Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles ? for those of you who prefer the 7mmMauser to the 7/08

Couldn't have said it better and agree with ya 1000% there Tom...

Got a 7/08 barrel just to test it out against the 7 x 57...

completely satisfied with the 7/08, but it just made me love my two 7mm Mausers all the more...

still my favorite cartridge due to both nostalgia and rarity is the 7 mm Mauser necked down to 6.5 mm...

If you're gonna run a 7 in a LA, why not go 280?

Same for the Roberts.




Travis

And one might say if you run a SA use a 284, WSM, or RSAUM

Both rounds work well. I have used a 7-08 a good bit - before I "Discovered" the 6.5s

The great conundrum.....makes us wake up at night,pondering logic vs emotion.

Truth is ,I think, (and I am no Mauser expert),that the 7x57 is more properly housed in a special Mauser of true intermediate length,and not an action of 30/06 length, where most of us tend to put it.

What these Mausers are I have no idea,but I think that is how they started out with the cartridge.

All above is fairly true. I have had a Mauser 93 (on it's second BBL since 1970] Back then I shot 139 Horn. SP and a case full of surp. 4831 @ maybe 2600 FPS. Killed everything on the spot, deer bear ect. and used it last fall on a 4 pt WT and w/a Nosler yellow box PT., same result. I have had a couple of 7/08's and my son uses a Mod. 7 260 Rem. The only thing I don't like about them is the very straight walled short case. They seem to not feed nearly as well as the more tapered 7x57 cases. I sold my Mk 2 Ruger 20" bbl. 204 for this reason, great round but cases liked to hang up feeding. Was as fast and accurate as my Swift but did not feed well and simply did not have the horsepower down range. What I use mostly is an FN HVA made in the early 1950's 7x57, originally an '06. rebareled w/a Shillen 24". It has a tight chamber and a true .284 groooove. The 93 is large and will take more powder than that new bbl., something to remember, most old 7x57's have huge bores's. I sold a 1908 Brazil a couple of weeks ago w/a really smooth barrel that miked .287 om top of the lands (bore dia), wouldn't even shoot Hornady 175 gr. RN's. BTW My 93 was made by FN and thoroughly examined by a good gun maker who put on both Bbl's as above, I simply much prefer the longer more tapered cases no matter the caliber. Muddy

LoadData.com has some good load listings for a modern 7x57. You have to pay to see the data, but it's only $30 for a year and it has tons of loads from handloader mag.

The problem with 7x57 is that their are mauser 93/95 actions that cannot take the pressure M98 actions can, so most factory ammo is low pressure loaded. Reloading for 7x57 with M98 action or in my case a Rem700 action the pressure can be higher. 7mm calibers are very popular and the 7x57 case is larger than the 708 case. M98 action has a third lug and the 93/95 action do not have one.

I always wondered the same thing.

A 7x57 was first. That came about because I was using a 257 Roberts for deer and varmints and wanted a cartridge for elk and moose so I thought it was a nifty idea to choose the Roberts' parent case.

Then many years later purchased a 7mm-08 to see what everyone was talking about. It did not meet or exceed what the 7mm was already doing for me. Chalked it up as another learning experience.

Wayne

I like them both but my 7-08 is more accurate and I have an unlimited supply of 308 brass to neck down, so the 7x57 got sold to a buddy. Other than that the 7x57 would have filled the niche just fine.

With 49gr of RL19 in a necked down Fed match 308 case with a 145 gr Grand Slam and a CCI 250 my little 20" Model 7 shoots into an inch all day long. That's plenty good for me.

Get one. No justification needed. I like mine.

Winchester just removed the 7x57 from their Featherweight line up. Anyone want to predict when it will be reintroduced? I know I'm wrong about this, but it seems like it and the 6.5 Swede come around about once a decade.

Winchester makes these runs of rifles chambered for forgotten cartridges every decade or two to satisfy the rifle nutz.

Everyone else buys a 270.

Yeah, that's the way I figure it. Either I or someone else just picked up the last M70 FWT in 7x57 at Bud's. I guess I'll know in a week or so. All the other major online houses have their stock depleted and there's nothing at any of the LGSs. I'll pick up a 6.5 to go with it when Winchester brings them out again in about 10 years.

But I'm thinking my next rifle might be a .270 Super Grade...assuming I can figure out why I'd rather have a Winchester over a Montana ASR in the same for about the same coin.

Of course, there's always the CZ550 American - Mauser CF for about 2/3 the cost.

Well, I have three rifles in 7x57 but no 7MM-07. I suppose I should get one buy just don't have the urge. The Ruger #1 doesn't get used all that much mostly because I can't seem to draw a deer tag. I have been plating with an M70 FWT and a custom rifle built on an FN 98 Mauser. It shows high pressure much faster than the FWT, probably due to a match grade barrel and chamber. An experimwnt I did with the three rifles took 44.0 gr. of W760 which is supposed to deliver 2400 FPS with a 175 gr. round nose bullet. The Ruger with a fairly long thoat did 2300 FPS and the FWT 350 FPS. The custom Mauser did 2450 FPS and I know I could have added more powder. Primers were still nice and round. The top load for the FWT with 140 gr. Ballstic tips does 2800 FPS and the Ruger in not far behind. The Mauser on the other hand will have the bolt locked up tight with that load. I'll be doing some load work in the mauser with the 120 and 140 gr. Barnes TSX bullets. I'm also experimenting with the 140 gr. TSX in a 280 Remington as well. At least I will when my gunsmith tells me he's squared away a feeding problem. I plan on using that one for my next elk hunt.
Paul B.

I have a new 7x57 featherweight and shoots awesome with 160gr gamekings and partitions. The m70 action doesnt seem to swallow it up, especially with bullets seated out a bit to get closer to the lands.

The 7-08 is a fine little round, but I prefer the 7x57 because (as several have pointed out) there's more flexibility in loading various bullets, especially heavier ones.

A 7x57 doesn't have to be built on a long action. Mine is on the smaller Montana 1999 action with a 3+" magazine, which isn't long enough for a .280.

Am always amused by the arguments against the 7x57 in a long action because "you might as well have a...." Well, if getting the absolute top speed possible is always the point, then you should get a 7mm magnum of some sort. But that's not what the 7x57 (or 7-08) are all about. Instead they're moderate recoiling cartridges that kill stuff--and not just deer. Mine has quite handily done in 1000-pound bull moose.

BobinNH,
Don't forget, we can always load our 270's down.

Don't buy a 7x57. It's not as good as a 7-08, and the bolt on that long action will hit you in the nose every time. Just leave all of them on the market so the prices go down and people with less money can afford one, or another one.

CRS yeah we can make them go slower I have done that sometimes and it works fine.

It isn't always about speed.