What bullets for 7mag?

[BLUEBULLS]

I've been shooting the federal premium 165gr BTSP but since our local guys decided not to stock anything I need for hunting I'm going back to reloads...Plus I'm tired of spending $50/box.

I have a couple boxes of 145gr grand slams, 130gr speer boattails and 160gr speer boattails.
i'm pretty sure that I want to hunt with the 160gr boattails... I like the .556 BC for flatter shots.
do you think the 145gr grand slams might be a little better due to their weight retention?
I know the 160gr bt's will do me good but I thought I'd see what others thought.
by the way, I think the 130gr boattails are getting $hit canned.

also, how do you guys work up a load... start with less powder and work your way up until your groups go to hell??? do you neck size ONLY once you have rounds fired through your gun? I've measured my chamber, how long do you want your overall length?

I'll be using what I have, IMR 4831 and federal 200 primers.

I had good loads worked up years ago but I've forgotten most of it and can't find where I wrote it down.

thanks for the input...

[bobcat]

I like the 160 grain weight in 7mm myself. If you're only hunting deer the 145's will be just as good as anything though. But like you said, the 160's have a better B.C. The IMR 4831 should be just fine, and I would start a couple grains below the book max and work up in 0.5 grain increments, and look for pressure signs. If no exessive pressure, then go with the load that shoots the best group at the highest powder charge.

[509er]

I just ordered the 168 bergers from Hunting Shack.  $37 a box, I will let you how the shoot after this week hopefully.

[carpsniperg2]

i like the 160-175 weights. that is what mine liked a lot but now ray has it so you would have to ask him

[robescc]

I just ordered the 168 bergers from Hunting Shack.  $37 a box, I will let you how the shoot after this week hopefully.

I love these bullets.  They shoot great. Better than great.

[Huntboy]

Take a look at this website maybe it will help you out.

http://www.reloadersnest.com/index.asp

[Three_Oh_Eight]

What are you hunting and how far are your shots?  I used 160gr Nosler Partitions in my 7mm because it was a good medium between flat trajectory for long shots on deer and penetration for closer shots on elk.  If I were only deer hunting, I'd load up 140 or 150gr boat tails to the gills.  Until you get out to 500 yards, the BC, SD and all those other minutia are pretty much non-issues.  The limiting factor won't be ballistic coefficient or sectional density.  I think we get too worried about these little things when we could put the time and effort into more useful things like physical fitness, spotting animals, stalking and field shooting. 

I full-length size all of my hunting ammo because I want the most reliable and effortless feeding possible.  Neck-sizing might help accuracy in theory, but cycling can often be a bit stiffer and I'd trade reliability for minimal gains in accuracy.  I also like to put a little crimp with a Lee collet die to make sure the bullets don't slip during recoil or anything like that.  Even with these steps, I'm able to find loads that are at least MOA, if not a bit better.  If I can shoot 2 MOA out to 400 yards, I'm still on lungs on a deer. 

[Jamieb]

I shot 160gr speer BT's for years, killed deer,elk, and bear just fine. I've switched to 160gr accubonds mostly for the plastic tip, the lead tip on the speers would get bent over after being ejected a couple of times and although it didn't seem to hurt accuracy it still bothered me.

[G.R.K]

Bullet weight is way over rated,shot placement is what it's all about. 

[high country]

how far do you plan on shooting, what is the closest shot you would expect? big bullets are great if you do not plan to shoot far. in the 7mm, most bullets do plenty fine at rem mag velocities, so ultra premium bullets are more of a luxury then necesity.....sans the old batch of bal tips. any one of the bullets you mentioned will kill elk just fine. I would shoot for groups and pick the winner. I have killed many a elk with many a bullets and let me say the 100gr tsx was every bit as devastating as the 180gr scirocco and the 250gr partition. anything that can tell the difference in a few grains when stepping in front of a speeding bullet is something you prolly ought not shoot at.

[Bigshooter]

I have a friend that has a 7mag and he asked my dad and I to load him up some different stuff for him.  What he liked best was the 175grain grand slams.  We got them going at about 2900fps and he just loves them.

[Jamieb]

how far do you plan on shooting, what is the closest shot you would expect? big bullets are great if you do not plan to shoot far. in the 7mm, most bullets do plenty fine at rem mag velocities,

Do you even shoot a 7mag?
I disagree with pretty much all of that statment.

