Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 7mm-08.... The Good, The Bad, The Ugly......

Agreed!

On the property I hunt, a 200 yard shot is a long one. Most of the deer (and pigs, of course) are taken generally at less than 100. The O'Connor load of 160-grain bullets at about 2660 fps is fine. As you said, expansion at impact velocity is key.

Love the dark antlers on that buck!

Mighty fine buck

One other reason I love my 7mm-08 is because as I age, I find that I am more sensitive to recoil. My beloved Ruger tang-safety 30-06 is just not comfortable any more, even with the best recoil pad I can find. Yet I still love to hunt elk, and need something powerful enough to for me to feel confident of it doing its job reliably if I do mine.

Now, I probably spend too much time reading things like "Is the 7mm-08 adequate for elk?" and "What is the best bullet/load combo for the 7mm-08 when elk is on the menu?", but I have always had a bit of doubt in the back of my mind when leaving the 30-06 at home and taking the little 7 out for elk.

So this is how I approached it: most people would agree that factory Hornady 30-06 ammo using a 165gr Hornady Interlock is adequate elk medicine. I decided to explore the possibility if my 7mm-08 could in any way compare to that in velocity, energy and penetration.

Now this is a fair comparison in one way: I'm going to compare factory Hornady 30-06 ammo to factory Hornady 7mm-08 ammo, but instead of the Interlock bullet I'm going with the 150gr ELD-X bullet in the 7mm-08 to see what this newly available design will gain for me.

Here's the 30-06/165 Interlock (with data from the Hornady web page):

Test Barrel (24") Velocity (fps) / Energy (ft-lbs)
Muzzle 100 200
2800/2872 2591/2460 2392/2096

300 400 500
2202/1776 2020/1495 1848/1251

Trajectory (inches)
Muzzle 100 200 300 400 500
-1.50 1.80 0.00 -7.90 -23.00 -46.70

Here's the 7mm-08/150 ELD-X:

Test Barrel (24") Velocity (fps) / Energy (ft-lbs)
Muzzle 100 200
2770/2555 2613/2274 2461/2018

300 400 500
2315/1784 2173/1573 2037/1381

Trajectory (inches)
Muzzle 100 200 300 400 500
-1.50 1.80 0.00 -7.50 -21.60 -43.00

What I see is that the 7mm-08 has slightly more retained energy and slightly higher velocity at every distance from 100 yards on out, using a bullet that has a higher SD (for penetration I can count on). Of course, penetration depends on many more factors than SD, but SD is a good, simple starting point for comparison.

The 7mm-08 also benefits me beautifully in consequence of its smaller case: recoil with the 150gr bullet and only 41.5 gr of Rel 15 in an 8lb rifle will be about 15 ft/lbs, while the 165gr 30-06 with 57gr of either H or IMR 4350 in a rifle of the same weight will bring 21 ft/lbs of recoil. Both loads get their respective bullet moving at roughly 2800 fps.

And THAT is my huckleberry - significantly reduced recoil in a off-the shelf bullet/caliber combination that favorably compares to a traditional and unquestionably adequate elk load: the 165gr Interlock in a 30-06. My nagging doubts can now be put to rest!

I would love to see the same kind of comparison with the 162gr ELD-X, but it's not available in factory 7mm-08 ammo and I believe Mule Deer is only starting to wring out some handloads for that bullet and the 7mm-08.

Thank you gentleman. That little rifle has killed a lot of deer from 25-370 yards. It's just a hammer. I've always shot 139-140 grn projectiles. The thing I love about this rifle though is that it will shoot anything I feed it equally well. 120-150grn

I picked up some 160-gr GameKings the other day, but need to some Interlocks to get the brass. But inside 100 yards these Interlocks are hard to beat.

Interlock in...


Interlock out...

I pick the 7-08 over the 30-06 for any game for really shooting/hunting here in the lower 48. If I had to kill a charging griz, I'd probly rather rely on the 30-06 (or larger), but I'll put my 7-08 up for anything less.

bludog

I like my two 7mm-08's and will probably have another one day. They are hammers on deer and fun to shoot. Both bucks were taken in the low country of SC. The first rifle is a Rem Mt. Rifle with a MCMILLAN MR stok and bolt worked over by Karl. It likes 140 gr. SGKs.



This is a GAP NT on a 700 with McMillan Classic and it likes 140 NABs, very well.

Fabulous caliber to reload for. When my boy was 12, he began loading all of his. Now he does a lot of mine.

I use one for my long range hunting rig with 162 eldm. Used a long action and had it throated out long so I could use a detachable mag and not have seat them deep in the case. My load is 45.4 grains of H350 for about 2740fps. It's taken 9 animals ranging from 75-550 yards. Only 1 has taken a step and bullets have exited on all with half fist sized holes in the ribs. I don't like allot of recoil and at this speed I don't have to use a brake and can see impacts

It's been a factory round for 37 years! You can't poke holes in deer with a cartridge that old. It ain't even a magnum or has a fancy name.
I'm gonna use my new 6.35 x 57 Ροβερτς wildcat until something fancier than a 7-08 gets writ up in the magazines.

Don't go pushin no furrin calbers around here!

It's no trick to get 2,650 with a 160 from the 7-08. That's essentially the same speed as a 180 from the 308. The last has taken so much game as to be indisputable in its effectiveness. It's what most 30-06 factory 180's get. I think the 7-08 has plenty of gas for a 160, and a Partition in that wieght at 2,650 turns the 7-08 into a giant killer.