Which cartridge is better......7mm Rem mag or .300 Win mag

[Curly]

I thought this question would be interesting compared to the other poll between 30-06 and 7mm mag.

I vote for the .300 Win Mag in this poll.  (I guess I'm just not a fan of the 7mm mag; but I am a fan of the 7mm-08)

[Coasthunterjay]

Hands dowm .300 win mag.

.02cents

[spike]

i love the 7mm flat shooter plus my first gun. (from gramps)

[Slider]

7 Mag!!!

[MuleySniper]

.300, not Win though, Weatherby
MS

[Red Dawg]

i will have to go with the 300 win. I dont think there is actually much difference between the two.

[shag]

For deer.  7mag

[Hunting Cowboy]

I like them both but if I had to pick one it would be the 7mm Mag.

[Rick]

Again,its a toss-up.

If you pick similar weight bullets in the same style,its a dead heat all the way to 500 yds for energy,velocity,and trajectory.

[Crunchy]

7mm mag for both. Cause thats all I have...

[wackmaster]

7mm I love mine and the long range hunting video shooting beyond belief the shoot elk at 900 yards and the caliber is a 7mm rem mag.

[Bookworm]

300 cuz it's what I have. Another bonus is the greater range of bullet weights available.

[edmondshunter]

I pick the 7mm RM   Its really close though almost a dead heat. 

#'s to back it up:
Muzzle vel. @ 0yrd:
7mm @ 140 gr  3145
.300 @ 150gr  3245

Muz. ener.@ 0yrd
7mm  3075
.300  3506

Same bullet gr.@ max range for Elk 460-465yrd
7mm  vel.2197  ener. 1500
.300  vel.2122  ener.1500

It's pretty close.  The 7mm has a longer effective range by 60yrd, on the other hand the .300 knockdown power @ longest effective range of 515 is a mile better than the 7mm.  The bullet drop for these calibers is identical @ 4-5-600 yrds. The recoil difference is nominal, the 7mm is 1.97secxlb, the 300 2.16secxlb.

Now mind that these numbers are for elk hunting in particular.

Found this info in " The Target Book For North American Big Game" by Charlie Middleton/ Pat Moran. This book is very good,  has a lot of ballistic info for almost all caliber rifles. Also shows bullet drop and target impact.  Great resource if you cant make up your mind.  You can look at the #'s side by side

[PolarBear]

.300 win mag.  More versatile IMO.   I just am not a fan of the 7mm.  On old friend of mine who was a sniper in Viet Nam and Korea once told me that the 7mm was his least favorite of the magnum rounds for too many reasons to go into.  I trusted his advice and went with a .300 win mag.

[Dman]

 I've had friend's with the 7MM, seemed OK, but I do really like my .300 winmag. The only thing about both of them I don't like is hiking those 10 mile days because of the weight. Other than that I don't think I would ever buy a 7mm, just because I'd like to keep the feel for the same round and don't like having a bunch of mixed brass laying around that are similar in size but not the same.

[Bofire]

300 win mag (the real one) shoots the 180 like the 7mm shoots the 150, at hunting ranges, better at 1000 yard target.
nuf said
Carl

[dbllunger]

Both great but 300wm has more bullets available. 

[jackelope]

7mm I love mine and the long range hunting video shooting beyond belief the shoot elk at 900 yards and the caliber is a 7mm rem mag.

while i agree with your choice, if we're thinking the same long range hunters, they are shooting 7mm stw, not 7 rem mag.

[huntnphool]

Just my $.02, 7MM

[Wea300mag]

I'm with MuleySniper, I voted for the 300Win but really believe in the Wea300mag.

[wrangler]

considering the belted cartridges are no long nessecary with todays wildcats.... i would say neither. but for your every day, over the counter, shoots once a year at a paper plate 3 days before the deer opener, elmer fud.... i would have to go with the 7 mag. no offence.

[jackelope]

no offence

i could tell.

[Dman]

no offence

i could tell.

  No kidding, I better start speaking with a lissspp.. 

[T-ROY]

With all the new bullet constructions out there today. i'd say either one would work fine. but 7mm because thats what i have. was looking for a 300 and came across a good deal on a 7.

[Skyvalhunter]

Well you picked the best one!!

[Curly]

This poll has been interesting. 

Right now it is 16 for the 300WM and 14 for the 7mm mag.  (Basically a tie).

The poll about the 30-06 vs 7mm mag is 17 for the 30-06 and 16 for the 7mm mag.  (Basically tied).

I thought that maybe the .300 win mag would beat the 7mm mag by a wider margin in the poll based on how close the 30-06 - 7mm poll was.

My thoughts are that the .300WM can do anything that the 7mm mag can do with the lower weight bullets (ie 165 - 180) but with a .300WM you have the option of stepping up to even heavier weight bullets like 200 grainers.  The 30-06 really isn't a very good choice for 200 gr. bullets since the velocity is quite a bit slower than you get from the .300WM........

Of course, I am partial to the .300WM since I have two rifles in 300 Win mag; but I did take a long time trying to decide on what cartridge to go with in the Steyr rifle.......it was between the 7mm mag and the .300 Winchester.

