Any 7-08 fans?

[WVRJ]

Hard to beat a 7-08 for deer.You can keep it light with 120 grain bullets and mid-range loads or you can open up the throttle with 140 grain Partitions or other well constructed bullets for heavier game than deer.In a short barrel,it'll outdo the 6.5 Creedmoor handily,and the same goes for the 243.Larger bores are better in short barrels.

 

[wolfman]

120BT over a reduced charge of H4895 works great. Lower recoil, and excellent performance.

 

[wbm]

I was thinking about what to get the wife and kids

Then do them a big favor and go with the 6.5 Creedmoor.

I love the 7mm-08! It will do everything the 6.5CM will do and more but it is not even as gentle to shoot as the 6.5CM.

 

[Ralph Littlefield]

Any comments on 7mm-08 as a precision rifle?

 

[RegionRat]

Any comments on 7mm-08 as a precision rifle?

The 7-08 was “discovered” into popularity at one point during my lifetime as an excellent caliber for silhouette. So, aside from obvious need for accuracy, it shows a balance of enough energy to knock down the ram plates at 600, but without the distracting recoil of the other popular calibers that preceded it.

In a way, it was popularized by that “Goldilocks“ balance of energy, accuracy, and efficiency.

Needless to say, other cut down variations of a 308 are well known for accuracy, so it wasn’t a surprise that the 7mm bullet efficiency would out perform the 308 at 600 yards. Back at that time, you made the brass out of carefully selected 308 cases. Nowadays, you can buy virgin factory 7-08 brass and it is still very popular in silhouette.

 

[std7mag]

Any comments on 7mm-08 as a precision rifle?

If you were to do a 22" straight barrel, i could see it doing fairly well in short range bench rest.
Problem is the wide range of bullet weights.
The heavy, high BC bullets have a higher recoil & from what i've seen don't work as well for say 100-200 yard IBS or UBR type matches.

Lowest weight match bullet is the 150gr MatchKing (the 130gr MK being discontinued).
Berger does make a 140gr VLD, but it's in their "hunting" line. It does fairly well out through 600 yards.
But for longer than that, i'd probably go heavier, which requires the throat to be reamed to allow the bullet to seat out of the powder column. Which in term kinda messes with a lighter weight bullet for short range.

Vicious cycle, i tell ya!

Were i to do a match build for a 7mm-08, which i probably will end up doing, i'd get 2 barrels. One for my short range matches, one for long range matches.

You may want to ask @Laurie, or @284winner.

I believe those two have done matches with the 7mm-08.

 

[284winner]

If you were to do a 22" straight barrel, i could see it doing fairly well in short range bench rest.
Problem is the wide range of bullet weights.
The heavy, high BC bullets have a higher recoil & from what i've seen don't work as well for say 100-200 yard IBS or UBR type matches.

Lowest weight match bullet is the 150gr MatchKing (the 130gr MK being discontinued).
Berger does make a 140gr VLD, but it's in their "hunting" line. It does fairly well out through 600 yards.
But for longer than that, i'd probably go heavier, which requires the throat to be reamed to allow the bullet to seat out of the powder column. Which in term kinda messes with a lighter weight bullet for short range.

Vicious cycle, i tell ya!

Were i to do a match build for a 7mm-08, which i probably will end up doing, i'd get 2 barrels. One for my short range matches, one for long range matches.

You may want to ask @Laurie, or @284winner.

I believe those two have done matches with the 7mm-08.

No matches for me

 

[sep]

The past few years I've been loading 140 grain Nosler Accubonds fueled by RL16. Excellent velocity and accuracy. I haven't killed any deer with it yet but I have shot two caribou. 214 and 225 yards respectively. Excellent performance from this little cartridge.

 

[Liven The Dream]

Any comments on 7mm-08 as a precision rifle?

Well going back 20 plus years it was very popular in the Midwest as a NRA Match Rifle Round.
I built a 7-08 Prone Rifle for 600 and 1000 yard Target Shooting. Krieger 1-8 SS Barrel 28" back then. Hornady 162 gr. Bullets pushed by IMR 4064.
I remember well shooting some big scores at Lodi Wisconsin, got my Master Class Long Range Card.
Guys at Lodi found it hard to believe that rifle was a 7-08.
Like a lot of Rifles I Built they got New Owners before there time.
I tried to buy it back , "Your Nuts Not For Sale ".
It is retired in Illinois .

Dave Tubb's had a Run with that 7-08 as well.

 

[wkdickinson]

I bought a Rem Mtn Rifle in 7-08 a year or two after they came out, so 25-30 years ago. I have always loaded it it with 160gr Sierra GameKing hollow points and Varget. Between my son and I, we've killed probably 30+ whitetails with it and only 2 have ever moved from the spot they were standing. Excellent choice!

 

[bozo699]

You can’t go wrong with either for the conditions you describe. 7-08 is a great caliber. I like taking kids hunting and I have a compact 7-08 rifle for them. Many a deer have been taken with that rifle. It has a short barrel as you described but is very accurate and just hammers the deer. Since kids use this gun primarily I reload 140 grain Nosler Partitions. Overkill for Alabama deer but with excited kids that may hit a shoulder etc, I want good performance from the bullet.

