7mm Remington Magnum Journal

Article #3 March, 2003

Choosing a Hunting Bullet

 

Users of the 7mm Remington Magnum are given a wide range of bullet types and weights to choose from.  This can be both a blessing and a curse.  The variety is what allows us to use our 7 Mags for such a wide range of game, but the variety also makes it extremely confusing to choose which is the best bullet to use.  Users of other cartridges, such as the .270 Winchester or .303 British have a smaller, albeit excellent selection of bullets to choose from.

Bullets available to the handloader range from 100 to 195 grains, and the user of factory ammunition can obtain loads from 120 gr. to 175 gr.  This covers the spectrum from varmints and plinking to heavy game such as moose or eland.  Many hunters use the 7 Mag on the big bears or lions where legal.  While there are more suitable cartridges for the job, your 7 Mag will do the job if you do your part as a shooter by choosing the right bullet and putting it in the right place.

Let's look at some of the different bullet weights and analyze what kind of uses they have.  We'll start at the light end first.

100-120 gr.

These bullet weights, possibly excepting x-bullets, are really designed for varminting.  Their lighter construction and low sectional density preclude their use on larger game, including deer.  Surely, many hunters have successfully used them on deer and antelope, but their are better choices available.  For a flat-shooting varmint rifle, these are excellent choices.

139-145 gr.

These bullet weights make excellent deer, antelope, sheep, and light plains-game bullets.  Bullets in this weight range include lightly-constructed bullets such as the Nosler Ballistic Tip, standard bullets such as the Remington Core-Lokt or Hornady SST, and stoutly constructed bullets such as the Barnes-X, Swift A-Frame, or Winchester FailSafe.  These sturdier bullets can also work for larger game such as bear, elk, or moose, though heavier bullets may be a better choice.

Starting from the barrel with a velocity of 3200-3300 fps will allow these bullets to be shot at long range while maintaining a flat trajectory.

150-162 gr.

This bullet weight range is probably the most versatile and widely-chosen of all 7mm bullets.  Everything from Ballistic Tip and SST to Failsafe, Partition, X-bullet, and A-frame bullets are available, and this will cover the entire range of game the 7 Mag is normally used for.  Deer and Antelope can fall to any of these bullets, and by selecting the sturdier components, the 7 Mag is an excellent choice for elk, bear, moose, or larger African plains game. 

The 150 gr. X-bullet or 160 gr. FailSafe, when driven to a muzzle velocity of 3000-3100 fps will normally out-penetrate the 175 gr. Nosler Partition or Speer Grand Slam.  The 150 gr. X-bullet, factory-loaded in PMP Supreme ammunition (South African Manufacture), has taken many large and tough plains game animals for us, including zebra, kudu, blue wildebeest, and gemsbok. 

The 154 gr. and 162 gr. Hornady SST, and now the new Hornady Interbond, are very flat-shooting and accurate.  Check out the Reloading Data page for some chronograph and load data that I have worked up for the SST bullets.  These bullets should make excellent deer, antelope, sheep, springbok, impala, or blesbok bullets.  For broadside shots on larger game they have proven to be excellent killers.  For shots taken at more extreme angles, bullets that retain more weight, such as an x-bullet or Nosler Partition are probably a better choice.

175-195 gr.

The heavyweight 7 Mag loads are known for excellent penetration on heavy, tough game.  If a hunter chooses to hunt moose, grizzly, eland, or lion with their 7mm, these heavy bullets are the best choices.  Factory ammunition loaded with Winchester Power-Points or Remington Core-Lokts are OK for elk but for heavier game a premium bullet should be chosen. 

The 175 gr. Nosler Partition is the heavyweight bullet by which all others are judged.  In penetration tests, using saturated telephone books, the heavyweight Nosler generally outpenetrates everything except the x-bullet.  The Nosler also has a very high ballistic coefficient (0.519), allowing it to fly extremely flat out to long ranges.  We have taken game from coyote to eland, and at ranges from 20 to more than 400 yards with the 175 gr. Nosler, and have had nothing but success. 

Other excellent bullets in this weight range include the Swift A-Frame, Hornady Interlock, and Rhino Core-Bonded.  The optimum muzzle velocity is 2800-3000 fps.  Most loading manuals will recommend using powders such as IMR 7828, Alliant Reloader 22 or 25, or Hodgdon H1000 to achieve maximum velocities.  A magnum primer is always recommended when using heavy charges of slow-burning powder.

The 195 gr. Barnes Original bullet is being gradually phased out of production.  When driven to muzzle velocities of 2700 fps (the same as a 180 gr. .30-06), it will penetrate very deeply on heavy game.  Accurate 8700 is an excellent powder for this bullet.  The construction of the Barnes Original allows fairly substantial expansion.  For deep penetration and wide expansion, this is an excellent bullet.  The pure copper jacket tends to leave more deposits in the barrel than standard bullets, and therefore must be cleaned properly before shooting other bullet types.

 

Conclusion

The 7mm Remington Magnum is a very versatile and well-rounded chambering.  By selecting the proper bullet, a hunter can stalk nearly any game that walks the earth.  It is one of the few cartridges that is truly versatile for almost any hunting situation.  Varmints and small game can be taken with the 100 or 120 gr. bullets.  Deer, antelope, sheep, or similar-sized plains game are easily taken with the 140-160 gr. bullets.  Heavily-muscled game such as elk, moose, grizzly, eland, lion, wildebeest, or zebra is a good match for the 175 gr. bullet.  Pick the right bullet, develop an accurate load, and practice shooting from field positions.  If you do your part, you can feel confident that your 7 Mag won't let you down on that hunt of a lifetime.

 

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