Why shoot deer size game with a 280 over 7mm rem mag?

[Southernfryedyankee]

Alot of the threads I have been reading people are saying the 280 is very close to the 7mag. I have a 7mag so why should I go with 280? I personally dont care about the belt so that doesnt matter and I dont want that to be a deciding factor. I want to build another rifle for primarily deer. Is the 280 considered a light magnum or just a standard cartridge? Are there any opinions on the 280 for deer. IF I have to shoot longer than 300yds Ill take my 7 but an open field 300 yds or less I want something that will make a clean harvest and wont obliterate the meat.

 

[AJ Peacock]

Tons of good options out there. The 280 Ackley improved is very close to the 7mmRM. I don't think it makes much sense to build that, as you are duplicating your capability. If you want a short action 7mm, then the 284Win or 7mm-08 are good options.

When I wanted a light deer rifle I chose a .243Win. Very good light deer rifle. If I were doing it again, I'd probably build a 338 Federal for a close range deer rifle, since it would easily work for larger game at close range and the barrel life would be nearly infinite.

What other requirements do you have beside 300yd max range? Are you only looking at 7mm, only deer size game, etc.?

AJ

 

[Southernfryedyankee]

Tons of good options out there. The 280 Ackley improved is very close to the 7mmRM. I don't think it makes much sense to build that, as you are duplicating your capability. If you want a short action 7mm, then the 284Win or 7mm-08 are good options.

When I wanted a light deer rifle I chose a .243Win. Very good light deer rifle. If I were doing it again, I'd probably build a 338 Federal for a close range deer rifle, since it would easily work for larger game at close range and the barrel life would be nearly infinite.

What other requirements do you have beside 300yd max range? Are you only looking at 7mm, only deer size game, etc.?

AJ

I have a 7mag, 308, 243, 22, 12g slugger but I have another savage action layin around and I wanted something different. I love the ballistics of the 7mm bullets so the 280 seemed like a great choice for 300 yds or less in the longer open field, the 243 or 308 for short open fields, the 12g for 150 yds or less wooded areas

 

[AJ Peacock]

Looks like you have the Light end of things covered. Is your Savage a long action or short? Large shank or small?

If those were the rifles I had, I'd either build a serious long range rifle (although the 7RM s likely all you need for that) or just a fun caliber.

One caliber I've been contemplating for a short action build of my own is the 338-300WSM, I have several friends that have been using them for elk the last few years.

Do you ever plan on hunting larger game than deer?

AJ

 

[Southernfryedyankee]

Looks like you have the Light end of things covered. Is your Savage a long action or short? Large shank or small?

If those were the rifles I had, I'd either build a serious long range rifle (although the 7RM s likely all you need for that) or just a fun caliber.

One caliber I've been contemplating for a short action build of my own is the 338-300WSM, I have several friends that have been using them for elk the last few years.

Do you ever plan on hunting larger game than deer?

AJ

I have a LA small shank which kinda sucks as I would love to build a wicked long ranger. I would LOVE to hunt larger game when the time comes. If I was a reloader I would love to do a 7mm stw or 7mm allen mag, but I still have to deal with the small shank. The stw is probably more doable as it has factory ammo available and I think I can swing that on a small shank. I already have the 7mag barrel that I got from Mcgowen and now I wanna choose something new.

 

[AJ Peacock]

OK, not a reloader. Get with it man!

That really limits your options.

I think I have the perfect mid-range buy it off the shelf caliber, that will fit your needs perfectly.

It is also a super fun caliber. 25-06

Or the good old 270Win.

Aj

 

[Michael Eichele]

This is kind of like the 30-06/308 debate.

If all you were doing was shooting critters, you wouldnt use a 280 over a 7mmRM.

However, to shoot critters ethically, one needs to practice and fine tune. In this sense, a 280 is appealing to me and others since even though the 7mmRM is faster, the 280 offers less recoil, longer barrel life and is a less finicky cartridge than the 7mmRM. All of these attributes equal more time at the range and better success in the field. Dont get me wrong, the 7mmRM has its place like most other cartridges. If all you care about is power, go with the RM. If you want good power, moderate recoil and a bit better barrel life, the 280 is a better choice.

