7mm WSM or 7mm rem mag?

[brian923]

i sorry if this comes up alot, but i tried a search, and didnt find anything. though, this could be me. probably is. anyways, i was think of building one of the above mention, but i just cant seem to be able to pick. i would love to just build both, but i cant afford that.
thwe rifle will be used for paper shooting, as well as hunting. but, i live in great ol' illinois, so i wont hunt with it as much as shoot it for fun, i would just like to have the rifle if i ever do get to go hunting in another state.

i have herd that the 7mm rem mag is better with the hevy bullets. and it looks like the WSm takse the cake with the lite bullets. what would you say would have to be the bullet weight (length) to hunt mulies, and elk? maybe even black bear... i know these have benn taken with .308's, so would a 140, or 150 grn bullet work? which one is easyier on barrels? which is easier to find both in stores and handloading stuff.

thanks alot guys, all info is greatly appreiciated.

brian

 

[shooterpunk2]

I would personally take the 7 remington mag. ammo is cheaper and easier to find and like you said can push the heavier bullets faster. plus it's a tried and trued round and will be around forever. i feel some of the wsm's won't be around forever.

 

[James Jones]

The old Rem mag does have a slight advantage with the heavier bullets due to the added capacity but it has that **** belted case , its also alot more common to see in stores ammo wise.

The WSM does have a pretty good track record in long range target shooting with the heaver bullets like the 168 and 180gr Bergers both of wich will cleanly kill deer at 1000+yds. It has a great case desgine probably slightly better case and barrel life easier to reload with out that **** belted case. Ammo is not nearly as plentifull though.

If it were me I'd choose the 7mmWSM simply due to the reloaders point of view , you can load some 160gr Nosler Accu-Bonds to 2900-3000 fps and kill everything in North America pretty well , (would probably choose otherwise on a big Grizz though)
Load up the 180gr Bergers to 2900fps and it'll realy shine at the long ranges.
build on a Long action though so that you can seat those spear like bullet way out with no troubles impeading on the powder.

 

[gbp]

+1 on what James said

 

[blipelt]

7wsm

never had a rem mag, but have reloaded for them for friends and shot several. I own one 7wsm for long range shooting and one light for mountain hunting is being built. Yes I like them that much. I shoot 162 amax. Like james said if you go with a wsm get a long action and a center feed clip. If you however aren't going to be reloading they can get expensive at about $35 a box here in ND.

Brent

 

[JeffVN]

I shoot the 7WSM, but not the 7WM.

If limited to a factory chamber and factory rifle, I'd go with the 7WM, as the added case capacity will allow you to get the most out of the heavy bullets 175 Sierra and 180 Berger, etc.

If you can have a custom chamber cut, then I would go with a long throated 7 WSM built on a long action to maximize available capacity in that chambering (base to ogive of 2.441" or so). With the long-throat option you will not give up much, if any velocity to the 7WM (unless 3,000 fps+ with the Berger 180 is not fast enough for you, in which case the 7WM is your ticket to hapiness), and you'll get there burning less powder.

JeffVN

 

[J E Custom]

Brian

They are both very close together in performance and most
people use bullets in the 140gr to 160gr range for these cartriges
so there's no real advantage to the 7mm rem mag over the 7WSM.

I have both and they benefit from longer barrels,So if I had to
recomend one or the other for your purpose it would have to be
7 WSM because in most cases when hunting barrel length can
become an issue and with the short action a 26" barrel is not two
ungainly.

You can get by with a 24" barrel on ether if you use the 140, 150 and
160gr bullets and the short action 7 WSM with a 24" tube makes a
neat package.

If you were going to shoot targets only then I would recomend a 7mm
Rem Mag with a 30" heavy taper barrel and 168gr+ bullets.

I biuld a lot of 7WSM,s on 24'' barrels and they shoot realy well under
all types of use.

Just my opinion
J E CUSTOM

 

[Gary Kaney]

Brain
I've got a Win. Mod. 70 Coyote 7 WSM i'm thinking about parting with. If you would be interested let me know.

 

[MontanaRifleman]

I have hunted with solely with the 7mm Rem Mag for over 20 yrs now. My bullet of choice was the 160 Nosler partition. It has been a great rifle and given me 100% success.

Having said that, I would probably vote for the 7mm WSM and recommend trying Noslers new 150 gr E-Tip. That outfit will effectively kill any game in the lower 48 and all but the *Big Bears* in AK. It will kill a Big Bear but probably not very quickly. James Jones also makes a good point about the belted case. I had one fail on me once.

Also, have you considered the 7mm RUM or STW? Those cartridges have comparable (maybe better) ballistics than the 300 WM.

