Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Light weight bullets in 7x57

Hi everyone.
I’m down to only owning one hunting rifle to do it all for the foreseeable future.
My rifle is a small ring 7x57 it shoots 160gr bullets into a half inch all day long.

I do hunt mule deer and elk on the prairie quite often where shots can be as far as 400m.
270 country in other words.

For those occasions I’d like to develop a load using 140gr bullets,the old 160gr load at 2550fps may just not be quite as flat shooting as a 140gr load at 2800FPS.

My rifle never shot 150grain bullets well so I doubt that it’s going to shoot 140gr bullets any better.

My question is this:
Are there any tricks to getting a rifle with a twist/long throat that shoots heavy bullets to shoot lighter weight bullets?

Would a 140gr tsx for example shoot well given that the bullet shank is quite long for its weight?

Thanks

Try the 120 grain ballistic tip, they tolerate jump very well and are great killers

Yep.

Are you guys killing elk with the 120 grain ballistic tip?

Ill try them on Mulies.
Thanks for the suggestion

Tag, in same boat. What about the Speer 130’s?

I have to ask. How much accuracy do you really need for a big game rifle? At one time a 2" rifle was considered just fine when in fact most didn't that good, yet game died. I have one rifle that took a bit over two years to find a load that would do1.5" consistently. It's taken on hell o a lot of deer from about 35 feet to 250 yards. We're not shooting ground squirrels here.. Bragging groups are but not totally necesary.
Paul B.

That’s very true, puts in perspective.

Pray tell, what is wrong with a 160gr. @ 2550?
My go to load has been a 160 at 2600 for years and I never worried about it.
Go shoot stuff!!

I’m not sure that my load would shoot flat enough for Mulies or antelope out at 400m.

I use 139-140 grain whatever fits the game hunted.

It saves having a lot of different bullets and powder half used up.

Mostly Nosler Partitions but i have shot a lot of Hornady's 139 grain interlok.

Did you have any problems getting 139gr bullets to stabilize ?

Another vote for the 120BT. The 139 Hornadys also.

A friend had an older Ruger M77 in 7x57. One of those from the era of long throats. It shot 140g NPT really well.

Speer 130's shoot great in my Winchester XTR

Do you guys find the lightweight bullets shoot best when you push them slower or faster?

If your really shooting at 400 yds, it won't make a difference which bullet you use so long as you place it well. The bullet is not the secrete, it's the shot that count's! Can you hit a mule deer or elk well at 400 yds from a field position? In my old 7x57's I used 154gr Hornady RN bullet's and was never left wanting. I believe if I as you I'd opt for either the Hornady bullet or the 160gr Speer hot core. Bullet's don't kill thing's because of how fast they go, they kill things from being placed right. And using a lighter faster bullet is not going to overcome hold over for you, it will just change it. You up to it?

IIRC, Jack O'Connor and his wife were both big fans of the 160 gr. Speer at roughly 2600 FPS from the 7x57. His wife took probably 98% of all her big game with that load and only going to the 30-06 for a very few species one of which was elephant. I believe she also used the 06 for lion and tiger but don't think she used it for anything else.

I've hunted out west all my life and one of my favorites was the old 6.5x54 M/S in the 1903 M/S carbine. A 160 gr. bullet at 2200 FPS and I easily took deer at 200 yards. Frankly, I don't like long range shots if I can help it. One Mule Deer with a .308 Win.at 426 paces, one cow elk at 530 yards with a .300 Win. Mag. and one cow elk at 350 yards with a .35 Whelen. The last two were laser measured.

I've taken Mule Deer as close as six feet twice, but most at from 35 yards to about 200 yard. Most of my elk have been from 75 yards to maybe 250 yards, all shot would have been easy with the 7x57 and a 160 gr. bullet. I'm not all that great a stalker to be honest and of those two 6 foot deer one thought it could hide until I stepped on it and the other came running right past me never even knowing I was there.

My one antelope was shot at 75 yards as estimated by my guide. Stalk was easy as the rut hadn't started and the goats weren't all herded up.
Paul B.

I used 139 grain Hornady Interlocks for antelope.

I say just use what your rifle shoots well, then figure out your trajectories.

with any bullet weight from 139 to 175, ( out of an older Hornady manual) try 40 grains of 3031....

its velocity will exceed that 2550 you were referring to.. and the accuracy is real good out of any 7 x 57 I've ever shot.. and others that have asked me about that load on the campfire, found out the same thing...

if you are set on going a little lighter....

44 grains of IMR 4064 or IMR 4895, with a 139 gr SP Hornady, or 140 grain Partition or Ballistic tip, exits the 22 inch barrel of my Featherweight Winchester, or my Ruger 77 Mk2...at 2800 fps....and both of those are pretty darn accurate also...

140 grain Corelokts, if you can find them, work awfully darn well also...

I don't see the point of shooting light bullets in a 7x57. Especially for elk. i use 160 and sometimes 175 gr. bullets in my 3 7x57 rifles. It's what they shoot best, and a slightly faster lighter bullet gives no meaningful trajectory advantage. In my wide open part of the world, if it's not close enough to shoot with a 160 at 2650 or so FPS, I just sneak a little closer.

If the rifle prefers a lighter bullet, especially one in the 140gn range find one that has a better, more solid construction. I like the Woodleigh 140gn Protected Point which is made in Australia but is available in the US. Using a well constructed bullet with reasonable velocity is a far better option than going to light bullets that probably won't penetrate. They may start out fast, but they also shed velocity a lot faster as the range increases.

I would give the Barnes 139 LRX a try.

Believe it or not, the 160s will kill stuff at 400m......just fine.

I'll add two cents. With any kind of sight in that doesn't make for a too high mid range trajectory you're going to account for the drop at 400 yards no matter the bullet weight/speed, so you may as well do it for the 160's that shoot so well for you.

I concur. Go with what works.
Paul B.

I have a couple of 7 mm Mausers....

I've used A to Z in what's available for bullets in mine, except the premium stuff like Barnes, and some of these newer new fangled boutique bullets....

I can think of any failures ever... on top of that, because the old school stuff worked just fine, I never had the need for the newer fancy stuff...

My Ruger has been loaned out to a couple of guys who have dropped elk with it, using 160 grain Speer or 175 gr Hornady RNs...the elk didn't go far according to their post hunt reports, when they returned the rifle...

The 7x57 is in the DNA trail that leads to the .30/06. No surprise that is performs with similar reliability on the same animals.

My rifles have taken animals up to around 1000 pounds live weight for the 140gn and maybe 1500 pounds for the 175gn. The 160's would be a reasonable compromise for the set and forget handloaders.........

Can confirm Seafire’s IMR 3031/bullet range recipe was just the ticket for my Ruger M77, though I needed to adjust my bullet seating depth to magazine length. Found this load worked better for me with heavier bullets (140gr Partition didn’t group well, even with seating depth change) and would be inclined to agree with others that if your rifle shoots the 160’s well, just adjust for longer shots accordingly.

145 gr. Speer HC’s on top of 51 gr. of RL19 gives 2770 fps out of my 23” custom barreled Ruger #1A. They typically group slightly under an inch at 100 meters (~110 yds.) and work great on our big bodied Alberta white tails and muleys.
I’ve never tried them on elk sized critters but am going to be working up a load with 145 LRXs to see how that pans out.

I’ve had good results with 140 gr. Accubond over 48.5 gr. of H4350 for a bit less than 2800 FPS.