Remember, "better" is a subjective term. What is better for you? The answer will be reflected by what qualities are MORE important to you.

 

[Clark]

If I plug a 140 gr Nos Bal Tip, 65 kpsi, 26" barrel, and some powder I have into Quickload it looks like:
7mmMag ..3361 fps
280AI ......3260 fps
280 ..........3153 fps
7x57AI ......3158fps
7x57 .........3093 fps
7mm-08 .....3038 fps

It takes the 7mmMag ~ 152 yards to get down to 3038 fps

 

[pablo]

It seems redundant to build a 280 if you already have a 7mm Rem. Mag. If you are looking for a medium range deer cartridge many smaller calibers with lighter than 140 gn. bullets will do the job quite well. I have many friends that routinely kill Whitetail, Axis, Fallow, and Feral Hogs with 204's and 220 Swifts. I don't think this is nescessarily a good thing to do but with correct bullet placement these small rounds will dramaticly kill a deer out to 300 yds. These guys shoot the aforementioned animals at the neck-skull juncture.

The point is that good bullet placement is what kills animals quickly, with little or no meat loss.

I would build a rifle in 6mm, 25 cal, or a 6.5. There are many medium cartridges in these calibers like a 243 Win., 257 Roberts, 25-06, 260 Rem., add infinitum.

These smaller cartridges will be more fun to shoot than a 280. They will kick less, wich will help you practice more. You can spend muzzle brake money on some reloading equipment and then really have some fun.

 

[Clark]

What? Is this the thread's birthday?

I have rifles in dozens of deer cartridges, but always seem to shoot them with a 270.
The deer would not know the difference, and I would not know the difference if I shot them with one of my many 7x57mm's or my many 7mmRemMag rifles.

I think I am going to start hunting with more than one rifle:
a) Super heavy to shoot from the truck
b) medium heavy to carry for that half hour before sunrise shot
c) Super light for climbing that mountain.

 

[elkaholic]

A lot of good advice and things to consider! I agree with the post that said why build a .280 when you already have a 7 mag. I would also agree that a 25-06 would be an excellent choice for what you are attempting to do. Availability, flat shooting, low recoil, and plenty of pop for deer at extended ranges. I shot one from 1970 (a year after Remington came out with it in the 700) until the mid 80's and killed numerous deer in Mi., where I grew up, as well as deer, black bear, and even elk in Id. Of all the animals I shot with it, I can rember two deer that went approx 20-30 yds. after they were hit. The rest went straight down. probably 40-50 animals total. I still shoot that same old 700 and am on my third barrel (a 6.5 Sherman now) and the game it has killed would fill a semi. Good luck with your project......Rich

 

[7 loader]

Sart reloading. I have a 7mm rm and when I started reloading it opened up alot of options. In the latest handloader mag ther are some light loads with trailboss powder. They are great with hornady's 154 gr round nose for brush busters. The 280 is nice but don't buy extra if you don't need it. The RM has been and will allways be a great long distance round. Sence its inception in 1962 with Remington's model 700 it has won its fare share of compitions, and taken the world of hunting because of its versitility. All of the new 7mm mags on the market are great guns but they won't do any thing that the 7mm Rem Mag won't do also. Happy shooting.gun)

 

[Clark]

Of all the dumbed down loads in all the load books, there is no greater tragedy than the current publications with 7mmRemMag published max loads that can be beat with a 7x57mm handloaded to the max load for long brass life.

What does it all mean?
The 7mmRemMag published load are dumbed down further than other cartridges.

 

[winmag]

You already have a 7mag, and a 308, etc. If it were me Id go with something simple with a ready supply of bullet wt's for different tasks. Why not the good ol' 30-06? 220gr big uglies down to the tiny 55gr accelerators. Same standard long action bolt face, you can find and buy bullets ANYWHERE, and its a very versitile light recioling ''do all round''. Besides everybody needs an -06 in thier collection, its kinda like a 30-30, you dont realy know why you need one, you just do, to round out the collection
Nothin at all wrong with the 280 either, but you open the door to so many more bullet wt's with a 30 cal. And for a factory ammo shooter, youd be very hard pressed to find something as versitile.
Good luck