7MM-08 Long Range

[hollywood63]

Hello All,
I'm new to the rifle shooting been shooting pistols for years. Anyway I picked up a Remington 700 BDL in 7mm-08 and would like to shoot at longer then normal ranges say out to 1000 yds. Mostly it will be 3-500yds. So looking at whats available to work up a round I'm finding there are mountains and mountains of options. Where would a good place be to start with bullets and powders?

Thanks

 

[MudRunner2005]

Unfortunately, you're factory 9.25" twist barrel will be the weak link in your system. It will not stabilize the bullets you will need to shoot the 7mm-08 to 1000 yards. You will need a barrel with a 1:8 twist to handle the heavier high-BC bullets.

Also, shooting to 1000 yards is not something you can instantly do, no matter what rifle or caliber or bullets you're shooting. It's something you have to gradually work up to, and is a learned skill-set. It has just as much to do with your shooting skills and training, as it does with the quality of your handloads, and your rifle's ability to accurately shoot that far.

 

[WeiserBucks]

I agree 100% , take your rifle and spend some time shooting out to 500 yards and gain some experience. Once you see the shortcomings of your system, upgrade accordingly.

 

[TG-5150]

OKEEDOEKEE,I'll bite.
shoot away and have fun. Berger recommends a 1-9" for most of its .284 bullets. the rest are 1:10.
i dont think a .25" difference is gonna matter but i am just an avg. joe FWW

 

[WeiserBucks]

You can have a boat load of fun and learn a lot with a factory rifle.

 

[TG-5150]

i mostly archery hunt to tell the truth. The middle ground is boring (150-600ish yrds.) so i have went to the two other extreames. Never shot an elk past 550 with a rifle(,270 win. 130 gr.) or 27 yards with a bow. Never needed to. but i sure like to practice 100 yard plus with an arrow and 700 yard plus with a gun. JUST IN CASE.
But the main thing is getting out there , learning the huntin tool of choice and the things learned in preparation for that, thats what makes it a joy. and dont forget to take a kid. they are the future

 

[Don A Parsons]

2 fellows showed up at the F Class match this year shooting factory hunting 308's in the Stock category.

They did ok at 4, 5, and 600m mark with factory Remington 700's with 22" barrels.

Things started to fall apart at the 700 mark.
Then things started going South at 8 and 900 meters.

Their set up wasn't the best, the factory sport hunting rifles were ok,,, ammo and shooting skills needed some tweeking.

Not the worst,,, I'll give them credit for at least giving it a go.
I have seen a few things over the years, this was just one of them that stands out.

By the end of the year this father and son accomplished alot, they pushed the limits, had fun, learned alot about them selves, and continued to build a bound of friend-ship.

Possibleies start some where, we all have our own stories. The best ones are the ones we own.

Western Canada Don

 

[cape cove]

I've had a 7mm/08 for over 30 yrs. If I were you for punching paper with a 1/9 twist I would look at the Berger 168 VLD,or classic as well as the 168 Sierra MK. The Sierra worked best for me with a .010 jump,the berger VLD with a .040 jump.The powders that worked for me are H 414/W760 and H 380, with a Mag primer of your choice. I've used this for up to 500 yrds, but never shot farther. As some have posted 1000 yds is a long way with these bullets. As MR2005 as said that 1/9.25 twist is one of the limiting factor

 

[MudRunner2005]

OKEEDOEKEE,I'll bite.
shoot away and have fun. Berger recommends a 1-9" for most of its .284 bullets. the rest are 1:10.
i dont think a .25" difference is gonna matter but i am just an avg. joe FWW

.25" of twist CAN make a difference. Also, Berger's 180 VLD Hunting has a typographical error. The 180 VLD Target and 180 VLD Hunting are supposed to be identical. But they list the Target with a higher BC, and requiring a 1:8 twist. And they list the Hunting version with a lower BC, and requiring a 1:9 twist. I'm not sure which one is correct, but they need to fix that.

Moving along... Let's say the hypothetical bullet he shoots averages 2,500 FPS muzzle velocity. So you multiply the (muzzle velocity) x (the revolutions per foot) x 60 (the number of seconds per minute).

With a 9.25" twist, you get 194,550 RPM..

With a 9" twist, you get 199,950 RPM. Which is 5,400 RPM difference over a 9.25" twist.

