Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters why is 7mm08 more popular than 280 Remington?

Well...similar to Elvis above....... I didn't know what a 280 R was. really. That was 1975 or 76. I only started deer hunting in '72

I WILL NOT tell you what rifle/cart I started with -- I'll never have another one.

Jerry

This from P 2
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gunswizard Online Content

The 7mm08 works in a short action and the .280 not. Perhaps the biggest blunder Remington made with the .280 was renaming it the 7mm Express, this caused lots of wrecked 7mm Magnums from firing the 7mm Express. Remington realized this folly for what it was and pretty quickly changed the name back to .280.





Thanks gunsw. Like I said earlier I'd heard 'rumors' but haven't seen facts.

For myself - I'd prefer to have one of the 7mm Express Rem than a 280, because of the oddity and rareness.


Thanks Again

Jerry

J


Never fear. The LGS I frequent infrequently had a salesman, “gun guy,” tell me the 300 WSM was unpopular and not a good seller.
Au contraire thinks I. ....Oh, forget it.

Don't you know those Gun Store Goobers are the most learned?

I always liked the 7-08 but never owned one. Years ago when my brother wanted a new rifle I tried to talk him into one but he opted for the 308 instead. I've mostly used a 270 years ago, but when the local shop had a 280 in a M700 Mountain DM on clearance...I couldn't pass it up.

I wonder if Remington offered the 700ADL synthetic in 280 REM if it would be a good seller?

I doubt it.

They do make it the 700 Mountain stainless with B&C stock.

Savage just released 4 new models in 280AI, and Hornady released 280AI brass.

I think that is the future of the 280. As the parent of the 280AI.

Good move.

I have always liked the 280.I have probably owned about 12 of them including a couple 280AI.They were all very accurate.The best of them was a Dakota 76 that I foolishly sold here.I have only owned two 7MM 08s.One sucked and the one I have now is stupid accurate.The difference between a long action and a short action is all in the shooters mind .4 ounces doesn't mean much.That said the 7MM 08 will probably do anything the 280 can do.So it is a choice of what ever trips your trigger.Huntz

Just to pull an answer outta my azz - I'd say because the 270 Win was already entrenched and popular and the 7-08 fit in a SA and benefited from the popularity of the 7x57 and 7RM.

7mm it seems is about the only metric that really caught on in those days, here in the US. When the 280 came out and was the 7Express, it was handicapped and dwarfed by the 7RM.



I like it fine though. Case capacity is just about right, in my opinion, for about anything that needs doing with a 7mm rifle.

Never thought much about the .280 myself until I ran across a Sako AV in great condition for a surprisingly reasonable price at a gunshow. Now, with 140g NAB's at just under 3100 fps it gets hunted fairly often. I intend to work up a load with the 120g NBT's this spring. I also have a 7mm08 in a Sako M591 that is stupid accurate with 120g NBT's can't remember the velocity on those. I think the 7mm08 is more popular because a good many people like it for a youth and ladies gun. It lends itself well to the compact rifles without much loss in performance.

My perspective is from outside the USA, so a little different than most here. I've never owned a 280, but never wanted to either. I have owned three 7x64 rifles. Still have two. The .280 and 7x64 are almost identical in case shape and capacity. In my opinion the .280 has never had a legitimate reason for existence. The 7x64 predates it by a few decades, was always loaded to full pressure, and has lived up to its potential all around the world, everywhere but the USA. The 7x64 is older, more worldly, and better established. The .280 could die and nobody but a few USA rifle loonies would miss it.
The 7mm-08 is very efficient, low recoil, low muzzle blast, and very accurate. It fits a short action rifle perfectly. It handles the 140 grain bullets so well that there is little need for heavier. It kills deer sized game very well. My sons each have one.

I've been watching all this from the sidelines. I don't own either. I've shot both. My angle on this is that I've had to answer a lot of questions from uninformed deer hunters as best I could. Overall, I agree with the premise that 280 Rem is relatively unknown compared to 7mm-08. Those that know it, seem to hold 7mm-08 in high regard. Those that actually own 280 Rem think it's terrific. A lot of whitetail deer hunters aspire to owning a 7mm-08. Far fewer want a 280 Rem.

