7mm-08 Deer Load

[ImBIllT]

I used to get pencil holes with the Accubond's. This said the insides were wrecked. These were 7mm 140's going pretty fast.

Fast is key to get those AB's to open up. The 2700fps the guy is loading to in here is likely a little slow for Accubonds. My dad was shooting 168's in the 2700-2800fps range. I was shooting 168 BT hunting bullets at about the same velocity. The insides were not wrecked on any of the four deer. If you start getting into the 3400-3000fps range then I'm sure they perform much differently. The fact that the OP is talking about woods distances certainly means he will likely have a little higher impact velocity than we had, even with similar muzzle velocities, but all four deer in question were under 200yds.

Velocity can definitely change the behavior of a bullet. I was shooting pigs with a 55gr Lapua soft point running about 2850fps from a .222, and getting about 18"-24" of penetration, which resulted in pass throughs on the tasty sized animals. My wife shot her first deer with the same gun and load and got an exit as well. I assumed the bullet was tough so I loaded some in my .223AI to cull some does and ended up shooting a pig. The same bullet that gave me 18"-24 of penetration at 2850fps gave me softball sized lumps of jelly on the surface at 3500fps. I shot the thing three times, last one in the neck, and didn't get more that 5" of penetration on any shot.

 

[CTK]

Fast is key to get those AB's to open up. The 2700fps the guy is loading to in here is likely a little slow for Accubonds. My dad was shooting 168's in the 2700-2800fps range. I was shooting 168 BT hunting bullets at about the same velocity. The insides were not wrecked on any of the four deer. If you start getting into the 3400-3000fps range then I'm sure they perform much differently. The fact that the OP is talking about woods distances certainly means he will likely have a little higher impact velocity than we had, even with similar muzzle velocities, but all four deer in question were under 200yds.

Velocity can definitely change the behavior of a bullet. I was shooting pigs with a 55gr Lapua soft point running about 2850fps from a .222, and getting about 18"-24" of penetration, which resulted in pass throughs on the tasty sized animals. My wife shot her first deer with the same gun and load and got an exit as well. I assumed the bullet was tough so I loaded some in my .223AI to cull some does and ended up shooting a pig. The same bullet that gave me 18"-24 of penetration at 2850fps gave me softball sized lumps of jelly on the surface at 3500fps. I shot the thing three times, last one in the neck, and didn't get more that 5" of penetration on any shot.

3150 ish fps mv out of a 280ai with 140 AB. All heart/lung shot deer ran. Never more than 100y, but they ran. Shot one facing me in the chest. Complete disaster inside him and he still ran.

 

[onelastshot]

There are 101 different options that will work for your rifle. Decide on a bullet then try 2-3 different powders to see what the results are. Three powders I'd recommend are RL17, H4350 and IMR4350. Your rifle will tell you which powder and bullet it likes. I personally shoot the 168 grain AccuBonds. Great penetration and they provide adequate expansion.

 

[pnw]

There are 101 different options that will work for your rifle. Decide on a bullet then try 2-3 different powders to see what the results are. Three powders I'd recommend are RL17, H4350 and IMR4350. Your rifle will tell you which powder and bullet it likes. I personally shoot the 168 grain AccuBonds. Great penetration and they provide adequate expansion.

although I have not managed to try on game yet I like what I am seeing from the 150 gr lr accubond at 2850 from a 26 in barrel they went through 4 1 gallon water filled milk jugs found in fifth at 20 and 400 yards with a nice mushroom for both and were right around 70 grains each I really wasn't expecting the 20 yd shot hold up like it did

 

[ImBIllT]

I have to say, the partition is hard to beat. The front is as soft as any varmint bullet out there, and the back as tough as a solid. I've never had great accuracy and the BC's suck, so I don't

although I have not managed to try on game yet I like what I am seeing from the 150 gr lr accubond at 2850 from a 26 in barrel they went through 4 1 gallon water filled milk jugs found in fifth at 20 and 400 yards with a nice mushroom for both and were right around 70 grains each I really wasn't expecting the 20 yd shot hold up like it did

I'd trust that ABLR more than the AB too. They are meant for lower velocity impacts than the standard AB.

 

[ImBIllT]

3150 ish fps mv out of a 280ai with 140 AB. All heart/lung shot deer ran. Never more than 100y, but they ran. Shot one facing me in the chest. Complete disaster inside him and he still ran.

That's all I ever experienced shooting tougher bullets. Then I switched. I heart shot a muley at 475 with an 85gr Solid Base out of a .243, face-plant..dead. Wife double-lunged a WT at 75yds with the same rig, flopped around a little...dead. She double-lunged another WT at about 150 with it, bang flop. I I double lunged a big muley at 150 with a 185gr VLD from a .308...never even took a step, just dropped from view and scared me that I might have missed him. Shot a 150lb running hog in the guts with the same rig, squeal...dead.

