Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Mule Deer-7 x 57 advice needed

So then maybe we should only shoot at deer outside the rut and only shoot at them while they are at a dead run? Not sporting to shoot at them while they are standing still? LOL!

Just pulling your leg a bit! Have a great weekend. Happy Trails

I had a 275 Rigby built on a VZ24 action two years ago and never regretted it. Also there is a 7X57 AI that loves 160gr bullets and a pre 64 M70 carbine in 7X57. I also have a Weatherby Ultra light 7mm/08. There isn't a deer that will know the difference with a 140gr -160gr bullet put in the right place. Enjoy the 7x57 it has the class and is well proven over time to get the job done. The Rigby like H414 and 140gr Accubonds, The AI favors IMR 3031 and 160gr Speer Grand Slams but I'm going to try some 160gr Accubonds, the M70 so far has only seen factory 140's.

Thanks John

I read somewhere that the British used 26" barrells BUT I guess the Actions came from Germany with 23 1/2 in barrels. Maybe you're right as the 7mm-08 would solve a lot of problems connected wity the 7 x 57mm Mauser.

roanmtn

Talk about sporting! Where I grew up we did a lot of squirrel hunting. State law required that we only shot the male squirrels!

CJ

Redid a small ring Mauser in 7 x 57 to make a decent deer hunting rifle. New barrel, trigger, stock, etc. a retired guy project instigated by a guy who challenged me to do it. To use here in E central Minn.

Have run some 300 shots thru that barrel. Works wel nowl with different reloads. All my loads are moderate to mild.

Shoots MOA+ groups with 140 grain Sierra ProHunter stuff.

Shoots bout the same groups with factory Winchester 150 grain pointeds.

Shoots bout 2 inch groups with those ugly Remington 165 grain Round Nose things.

Shoots MOA with 150 grain Partitions. The lighter bullets I push with IMR 4320.

Except for the Winchester bullets, it shoots better with a slightly dirty barrel.
I seat the bullets out about to magazine limits.

Only problem is that the 165 gr stuff doesn't feed well because of the wide blunt tip.

7 x57 works well on deer. Its your rifle, do what you want.

Started with one 7x57 my F-I-L gave me, shortened restocked (by him) military rifle. Added a Santa Barbera in a Ramline stock (the price was more than right) Which has since been restocked with a decent piece of walnut in the M70 fwt style. Then an older fella that hung out, and had a lot of work done at our LGS sold me a Mannlicher stocked military rifle that had the barrel shortened and was rechambered. The first rifle now wears a Douglas fwt barrel. All are chambered so the 139 Hornadys are seated at about 2.9-3" OAL. None shoot the bragging size groups we're all used to, but they all shoot deer as far as I care to shoot.

A little over 40 years ago, I built my first 7x57 as a casual target rifle. It was built on a 721 Remington action and the Hart barrel was chambered by my mentor, Art Bourne with a reamer he made. He used a separate throater to cut a throat which was 2845 in diameter and just right for the 168 Sierra. It shot great. Later, I barreled a BRNO ZKK 600 and chambered it the same way. It also worked very well. So it was that, when I drew up a reamer for PTG about 7 or eight years ago, I drew it up to duplicate the chambers we cut with Art's reamer. I've used it to cut several chambers including my own Ruger 77 and it still works just fine. GD

I love my 7mm Mauser Featherweight.. and it gets out in the field a lot..

but my favorite round is the 6.5 x 57 I did one on a Model 70 action... went a little overboard in over thinking it..
did a 28 inch Pac Nor barrel, in a heavy magnum contour, 1 in 8 twist..done by Kevin Wyatt...

It ain't light but it sure is accurate...even waaaay out there...

I have a Winchester Featherweight in 7x57 (BACO) and it shoots very tiny groups with factory Hornady 139 SST's.

You saying a rifle that won't shoot 1/2" groups all day long will still kill a deer?



DF

greydog,

Interesting to hear the history of that PT&G 7x57 reamer. I has a custom rifle chambered with one about a dozen years ago!

A friend had purchased the reamer for his custom 7x57, then when I was getting one built he offered to loan it to the company making my rifle. They ended up purchasing it from him.

By the way, this required you to walk up and shake the tree until you heard their nuts rattling!

I’m no gunsmith but a lifelong hunter. The 7x57 is one of my favorites. Good luck on your build

X2 ....... The throat is much shorter than the std configuration to the point of being too short for 175gr RNs. Most won't be using this bullet so no big deal but a nice bonus for most lighter bullets including the 160gr NP which I used for moose hunting last year.

I had my 6.5x57 up the range yesterday. No wonder I love Hornady Interlocks. Out of eight different bullets the 140gn Hornadys shot the smallest group. They beat 130gn Gamechangers and 129gn SSTs. Cut a three shot group into 0.7 inch at 100 metres. Rifle is a BRNO ZKK 600 with a Maddco #1 24" barrel, Swaro 3-9x36.

In a medium or long action the 7x57 hands down. Panache, history and just a good round. It will also beat the 7-08 by around 100 fps at modern pressures.
The PT&G target reamer sounds like a good way to go but even the military chambers will usually shoot well with 175 grain RN bullets.

I think the 7x57 would be a lot more popular if so many people had not gotten shot at with them starting with the Spanish American war, Roosevelt and the rough riders, on through WWII. This is almost like a reverse testament to the effectiveness of the round.

If I were building a high end rifle the 7x57 would be on the short list. The 7-08 to me there was never a reason for it's existence, sorry fans and yes I know about it's silhouette origins and that it may have more of the elusive inherent accuracy than the x57 but not enough to matter. Yes it fits a short action better but not by much.

My 7x57 is a Number 1A so not worried about action length at all.

Actually, a Number 1 in 7mm-08 just wouldn't be cricket.

There are some good suggestions here on reamer selection. However, a 7x57 reamer with a standard length throat will have the potential to shoot well provided that the throat is tight and the barrel is good.

I am shooting a 154gr sst in mine that’s seated over .100 thousandths off the lands with a oal of 3.250. It shoots excellent over healthy doses of h4350. I didn’t check exactly how much jump to the lands because of magazine restrictions.

I think a lot of the accuracy problems with this cartridge are to do with the anemic pressures of factory ammo and reloading data.

If you have strong action, why not see if the rifle shoots better with some extra pressure. ( it’s been my experience that most rifles do )

To get the most of this cartridge you have to hand load and be quite an experienced hand loader. The 7mm-08 is a better choice for most.

Always puzzled me why so many are outraged by the notion of whacking them with a “cleverly concocted rifle cartridge”, Jim Carmichael’s term, but are all about 70-yard shotguns with 2oz of depleted uranium shot and soda straw chokes.Fortunately, I live in a state with sensible rules for the most part.

I can even use a “cleverly concocted” 7x57 load iffen I want to.

I live in Florida where Osceola turkeys live. Calling in a wary old gobbler ain't nearly as easy as he thinks.