 my grandfather used to hunt with a modern make over.

I swapped out the million-pound wooden factory stock with a McMillan composite. I wasn't brave enough to hit the stock with some paint to add that "personal touch". The stock alone probably shaved off 5 pounds....

I dumped the whatever 1-piece scope mounts for some Talley LW's, and replaced the POS 4x Tasco scope with a new Loopy FX III 6x42 with the addition of an M1 turret for elevation and some Butler Creek covers.

Slap on your dial-a-turret chart with some 3M 'lectric blue tape to the stock, a piece over the barrel and it's set to kill!

I might not have *any* of my own ideas/thoughts/concepts when it comes to hunting, but at least I'm smart enough to listen to those who do.

Only drawback to the gun is that if it kicked like stubborn mule before losing the pounds, it really packs a nice punch now. A little difficult to stay on target after the first shot. Not a rifle I'm gonna learn my kids on.

As always, my posts has gottsa have a peekture!

Here's the made over Remmy 700. Sorry, no before photo.

Nice transformation. You can turn the front mount around if you need more wiggle room for eye relief. The TLW mounts in "The Talley Story" video shows such a long action switcharoo 'round 5:10 in.

Try a 250 yard zero for your JBM/M1 chart....

Didn't your McClassic come with a 1-inch Decelerator mule tamer? When the time comes that you drop the hammer with bad intent, you won't feel a thing....