Copper bullet for 7mm Sherman Short

[Wade Olson]

I ordered a new custom rifle with a 26" 8 twist barrel in a 7mm Sherman Short. I would like to use the rifle for mountain goat hunting and possibly a backup rifle for Roosevelt elk. The rifle will be hunted with a brake and surpression, not that this probably matters to my question. My questions:

What copper bullet would you recommend? I have friends switching to copper and my wife also wants me to shoot copper. Do people prefer Hammer Hunters or Cutting Edge bullets and why? Are the G7 BC différences between the two brands réal? Lastly, would you recommend a 155 or 168 or 180 grain bullet? My guess is that velocities with these 3 bullets and re26 powder will be 3200, 3100 and 3000 fps, respectively? I do not envision shooting beyond 600 yards although the gun is capable of more. 400 yards or less being likely. Thank you in advance for everyone's bullet advice.

 

[WildRose]

I ordered a new custom rifle with a 26" 8 twist barrel in a 7mm Sherman Short. I would like to use the rifle for mountain goat hunting and possibly a backup rifle for Roosevelt elk. The rifle will be hunted with a brake and surpression, not that this probably matters to my question. My questions:

What copper bullet would you recommend? I have friends switching to copper and my wife also wants me to shoot copper. Do people prefer Hammer Hunters or Cutting Edge bullets and why? Are the G7 BC différences between the two brands réal? Lastly, would you recommend a 155 or 168 or 180 grain bullet? My guess is that velocities with these 3 bullets and re26 powder will be 3200, 3100 and 3000 fps, respectively? I do not envision shooting beyond 600 yards although the gun is capable of more. 400 yards or less being likely. Thank you in advance for everyone's bullet advice.

I'd look at the Peregrine VLR4 and Barnes LRX. They will act a lot like a bonded controlled expansion bullet than those specifically designed shed petals with the balance just punching through.

A bullet that's expanded to at least 2x it's own diameter she'd s massive shockwave through the organs and can cause instant death with adequate impact velocity to cause Hydrostatic shock.

 

[jsmitt6]

I have a 24" 7mm Sherman Short. I shoot 169 Hammer Hunters through it at a modest 3000 FPS. Haven't taken game with it yet, but so far I am liking the combination. The Hammer bullets are the easiest I have found to load for.

 

[JTH]

I'm a fan of the Hammer's. I'm using the 131 hunter in a 7 Sherman Max at about 3500 fps, the 124 hunter in a 6.5 SS in the 3200 fps range, the 178 absolute hammer in a 300 WM at 3280 fps. The terminal performance is impressive in all of them, shortly after penetration the front petals break off to the depth of the hollow point, creating a broader wound channel and the shank continues driving through. They are insanely easy to hand load, was able to develop sub 1/2 moa loads in all my rifles. Just started load development on a 300 PRC with the 199 hammer and it looks like it will be a winner as well. And they are easy to get, every order I have placed has been at my door in less than a week.

 

[JTH]

At 400-600 yards, particularly at 400, I'd be thinking about a lighter and faster bullet. I tested the 120 hammer hunter in my 7 Max and got it up to 3700 fps. I had more invested in the 131 so stuck with it but I'd think about the 120 if I was just getting started and thought my max distance would be 400. The role of impact velocity in terminal performance is seldom discussed, but I'm more and more convinced of it with the Hammers. The faster they hit the more devastating they are. Most everything I've shot with the Hammers has been dead right there, but I did have 2 whitetails that managed to get 30 or 40 yards before tipping over, neither of these were ideal shot angles, but the bullets still performed extremely well.

 

[snox801]

I've shot both the cutting edge and hammers I prefer the hammer. The bc is different and better for the cutting edge. That being said it doesn't end up being a big difference until you are down in velocity. I only run the cutting edge now in my big .375. Mainly cause load work eats up so much powder. And anything you hit with that big 400gr bullet is gonna be in rough shape no matter what you hit it with.

 

[JTH]

Here's some data from the Hammer Hunter reloading thread:

7 Sherman Short (WiscGunner)
155 HH
26" Proof, suppressed, tw ????
ADG
F210
2.960 OAL
H 4350
54.0 54.5 55.0 55.5 56.0 56.5 57.0 57.5 58.0 58.5
2942 2938 2970 2980 3014 3045 3067 3095 3113 3132
One ragged hole
Stiff bolt, ejector Very stiff bolt, ejt.

Formatting didn't come through correctly on the info above but hopefully you can follow it. Obviously use good judgement and start low. The one ragged hole was the load at 57.5 and 3,067 fps. Pressure signs started showing up at 58.0 I'd be looking at a little slower powder, maybe H4831sc or RL23, to get closer to a full case and pick up a little speed. I'm guessing the 7SS will max out around 62 grains?

 

[jsmitt6]

Here's some data from the Hammer Hunter reloading thread:

7 Sherman Short (WiscGunner)
155 HH
26" Proof, suppressed, tw ????
ADG
F210
2.960 OAL
H 4350
54.0 54.5 55.0 55.5 56.0 56.5 57.0 57.5 58.0 58.5
2942 2938 2970 2980 3014 3045 3067 3095 3113 3132
One ragged hole
Stiff bolt, ejector Very stiff bolt, ejt.

Formatting didn't come through correctly on the info above but hopefully you can follow it. Obviously use good judgement and start low. The one ragged hole was the load at 57.5 and 3,067 fps. Pressure signs started showing up at 58.0 I'd be looking at a little slower powder, maybe H4831sc or RL23, to get closer to a full case and pick up a little speed. I'm guessing the 7SS will max out around 62 grains?

I run the 169 HH using 61 grains of H4831SC. Have not tried to go any hotter than that because I am happy with velocity and accuracy but did not hit any pressure signs.

 

[jasent]

I've been very happy with the badlands super bulldozers. Great prices, bc, easy to load for and awesome terminal performance

The 150gr bulldozer 2 would be a good fit for your 8 twist

 

[Copper Basin]

I am with jasent. I use the badlands SBD-2 160g in my 7SS. Get 3000 fps and the group very nice. Col about 2.920 so you will need an M5 dbm to get them to feed right. I have tried standard floor plates and some can be finicky. Also, when running any SG numbers use .1 for the plastic tip in SG programs. This came from George at badlands. If your program does not have a plastic tip version try JBM ballistics.

I have tried Hammers and the are very accurate for the distances you want to shoot at. If you stretch it out further then you may run into some drops not matching up. At least that was my experience with the 199HH in .308 and 169HH in .284. Maybe other people have had better luck going out to 1000 yards than me. Just my experience is all.