Another consideration, how far do you want to be able to shoot game? Ballistic tables suggest bullet performance to about 800-900 yds for the Rem Mag and WSM.

Either one will serve you well. Good shootin'

BTW, I lived in IL for 4 yrs, not by my choice...but by the USAF choice...my condolence to you.

 

[Natty Bumpo]

Savage action for 7mm build

You can get Savage's in both 7mm WSM and Rem Mag. In their short action, I understand Savage has modified their bolt for controlled feed. If you were going to build a short mag rifle on a Savage Action, should you get the action with the controlled-round-feed? Some specified preference for a long action in order to properly seat heavy bullets. With a push-feed will this cause feed problems. Will a single stack magazine rather than a staggered magazine fix this?

 

[brian923]

thats a good question. i cant seem to get my 7mm rem mag chamber reamer, headspace gauge, and various reloading components to sell, so i ll probably just keep them, and build my self a 7mm rem mag. hey, since i got the stuff... why not.. right?

i think that the 7mm rem mag should work fine with or without CRF. they have offered the 7rem mag longer then they have offered CRF, so i think it will also work with staggered feed. you lose capacity though, but three should do ya just fine..... or at least it should...

let me know if i am wrong though, and i just want to say thanks guys, for all your input and advice. ill keep ya posted as to how the build goes. brian

 

[3006savage]

Several posts referenced the 7mm Rem as having a bigger capacity. The case capacities are actually equal. The 7mm Rem is 83.2 and 7WSM is 83 grains. If you reload I would choose the 7WSM for the following reasons.
1. Shorter case provided more efficiency with equal powder.
2. Shorter case provides more consistent velocity which at long range improves accuracy. This has been well documented in benchrest competition shooting.
3. Unbelted case headspaces more positively on the shoulder for better accuracy.
4. Shorter WSM case allows for lighter actioned rifles which in turn allows a lighter carrying gun or heavier barrel contour for reduced barrel whip.
5. The 7WSM ballistically outperforms the 7Rem Mag at all weight bullets.

For instance the Federal Cartridge 160 grain NP is listed at 3160FPS this is a pretty heavy round and it is 100+ FPS beyond any 7mm Rem Mag factory loads.

If you do not reload the 7mm Rem is the ticket due to availability.

 

[FRANK21]

Several posts referenced the 7mm Rem as having a bigger capacity. The case capacities are actually equal. The 7mm Rem is 83.2 and 7WSM is 83 grains. If you reload I would choose the 7WSM for the following reasons.
1. Shorter case provided more efficiency with equal powder.
2. Shorter case provides more consistent velocity which at long range improves accuracy. This has been well documented in benchrest competition shooting.
3. Unbelted case headspaces more positively on the shoulder for better accuracy.
4. Shorter WSM case allows for lighter actioned rifles which in turn allows a lighter carrying gun or heavier barrel contour for reduced barrel whip.
5. The 7WSM ballistically outperforms the 7Rem Mag at all weight bullets.

For instance the Federal Cartridge 160 grain NP is listed at 3160FPS this is a pretty heavy round and it is 100+ FPS beyond any 7mm Rem Mag factory loads.

If you do not reload the 7mm Rem is the ticket due to availability.

I have both cartridges mentioned in custom tactical rifles. I load for both and they are ballistic twins in ALL regards. IMO, the 7WSM is a 7mmRM in a S/A. No more, no less.

Here is my take on Mr. 3006Savages comments.

1. In theory, yes. However, I have yet to see a REAL difference with a field rifle in field conditions.

2. Not the case, Im running single digit ESs in both my 7mmRMs and 7WSM. Proper case prep, and loading goes a LONG way in this dept. Both cartridges are splendid LR performers. I dont worry much about BR shooting, because I mainly do field shooting- no return to battery rests, super stable rests, no 30LB rifles, wind flags, etc.

3. Negative. Proper chambering, and die set up is critical for either- belted or non belted.

4. Cant really comment, other than a 1/2 pound heavier/lighter or inch longer/shorter, has never made much of a difference to me. To some people and for some applications it does. To each thier own.

5. BS. When loaded to the same pressures they basically run identical velocities.. What I have found is that when both cartridges are confined to thier respective action lenghts/mag confines, the 7mmRM will outrun the WSM with heavy long bullets- due to the long bullets encroaching on case cap of the WSM.

Dont put much stock in the factory ammo ballistics guide when regarding 7mmRM performace potential, simply because it is widely known that 7mmRM factory ammo is severly underloaded..

 

[Pdvdh]

Frank21,

I agree.