[Alchase]

I have both, Ruger M77 MkII in 7mm MAG and a Sako Finlight in 300winMAG.
They both shoot very well. the only real difference I can see is there is a ton more bullet choices for the 300 win MAG then the 7mm Mag.
Both are great choices.

[Dman]

I have both, Ruger M77 MkII in 7mm MAG and a Sako Finlight in 300winMAG.
They both shoot very well. the only real difference I can see is there is a ton more bullet choices for the 300 win MAG then the 7mm Mag.
Both are great choices.

 Alchase, do you find they shoot very similar, do they have the same "feel"?

[Vek]

You'd have a heckuva time telling any practical difference between the two in field performance, if shooting bullets of similar construction (i.e. 180 grain partition in 300 vs 160 grain partition in 7mm).  The 7mm is about as much round as you'd want to shoot in a light (sub-7lb) rifle, though, and even then you'll risk a scope bite.  If you're pondering the high hunt or a wilderness general hunt, the weight of your rifle and gear becomes as important as for other mountain species (sheep/goats) for which one buys a light rifle. 

If comparing anything from the 260/7mm08/308 family, on up to any magnum, any discussion regarding "flat shooting" does not mean much anymore.  Reason being - with the excellent bullets available to hunters these days, and with the availability of lightweight laser rangefinders, anything from the 260 up will kill deer and elk out to as far as you'd want to shoot.  Beyond 200 yards, range estimation gets a bit dicey.  Beyond 300 yards, wind starts to play a big role, and not keeping the crosshairs level can cause a big miss.  This with any round, not just the mild ones.  The great equalizer of late has been bullet availability and the availability of lightweight laser rangefinders. 

This being the case, my rifle herd is going the direction of light and mild.  Everything I own is based on the 30-06 case, and everything weighs less than 7lbs, and is real nice to carry. 

[Tony 270WSM]

What do you mean better? Better for what use?

[Alchase]

Dman, I agree with VEK
The difference in the actual bullet performance is minimal. Both are great calibers. I doubt you would feel the difference between the two calibers shot from the same weapon. The 300 win MAG does have more off the shelf ammo selection though the 7mm MAG is catching up.
In my case the guns make the difference more so then the caliber.
The Ruger M77 MkII (7mm Mag) is a great gun, with a beautiful wood stock (that I always seem to worry about scratching) shoots great groups and I used it for years and would recommend that gun to any one.
The Sako (300win Mag) is Stainless, fluted, is in a world above in performance and quality. The trigger is incredible and makes it really easy to shoot well. with similar scopes VXIII 40s, the Sako weighs a couple pounds less. This does not seem like much but I definitely feel every ounce on a long hump.
They recoil about the same, both have their scopes mounted low, and I use a long cheek spot (further away from the rear of the scope) so scope bites are not a "to much" a concern. The Sako has a better stock butt pad as well.

[Curly]

What do you mean better? Better for what use?

I just started the poll because I was curious to see how people vote in this poll compared to the other one that was started that asked the same question except the 7mm mag vs. 30-06.  I didn't want to get specific since the other poll did not either.  So, I'm not sure about "better for what use".......you will have to make the determination.  (Although I can't see where the 7mm mag would be "better" than the 300WM for any particular use.)

[GoldTip]

There is miles of difference between the 300win mag and the 7mm mag, especially if you start looking at the heavier weight bullets, compare a 175gr from a 7mm to a 180gr from a 300win, and there is just truly not a comparison.

[addicted]

they are both great shoulder bumpers.  i went with the 300 cuz thats what i have and have seen work. i do intend to purchase a 7mm though.

[Curly]

The 300WM is slightly better when comparing 175gr ~ 7mm bullets and 180gr ~ .308 bullets. 

I ran the ballistics for a 7mm ~ 175gr bullet and compared to a .308 ~ 180gr bullet.  Attached are the tables.  (I based the velocity and BC values on my Speer Reloading manual).

The top chart is the 180 gr bullet out of a .300WM and the bottom chart is a 7mm bullet.

[Tony 270WSM]

I'd say a fair comparison is the 160 vs 180 in similar bullets. You can go back and forth with various loads showing one has more power or flatter trajectory than the other. Either way, if you want a deer and elk load to 400 yards, both will do just fine.

[bobcat]

 

There is miles of difference between the 300win mag and the 7mm mag, especially if you start looking at the heavier weight bullets, compare a 175gr from a 7mm to a 180gr from a 300win, and there is just truly not a comparison.

Not true at all. Neither cartridge is "better." They are basically the same. What one will do the other will do just as well. Try comparing a 160 grain Barnes in the 7mm to a 180 Barnes in the 300. One thing I do know...an elk would never be able to tell the difference.

[Curly]

There is miles of difference between the 300win mag and the 7mm mag, especially if you start looking at the heavier weight bullets, compare a 175gr from a 7mm to a 180gr from a 300win, and there is just truly not a comparison.

Not true at all. Neither cartridge is "better." They are basically the same. What one will do the other will do just as well. Try comparing a 160 grain Barnes in the 7mm to a 180 Barnes in the 300. One thing I do know...an elk would never be able to tell the difference.

That was the point I was trying to get at by posting the ballistic tables.

I'd say a fair comparison is the 160 vs 180 in similar bullets.

Why not compare the 160~7mm vs. 168~300WM?