The big draw for 7mm-08 was the perception of a flatter trajectory over the 308 WIN with far less recoil. This is an opinion held mostly by folks who don't reload. As to the 280 Rem, the biggest perceived detraction seemed to be that it did not compare well to the 7mm Rem Mag.

In comparison with the 270 WIN, there seemed to be a perception that it was more old-school. For some, that was a big draw. Others felt newer was better, and to that end 7mm-08 seemed to be the preferred choice.

Lesser perceptions I encountered:

1) 7mm-08 is a good a good Yute and Wimmz' cartridge, but 243 WIN is better.
2) 280 REM is too close to 30-06 to make it worth the change
3) Short action cartridges are better than long action (without really knowing why)

I'm not saying any of this is necessarily real. I'm just reporting what I read.

Personally, as an informed whitetail hunter in his 60th year, I see more reason to consider a 7mm-08 than a 280 Rem down the road simply over the issue of recoil. I'm heavily vested in 30-somethings. However, I expect that sometime in the next 20 years or so I'll want less recoil than my 30-06's afford. I'm already dabbling with 25-06.

Here in the Trans-Bluegrass, I used to see a preponderance of 30-06's and 30-30 WIN. The latter being the choice of the older generation. As they've retired, the newer generation prefers 30-somethings with 270 WIN being the choice for women. I occassionally hear of 243 WIN. I see few hunters picking anything in 7mm. Those that do, go afield with 7mm Rem Mag.

I'm of the opinion the 7mm-08 is the best general purpose cartridge for the average American ever conceived. With bullets of similar SD/BC to the 308 Win, it kicks less (lighter bullets) while doing the same duty( ie, the 7mm 140 gr is quite similar to the .308 165 gr). The 7-08 is also not hobbled with the 308's ridiculously long throat. And, if you need more than a 7-08 for average US hunting, you need to learn how to shoot, pick a better bullet, or need something with a lot more power than a 280.

Guys that wanted a 280, 7mm Express, 7mm-06, already had the 270 available, established firmly since the 1920's. Most went with the 270 or skipped on by Remington's confusing 7mm-06-mess right to the 7mm RM.

I've had both, killed with both. I'll take the 7-08.

"Trans-Bluegrass"

Is that another new gender?

Should I ever feel the need to have another short 7mm, I will go back to the .284 Win. which is what I started with in 1967. Until then, I have my 7x57 and 7x64 to do what needs to be done in the hunting field.

With modern powders and bullets, the 7mm-08 IS a 280 from 1999. My brother and father owned several 280's. My brother still has a couple. They have 21" bbls, and have never gotten better velocities than 7-08 data in 24" bbls. He was surprised when he got a chronograph, and very disappointed. Never mind that he could shoot 2" 5-shot groups at 300 with one, and 1" and small change 5-shot groups with the other. Groups, plural. And never mind that he killed his biggest elk with one of those rifles, with one shot at 650 yds to anchor him, then a finisher up close.

He has gotten around to hunting one again, after putting them away for several years, and killed an antelope drama-free last season with a well-placed shot around 250 yds. And he is planning to buy his 11yo son a 7-08 this year for his primary hunting rifle for MT elk, deer, etc. In the past, he had gotten his boys a 300 SAUM (his oldest), a 30-06 (his next-oldest), and a 308 (next to last). I'm sure its no accident that he has aged about 15 years over the span of these purchases, and is in his 50's.

The .280 is very legitimate and a better choice in a sporting rifle. There just are so many .284 chamberings out there. I just think the the 7/08 gets good press- that is it

I've owned four 280s and three 7mm08s. The first two were Rugers with 22 inch barrel. They shot less than 2900 fps with 140 grain bullets. The second 280 I owned was an Encore with a 26 inch barrel. It shot close to 3100 with 140 grain bullets and I kept it several years. Sometimes single shots can be aggravating for keeping up with extra ammo. The last 280 I owned was a TC Venture with a 24 inch barrel. It shot great right around 3000 fps. After sending it back to the factory for inconsistent misfires three times to get the bolt replaced I got rid of it. Now the 24 inch barreled 7mm08s I shoot does the same speed as a 22 inch 280 I am pleased with it.

Over the years of shooting the 280, I shot one box of factory ammo in it. Now there are several kinds of 7mm08 factory ammo if I need them that are available vs the 280.

Same reason as there are more democrats than republicans