Soooo, I normally only care about accuracy and shoot either Sierra Matchkings/Nosler Custom Competitions/Ballistic Tips from heavy barrelled guns and from the bench. I'm not a big hunter, but I just bought a dedicated deer rifle (Rem 700 SPS Youth) in 7mm-08 and it won't be used for anything except whitetail. That knocks out matchkings and custom competition bullets which only leaves Ballistic Tips. I've had good luck with 30 cal Ballistic Tips on deer, but the reviews aren't that good for 7mm 120 and 140 grain ballistic tips on Midway's site. I'd like to stick with lighter bullets so that my wife can shoot the rifle and not get kicked around too much. My questions are....
1. For those of you already shooting 708's, is there much recoil difference between 120 and 140 grain bullets?
2. I would like to find a bullet that will be accurate AND give good performance on white tail. That rules out bullets like partitions which are great hunting bullets, but not known for accuracy. So, what bullet is both accurate and performs reasonably well on whitetails? Ballistic Tips or Sierra Game Kings/Pro Hunters come to mind, but I have no pratical experience with shooting anything 7mm. I've also never shot any Sierra bullet except matchkings and dont' know how accurate game kings/pro hunters are usually.
I also have absolutely 0 experience with any other maker of bullets except some .22 cal Speers which shot like crap out of about 5 different .223's.
Thanks for anyone who has any advice. If it matters, the barrel is 20" on the new rifle.
The 7mm 140 gr BT is an excellent WT bullet, it kills like lighting. I have shot several with a 280 Rem.and the 7mm-08 will give similar results. The 120 gr BT actually uses the 140 gr BT jacket that is cut down to a 120 gr profile. This gives it a thicker jacket making it a very robust bullet. It holds up well in my 280 AI and there are several that use this bullet in 7mm Mags with excellent results. The 120 gr will have slightly lower recoil than the 140 gr bullet but both are pretty mild to me.
Soooo, I normally only care about accuracy and shoot either Sierra Matchkings/Nosler Custom Competitions/Ballistic Tips from heavy barrelled guns and from the bench. I'm not a big hunter, but I just bought a dedicated deer rifle (Rem 700 SPS Youth) in 7mm-08 and it won't be used for anything except whitetail. That knocks out matchkings and custom competition bullets which only leaves Ballistic Tips. I've had good luck with 30 cal Ballistic Tips on deer, but the reviews aren't that good for 7mm 120 and 140 grain ballistic tips on Midway's site. I'd like to stick with lighter bullets so that my wife can shoot the rifle and not get kicked around too much. My questions are....
1. For those of you already shooting 708's, is there much recoil difference between 120 and 140 grain bullets?
2. I would like to find a bullet that will be accurate AND give good performance on white tail. That rules out bullets like partitions which are great hunting bullets, but not known for accuracy. So, what bullet is both accurate and performs reasonably well on whitetails? Ballistic Tips or Sierra Game Kings/Pro Hunters come to mind, but I have no pratical experience with shooting anything 7mm. I've also never shot any Sierra bullet except matchkings and dont' know how accurate game kings/pro hunters are usually.
I also have absolutely 0 experience with any other maker of bullets except some .22 cal Speers which shot like crap out of about 5 different .223's.
Thanks for anyone who has any advice. If it matters, the barrel is 20" on the new rifle.
-Adrian
Listen to this, I once had a Savage(708) that I could not load near max in the least, 41grs 760 under a 150NBT would sometimes give me a sticky bolt, have since dropped that to 40grs for my bro in law that bought it, at any rate, the 41grs 760 produced 2300fps 10 ft from the muzzle and that load took down a nice spike buck, my 2nd buck ever @110 paces thru the liver, deer was dead instantly. Massive internal trauma to boot. My current rifle is a 700 Stainless/Synthetic 708, load has changed from 45grs 760 under 150NBTs to 39.5grs Varget using same 150, and that is an even better, more accurate load and kills very well, also use 150MKs over 39grs RE15, but I havent used them on deer but I would if I had the chance, though they might fragment a bit more than NBTs. Here's what my 708 will do.
The 120 gr BT actually uses the 140 gr BT jacket that is cut down to a 120 gr profile.
I think it's more like the 120 and 140 BT jackets are made from the same blank. The blank is drawn to a shorter length for the 120, which leaves the walls thicker.
The 120 gr BT actually uses the 140 gr BT jacket that is cut down to a 120 gr profile.
I think it's more like the 120 and 140 BT jackets are made from the same blank. The blank is drawn to a shorter length for the 120, which leaves the walls thicker.
Actually, per Nosler, the 140 gr BT jacket is cut down to a 120 gr format. This is the only bullet that does not have its own jacket.
The 120 NBT performs very well on fallow so it should ideal for whitetails. There is a noticeable step up in recoil to the 140 with no additional performance (in fact I have found the 120 to be more reliable). Both shoot extremely accurately in my experience.
In other brands, the Speer 130 Hot Cor would worth a look.
Soooo, I normally only care about accuracy and shoot either Sierra Matchkings/Nosler Custom Competitions/Ballistic Tips from heavy barrelled guns and from the bench. I'm not a big hunter, but I just bought a dedicated deer rifle (Rem 700 SPS Youth) in 7mm-08 and it won't be used for anything except whitetail. That knocks out matchkings and custom competition bullets which only leaves Ballistic Tips. I've had good luck with 30 cal Ballistic Tips on deer, but the reviews aren't that good for 7mm 120 and 140 grain ballistic tips on Midway's site. I'd like to stick with lighter bullets so that my wife can shoot the rifle and not get kicked around too much. My questions are....
