I want a legit argument against an old trusted cartridge

[smithj99]

When I was young and dumb I was about more power. Belted mags with no brakes. Then I got beat to crap, and realized it sucked. My 2 go to rifles are 257 weatherby mag, and 6.5x55. The 257 is probably loaded more like a 25-06 so it doesn't kick bad. The 6.5x55 is just a nice shooter. It has been doing 6.5 creedmoor stuff for about 90 years longer then the Creed.

7mm Rem Mag is a good gun too. That was my dads go to rifle.

That 257 Wby Mag is great rifle - use the factory 100gr TSX and place bullets well! I've shot everything from duiker up to zebra with that load and rifle and one shot kills!

The 6.5 Swede is a superb, easy shooting round too!!!

 

[mnoland30]

Quite a few years back, I decided to simplify my reloading life by using just one caliber. I looked at the bullet charts, and the 7mm was the best B.C. and S.D. of any bullet in a reasonable weight. Not true anymore. The lighter the recoil, the better the shooter. My son got a 7mm RM at 17, and shot it about 3 times and was done. I watch kids at the range try to sight their magnums in and their groups get bigger every round (recoil). I can shoot my 7-30 Waters much better offhand than my 7mm WSM. With a range finder, and ballistic reticles, and dial scopes, trajectory makes the magnums almost unnecessary for most hunting ranges. When I got old, I bought a light rifle. A Browning Ti in 7mm WSM. It weighs just over 6 lbs. with scope and sling, and is a joy to carry. I load it light, so it is fun to shoot. With Berger bullets, it dropped an elk in its tracks at 340 yards. I've used the same bullet with great success on deer, bear, Aoudad, and javelina. Simple. The only problem, is that all the smart money went to the .270 WSM, and I can hardly find cases for the 7 WSM.

 

[FEENIX]

Like I said ...

Why complicate things unnecessarily? Make your choice and move on ... it is NOT going to be your last.

... I bet it is going to be an easy 20-pager without a resolve.

 

[Southernfriedwerewolf]

I started off my hunting career with a 7mm Remington Magnum. It never failed me but eventually I was bitten by the "bigger and better" bug. I switched to a 300 win mag which I believed would serve me well with a little more knock down power, if I ever made it to Alaska to hunt big bears.

I shortly realized elk, dear, antalope, and black bear don't know the difference between the 300 and 7mm... it's more about shot placement and the type of bullet being used.

So I went back the the 7mm because of less recoil and better wind fighting capabilities.

Then I was bitten by the "newest shinniest" bug. I picked the next cartridge by going backwards. I wanted the highest BC, highest SD bullet made, which was at the time the 7mm 195 Berger EOL. Then found the cartridge which would push it the fastest and flattest, the 28 Nosler (besides the Allen mags and other wildcats).

After messing with the 28 Nosler for probably 2 rifles, 5 barrels, maybe 2000 rounds within the last year... I don't know it's worth it.

The 7mm Remington Magnum will kill anything. It's cheap. It doesn't kick bad with a muzzle brake. I could hunt around the world and if I lose my hand loads, I can find ammo. I believe it is the best all around, do anything, caliber ever made.

It has better ballistics and more power than all the small target cartridges (6mm, 6.5mm Creedmoor and x47 Lapua, 6.5- 284, the BR range of cartridges, and 308 win). Yet is far cheaper, less recoil, more available and easier on barrels than the "bigger and better" or "new and shiny" cartridges like 26 and 28 Nosler, 300 rum, 6.5-300 weatherby and the like.

I guess I want a valid argument (I hope you win) as to why any caliber out there is better than the 7 mag, because the more I try new things, the more I get pulled back to my 7.

You've answered your own question. You've worked out it.

By the by, USSS uses 7mm Magnum.
If I wasn't a 30 Cal guy, id be shooting it

 

[DJ Fergus]

By the by, USSS uses 7mm Magnum.
If I wasn't a 30 Cal guy, id be shooting it[/QUOTE]
I saw a box of federal 7mm rem mag ammo loaded with 165s or 162s Sierra's on G.B. a while back. It was USSS issue training ammo from years ago. Wanted to buy it but was priced really high. Owner knew what it was.

 

[Creedmoor shooter]

Man 7mm catches takes some flak on this site!

 

[Badgerclaw]

I just found this:

"More specifically, on tough game species weighing around 150-200kg (330-440lb), speed of killing can be reduced from 45 seconds (7mm Magnum with conventional bullets) to either instant collapse or a few second delay (with the 300WM)- at all ranges. Once this is seen in the field and fully understood, arguments about trajectories and wind drift quickly fall by the wayside."

from:
https://www.ballisticstudies.com/Knowledgebase/.300+Winchester+Magnum.html

I've seen with my own two eyes the difference between the 7 and 300. I like ballistic studies website, they have great articles, but based on what I've seen, not what I read in an online article, I would disagree with your statement. I've seen an elk take about 45 seconds to die with the 300 and I've seen elk take about 45 seconds with the 7 mag. I don't know many people who take a stopwatch in the field with them to measure the difference.

 

[mindcrime]

Also a treed black bear, a Muskox and Caribou.

I do pray that all three weren't in the SAME TREE!!!

In some seriousness, off topic, but you'll love the 9.3. When my ole man and I went to Colorado Elk hunting, his biggest rifle was an '06.........he wanted something bigger so he asked me if he could borrow my custom 35 Whelen (a kissing cousin to the 9.3 Mauser); forcing me to carry my .416 Rigby, LOL. I had sold my 300 mag. Dad wound up dropping two elk with the 35, and one was at 275 yards.......two X-Bullets, two kills.

 

[Phillygunner]

Hard to beat the ol girl. The 300 win mag is also an equally great cartridge in my eyes as well. Specifically with a 215 berger.

This 'Ol girl will always have a place in my safe. And she gets out Frequently!

 

[WHITEBULL]

No argument here. But it sure is fun to shoot other cartridges as well!

 

[rbTanzan]

. . .so he asked me if he could borrow my custom 35 Whelen (a kissing cousin to the 9.3 Mauser);
forcing me to carry my .416 Rigby, LOL. . . .

Hey, the 416 would be a great elk rifle. Try 101.5gn R-17 with the 350gn TTSX at about 2825fps.
Trajectory will let you hunt at considerable range 0-500 yards.
The only downside would be carrying an 11-pound rifle fully loaded.

 

[Badgerclaw]

I've seen with my own two eyes the difference between the 7 and 300. I like ballistic studies website, they have great articles, but based on what I've seen, not what I read in an online article, I would disagree with your statement. I've seen an elk take about 45 seconds to die with the 300 and I've seen elk take about 45 seconds with the 7 mag. I don't know many people who take a stopwatch in the field with them to measure the difference.

I guess I should also mention I've seen elk die quickly with both cartridges as well. I've shot an elk in both lungs with a 162gr SST and the elk tipped over and rolled down the hill within 3-5 seconds. Just as fast as another elk I shot with a 200gr ELD-x out of a 300 win mag. Same distance 275ish with the 7 rm and 300ish with the 300wm

 

[RYEWSKY25284]

Sometimes we can get a little crazy debating the effictiveness of one cartridge vs another. Remember the boring old 30.06 was created to break cavalry charges....

and it too kicks like a mule.

 

[LVJ76]

Like I said ...



... I bet it is going to be an easy 20-pager without a resolve.

View attachment 152144

Agreed Sir, agreed