[Three_Oh_Eight]

how far do you plan on shooting, what is the closest shot you would expect? big bullets are great if you do not plan to shoot far. in the 7mm, most bullets do plenty fine at rem mag velocities,

Do you even shoot a 7mag?
I disagree with pretty much all of that statment.

I would think that to some extent, it would be the opposite.  If I were shooting beyond 400 yards with some regularity, I wouldn't shoot less than a very slick 160gr.  The lighter weights blow around a bit too much at extended range and lose velocity quicker.  BUT, if you aren't a long-range shooter and stick to regular hunting limits of 300 to 400 yards, none of that should matter on deer.  On elk, 160gr, 165gr or 175gr for me and bullet construction means a lot more on elk than on a deer.

[Bscman]

how far do you plan on shooting, what is the closest shot you would expect? big bullets are great if you do not plan to shoot far. in the 7mm, most bullets do plenty fine at rem mag velocities,

I disagree. Big bullets buck the wind better and will have a better ballistic coefficient. They will retain more energy at long range.
Take the 647 Military ball ammo for .50bmg in comparison to Hornady's 750gr Amax. The 647gr leaves the barrel 200+fps faster, but is only supersonic to ~1800yds. The 750gr is still supersonic past 2200yds = MUCH more energy and a longer effective range.

Not a 7mag shooter but I'll address the OP's other questions.

As for as working up a load...
I like to measure the rifle in question to see just how long I can go with over-all length. I want to know exactly how far off the lands my bullets are. Most of the time you'll find you have to make your loads too long for the magazine before you start contacting the rifling.

I've found many of my rifles like somewhere in the neighborhood of .025-.045 of a "jump" before the bullet hits the rifling...this is with most of the standard jacketed lead varieties. Sometimes this isn't possible due to magazine dimensions. My barnes TSX's tend to like a .050" to .060" jump for best accuracy--many times this is very do-able and still have the rounds fit easily in the magazine. The rifle itself, plus bullet shape/design will all play a role. Obviously on a hunting round you need them to fit in the magazine! Also, don't get caught up on thinking you *must* seat to the cannelure. You do not, and often times the cannelure on the bullet will bring you well over .100" from the lands and may negatively affect accuracy.

I'll usually use the above information as a starting point for seating depth, and start my loads on the low end of the spectrum, then work up in increments watching for pressure signs. After charting out the powder charge vs. group size, I'll find the best "acceptable" group size for a hunting bullet, then play with over-all length to fine tune from there...sometimes just a few thousandths one way or the other can make a huge difference. Max loads and accuracy don't always agree!
You still need to watch for pressure signs at this point--as seating depth can play a role in pressure!

Usually by now you're shooting better than the factory stuff you've been toying with, and you can choose to leave it alone...or keep chasing the bullseye for a better group.
I'm usually one to try two or three different types of powder, and two or three different bullet weights before settling on a load. Sometimes going 10-15 grains one way or the other in regard to bullet weight can make a big improvement...and don't get stuck on the idea you *need* a boat-tail bullet.If you're keeping the distances reasonable, a flat base bullet will work just fine and may get your preferred bullet weight to shoot well, where a boat-tail version does not. (often times a flat-base bullet of one specific weight will be shorter in length than the same weight as a boat-tail. Bullet stabilization is affected by the length of the bullet--not necessarily the weight)

I'm another fan of putting a light crimp on hunting loads...especially auto-loaders and tube fed guns...but I will generally do the sale for heavier recoiling bolt guns. Lee's factory crimp dies work great for this...a slight crimp is all that is necessary, and the lee dies make this easy. I've even got a few loads that prefer a good crimp over non-crimped.

As for brass. I will usually neck size only for accuracy...but this can mean your bolt will be a bit still when cycling. For hunting rounds I'll take a full length sizer and set it up just like I was going to full length size, but then back it off a half-turn (give or take). Just enough to resize the neck and *slightly* set back the shoulder, but not a full on re-size. you can fine tune this so you don't over-work your brass with a full resize, yet your loads will chamber more easily than simply neck-sizing.

[high country]

sorry for the confusion, I meant big RN bullets, not boat tails. I am well versed in the dynamic affects of drag....just not aways so good at english at 11pm...lol.  some of the 7mm stuff gets pretty chunky when it gets heavy. I have some 180gr bergers here that are swell if you can spin them.