Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters What's Petzals beef with the 7mm RM?

For the last few years Dave Petzal has been bashing the 7mm Rem. mag. in Field and Stream and in books. He wrote a piece last fall in which he said that the only reason anyone owns a 7mm Rem mag is because they don't have a chronograph, if they did they'd have a .270 Win. He also said the .270 will push a 150 at the same speed as the 7 mag will a 160. He then said you could hunt with both these cartridges for the rest of your life and never see a difference between them. Now I'm very familiar with both these cartridges as they're probably my all time favorites and I think he is talking out his ass. If I was going to use one or the other for brown bear I'd take the big 7 hands down. Is he right or does he just have an axe to grind?

He seems to have a number of axes to grind. He consistently has nothing good to say about one of my favorite gunmakers which confounds me as well.

Only guy I ever heard bash a 7mm RM!

Writers need something to write about.

For all the cartridge bashing I see on the Campfire from various people, I believe he has a right to bash away, too. Just another rifle loony with his own opinions.

He is more than just an anonymous poster on the 'Fire though. His position gives him influence and I feel he has an obligation to be honest and accurate.

So, he can't write his opinions on these things?

He has an obligation to write articles that sell magazines.

He's close, but obviously the 7RM has a bigger case.

90+% of hunting and shooting? You'd never see any difference.

A few more high BC bullets are easily available for the 7RM and coupled with the bigger case, its probably a better choice if that's your goal.

I'd point one at anything I'd point the other at.

He is an old man still trying to write and dumbazz's apparently continue to read. Of late, last five years at least, all I read is author's working to disprove what many serious in the craft have thought was chite to begin with. A revelation??? Unless a knumbrod, there is not much out there to learn really.

But ain't the 7mm mag a hundered yards better than the -08? That means what a 7-08 is at muzzle, the mag is at 100yards.

April 01, 2010
Petzal: Why I Like the 7mm/08

By David E. Petzal

In reviewing my voluminous and infallible records yesterday, I saw that I have killed a very large number of deer with the 7mm/08, never had to shoot twice at the same critter, and never had one travel more than 50 yards. This is pretty good performance from a mild-mannered, unassuming cartridge that gets less attention than it deserves.

The 7mm/08 started as a wildcat in the 1950s, and was legitimized by Remington in 1980. It is the .308 necked down to .284, and is factory loaded with 120- and 140-grain bullets at 3,000 and 2,860 fps, respectively. These velocities, from what I�ve seen, are pretty optimistic.

The virtues of the 7mm/08 include very light recoil, not much muzzle blast, plenty of bullet weight to do the job, and gilt-edged accuracy. For whatever reason, my 7mm/08s have shot rings around the three 7x57s I�ve owned, even though the cartridges are, ballistically, nearly identical. The 7mm/08 does very nicely with a short barrel; you lose very little velocity and the report won�t take your ears off.

I�ve never used the 120-grain loading. Everything I�ve shot has been with 140-grain bullets, including Winchester Fail-Safes and Ballistic Silvertips in factory ammo. I am down to my last box of Fail-Safes (which are discontinued) and am hoarding them for the Apocalypse, or something. Otherwise, I shoot handloads: 140-grain Nosler Solid Bases (also discontinued, but a very good deer bullet) and 140-grain Swift A-Frames for bigger stuff. Velocities are 2,700 fps and 2,650 fps, respectively, out of a 21-inch barrel. More than this you do not need.

"Putzal" makes positive assertions where he has no knowledge. He could just as well be promoting lawnmowers.

His axe to grind is needing to write articles to make people read and talk about in order to justify his existence. He bad mouths 30-30 which I like and 7mm mag which I don't like and I don't much care either way.

What he really should have said is that a 7mm mag is nothing more than a loud .280. I'd feel just as good (or bad) shooting a brown bear with a 270, .280 or 30-06 than I would a 7mm Mag. Not enough difference in them to amount to a hill of beans imo.

True. Except for longer range shooting/hunting, there are more than a few higher BC bullets available for the 7mm's.

I've never really gotten the 7mm Rem. Mag.. It doesn't seem to do much that a .270 won't do with lighter bullets and that a 30-06 won't do with heavier ones. All with a longer barrel and more weight in the rifle and more muzzle flash, noise, and arguably, recoil.

+1

You must not get out much.

I agree with Petzal about the 7 Mag. Kicks too hard for it's performance.

I have never understood the following of the 7mm Remington mag. It works, but with little, if any improvement over these 2 rounds. There are people that love the round, I am not one and have always thought the 30-06 was capable of anything the 7mm was trying to accomplish...

About 20 years ago, I was in a local gunshop and asked the owner why they always had numerous 7 mags on the used rack, more than any other cartridge and some sat for months.

While used 270's, 06's 308's only sat for a few days before they were sold. The owner told me that many people found the 7 mag kicked harder than they liked and didn't give much better than 270 Win performance.

pretzel shoulda been born a woman, she's about a lactating hormonal water retentive bitch.

Gunner

I'd have to echo some of the above sediments. Never saw much use for the 7RM.