Bullet suggestion please 7MM REM MAG/Elk

[snert]

I have a Sendero 700 in 7 Rem Mag that shoots 150 grain NBT very very well for LR whitetail here in the east. But my kid wants to use it for Elk in the west. I am NOT an elk hunter so I am asking for some experienced western elk hunters to chime in on a suggested bullet for the 7MAG in a standard Rem barrel twist so I can get started building a load for him when he takes ownership of the rifle. Longest shot would be in the 400 yard range most likely. I have a lot of 7828....

Thanks in advance

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

Does the NBT load exit bucks? If so penetration is elk ok.

 

[snert]

Does the NBT load exit bucks? If so penetration is elk ok.

625 yard doe chest shot went out the other side with fist size hole. Deer was small.

It is a rapid expansion bullet with not a lot of penetration before opening up.

 

[10XSHOOTER]

168 Nosler Accubond!
I shoot the 180 Nosler Accubond in a .300 winch. It kills Elk!

 

[Coyotefurharvester]

You could try the 160 NBT, it is a hunting bullet. Plenty tough for elk. Likely save you time,components and barrel. Left overs, run thru more deer.

 

[mmcu]

160 grain Nosler Accubond or Partition.

 

[CJ6]

160 grain Nosler Accubond or Partition.

These or Swift A Frames or Sir IIs.
Whichever of those 4 that shoot the best.

 

[Stormbringer]

I like a 175 partition or good ole cup/core Hornady, Remington, Sierra. All reasonable for cost, should be accurate and work well with the 7828. Don't see the need for a boat tail at 400 yards/less.

 

[RegionRat]

If keeping the shots within 400 yards with a 7mm Mag, you could stay with the bullet you know and it will certainly kill a bull elk.

If you really wanted to try a little heavier bullet, there are several good ones for 7mm.

Sierra #1920 is a 160 gr SGK that is very easy to tune to just about any chamber/bbl and is a traditional hunting bullet. This bullet tunes so easy and is inexpensive so practice rounds are affordable.

Berger #28570 is a 168 gr Classic Hunter that is a hybrid and is also very easy to tune to a factory bbl.

Hornady #2840 is a 162 ELDX polymer tipped style that is usually easy to find. This one is sometimes finicky in some bbls.


He won't have any trouble with bulls inside 400 yards with a 7mm Mag and any of those bullets in a factory bbl. He does need to understand the anatomy of the kill zone and be able to put the bullet into that placement, but any one of those bullets will do the job.

There is also the Barnes 150 gr TTSX, but can be picky for seating depth in many rifles. At <400 yards, it has good terminal effects in the 7mm Mag.

 

[slm9s]

I’ve had lots of success with the 154 Interbond. Perfect mushrooms in Roosevelt bulls.

 

[Jonnyofalltrades]

I've taken a few elk recently with the 120 grain Barnes TTSX out of a 7mm Rem Mag.
Amazing terminal performance, and out to 400 yards it shoots very, very flat. Like .257 Weatherby flat.

Having said that, hunting weight Nosler BT's do expand easily, but the heavy base causes them to penetrate well. You would be just fine with your deer load.

 

[PhilC]

168 Nosler Accubond!
I shoot the 180 Nosler Accubond in a .300 winch. It kills Elk!

I used 160NPTs 30yrs ago, if I were to choose today it would the 168AB or the 160NPT.

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

A 280 AI is pretty close to a ballistic twin to a 7mm Mag with them and I've had fantastic results on big and small whitetail deer with the 168 Berger Hunting VLD. It's just hard to beat what I've seen with that bullet at those speeds, from 50-600 yards.

There are certainly other good options but I'm not changing a thing. This particular rifle shoots them better than any hunting rifle should be expected to shoot, with several 1 inch groups at 500 yards and I don't think any deer has taken more than a few steps after a good hit with them. I strongly suggest giving them a try.

Plenty of good reviews for it on elk sized game as well.

 

[209jones]

If you can get a partition to shoot in that gun, a 160 NP in a 7RM is not even a question about using, it'll do whatever needs doing, and it's decent to shoot. Used them before I got a 7-08, couple of times since. I used 140 partitions in the 7-08, zero questions on moose and elk, for 38yrs. If they will shoot at MOA for you, just use them. Running 140's in a current 7RM I have, total faith in them, just downloaded to warm side of 7-08 speeds, around 2900ish.. That gun might make 7 lbs with scope on it, has a lot of muzzle flip, so, had to tame it a bit, knew that when I bought the gun, but, I wanted it, knew all it's quirks beforehand.

 

[std7mag]

People are using the 120gr Ballistic Tip out of a 7mm-08 for elk.
No reason the 150gr NBT wouldn't work out of a 7mm Rem Mag.

I've never recovered a Ballistic Tip from deer or blackbear.

I should note, I shot a bear and had a pass through, but the bear took off running through the brush line into another field. Even though it was going down, 6 hunters in the other field saw it and unloaded on it.
Dang thing looked like swiss cheese.

 

[johnmyers]

A 280 AI is pretty close to a ballistic twin to a 7mm Mag with them and I've had fantastic results on big and small whitetail deer with the 168 Berger Hunting VLD. It's just hard to beat what I've seen with that bullet at those speeds, from 50-600 yards.

There are certainly other good options but I'm not changing a thing. This particular rifle shoots them better than any hunting rifle should be expected to shoot, with several 1 inch groups at 500 yards and I don't think any deer has taken more than a few steps after a good hit with them. I strongly suggest giving them a try.

Plenty of good reviews for it on elk sized game as well.

Spot on I use them in my 7-06ai at 2940fps and they work and shoot very good

 

[L.Sherm]

The worse bullet failure ive ever had was a 140 BT out of a 7mm-08 on a WT buck.
If you have the freebore 180 Bergers have been outstanding for my nephew on elk and moose with his 7 mag I load for him.
If you dont have the freebore for the 180 then 168.

 

[snert]

Thank you to everyone that responded. I will test the Accubond or stick with the NBT. Either way I think he will do fine. It is good to have trusted input here on the site. I just have no experience shooting bigger game.
The rifle flat out shoots. The last deer it took was at 331 yards. It was a does grazing. I was shooting off of a table and rest. I had a backup shooter and for the heck of it (I had been shooting a lot of groundhogs prior to this) I called a left eyeball shot. The round hit her at the rear corner of the eye. Not bad for a Sendero barrel on a old 30-06 action opened up and put in a very dated McMillan Sillywet stock...

 

[kyotekiller25]

We've kill hundreds of elk in our camp over the years with 7 mag/160 ABs and 300 mag/200g ABs. Look no further.

 

[std7mag]

Thank you to everyone that responded. I will test the Accubond or stick with the NBT. Either way I think he will do fine. It is good to have trusted input here on the site. I just have no experience shooting bigger game.
The rifle flat out shoots. The last deer it took was at 331 yards. It was a does grazing. I was shooting off of a table and rest. I had a backup shooter and for the heck of it (I had been shooting a lot of groundhogs prior to this) I called a left eyeball shot. The round hit her at the rear corner of the eye. Not bad for a Sendero barrel on a old 30-06 action opened up and put in a very dated McMillan Sillywet stock...

Put the NBT or Berger VLD in the ribs and let them do their work.
Haven't had a deer go more than 20 yards this way.

My longest is 413 yards, ranged with the 140gr Berger VLD in my 7mm-08AI.

I have bought the regular Accubond. And I was really hoping for good things!
But I just can't get them to group well.
I've gone from touching the lands to 0.120" off the lands.
Even though they share the same shape as the Ballistic Tips, the Ballistic Tip just shooots better for me.