Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Long Range Hunting 264 Win vs 6.5X284 vs 7mm Rem mag

I just bought one of each .
7mm rem /. Sako aV
264 win. / . Rem mod 700 sendro
6.5x284/. Win push feed with a McMillan a1 and a feather weight lilga

They all are my favorites and I hate making my mind .

It might pay to take a gander over at the long range hunting forum and see what most have to say about the 7 RM. Most of the fellas over there opt for the 6.5 x 284 and even the 280 AI because of there 308 like load qualities and inherent accuracy when pushed hard.( To the limit of Saami pressures) The 7 mag is indeed more of an animal however it is an animal that is more difficult to control. The 7 mag can be extremely accurate but can also be like an ADD child getting ready to have a bad day. Take a gander it will be worth your time.

Shod

Reminds me if a dog chasing his tail.....

Then get a 280 if you require better barrel life than what a magnum 7 would provide. Not too many people put 1-2000 rounds through very many rifles. I only actually real life know two. Both of those guys shoot prairie dogs. Several guys here on the fire shoot that much but your not listing to them. I'm NOT one of those guys btw......

Not running a 7 Remmie for LR work because you want something cooler....... is like wearing cut-offs and a t-shirt to church, just because everyone else has on suit and tie......

7 Rem Mag is by far the most common and available cartridge capable of launching .600+ BC pills at 3k+..... look it up. The .264 Winny is also capable here.... and is a sound option for a guy wanting 'factory cool'.

Having built 30-40 7Rem Mags for customers over the last couple of years, I can definitely say they are not finicky. The 264WM on the other hand takes some work to keep it running. The 6.5-284 is nice, but the 7RM is a better all around.

They are all good cartridges because if they were not they wouldn't garner the support of the long range crowd.But the best 7mm bullets out weigh the best 6.5 bullets by 20-40 grains,and as a general purpose BG cartridge that advantage alone is worthy of consideration.I don't care how you measure bullet performance and wound channel creation....that extra bullet material has to go somewhere, and do something.I think it counts as an advantage for the 7mm,along with expanded frontal area.

Also, I for one hope not to shoot groups on BG animals...so long strings of shots on gongs and PD's don't enter the equation for me..

Recoil? The 7 RM will recoil a bit more while still not climbing into the category of the big 30's.

Barrel life? Who cares. I have spares ready for installation.

Temperamental? I married a beautiful, but temperamental woman who is smarter than me....life is a challenge.Who cares?

Besides, ever load a 264,add one grain of powder, and watch velocities climb 150 fps? I have....

I will take the 7mm Rem Mag,although I do "like" the 264.

I like the 7mm Rem Mag, and am working with one. A McWoody stock is being delivered in two days and I'll get it up and running soon.

For .264 cal, I like the 6.5-284 with 140 gr. bullets. I can get 3,000 fps easily, can push it to 3,100 fps. It's a very efficient round and it takes more powder to run a .264 Win Mag. I've reloaded for the .264, never owned one (not looking to own one). It will take an exceptional .264 Win Mag to out shoot my 6.5-284. From my experience, it's easier to get a 6.5-284 shooting half inch groups than a .264 Win Mag and the velocity difference isn't enough to make me a fan of the larger round.

YMMV.

DF

I like all of the chamberings mentioned, but unless you have a .264 Winchester Magnum, you'll never see what it's like to send 140 grain bullets with BC's around .615 way downrange at 3250 fps.

It's pretty amazing

JMO, but the 6.5-284 Norma is over-rated, only giving velocities slightly more than my Creedmoor or a .260 Remington. Take a hard look at the 6.5 Remington Magnum as well

The 140's at speed are amazing for sure. Although not listed, a 180 7mm at those speeds are fairly impressive as well!

A 7 Mag won't push a 180 to 3200 fps, and that's just it.

But a 7 Rogue will.

Yeah, there's a lot of chamberings that move bullets with giant BC's at hyperspeed, but the OP was asking opinions on "264 Win vs 6.5X284 vs 7mm Rem mag"

If we are talking strictly 7 Rem Mag, the 180 Berger moving at 3050 is pretty hefty medicine.

I'd still like to mess around with the 6.5 140s at high speed, though

Nope, A 7RM won't get there...but in a 28" barrel it will drive a 180 to 3100. 26-27" barrels run 3020-3050 pretty consistently. Running those numbers with a 180 Hybrid at .674BC, it becomes pretty impressive. The 6.5 140's at the 3200-3300 range are also impressive. Lots of great choices.

3,250 fps is impressive. The .264's I've worked with were more finicky than the 6.5-284 to get really tight groups. I guess one could put one together than would shoot pretty well. With a good turret scope, the 6.5-284 does what I need it to do on hogs, whitetails and pronghorns out to 500-600 yds.

I'm not a 1,000 yd. shooter, don't have much opportunity to shoot that far, so I may not enjoy the extra 200 fps as much as someone who was. For game animals larger than those mentioned, I'd probably choose a heavier caliber.

DF

I look at impact speed to properly open up a hunting vld to help make me determine which mv speed is needed.

I figure if I'm killing game at 1,000 of which I have never done and probably never will. All I'll ever need is 2,900 fps mv in a 6.5/140. 6.5-284 territory.

Or, my 260 Ackley shooting a 130 vld will do the same thing at 3,000 mv.

In shooting the 6.5's I'll get a whole lot more practice in, as they are far more fun to shoot than a bigger 7.

All you have to do is watch some of John Burns videos and see what scenarshooter has done with 6.5's at long distance to see that the 6.5 vld kills just as effective as a larger 28 caliber.

I've killed elk with the 264 and 6.5-284 out to 400 yds and I can tell no difference between them and the 7's I've used to kill elk, and I've killed over 30 elk using a 28 caliber rifle.

I killed a nice mule deer this year with a 6.5/130 vld to see and know the results were better than expected.

I'm looking hard at the 6.5 Rem Mag to get the speed I want at a reduced pressure than the 6.5-284.

After owning 3 264's and messing with the finickiness of them. I'm pretty much done with them, and I really don't need the extra speed and recoil that comes with them.
Same could be said with the larger 28. That said, I miss my STW!! And think a 7mm wby would be an awesome choice!

SU35,

Some of these guys must be putting .264 Win Mag's together that shoot pretty tight groups, or they wouldn't be whacking small targets at extended ranges.

From my experience with that round, it's gotta be an art form making that happen. I'm like you, I don't cherish spending time fooling with another .264.

DF

DF,

Yep, I've never been able to acquire the ballistic hermeneutics, aka, art and science of the 264 like I wanted.

Please explain, as the two have virtually identical case capacities. I ask because I too have been thinking about the 6.5mm RM lately.

Would you care to share some of the loads that would take you above 3000fps with a 180gr in a 26" barrel (including OAL)?

Thanks.