1. For those of you already shooting 708's, is there much recoil difference between 120 and 140 grain bullets?
2. I would like to find a bullet that will be accurate AND give good performance on white tail. That rules out bullets like partitions which are great hunting bullets, but not known for accuracy. So, what bullet is both accurate and performs reasonably well on whitetails? Ballistic Tips or Sierra Game Kings/Pro Hunters come to mind, but I have no pratical experience with shooting anything 7mm. I've also never shot any Sierra bullet except matchkings and dont' know how accurate game kings/pro hunters are usually.
I also have absolutely 0 experience with any other maker of bullets except some .22 cal Speers which shot like crap out of about 5 different .223's.
Thanks for anyone who has any advice. If it matters, the barrel is 20" on the new rifle.
-Adrian
1. Recoil differences between 120 & 140 grain bullets will be minimal.
2. The bullet thing isn't that difficult to figure out. Sierra GameKings give good accuracy for me as do similar Speer bullets. As opposed to your experience, my deer bullet of choice for .224 caliber guns (a 222, a 223 & a 22-250 all with 1:12 twist barrels) is the Speer 70 gr. Semi Spitzer. If the ballistic tips shoot well for you, I would ignore the MidwayUSA reviews and use them. Barnes bullets are "match grade" but if you use them in a 7mm/08, go with something lighter than 140 gr. Then there are the Berger VLDs but, being so long, they might not shoot well for you depending on the twist of your barrel. Hornady also makes bullets which I've found to work well on deer & other stuff and give excellent accuracy.
The 7mm 140 gr BT is an excellent WT bullet, it kills like lighting. I have shot several with a 280 Rem.and the 7mm-08 will give similar results. The 120 gr BT actually uses the 140 gr BT jacket that is cut down to a 120 gr profile. This gives it a thicker jacket making it a very robust bullet. It holds up well in my 280 AI and there are several that use this bullet in 7mm Mags with excellent results. The 120 gr will have slightly lower recoil than the 140 gr bullet but both are pretty mild to me.
JD338
This nails it.
It�s a magazine not a clip......
Advice is seldom welcome, and those who need it the most, like it the least.� - Lord Chesterfield. 1750
I have been shooting Deer with the 7mm-08 for about 15 years now . Every one has been killed with the Speer 145 Gr. SPFB or the 145 Boattail . My Load uses 47Gr. of W-760 . This load may not be safe in your Rifle as it is Max ! Work up from 42-43 Gr. All have been one shot kills ! I have total faith in Speer Bullets as I have never had one fail , unlike the other Bullet Co. that begins with S !
Don't forget to have your Liberals spayed or neutered !
Can highly recommend the 140-grain Accubond in the 7-08.
Very accurate out of my Kimber with terrific expansion and penetration. Doubt you'll feel much difference between 120 and 140-grain pills.
Besides numerous whitetails I've culled Aoudads with this bullet and its currently the only bullet I load for my 7-08. Below is just one of the victims:
If your rifle will shoot the 120NBT well enough to satisfy you accuracy wise( wife's 7-08 shot these bullets into .303 for 4. Thread with target photos can be found in custom rifle/wildcat area), you have found a super whitetail bullet. I put one through both shoulders of a whitetail buck at a tad over 200yds and it lodged under the hide of the offside shoulder. Perfect mushroom. One very dead deer. With my past experiences a 140NBT would have destroyed at least 1 shoulder. All I can figure is the Barnes folks must be writing 120NBT reviews for midway. For a deer killing bullet that produces virtually NO recoil, the 120NBT is IMO the way to go.
Crossed Arrows Archery LLC Authorized Obsession Bows Dealer Custom Strings/Tuning www.crossedarrowsarcheryllc.com Black Eagle Arrows Pro Staff, Montana Black Gold Shooting Staff, Dead Center Archery Products Shooting Staff
Good deal and thanks for the input. I'll order some 120 ballistic tips today when I order brass. I already have some 140's left over from when my dad had a 7mm Rem Mag, so I can try both. The 140 jacket formed and trimmed is what convinced me to give it a shot.
The 120NBT won't disappoint. The wife's rifle liked the heck out of varget. Every 7-08 I have ever had dealings with be it std or AI version, had a thing for varget powder.
Crossed Arrows Archery LLC Authorized Obsession Bows Dealer Custom Strings/Tuning www.crossedarrowsarcheryllc.com Black Eagle Arrows Pro Staff, Montana Black Gold Shooting Staff, Dead Center Archery Products Shooting Staff
That's good to know, I have several pounds of it, though I'm tempted to try H335 first since I have quite a bit of it. Either that or 4064 which is my .308's new best friend.
The 120NBT won't disappoint. The wife's rifle liked the heck out of varget. Every 7-08 I have ever had dealings with be it std or AI version, had a thing for varget powder.
I love 4064 for any sized 308 based cartridge... however, I have to second that the 7/08 loves Varget in Particular....
Funny, it wouldn't be my first choice, but it would certainly be my first recommendation...I just am loyal to 4064...
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