Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 7x57 Mule Deer loads

Life circumstances have prevented me from doing much shooting over the past year or so but was able to get out today and shoot some loads in the Model 70 FWT I have been playing with the last couple years.

160 gr. Speer Hot-Cor's shot right about an inch or a touch under propelled by 48.5 grs. of 4350. Nosler 150 BT's did almost as well with 49.5 grs. of the same powder. If memory serves correctly those loads were getting just about 2700 and 2775, respectively. It has been over a year since I shot them over a chrony.

John,

Do you have any loads for Big Game and 140 grain bullets?
I've been using IMR-4350 and then H-4350 for some time. Would like to try another powder just because.

Thanks,
Steve

Steve and Bea175,

Thought I'd answer both of your questions about Ramshot powders in the 7x57 in one post.

What I often do when handloading "modern" 7x57's (and I haven't owned any other kind for years) and can't find any data for certain powders is use 7mm-08 data as a starting load. For some reason Ramshot doesn't list any 7x57 data, but the 7x57 has a little bigger case than the 7mm-08 so this is safe.

The problem is a maximum load, since as I mentioned earlier in this thread the throat-length of 7x57's is all over the place. As an example, I've owned 7x57's where as little as 48 grains of IMR4350/H4350 was a practical maximum with 140-grain bullets, and other rifles that easily took 50+ grains.

So I can't reasonably suggest a maximum load for all rifles. Instead I suggest adding powder until muzzle velocities are no more than 2900 with 140's, 2700 with 160's, or 2500 with 175's. This assumes "normal" barrel lengths.

The one difference between loading Ramshot powders and many others is they're ball powders, so often shoot more accurately with hotter primers. The most extreme example I've seen was soon after they were introduced. Big Game looked like a good powder for the .220 Swift, but after working up to Ramshot's listed maximum 5-shot groups from my rifle averaged around 1-1/2". However, that was with a standard LR primer. I remembered their tech guy saying magnum primers often produced better accuracy, so switched to the Federal 215. Groups shrank to 1/2" to 3/4".

John,

Many thanks for the info and I'll give Big Game and Federal 215 primers a literal and figurative shot.

Steve

JB
Did the Serengetti 7x57 go down the road?
John

John,

Nope, it's still here--and over the next couple of days I'm loading a bunch of new-load ammo for an article.

Be sure to load up something for the pigs.

I've not had good luck with Speer Hot-Core bullets -- no expansion. i'd like to hear how they work in your 7x57.
(I prefer Hornady Spire Point Interlock bullets for deer and antelope)

Bugger,

Are you talking about Hot-Cors in general or just in the 7x57?

John: In which publication do you expect the article to appear?

Mule Deer
I've had trouble with 6mm Hot Cores. I've shot a lot of 7x57 loads and with the velocities I've gotten I would be concerned about heavy Hot Cores (160 grain) in the 7x57. If you or someone else has had good luck with the that heavy a bullet in the 7x57 with Hot Cores, I'd bow to your/their experience.
I'm a big 7mm fan from 7TCU, 7 International, 7x57, 280 and 7 Mag and the only failure I've had with any bullet in the 7mm is 160 grain Speer Mag tips in 280. (If I told you what happened you'd probably say I'm lying and probably would ignore anything else I'd write, but I had witnesses.)
I stopped using Speer as big game bullets in the smaller calibers, even though they often get excellent accuracy, sometimes better than most.
I may use the 250 grain hot cores in my 350 - they are tempting -since it shoots very accurately and deep penetration is important to me with that rifle. I'm open to hear your's or others experiences.

BTW, the only 7x57's I've owned is a military mouser (the mouser was my first high power rifle - 1960 or so) and a Remington classic. The classic will be avilable at my estate sale unless my kids grab it.

GUNS magazine.

Thanks, John; I'll be looking for it.

I sold my John Rigby 275 but am still playing with another 7mm Remmy and a 280.

JW

John, any pictures of the Rigby? I'd be interested to see any you might have.

Thanks

Mike

Guns Magazine -- Vintage Performer
Quote
"The load I used almost exclusively was the 139-grain Hornady, both pre- and post-Interlock, along with IMR-4350 in W-W cases with W-W standard large rifle primers. "

That's my favorite too!! Although I have used different manufacturer brass and primers. The IMR4350 along with the 139 Hornady plain base and BT is the only jacketed load I use any more. And a 170 grain cast is the only other load.

Bugger,

I haven't used the 160 Hot-Cor in the 7x57, but have used the 130 and 145 with good results. Would be puzzled if the 160 didn't work, however, as have shot a number of animals with 160-grain Sierra softpoints from the 7x57, and over the years found the performance of Sierras very similar to Hot-Cors in the same applications.

Off the top of my head, have also used these other HC's on big game: 105 6mm in the .243 Win., 100 .25 in the 250 Savage, 140 in .264 Winchester Magnum, 165 .30 in .30-06, and 200 .338 in .338 Win. Magnum. Haven't had any real problems with any, but have never used any of the Mag-Tips on big game.

Thanks John
The 105 HC in 6mm was the issue for me. Quite a few years ago, I shot a nice 14+" pronghorn at 100 yards through the lungs while he was still laying down at sunrise. He got up and starting trotting away; 4 more shots through the lungs and by that time the pronghorn was walking. The last shot was through the neck and he fell. The grouping with that 105 grain bullet was the best that rifle had shot up to then <".25 MOA - 5 shot groups. Since then Hornady has come out with SST and a 58 grain bullet that shoots as well as that 105 grain Speer in both my 6mm's.
But back to the pronghorn there was no expansion with any of the hits. Each exit wound looked to no larger than .25".
I'm puzzled that for you the Hot Cores worked like Sierras since the results I've (and others I hunt with) had with Sierras is very fast expansion, sometimes with little penetration -- the opposite end of the spectrum to the Speer 105 HC.
Well, I'm an old dog, and I know there's always something to learn.

Results from a 280 (on a rifle I built on a military Mauser action) for the 160 grain mag tip. One devestating blow-up on a pronghorn and one one-shot kill on a cow elk shot through the shoulder. Seemingly opposite results??? For accuracy, that 280 preferred Speer Mag tips over any other bullet. I more or less gave that rifle with a Weaver K4 to a friend in Denver about 30 years ago.