I use 140 grain Bullets with a warm load of Varget.

^^^^^^
this
Wayne

 

[shoot4fun]

I bought my first 7MM08, a Browning A-Bolt Medallion in 1990 and it was love at first shot. I later added a Remington Model 7 blue and then, a few years later, another M7 stainless/synthetic. Lastly, a TC Encore barrel in the caliber. I recently sold off the Encore stuff and the Browning moved on 3-4 years ago. The blued M7 I gave to my son but I still own and hunt with the SS M7. I shoot mostly the Speer 130 BTSP ahead of Fit N140 or the Nosler 140BT with the same powder. The Speer is 100% DRT for many whitetails and similar game and the 140 gave same results on Texas Antelope.

 

[bozo699]

I own several 7mm08 rifles, my daily beat around pickup seat rifle has been a Tikka t3 in 708 I put a after market stock on it topped with a 3-15 nightforce and a Harris bipod it’s killed everything I’ve ever pointed it at and some at quite long distances. Top two powders for me has been Varget and pro 2000 mr bullet choices for me have been 140 Accubonds and 168 burgers in Lapua Brass I can’t say enough good about the cartridge I’ve taken elk many many black bear white tail and mule deer cougar and many many coyotes bought one for the wife as well but she likes to hunt elk. If all I was going to be hunting was white tail with kids and wife behind it I believe I would do a 6 creedmoor or a standard old .243 Winchester there’s less recoil and a 80-100 grain bullet is plenty of bullet for a clean kill on white tail just my .02 cents worth anyway
Wayne

 

[Laurie]

Any comments on 7mm-08 as a precision rifle?

I've used one in UK F-Class and the occasional mid/long-range BR match for several years. It was intended and chambered for 160-168gn class match bullets, specifically the 168gn Berger VLD seated to around 2.99" COAL. My original intention was the AI chamber, but when the rifle was being rebarrelled from its previous 308 Win F/TR form, the previous great US buying surge was underway, (Barak Obama's reelection for a second term?), and it was going to take forever to get a reamer from the US. So, plain-Jane 7-08 Rem it became, albeit with a minimum-SAAMI 'match' chamber. I still regret that as the small extra AI capacity would have been very valuable. I know one or two people using the AI in tactical / PRS type rifles and they're very pleased with the performance running at AI magazine COALs with 26-inch barrels shooting ELD-Ms mostly.

The 168 VLD bullet became problematical for the usual VLD reasons and Sierra had just introduced the 160gn TMK, a nice easy bullet to tune, very consistently made, and it shoots well. So, it's largely used them since. A compressed load of Viht N160 in a necked-down 308 Win Lapua Palma small primer brass gives the 160 2,865 fps (31-inch Bartlein). I've recently been experimenting with standard large primer brass and reckon that they give better results, albeit at only 2,805 fps, still with N160 and the 160gn TMK. I've shot 'possibles' at 300 and 500 yards several times with this set-up usually off a super-wide bipod (grass firing points) not a front-rest and had a fair few F-Open firsts and many seconds and thirds in a very competitive club F scene. Sadly, these have become rarer in recent times, partly me, but more the F-Class 'arms race' where 284 Win has become the minimum firepower ... and when you compete against 300 WSMs at 300 yards these days ..........!? So, it just does 300 yard matches these days. I also have some 162 ELD-Ms loaded up at various COALs to see if I can make them work for their considerably higher BC.

I could also uprate the ballistics with hotter powders - Re16 and 17 to name two will take the 160 to 2,900 fps or more, albeit the limited 7-08 case capacity sets limitations on how much bulky Re16 you can stuff in. I settled on N160 early on, also the cartridge itself to get good barrel life, so I could shoot it a lot and not worry about remaining barrel life during and after each session. It's up at around 2,300 rounds and still going very strongly.

I have tried it with 175s and 180s and it'll shoot them fine too, but the freebore needs a considerable hike to suit them, and I'm not talking recent super long-nose introductions even. Recoil increases noticeably too, and part of the pleasure in shooting it with 160s in a 20lb rifle is its moderate recoil and excellent manners on a bipod off grass saving me lugging heavy front-rests around to the more difficult to access firing points. Not as easy to shoot as my 20lb + 223 Rem F rifle mind you, but that's like shooting a noisy long-range rimfire! I have a 284 too and that's what I shoot 175/180s from - a much better suited cartridge for this purpose. (Use cool burning Viht N165 and keep pressures down and it'll give good barrel life too, albeit still less than 7-08 I'm sure.)

I also have a second staple bullet / load, the 150gn Lapua Scenar-L in prepped Winchester brass pushed to not much over 2,800 fps with Lovex SO65 (Shooters World 'Long Rifle' in the US). This gives excellent short-range precision, quarter MOA, sometimes considerably better, with five shots at 100 and shoots well to 300/500. I won several 300 yard club matches early on and had the odd very good result at 500 with this combination before the opposition upgraded to short magnum 'Dreadnought class' battlecruisers.