With a 1:8" twist, you get 225,000 RPM. Which is a 30,450 RPM difference over a 9.25" twist. Which allows you to gyroscopically stabilize a much heavier bullet. Heavy for caliber bullets produce a much higher BC (ballistic coefficient), which is the drag measurement for aerodynamics of a projectile.

A stability factor or 1.5 SG or greater for a particular bullet & twist rate combination, means you have adequate stability. So...Back to the hypotheticals. Say he pushes that new Berger 195 Elite Hunter to 2,500 FPS MV, and say he only lives/hunts at 500 foot of elevation (hypothetically)...

With his 9.25" twist barrel, he is only going to achieve 1.17 SG, which is very low. With that bullet and twist combo at his elevation, I'm doubtful he would even achieve consistent accuracy at 100 yards with this twist.

With a 9" twist barrel, he is at 1.23 SG. Not great, but better.

With a 8" twist barrel, he is going to achieve 1.56 SG, which is more than adequately stable for his rifle.

 

[catamountsierra]

I am shooting a 150gr Nosler ABLR out of my 7mm-08 at 2750fps for my hunting load. I also tried the 162gr ELD-X. I know the 150's will make 1000 yards on paper, and according to the Shooter app, should still be running 1400ish fps. The 162's would definitely do it, especially if you can load them longer than my factory mag length (2.825"). I didn't notice any stability issues with either bullet out to 400 yards on paper with the Remington factory 9.25" twist barrel; accuracy is about 1.25 MOA, which sadly is as good as this barrel has ever done, tool marks and all. I don't think you need the heavier bullets to get to a grand on paper. Start with the 150-162 class and start shooting. I think 600ish is as far as I will ever consider shooting game with this rig, and I try to keep it inside 400 at this point due to the accuracy issues.

 

[TG-5150]

.25" of twist CAN make a difference. Also, Berger's 180 VLD Hunting has a typographical error. The 180 VLD Target and 180 VLD Hunting are supposed to be identical. But they list the Target with a higher BC, and requiring a 1:8 twist. And they list the Hunting version with a lower BC, and requiring a 1:9 twist. I'm not sure which one is correct, but they need to fix that.

Moving along... Let's say the hypothetical bullet he shoots averages 2,500 FPS muzzle velocity. So you multiply the (muzzle velocity) x (the revolutions per foot) x 60 (the number of seconds per minute).

With a 9.25" twist, you get 194,550 RPM..

With a 9" twist, you get 199,950 RPM. Which is 5,400 RPM difference over a 9.25" twist.

With a 1:8" twist, you get 225,000 RPM. Which is a 30,450 RPM difference over a 9.25" twist. Which allows you to gyroscopically stabilize a much heavier bullet. Heavy for caliber bullets produce a much higher BC (ballistic coefficient), which is the drag measurement for aerodynamics of a projectile.

A stability factor or 1.5 SG or greater for a particular bullet & twist rate combination, means you have adequate stability. So...Back to the hypotheticals. Say he pushes that new Berger 195 Elite Hunter to 2,500 FPS MV, and say he only lives/hunts at 500 foot of elevation (hypothetically)...

With his 9.25" twist barrel, he is only going to achieve 1.17 SG, which is very low. With that bullet and twist combo at his elevation, I'm doubtful he would even achieve consistent accuracy at 100 yards with this twist.

With a 9" twist barrel, he is at 1.23 SG. Not great, but better.

With a 8" twist barrel, he is going to achieve 1.56 SG, which is more than adequately stable for his rifle.

 

[TG-5150]

fire forming Rem. and Fed. factory 7mm-08 into A.I. is my only experience with anything do do with this. please dont take any of my posts to serious. As i am her to learn and have fun.

 

[jskmtd]

I have a 1:9 twist 7-08 and shoot the 162 a-max. I have shot it out to 1535 yards with some success and it is pretty consistent to 1200 yards. This setup has taken a mule deer out to 855 yards. My point is you will be able to get a bullet combination with your 1:9.25 twist to do what you want to do. So get started and have fun. The 7-08 is a fun round to shoot, I use it as my practice rifle on steel and rocks.

 

[PackersFanboy]

3-500 shoot any bullet your gun likes. Take 2nd bullets 11c out to 600 with low velocity ar10 18" 7mm-08. 3031 for velocity accuracy not great. 4166 great accuracy sub 1-.75 50fps slower than 3031.