Petzal has plenty of experience with the 7mm Remington Magnum, along with a bunch of other cartridges in the same basic class, including the .270, .280, 7mm Weatherby Magnum, .30-06, etc.
I would guess that one reason he calls it overrated is the "magic" many hunters considered it to have when first introduced. Here in Montana a lot of 'em would often roll their shoulders, almost flexing them, while saying, "I shoot a SEVEN." They thought it was far more powerful than the .270 and .30-06, and some of 'em thought it was more powerful than the .300 Winchester Magnum. I have no idea why.
One of my good friends in the gun-writing fraternity got one when he was working at his first adult job at a Montana sawmill in the 1970sl. He handloaded the Speer 160-grain Mag-Tip with a load the Speer manual of the day said got over 3000 fps. He killed a bunch of game with his Seven, including elk, deer, and some big black bears, and it knocked the snot out of 'em.
When he started gun writing, he of course bought a chronograph, partly because they were becoming more affordable. He found out his magic load was getting around 2700 fps at the muzzle, about like a warmly-loaded 7x57. He also found a lot of the factory ammo of the day (but not all) was getting .270 or .30-06 velocities. The reason his Seven worked so well, of course, is that he was good shot.
I have nothing against the 7mm RM, and have not only had at least one of various makes in my collection for many years but killed quite a bit of game with the round--and seen hunting partners do the same, both in North America and Africa. It's a fine cartridge, but have never found it quite as magic as many regarded it in the 1960s and 70s, when a lot of hunters judged cartridges on the size of the case (and also perhaps the magic magnum belt) rather than actual ballistics.
Last edited by Mule Deer; 05/13/21.
