Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 7mm Weatherby

Been looking at a new MkV in 7mm Weatherby that has been languishing on my dealer's shelf for years. I've never been much of a 7mm guy, but I find myself thinking pretty hard about (this) one.
What kind of velocities with different loads are you guys seeing, and how do you like the caliber?

Thanks for any and all info.

Are the Weatherby's still 1-10 twist for their 7mm Wby's?

I just checked their site, and they are indeed listed as a 1-10. That's a bit slow for a 7mm??

I enjoyed my MkV until the barrel begin to go at around 3,000 rounds and a friend bought it. 2 best loads and always well under an inch were 1 grain less than max of IMR 4831 with 160 grain Partitions and 1 grain less than max of IMR 7828 with 170 grain Grand Slams. Both loads used Fed. 215M primers.

I had a 7mm Weatherby Mark V Ultra Lightweight for a while. The 1-10 twist shot fine with the 175 Hornady Spire Point here in Montana at 4000 feet above sea level at typical fall hunting temperature of 35 degrees. Also saw my companion's Mark V work fine on a bull elk at 8500 feet in Colorado, with the same bullet.

I used the 160 Partition in my rifle for hunting, which shot very well at around 3200 fps.

In general, I haven't found the Weatherby freebore to work all that well with high-BC boattails, but can't say that's a hard and fast rule.

I have a 7mm Wby in a Mark V with the 24" buggy whip barrel. Took me a while go figure out what it likes, but it shoots really well consistently with 160 grain Accubond over RL 25 for an average velocity around 3,100 fps.

I should add, really well consistently for that gun is an inch or better at 100 yrds. My son loves to use it and has killed several elk with it.

I always shot 140’s in the 7mm Weatherby I had. They were great!

Thanks for the info, folks!
Appreciated.

JB,
Thanks for the information. It would be nice to play with the 175s, but I would be more than happy with a 160gr Accubond or Partition or who knows what else, for that matter. Part of the fun, right?

I own 2 Mark Vs in 7mm Weatherby. One is a Howa-built with a 24” hammer forged barrel and the other is a USA made rifle with a button rifled Krieger Criterion 26” tube. Both shoot inside an inch with various loads, most notably 150 gr TTSX over MagPro and Norma MRP. None of the elk taken with either one have taken more than a few steps before expiring. Based on my biased experience, I would opt for the 150 TTSX or the 160 Accubonds or Partitions. I’ve never warmed up to the idea of 175 gr bullets in either rifle, although the 24” barreled one shoot Weatherby factory 175s at a chronographed 3,010 fps around 1.5” group. Never fired them in the other one. I’ll stick with the lighter fare for the velocity. I have other rifles better suited for launching heavy for caliber projectiles. Happy Trails

WAM,
Good info there. Thank you.

Buy it.

My 7mm bee is a sako action w/ a pacnor 24" 1-8" twist barrel. I'm still in the process of working up loads.
It does seem sensitive to oal length and has shot widely varying groups with small changes in oal.

I am concentrating on 150 gr bullets and some show promise shooting groups from 7/8" to 1- 1/4" I'll start tweaking these loads as soon as the weather gets better.

Heres some info on loads

150 gr. nosler E-tip w/ reloader 25 oal 3.400 vel. 3204fps
145 gr barnes ttsx w/ reloader 25 oal 3.360 vel 3260fps
150 Hornady GMX w/ hogdon H1000 - oal 3.450 vel 3180fps
Fed 215primers used in all. None of these loads are max. this sako has a 3.600 mag box

All these mono bullets seat to different lengths due to the placement and amount of grooves in the bullets
Reloader 25 and H1000 seem to work really well with 150 gr bullets giving good velocity and low SD.
Load development might be simpler with flat based bullets as Muledeer says, but you probably can get there with boattails if you don't mind tinkering.

340boy,
I neglected to add that I get 3,180 fps with MagPro and 3,228 fps with MRP with the 150 Barnes TTSX. My velocities are very much inline with those posted above. I also use GM215M primers with both powders. I have not played around with the Barnes LRX, E-Tip or GMX bullets.
Happy Trails

I had one 20 years ago. It was not a shooter with anything I tried in it. It might have been the design of the Weatherby stock, but I felt the recoil was a good bit more than the Remington 7mag. I shot a few deer with mine, but was trying to run 140's real fast and was not getting an exit. I guess I was just shooting those standard cup and cores a little too fast for short to medium range shots (didn't get any long shots). I am actually a Weatherby fan, but this particular rifle was on the verge of being crude. The action and bolt were both very rough and shells in the magazine were scratched and scraped by the bolt. Considering I paid over a thousand for it a long time ago it was not a very good value and I was very disappointed in the rifle. Conversely, I have handled some of the West German models in the past and the workmanship was top notch and they were smooth as butter.

Hard to beat the caliber though, recoil is tolerable and the ballistics are great. I would consider getting another one for another go - I think I simply just got a lemon.

My MkV wears an 8 twist Brux. Amazing what a great barrel with a fast twist can do...

But, it's a 7RM, not a 7 Wby...

Oh well...

DF

Same here except my M700 wears a 9 twist Lilja. Amazing what it can do as well.

But it's a 7 Wby not a 7RM.

Oh well...

RD

Never hunted with anything other than 160 grain Accubonds. Had great results with them on everything.

Getting my hunting bud all set for upcoming PG Africa hunt. I have several bullets to try, but the 160 NAB seems to be the standard. He's shooting a 7RM Sendero. It's a heavy rifle, but he loves those guns, has a couple. Asked why he packs such a heavy rifle. His response, "I know what it'll do when I get it there"... And he does.

I have some 160 Fed Tipped Bonded Trophy to try, but they're getting hard to find. Have plenty 160 NAB's.

He want's to stay with 160's. Any other suggestions,160 gr, 7mm bullets for PG?

DF