I should mention I shoot on a notoriously wet and windy range, so ballistics are often needed in addition to precision. I have taken the 284 to 500 yard matches, sometimes even 300 if the weather forecast was too threatening.

 

[bobm]

I am a 7mm-08 fan. This much.

 

[sbranden]

I am a 7mm-08 fan. This much.

WOW! That many, all in 7mm-08? Which one shoots the best, of any of the more modern ones that could be had today? Also, looks like about 6 scopes of the same type, then a few of another type - what have you tried to standardize on in terms of glass. Leupold I know, but I'm talking objective diameter, magnification, reticle, turret adjustment, etc. That's a very impressive collection.

 

[BigGame]

My 7-08 is my favorite hunting rifle. 5.2 pounds, 22” barrel, and it will take deer and elk well beyond the 200 yards noted by the OP. Varget is the go-to powder in my experience. I’m shooting the 131 gr. Hammer Hunter.

While the 7-08 is not a hard kicker, if you wanted milder the 6.5 CM, 6 CM, and 243 Win would all work well inside of 200 yards, as others have also noted.

 

[std7mag]

It's curious to me that the general concensus if the 7mm-08 has too much recoil, that the 6.5mm, and 6mm is mentioned, but not the caliber in between them.
25 CM, 250 Savage, 250 Souper, 257 Roberts are all fine, low recoiling cartridges also.
Heck, the 257 Kimber & 25-45 Sharps will get the job done at the OPs stated distances.

 

[DumpHollow]

IMHO the 139-140 class bullets are the sweet spot for deer. I've had the best precision and highest velocity's with IMR-4350 and WW 760. I tried RL-16 last year but couldn't get the velocity or precision out of that powder so in that rifle, I went to IMR-4350 once again and reduced group size to a third of the RL-16 loads.

I've owned and hunted with a Rem Model 7, a 700, and a Nosler 48, but my favorite for decades was a Sako AII in a McMIllan stock. I currently have an H-S Precison PHL that will be my last. My wifes rifle is a Sako Finnlight. I like my hunting rifles to weigh in at 8 to 8.5 pounds scoped. I also feel that the 7-08 is well served by a barrel length of 22". That about optimizes the burn of the best powders for caliber in that case capacity where I found 2800 fps with the 140 gr bullets was typically achievable. I have never shot a factory load in any of the rifles mentioned.

I currently have two 6.5 Creedmoors and have had two others. The 140 class bullets are again my choice in that caliber. Frankly, there isn't much difference in recoil impulse between the 7-08 and 6.5 CM in similar weight rifles. Talking about recoil without specifying bullet weight, muzzle velocity, and rifle weight is merely a subjective comparison. Stock design also plays a role in felt recoil. I also hunted with 243 Win sporters shooting 100 grain bullets for years and also have an 8.5 pound 308 in the safe that I shoot 180 grain RN's out of. The best way to mitigate recoil is to reduce bullet weight and muzzle velocity.You don't have to get too far below max to calm recoil and quite often get into a better accuracy node.

Considering that new hunters are not shooting at extended ranges, reducing velocity coupled with proper bullet selection would be a common sense solution for recoil mitigation. Once the new hunters shooting skills have developed, full power loads can be used to extend range.

 

[bobm]

WOW! That many, all in 7mm-08? Which one shoots the best, of any of the more modern ones that could be had today? Also, looks like about 6 scopes of the same type, then a few of another type - what have you tried to standardize on in terms of glass. Leupold I know, but I'm talking objective diameter, magnification, reticle, turret adjustment, etc. That's a very impressive collection.

I just finished cleaning the top three rifles in left photo used for a silhouette match this past weekend. For reference sake, #1 is top left photo, #12 bottom right photo. They all shoot excellent, but #5 and #10 have Douglas barrels that are fantastic shooters.

All the rest are Remington factory take off barrels that shoot very well. #11 is a Ruger 77 that I fitted with a new 24" Rem. take off barrel, it was a shot out 7x57. #12 is a Rem. 788 that was a 7500 shot .308 that I also fitted with a new 24" Rem. take off barrel. Both these rifles now have 2600 shots on them. I don't shoot them too often as I retired from machining seven years ago and can not do that kind of work again. No shop tools at home.

I had a #13, too. A M70 Featherweight originally in .243. Yep, shot it out. Fitted a new stainless Rem. take off like the M77 and 788. Same Leupold 12X. Called it the Remchester. Done at 6200 shots. Sold the action and stock to a friend and now seen at silhouette matches in 6 Creed.

#6 was a .270 and #7 was a .30-06 both made in early 70's, stole them both cheap at a pawn shop years ago. #8 was a shot out A prefix .22-250, #9 was a shot out B prefix .243 Win. #10 was a new 2003 Classic in 7-08 which I shot out, too. Now it has a Douglas installed.

Five scopes are Leupold 6.5-20X all with fine duplex. The rest are Leupold 12X fixed power. #1 and #2 each have a 1/2 min. dot reticle. All other 12X's have fine duplex reticle. #8 and #9 are the FX series 12X.
All are 40mm AO.

The Ruger has hunted and taken antelope, deer and elk. I rotate through these guns each week practicing off hand for silhouette shooting.