7mm Mag or .300 Mag???

K

kuca_2004

New member
I want to buy a bigger high power rifle. I was looking at a 7 mag but while browsing around I picked up a box of shells for a 7 mag and I noticed that the shells are pretty much the same size as a .300 win mag. So what is the difference in the 2 rifles other than the bullet size (I reload ammo so when I say bullet I mean the tip of the shell where the bullet is). If I were to shoot soft point from both rifles would there be a big difference in damage to whatever animal I shoot?
 
I don't have any first-hand experience with either rifle, but looking at various load recipes for both, with equal-weight bullets, the .300 Win Mag seems to push them faster, usually on the order of 200-300 fps.
 
Don't know what you plan to hunt, but the 300 Mag will certainly kill something much more dead than a 7MM Mag! LOL!!!



30 Caliber, a little heavier bullets available. 7MM a little flatter trajectory, and a bit less recoil.
 
An exposed lead tip gives no indication of the bullets internal construction.

Which bullets were they loaded with?
 
7mm mag. straighter trajectory

300 win mag higher bullet weights

i like 300s personally, but i wouldn't turn down a good deal on a 7mm

both recoil is heavy
 
well

A 300 is .30 cal of course, bullet dia is .308 " and bullet weights run up to about 220 grains. A 7mm slug is .284 in dia, and bullet weights can run up to 175 grs.

If bullet weights are equal, the 7mm slug has a slightly higher ballistic coeffecient, which means at equal velocity, the 7mm wil have a SLIGHTY flatter trajectory past 300 yds or so. But all things are not equal and any given 300 may be a tad faster than a 7 or vice a versa.

The 300's big edge was bullet weight. This was more important before our recent dirge of high tech bullets. NOw with premium bonded space bullets, a high tech .284/160 is a pretty serious penetrator or at least so I read.

With similar, miod range bullet weights, I feel no real differnence in recoil between the 7mm and the .300. In the upper end of .300 weights, the big slugs start proving old man Newton correct. A .300/220 + will get y our attention.
 
A 7 mag will shoot a very aerodynamic 160 gr bullet at around 3000-3100 fps. A 300 magnum will shoot a much less aerodynamic 180 gr bullet at around 3000-3100 fps.

At ranges of around 400 yards or less the 300's will have more energy and the trajectory will be virtually the same. After around 400 yards the less aerodynamic 300 will slow down much more than the 7mm bullet and at all ranges longer than 400 yards the 7mm starts to have an advantage in both energy and trajectory.

The 7 mag will have considerably less recoil than the 300 if both are loaded comparably.

The 300 has the abiltiy to shoot heavy 200-250 gr bullets at more moderate velocities if you ever wanted to hunt very large game. The 7 mags have very few options heavier than 175 gr.

Both will work well for any animal in North America. The 300's have a slight advantage on the really large animals at close to medium ranges. The 7 really shines at long range on animals up to the size of elk.
 
jmr40 said:
A 7 mag will shoot a very aerodynamic 160 gr bullet at around 3000-3100 fps. A 300 magnum will shoot a much less aerodynamic 180 gr bullet at around 3000-3100 fps.

At ranges of around 400 yards or less the 300's will have more energy and the trajectory will be virtually the same. After around 400 yards the less aerodynamic 300 will slow down much more than the 7mm bullet and at all ranges longer than 400 yards the 7mm starts to have an advantage in both energy and trajectory.

The 7 mag will have considerably less recoil than the 300 if both are loaded comparably.

The 300 has the abiltiy to shoot heavy 200-250 gr bullets at more moderate velocities if you ever wanted to hunt very large game. The 7 mags have very few options heavier than 175 gr.

Both will work well for any animal in North America. The 300's have a slight advantage on the really large animals at close to medium ranges. The 7 really shines at long range on animals up to the size of elk.
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What jmr40 said.

What is the target and expected range? Kinda helps if we know this.
 
I've shot coyote, deer, and elk with both calibers-some at fairly long range. Coyote and deer regardless of range don't seem to have much idea of what hit them. Elk, on the other hand, seem to notice the 300 hit more than the 7mm.
The 7mm does have slightly flatter trajectory at long range than the 300 but by the time you reach a range that makes much difference, you need to have enough knowledge of ballistics to hold accordingly.
I've pretty much retired the magnums for general use since the old joints don't care for being whipped around by recoil. I'd get them out and shoot a few rounds if I were going elk hunting but don't see much need for deer. The 300 with 180 Noslers would be my #1 with the 7mm with 160 Noslers as backup.
 
If I were to shoot soft point from both rifles would there be a big difference in damage to whatever animal I shoot?
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Tell you the truth I never worried about meat damage when I quit shooting the 7mag and switched over to 30 cal mags and I was shooting 160 gr bullets in the 7mag and 165gr in the 30cal.