I did shoot a big muley on the run at 125 with that 85gr Solid Base that didn't drop. He was quartering away, and I didn't lead him, just pulled up and shot. After a fair bit of time and tracking I did collect him. The base of that bullet had lumped up in the hide on the back side. It caught the back end of the off-side lung. Had it been a Partition or 20-30gr heavier, it would have exited that skin and he would have bled out quite a bit faster. My determination was that I liked the quick killing of a fragile bullet on well placed shots, but that I needed more penetration to remain ethical on less than perfect shots. My solution is to stick with a fragile bullet, but up the weight and sectional density considerably. That's what lead me to the 185VLD in the .308. So far I like it.

I also like the flat nose on the Lapua Mega. I've never used one, but that flat nose should cause a lot of shock without having to be fragile enough to expand. It should combine shock and penetration well. That's what I liked about those 55gr Lapuas in the .222. Shooting a hog sounded like slapping a watermelon and it put them down a lot better than it should have.

 

[NCVarhtr]

As others have mentioned, the 120 Gr Nosler BT is very hard to beat. My partner and I have used it for years and killed a "boat load" of deer with it. Never lost a single Deer with it . We used it in the .284 Win, ,280 Rem. and the 7-08. A truly great bullet.

 

[AR Shooter]

The Hornady Superformance 139gr SST ammo works wonders on deer. Shoots 1moa at 200yd in my M700 CDL. Not worth the effort to work up a load when this shoots so well.

 

[alintx]

Don't over analyze this. But 120 Sierra pro hunters and load them over varget. In Jim carmichaels wife s words" it's not rocket science, put the pointy end in forward and shoot em in the front half".

 

[CTK]

My son is hunting our youth season tomorrow with a mild 7-08 load and the 120 BT. He will not be taking a shot over 100y. I am slightly apprehensive about the hunt but am hoping for the best. He will be using a cradle like device on top of a BOG pod.

 

[Tommie]

Four pages of discussion on which load to shoot a whitetail deer inside of 100 yards with a 7mm-08? Short of some explosive varmint bullet, what load won’t work?

1) Go to a store.
2) Buy a box of 7mm-08 ammunition (be sure the box has your favorite colors).
3) Sight the gun in.
4) Kill a deer.

 

[Intheshop]

Bout the only difference from Tommie above,I'd buy several boxes with the same code #.

After killing one,two,?.....just use the cases and start handloading.Next year,if you're doing it right(shooting regularly)...repeat.

 

[CTK]

My son is hunting our youth season tomorrow with a mild 7-08 load and the 120 BT. He will not be taking a shot over 100y. I am slightly apprehensive about the hunt but am hoping for the best. He will be using a cradle like device on top of a BOG pod.

My son decided he wanted to leave within 1 hour of hunting. Instead of getting pissed and forcing him to stay, I said fine and that I hoped we could do it another time. This was a milestone for me. Last year I would explain to him all that went into getting him into the position to shoot a deer. Then I would make him stay out of principle. 8 year old first deer project.... Fail.

 

[mikecockcroft]

Anyone who hasn't spent time trying to get kids to be still and get a shot off on a deer has no idea how hard and frustrating it is!!!
Hopefully he will be ready to go again soon.
PS. My new favorite deer/pig rifle is a 7-08AI

 

[cjames]

I'm shooting a 140 gr Partition, 41 grns of Varget, CCI LR Primer and Lapua brass. I had a little boar come in this week end. I'm shooting from up on a hill and about a 150 yrds out. He was facing me, the shot impacted just to the left of his right eye and exited below the left side of his jaw then blew thru his left leg. I was pretty impressed with the load and the bullet. This is the first animal I taken with this rifle, and this load and it more than exceeded my expectations. I cant wait to see how it does on deer.

 

[bighorn06]

Shot a Browning BLR lite for years. It takes down ever thing it touches. It shot factory Rem 140 pointed soft point great, witch was the only load available for years.
I would stick to a similar bullet with 4350 powder IMR is ok since Hodgeon is hard to come by. When my son grew up He took it away from me. Had to buy another. Thinking of getting a Tikka T3 in 7-08 also. Had a 308. It punched through deer and they kept on going. The 7-08 puts them down, no trail to follow!

 

[jrsdws]

Updating my old...old post here. Last year I settled on loading 140gr Sierra Pro Hunters over Varget. After determining optimal charge weight, I loaded the Varget at 43.25gr....near max load. Last year my only shot was on a yearling so I passed, thus not getting so see anything more than accuracy while sighting in and working up the load.

I just got back from Wisconsin deer camp and am happy to report the harvest of a mature doe and an 8 point buck. The doe was my first at only about a 50 yard shot. She was facing me so I took the full frontal shot....not my favorite, but it was a good hit. She made about a 30 yard death run. The buck was about a 100 yard broadside shot. He dropped where he stood.

Both shots provided pass throughs. The chest shot on the doe exited back in the groin area and tore her up. I'm quite pleased with the results and will load enough to last this old hunter a lifetime.