7mm-08 Caliber

I think the 7-08 is very near the "ideal" cartridge for North American hunting.

It's only downfall is cost of factory ammo.
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Easily negated by rollin' yer own. Non-issue.

2,300ft/lbs for 7-08 is very low...

Factory ammo is usually 140gr and listed at 2,900 fps and, at least Rem Core- Lokt, reach that speed in 24" barrels.

That's 2,600 ft/lbs.
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I'll second that opinion: I got 2,660 f/sec out of 140 gr Remington factory loads, with a 16" barrel.

I bought 3 different flavors of full power and two boxes of remington reduced recoil stuff. 25 bucks was the cheapest I got away with with the others in the 28-32 range.
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Poor guy ..... I picked up 2 100 round boxes of "blemished" 150 gr 7mm bullets from Midway last month...... loaded them in front of 39 grains of IMR 4064 and a WLR primer in once fired brass ...... 11 cent bullets, 13 cents worth of powder, and a 3 cent primer...... 27 cents x 20 = $5.40/box of 20 ...... and then used them to brush up on my milk jug busting skills..... out to 250 yards, it was too easy..... I handed it off to Eldest, as her 30/30 was getting hot to the touch....
 
tobnpr said:
7mm-08: listed as 2339 ft/lbs with a 150 gr Speer.
30.06: listed as 2820 ft/lbs with the same weight bullet. Mostly apples to apples for comparison. As you can see, pretty significant difference. The 06 has the case capacity to push that bullet to 2900 fps, while the 7-08, using the .308 case, can push it to "only" 2,650 fps.

The 7-08 is a great round...just bought a Savage in that caliber to punch paper at long range. Better ballistics than the .308, and less felt recoil.
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Thank you for taking the time to explain that to me. :)
 
It will do the job

A premium, heavy, bullet in the right place will do just fine.
My only knock on the .25 cal bullets is they don't offer anything more than 120 grs. A little light for larger game.
 
Classic do (nearly) all cartridge. Essentially a.short action 270/.280 Perhaps think of as a ".270 lite" - but really only that qualifier over 300. However, I don't agree it's only a loader's cartridge. Unless you're a major range-meister, if you don't load .270, I wouldn't (necessarily) think you'd have to do 7mm. Look around. Also a great "mountain rifle" round that excels ballistically in shorter barrels versus some other choices. I agree with others, leave the moose to the bigger boys--generally starting with 3--. If you're hunting moose, you're presumably gearing (even more) specifically and appropriately for. Don't hear too much of "weekend warriors" going for moose--or elk for that matter, though it happens.
 
I agree with Colt46. I have two 7-08s, a Savage Weather Warrior and a Browning BLR. With heavier bullets, i.e., 140-150 gr, it will do the job on most big game, even moose, out to 200 to 250yds, in capable hands, and I think the key phrase is 'capable hands'. It is better to shoot a 7-08 well, than a .300 Win Mag poorly.

FYI, the minimum caliber for elk in CO is .243. I know a moose is not an elk, but they are certainly in the same category: Big.
 
You know you've stepped up to a big game caliber when you light off a 7mm08 compared to something like a 243.
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Not totally - the case is the same; the heavier bullet used will increase recoil - otherwise if you shot a bullet close in weight at the same speed, the recoil will be the right about the same

My 7-08 is the small Model 7 - it doesn't fit me as well as my full size 700 BDL, so it generates a little more cheek slap - but for sighting in and hunting, it is tolerable
 
The recoil of a 7-08 is substantially more than a 243.

A 243 weighing 7.5 lbs firing a 100gr bullet at 2,960 fps generates approximately 8.8 lbs recoil at 8.7 fps.

A 7.5lb 7-08 firing a 120gr bullet at 3,000 fps generates 12.1 lbs at 10.2 ft/s.

The 7-08 is 37.5% and 17.2% worse, respectively, and that's about as close as they get. Most 7-08 loads are 140gr and produce more recoil, the 243 are often less than 100 and produce less recoil.

A 7-08 in an 8.0lb gun with 140s produces 68% more recoil than a 243 in a heavier 8.5lb gun shooting 85s.

I don't consider the 7-08 to be bad but it is at the upper end of my personal comfortable recoil. The 243 is a very comfortable.
 
Doyle said:
I take it you don't even think about shooting the belted magnums. :eek:
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No. I do not. I've spent my whole life hunting with 12ga slugs. I've hated every trigger pull. I can and I have fired some truly awful guns in terms of recoil but I have no desire to do so and no need. I don't like recoil and I don't pretend to man up and take it.
Most of this state is now rifle deer hunting... except, naturally, every single area I hunt. I now gun hunt with an Encore Pro Hunter handgun, chambered in 7-08, and find it quite enjoyable. It recoils very much like a HOT 44mag but I find handgun recoil much more tolerable than long gun.
 
I now gun hunt with an Encore Pro Hunter handgun, chambered in 7-08, and find it quite enjoyable.
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Great choice. I picked up a 7mm-08 pistol barrel this year but haven't had a chance to shoot it yet.
 
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