I load out of Nosler manual and if you look at the 160gr Accubond 7mm bullet and 180gr AB for the 30cal @ their ballistic tables both bullets @ 3000fps their not lot of different out to 600yds. If you switch over to the 30 cal 165gr AB @ 3200fps it has slight edge over the 7mm 160gr AB at 600yds.

There plus/minus with both and lot of good 7mm bullets being made today same with the 30cal and I like both.
 
If I were to shoot soft point from both rifles would there be a big difference in damage to whatever animal I shoot?
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As far as animals as big as elk, NO. I currently use a 300 Win Mag as my primary elk rifle and have shot around 20 animals with it. One of the people I hunt with uses a 7mm Rem Mag and the other uses a 264 Win Mag. I have seen them shoot elk and can say I don't see any difference in the way the animal reacts or the amount of meat damaged.

If I had it to do all over again I would get a 7mm Rem Mag instead of a 300 Win. Shooting the same make/model rifle in both calibers has taught me that a 7mm Rem Mag shooting a 160 grain bullet hurts a lot less than shooting a 300 Win Mag using 180 grain bullets, and the older I get the more that means to me:D
 
Biggest advantage is the 7mm with a smaller bullet can get more velocity and shoot further with energy and be a LOT flatter.

Bullet to bullet there is not much difference in the overlap area.

If I had to, I would have shot a Grizzly with the 7mm.

That said, guides don't want to see client with less than a 338 for a Grizzly hunt.

So, if you do not need the heavy bullet, you can do a lot better with the 7mm.

I do know its a hard shooter.

So, it really matters if you want or need to shoot long and flat but would need to use the smaller gr bullets in 7mm. Close up either one is about the same with a nod to the 300 with more energy.
 
I hunt with a 7mm mag mainly for hunting powerlines. Never shot a 300 mag but did get the oppurtunity to shoot a 300 RUM. It was a beast.
 
There is nothing a 300 mag can do that a 7mm mag cannot do better. At ranges over 800 yards, it is not even a contest. There is a reason the secret service uses 7mm mags..:cool:
 
I need an education as to what bullets are being shot in the 7mag that make it a better LR rifle than 300mag and this is a question for someone who actually own one.

I'm not shooting either but have in the past as I went to different calibers.
 
Both cartridges are excellent choices
20 years ago I was on the hunt for a 300 Win mag.,after shooting a 06' since I was 12 years old I was ready to step up to the 300 win mag. That's when I stopped by a local pawn shop which had the exact rifle scope combination I was looking for except it wasn't a 300 win mag?,instead it was a 7mm rem mag the rifle a Remington 700 Bdl w/ Leupold vxII 4-12x40 AO which looked brand new.

I bought the 7mm rem mag and never looked back,it has been my favorite rifle for elk and deer.
 
I need an education as to what bullets are being shot in the 7mag that make it a better LR rifle than 300mag and this is a question for someone who actually own one.
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What your going to get here is a bunch of personal predudices for guys that one one of the two and feel they have to justify it. I own 4 differnt 7 mags and 5 different 30 cal mag rifles. Anyone that tells you the 7 does better at long range should look at 1000 yard bench rest competition. the 300 win has won many and ive never heard of one being won by a 7mag. Both will kill about any game animal with power to spare at even 400 yards but when the range gets out past 300 in my opinion the 300 hits harder. As to shooting flatter id bet theres not squat differnce between a full power 180 grain 300 win mag load and a 175 7mag. What the 300 lacks in sectional density it would make up in the fact that the velocity would be quite a bit higher.

I chuckle at guys that say there 270 is just as powerful as an 06 or there o6 is as powerful as a 7mag or a 7mag is as powerful as 300 and a 300 does anything a 338 does. Sorry guys but it just isnt true. there is no mystical caliber that does more then something bigger other then in the minds of some. the 7mag is a fine round, one of my favorites but Id be up to my ears in bull ### if i said it did better in the field then a 300 mag. Also id like to see a link to where the secret service uses 7 mag rifles. Never heard that one before.
 
I've hunted with both calibers and never saw a any real difference between them. The 7mm allowed me to shoot a lighter bullet just a tad flatter than the 300, but the 300 allows heavier bullets if needed. If I were strictly hunting big bears, I'd probably grab a 300. For whitetail sized game, the 7mm. But in either case both calibers would do the job.
 
.300 Win Mag is the best all-around caliber for north America bar none. It shoots nearly as flat as the 7mm mag but the recoil is much harsher. Believe me, I've shot both many times. :D

You don't want to be recoil sensitive to own either one. If you are, you'll need (Heaven forbid) a recoil suppressor on the end or something. :(
 
that is one consession ill make in the argument. A 300 does kick harder then a 7mag. Neither kick hard enough actually hurt a guy though and anyone that can master an o6 can master either of them with a bit of practice.
 
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