7mm rem mag bullets for elk

[wilsonpenfam]

I have been shooting 160 grain speer BTSP @2880 fps. I am not able to get the same accuracy with .2 grains more powder or .2 grains less powder so I am "stuck" at that velocity. My problem is with this bullet combination I have not been getting the terminal performance from the bullet that I expected. I have loaded some 168gr berger VLD with good accuracy but I can only single feed them, other than that I haven't tried any other bullets. my question is for the guys who are killing bulls with 1 shot as to not ruin any meat what bullet has performed the best for you as far as accuracy and terminal performance?

 

[Laelkhunter]

Don't count on the "one shot" idea when Elk hunting. In a perfect world, it's a great idea, but Elk can soak up a lot of lead, and can travel to the next county when mortally hit. If he is still on his feet after the shot, shoot again. You owe it to them and yourself. The bullet is the cheapest part of your hunt, but could be the most important. Another bullet to anchor the Elk might result in a little more meat loss, but a lost Elk that was wounded is a lot more lost meat.
Max velocity could be what you are looking for, but acceptable hunting accuracy is said to be 1 inch to 1.5 moa. If you can get a premium bullet to give you moa accuracy, and fit in your magazine to allow for follow-up shots, you are where you need to be. A bullet that can give you that, but is 100 fps slower than other loads is more important IMHO.
Tracking a wounded Elk up and down mountain sides for 6 or 8 hours is not the highlight of a hunt, especially if you never recover it.

 

[North Idaho Hunter]

Ive found bonded bullets to give the least amount of meat damage. accubond, scirroco, interbond. Ive had good success with the accubond.

I would try the 160 if I were you.

 

[RockyMtnMT]

Meat loss from good impacts is what drove me to find better bullets 30 years ago. I am a hunter and very much like to pull the trigger, but I intend to eat what I shoot. I get sick to my stomach when I make a perfect shot on an animal in the pump house and find lost meat due to blood shot. What a waste.

My 30 year quest has ended up with me making my own bullets. What I consider the perfect hunting bullet. Exceptional terminal performance and accuracy. Very little meat loss even with not so good hits in the meat. And they perform the same at high or low velocity. Our family and friends took 25 big game animals last fall with Hammer Hunter bullets, from moose down to wolf. Most shots were perfect placement and some were not. All animals were recovered easily with little meat damage. The only animals that needed follow shots were two elk that were not hit well with the first shot.

Yes I also shoot the elk again if it is still on it's feet. If it drops, I stay on target until I am sure that it is not getting up. This is from hard learned lessons.

Steve

 

[N2TRKYS]

I'm getting 2850-2900+ fps with 160 grain Accubonds in a 7 SAUM with a 22" barrel.

 

[wilsonpenfam]

I couldn't agree more. I keep shooting until the elk has hit the dirt but the last bull I shot I had to shoot 4 times. I didn't ruin any meat because I was placing them all in minute of elk. This is the reason I don't want to single feed the vld's. thanks for your input I appreciate it. Keep it coming guys.

Just checked out the hammer bullets.. has anyone done any BC testing with a chronograph to verify? They are also fairly expensive compared to speer and sierra bullets for just target shooting but if the hammers come close to the same POI I could always sight in for those before my hunt.

 

[COBrad]

I use Accubonds primarily, and have also been very happy with Barnes bullets.

 

[RockyMtnMT]

Many of our bc's are from drops or estimates. Litz has tested some and I was waiting for him to get more done before I took the time to edit. We are planning to get out perhaps this week and shoot muzzle and down range velocities and work out bc's. My whole thought process when it comes to bc is get it close enough that a guy can get on target at distance then make his adjustments from there. We are much more concerned at this point about making sure that our bullets are giving exceptional accuracy and terminal performance. Let the bc land where it does. Great bc doesn't do much good if you can't hit what you are aiming at. Or, in my opinion, if it takes hundreds of bullets to develop a load. Load development under 20 rounds is a great thing. Besides as a new company we believe that we are better off with a reputation of terrific accuracy than we are with a great bc but finicky bullet. As far as the bc goes I would consider the Hammer Bullets to be better than most and not as good as some, but overall pretty good.

