7mm Remington Mag or .308

[jwcrabb]

Guys,
I have a specific need and welcome your opinions. I want a gun capable of taking 180lb deer out to 500 yds max. I want to pick either a 7 Rem mag or a .308 . This is based on the specific factory rifles I am considering. I guess my biggest question is... will the 7mag offer any significant advantage in killing power and wind drift at that max range? Fire away...

 

[MTBULLET]

both will work.
I prefer .308 because of bullet selection available, AND I just like the .308 !

 

[pburton]

That is a really difficult decision to make. There are positives and negatives for both rounds. Me personally I really like my 7mm mag. I have shot several rifles chambered in each. The .308 will have less recoil and there are a lot of factory loads available. In my opinion you cannot go wrong with either as long as you are keeping within the 500 yards with factory ammo. I think past 500 that the 7mm has a good advantage. Higher velocity and more ft/lbs of energy with factory ammo. But, if you reload that could change. Go shoot both if you have the option. Pick the one that you are most comfortable shooting. I would bet it will be the .308.

 

[SavageScott]

You cannot go wrong with either of them. Both of those will get the job done, but in my opinion the 7mm Rem Mag gets it done a little better. The 7mm has plenty of knock-down at that range, and that caliber bucks the wind better than most others.

However, if you are sensitive to recoil, go with the. 308. You really can't lose with either choice

 

[jwcrabb]

Thanks guys, I reload so I should be able to put together the best combination in the .308. Maybe somebody can run the ballistics of say the 308 with the 155 amax compared to the 7mag with a 140 BT. I'm not too worried about the elevation, it's the wind drift difference out at 500 that would worry me.

 

[MTBULLET]

Thanks guys, I reload so I should be able to put together the best combination in the .308. Maybe somebody can run the ballistics of say the 308 with the 155 amax compared to the 7mag with a 140 BT. I'm not too worried about the elevation, it's the wind drift difference out at 500 that would worry me.

if you have a couple loading manuals, that data is in there, if you don't have a few, get 'em.

 

[Joe King]

7mag has the advantage in ballistics,and shear power. 308 has a pretty big advantage in recoil and barrel life. Either will do what you need. I say get both

 

[johnnyk]

Having owned and shot both in the past and taken deer with 'em, I'd opt for the 7mmRemMag everytime. I don't even consider them in the same league.
I just like the 7Mag more. It's way cooler and seems to absolutely stomp the crap out of anything it encounters from 0-500yds.
Truth is; I really fell out of love with the .308 after owning a .300WinMag several years ago. Same bullet(s) but A LOT more authority!

I did a quick comparison using JBM Ballistics and Nolser #6 book specifics and a 10mph crosswind;

.308 Winchester, 165gn Accubond (BC .475, velocity 2910)
7mmRemMag, 160gn Accubond (BC .531. veloctiy 3077)

At 500yds, the .308 drops 30" and would drift 19.5". It arrives on-station in .627 seconds with 1425ft/lbs of energy.
At 500yds, the 7Mag drops 25" and would drift 15.3". It arrives on-station in .574 seconds with 1750ft/lbs of energy.

These are, of course, rudimentary figures but you get the idea. Both cartridges could do better with their respective deck stacked in their favor. I, however, do not feel the .308 would ever have an advantage over the 7Mag in anything other than felt recoil. IMO. JohnnyK.

 

[COBrad]

I'll second that. Even if your rifle has a standard 10 twist barrel, you can make the 7 mag even better. The 168 gr. Berger hunting VLD bullet has a G1 BC of .617. If your rifle doesn't shoot it well, the Classic Hunter is still .604. Between the speed you will see and those high BC's, your bullets will have significantly less wind drift than anything you can do with a .308.
My personal favorite caliber, if I could have only one for everything from prairie dogs to elk, is the 7 mag.

 

[jwcrabb]

You're kidding right... Prairie dogs? I'd love to see that! I bet that would launch some great aerials!

 

[roninflag]

JW- the caliber is less important than the rifle. pick the rifle with a krieger barrel . or pick the one that shoots a 5 inch, 5 shot group at 500 yards. i do not have a 308. i do have 7 rm with a krieger barrel.

 

[MudRunner2005]

I have several of each caliber. It's hard to go wrong with either one.

My main deer rifle is a Browing A-Bolt Composite Stalker 7mm Rem Mag w/ BOSS. I bought one when I was 18, 8 years ago, but it got stolen in 2008, and I recently bought another one identical to it for hunting, since all my other rifles are heavy-barreled and bulky guns. The Browning is lightweight and I can carry it without noticing it being there so much, compared to the others.

Anyway, back to your question....I love the .308 caliber, and it is an EXCELLENT whitetail caliber for sub-500 yard shots. The trajectory is not as flat as the 7mm Mag, but it is just as capable and quite effective, if you get some nice handloads shooting some Nosler 165gr Accubonds. If you were shooting the Accubond 165gr's out of your 308, and sighting in at 100 yards, you'd be 13.8" low at 300, and 56.6" low at 500.

I prefer the 7mm Rem Mag b/c of it's very flat trajectory and how I can sight dead on at 100 yards, and only be about 10.7" low at 300 yards, and about 44.0" low at 500 yards. It tends to make shooting easier, especially if you don't carry a range finder with you.

It's not a huge variation in drop between the 2 inside of 500, but noticeable enough.

With that being said, if you want a flat-shooting lazer gun that is 100% perfect for whitetail hunting....Look into a Weatherby .257 Weatherby Mag.

Zero dope @ 100 yards, 8.0" low at 300, and only 34.9" low at 500.

I love my Mark-V Accumark .257 Wby Mag, and have taken several deer with it, using the Weatherby brand ammo, loaded with 110gr Nosler Accubonds. It ruins virtually no meat, with a tiny entrance and exit wound, but will totally wreck the lungs, heart, etc!

 

[jwcrabb]

Actually, I will chose between two specific Factory rifles. The Remington 700 Sendero in 7mag, or the CZ 550 Varmint Kevlar in .308. I have 3 other CZ 527's and they are awesome. I personally think they have the best out of the box factory trigger in the market. Also, every one I have is 1/2 MOA out of the box. Granted, they are small calibers and not a 550 model. Both the Rem and CZ have long heavy barrels, and both have Kevlar stocks with the aluminum bedding(two of my requirements). If I could get a CZ 550 in 7mag, that would be my choice. But its not available. Also, if I could get the Sendero in 25-06 or 264 Win mag(they used to make it) i'd pick that. That leads me to the two choices. I don't mean to say these are the two best rifles in this class, just the only two I will consider. Just personal preference. We shoot down long senderos usually out of a box blind. This is why weight is not an issue and actually provides for a more stable platform. The specific target is those big bucks that tend to always appear in the 300-400yd range.

 

[roninflag]

JW/mudd- mudd i like your idea of an accumark .257. the guys i hunt with have not tried them. out here for coues , nice. JW- we have tried the senderos in many calibers i have had two 25-06s, my brother had a .264, i still have two 7 rm . i had a 7rsum sendero/vssf . those along with vssf in 308 can still be had by shopping. we also have a couple of the small caliber vssf also. enjoy. roninflag