260 Rem vs 7-08 Rem
- Thread starter RHux
- Start date
swd
Silver $$ Contributor
I never tried 168 Berger's but have shot a lot of 162 A Max's. In a full value 10mph crosswind at 1K they are about 3"-4" behind a 6.5 in wind drift and have about 2 moa more drop. So not quite an equal but can it compete with it, pretty much. It's more the Indian at that point..
If QuickLOAD is correct, the answer is 'no' - the 260 has a 50-100 fps advantage from a 30-inch barrel with 140s v the 168 VLD with optimum powders choices. That assumes both chambers are throated long to allow 2.95-3.00 inch COALs with the two cartridges for single-shot loading in match rifles, or in a long action rifle for magazine feed. Since the best of the 6.5 140s and 7mm 168s have similar BCs, it's an MV issue mainly in a tie-off.
With a short-action mag fed rifle at 2.800" COAL, I imagine the relationship will be similar both having bullets seated a similar (large) amount of seating depth with VLDs although at 2.8 the 260 has a little less bullet inside the case (0.650" v 0.680"). Can't comment on Hybrids as I don't use them, but it's unlikely they'll change anything materially.
However, real life has a habit of upsetting armchair ballistics, and I'm having a little bet on the 7-08 compared to my rather short throated 6.5s which are set up to shoot 120-130gn class bullets. I find they perform superbly to 800 yards, but 123s seem to produce larger verticals from there on for reasons I don't understand. (MV spreads are small and bullets are CBTO batched.) I've just got one of my 308 FTR rifles back from the gunsmith in 7-08 throated specifically for the 168gn VLD and we'll see what it can do. It's primarily for short to mid-range F-class, but if it performs well enough with loads that can give 2,850 fps, it'll be more than viable at 900 and 1,000 yards. The throating allows the 175gn Sierra MK happily too, so we'll see if a slightly 'overweight' model gives any benefits.
Of course, ballistics aside, powder choice and max pressures being equal, the seven will have a longer barrel accuracy life than the 260.
With a short-action mag fed rifle at 2.800" COAL, I imagine the relationship will be similar both having bullets seated a similar (large) amount of seating depth with VLDs although at 2.8 the 260 has a little less bullet inside the case (0.650" v 0.680"). Can't comment on Hybrids as I don't use them, but it's unlikely they'll change anything materially.
However, real life has a habit of upsetting armchair ballistics, and I'm having a little bet on the 7-08 compared to my rather short throated 6.5s which are set up to shoot 120-130gn class bullets. I find they perform superbly to 800 yards, but 123s seem to produce larger verticals from there on for reasons I don't understand. (MV spreads are small and bullets are CBTO batched.) I've just got one of my 308 FTR rifles back from the gunsmith in 7-08 throated specifically for the 168gn VLD and we'll see what it can do. It's primarily for short to mid-range F-class, but if it performs well enough with loads that can give 2,850 fps, it'll be more than viable at 900 and 1,000 yards. The throating allows the 175gn Sierra MK happily too, so we'll see if a slightly 'overweight' model gives any benefits.
Of course, ballistics aside, powder choice and max pressures being equal, the seven will have a longer barrel accuracy life than the 260.
Laurie,
My experiences with 123s in 6.5x47 & 260 Improved 30* mirror yours out past 600yds. While I've got a "magic load" with IMR4007SSC/Lapua 123 that shoots well in any of several 6.5x47 bbls, generally speaking, they do start to print a lot of vertical out past 700-800yds. Example - while testing/training a ballistic app for my Bighorn/Manners 6.5x47 out to 1000yds, the 123 Lapua was all over a steel version of the IPSC target (20"+ of vertical) at 1000, while Berger 140 LRBTs & IMR4451 put three shots into a cluster with under 1" of vertical, and only 3.2" of horizontal spread. I've not shot any Berger 140 VLDs out of this 6.5x47 yet, but the Hybrids also shoot very well at just under 2800fps using IMR4451.
The 260 Imp also shoots OK out to 600yds with Lapua 123s, but even at that mid-range distance, Berger 140 Hybrids & VLDs are consistently printing slightly tighter groups. I've still got enough Sierra 123s to test with - perhaps they'll do a bit better than the Lapua out past 600, but I doubt it. It's a shame - if I could get the 123s to tighten up a bit at 600, they would suffice for probably 85-90% of the shots taken during practical/tactical steel matches, while any of the Berger 140s (LRBT,Hybrid,VLD) are more than equal to the task of hitting steel out to 1400yds.
My experiences with 123s in 6.5x47 & 260 Improved 30* mirror yours out past 600yds. While I've got a "magic load" with IMR4007SSC/Lapua 123 that shoots well in any of several 6.5x47 bbls, generally speaking, they do start to print a lot of vertical out past 700-800yds. Example - while testing/training a ballistic app for my Bighorn/Manners 6.5x47 out to 1000yds, the 123 Lapua was all over a steel version of the IPSC target (20"+ of vertical) at 1000, while Berger 140 LRBTs & IMR4451 put three shots into a cluster with under 1" of vertical, and only 3.2" of horizontal spread. I've not shot any Berger 140 VLDs out of this 6.5x47 yet, but the Hybrids also shoot very well at just under 2800fps using IMR4451.
The 260 Imp also shoots OK out to 600yds with Lapua 123s, but even at that mid-range distance, Berger 140 Hybrids & VLDs are consistently printing slightly tighter groups. I've still got enough Sierra 123s to test with - perhaps they'll do a bit better than the Lapua out past 600, but I doubt it. It's a shame - if I could get the 123s to tighten up a bit at 600, they would suffice for probably 85-90% of the shots taken during practical/tactical steel matches, while any of the Berger 140s (LRBT,Hybrid,VLD) are more than equal to the task of hitting steel out to 1400yds.
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