7mm Allen vs 300 Raptor

[MOA]

I have finally decided to take the plunge and have a rifle built by Kirby. I will be hunting relatively small black tail deer with it. I have noticed that Many on this site have gone with the 7mm over the 300. The only reason I can think of is that 338 Lapua brass is easy to obtain and excellent. I don't know too much about the 300 Raptor and have never heard of the parent case.

Can anyone chime in on things they would have done differently when having Kirby build a rifle? I'm still torn between the LRSS and Stalker. I leaning toward the LRSS but haven't quite made up my mind.

 

[MOA]

Anyone?
Most of the threads on this topic date back to 2007and '08.
Is the economy that bad? Ca' on guys, give me your thoughts so I don't have to bug Kirby about this. There must be more info on this.

I am actually considering the 338 based off the 408 Chey Tac now.

Can anyone give me "real life" info on these comparisons?

 

[peashooter]

A .338 AM for blacktail deer may be overkill ( if overkill exist) if the range is under 1000 yards. A 300 grain bullet at 400-500 yards on deer sized game destroys where ever you hit the animal. Consider a smaller caliber unless you are going extreme long range. A 7 AM built off the 338 Lapua or the 300 Raptor which was based off the Excalibur but I believe now is custom made Bertram are both potent hunting rounds. Examine what you want out of the rifle and draw you conclusions from that. None of these chamberings are meant for high volume shooting.

 

[oldmossy]

Enter a 180 hybrid into a ballistic calculator at 3450-3550 fps. That should answer some questions. Doesnt have the energy some of the bigger calibers are carrying. But still plenty. And odds of a first round hit are definetely better. Less wind drift and better trajectory. Now, you should get some more responses. Alot of guys on here dont like hearing good things about 7 mms. Lol. My 7mm RUM does great at 3275 fps on deer and elk(out to 1015-longest to date). Cant wait til my 7 AM arrives.

 

[MMERSS]

Anyone?
Most of the threads on this topic date back to 2007and '08.
Is the economy that bad? Ca' on guys, give me your thoughts so I don't have to bug Kirby about this. There must be more info on this.

I am actually considering the 338 based off the 408 Chey Tac now.

Can anyone give me "real life" info on these comparisons?

The 300 Raptor is a fairly new cartridge compared to the 7AM. There are probably a handful of people that have shot both. However, I have helped others work load development for two of Kirby's chambers, the 338 AM and 338 Raptor. These rifles were built with the intended purpose to harvest elk past 1000 yards. They would not be the best choice for deer mid-range and short-range.

The 338 AX would additionally be a viable cartridge for an overall use LR to ELR hunting rifle with projected better barrel life than the 7AM.

 

[supercrossbmx69]

I'm pretty sure to 300 raptor is a dead stick as of right now due to Kirby having issues with getting brass from Bertram. I think he might go back to the original parent case if he decides to keep the raptor line of wildcats in his stable.

If I were you I'd go with the 338 Allen express. You'll get WAY better barrel life over the 7 AM with more down range energy out at longer ranges as well as pretty much the same wind drift. Don't get caught up on muzzle velocity. Why get half the barrel life for ballistic disadvantages? The only "advantage" the 7 am has is a high MV which isn't really and advantage as the Allen express at 500 fps less velocity still has more energy behind it.

Once again, don't let muzzle velocity be the deciding factor. It virtually means nothing. Look at down range ballistics not how fast it's coming out at the barrel.

 

[MOA]

Thanks guys for the feedback. Does anyone know the true turn around time on the Kirby Allen rifles?