Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire 7mm-08 ammo advice needed....

Howdy fellow fire members! I'm heading home on leave in a few weeks, and I'm going to be taking my 12 year old son along on a hunting trip for black bear while I'm home. I was planning to pick up a Marlin Youth model X7 in 7mm-08 for him, but they are back - ordered so I decided to go with this one instead:
http://www.mossberg.com/images/Mossberg_Guns/930/NEW/27263.jpg

Since I'll only be home for two weeks, I won't have time to develop any good hand - loads for him. Thus my question - For factory ammo, what would ya'll suggest for black bear that would work well in the short 20" barrel on his bantam youth model Mossberg 7mm-08?

Thanks in advance for your advice, this will be my first experience with this caliber so I'm not sure what to look for in terms of factory ammo.

I would buy Federal Premium w/Partition in your shoes, and not stress ammo. But that's not why I'm posting. I'm posting to say, I hope you and your son have the hunt of a lifetime, and thank you, sir.

http://www.hornady.com/store/7mm-08-Rem/
either the superformance sst or gmx have worked well in a friends rifle

+1 Good luck on your hunt and thank you for your service!

My daughter drew a once in a lifetime elk license when she was 16. The time frame was too short for me to work up a load in my wife's 18" Model Seven, so I bought a couple of boxes of the Federal Premium 140gr Nosler Partition. She punched three rounds completely through her elk at 180 yards. It never moved from the spot.

I'd happily hunt the biggest black bear in the country with the same load.

I'd agree with MichiganScott,although I don't own a 7mm-08, there are a bunch of guys who I hunt with and they all shoot the Federal Premium 140 grain Nosler Partitions. Good luck!

Thanks gents, I'm really loooking forward to this. If I can put him on a bear, it will be his first big game animal. I feel confident I can find one in the same area I shot the one in my avatar last year. We'll see how it goes!

I'm a firm believer in Nosler partitions, My hand - loaded 180 gr. NP took my bear last year. One shot and he never moved.

I'm also a fan of Hornady's bullets. They have consistently given me the best accuracy in all my guns.

I plan to order dies and components for Timothy's rifle when I get back here after leave, so I can teach him to load for his own rifle when the tour is over.

welcome home, about time you and that boy did some wood tromping, you've earned it Matt and thank you.



limited experience but was duly impressed with the performance of the Barnes factory loading on a 47" moose last year. 120 gr.tsx DRT

I've used partitions for years and the only flies upon them is all those durn bullet failures! Can't tell you how many times I've been cuttin on a dead critter and found what's left of a partition and thought "well you certainly ain't very photogenic now" (dang I can't find the rolls eyes icon)

I join JeffO's sentiments that you guys have a hunt of a lifetime

Thanks 2L2Q. I keep seeing glowing reports about Barnes' TSX line. I've got some coming for the 35 Whelen the fire is building for me. It will be my first experience with them. Judging by everyone else's reports though, I might be another convert.