Steve

 

[Boman]

To the OP,
I would recommend a premium bullet. I prefer all copper or bonded bullets for elk. Elk are tough animals. There are lots of good bullets out there. Find one and practice a lot. Not from the bench but from actual field conditions.

 

[SansSouci]

wilson,

From experience, go with a 160 grain Partition. It will shoot through-and-through the largest elk. And it will one-shot kill 'em dead as dead can be if you put a 160 grain Partition where it needs to go. If a 150 grain Partition shoots better in your rifle, go with it. The outcome will be the same.

At one time, the Partition was the gold standard of elk bullets. In my opinion, it still is.

Nothing living, including elk, remains in that condition sans topside oxygenated blood flow. If you destroy any elk's oxygenated blood producing or pumping apparatus, it will die. Biology is controlling.

Elk will take a lot of lead before they give up their ghosts. But this is the outcome of bad shooting. Put an '06 round in an elk's guts and expect to track him. Put a .270 Win bullet through an elk's oxygenated blood producing or pumping apparatus, and it will die. That's how biology works. The hugest elk that has ever lived will live another minute, tops, without topside oxygenated blood flow.

One last thought: if you see a bull of a lifetime at 500 yards, stop and think before shooting. Can you close distance? If so, get closer. It's a lot more wise to shoot bull elk at a hundred yards than farther.

 

[Marble]

My experience with the 7mm and Elk is all with the 150 grain Sirocco. I use RL22 slightly above max published load.

It's accurate in any 7mm I've loaded for (about 5) and generally shoots well at the higher velocities. I have never had the bullet do excess damage.

I lost one cow from the gun about 7 years ago. I shot poorly and the result was a wounded animal. Other than that, I had never separated or fell apart even after hitting the spine from the base of the skull to middle of the back.

The other one a good friend uses is the Nosler 160 AB. I do not know his load info but he's killed Elk with it for many many years.

 

[RevJim]

I loaned a Mod 700 BDL in 7mm Remmag to a friend ( he only had a 243) back in '83 for an elk hunt. I had it set up for a case full of IMR 4350 and the Nosler 160 Partition for 2950fps. He killed a nice bull with it with one shot, up close ( he stumbled up on him at a turn in the trail! 60yd shot!) I love Barnes, Nosler PTs, Accubonds, pretty much in that order for elk, in any caliber. ( Its a shame Hammer Bullets doesn't make a nice 200 or 225 35 caliber for my new 358 Norma Mag!! Hint, hint)

 

[RockyMtnMT]

I loaned a Mod 700 BDL in 7mm Remmag to a friend ( he only had a 243) back in '83 for an elk hunt. I had it set up for a case full of IMR 4350 and the Nosler 160 Partition for 2950fps. He killed a nice bull with it with one shot, up close ( he stumbled up on him at a turn in the trail! 60yd shot!) I love Barnes, Nosler PTs, Accubonds, pretty much in that order for elk, in any caliber. ( Its a shame Hammer Bullets doesn't make a nice 200 or 225 35 caliber for my new 358 Norma Mag!! Hint, hint)

Give me a call or send me a pm. We can get your need figured out. My number is on the top bar of the web site.

Steve

 

[SansSouci]

Hi Marble,

How do you do with RL-22?

I've experimented with it some 20 years ago. I got very good velocity (3200 FPS) with 160 grain bullets, but H-4831 gave very good velocity (3100 FPS) with best accuracy. I use a load that was published circa 1975: 67 grains of H-4831 with 160 grain Partitions. Another source has this as 3 grains under maximum. Hodgson's loading manual at that time had it as a grain over max. Regardless, it shoots exceptionally well in my rifle with zero signs of pressure.