7mm08 appreciation thread

[GWH]

Attachment 211443

Love this wee thing, 7mm08 Rem M7 KS Stainless, 16" barrel, DPT mod, Leupold Mk4 3.5-10.

Lucky to get this for the price, considering what the Yanks pay for them. Great stock, barrel amd action (although the PTG bolt it came with was set too far back, had to be replaced).

120 Nosler BT's loaded to 2.8", probably going around 2,600 fps odd.

Accounted for a few deer now!

Lots of love for the M7's here too. The Yanks are starting to pay silly money for them now eh. I run the Remington Model 7 Enthusiasts Group on FB and there's often posts from the US members about the price some M7's are going for. Apparantly its near impossible to find a M7 in 7mm08 or 308 over there now.

[caberslash]

Lots of love for the M7's here too. The Yanks are starting to pay silly money for them now eh. I run the Remington Model 7 Enthusiasts Group on FB and there's often posts from the US members about the price some M7's are going for. Apparantly its near impossible to find a M7 in 7mm08 or 308 over there now.

Yup, crazy to think the new Remington Arms has decided not to nake them anymore!

[Bagheera]

I think the 7mm08 is about right among the mid size cartridge class. Fits a 2.8" bolt and mag, doesn't need a fat bolt face. Marginally smaller bore than the 308 but not getting tight like the 260/6.5 where KE really starts to suffer. Interesting it not loaded to the huge variety of bullet weights the 308 is. But 140 gr seems pretty optimal, often getting 2800 fps with a respectable BC. Current fashion for short barrels <18" just muddy the waters.

It took me a few months and talking nicely to the agent at the time (James Pain) but I got 140 factory Norma and later another 100 which has set me up for brass for a decade.



These have the 140 gr Nosler ballistic tip, which blows up and kills so well, specially on goats and sika.

Here they are on paper. The grid is 1" squares.
The rifle has a standard weight barrel no fluting or what have you and it shoots close first shot cold bore and doesn't walk on strings.
I had a bit of trouble this day with the focus ring coming loose but sorted it - zero not affected. It was a Leupold VX1, perhaps not the clearest of scopes but rock solid and reliable.


This is a MOA holdover chart for that scope.
I didn't dial it much but could have I guess.


I essentially reproduced the factory load and reload with the most easily available components.
I've been able to use the same load for 9 years - just ideal.


Next I did paper testing at 100, 300 and 500m with my new mil / mil scope.
Sorry its pixelated, I couldn't find the original jpeg. This is 1 cm grid.


Putting those numbers into JBM, Shooter and later Strelock Pro and adjusting the velocity to fit, I made up this fancy drop chart with ballpark corrections for slope and metres per click for fine adjustment at longer ranges. I set it for a mid altitude barometric pressure.


That has served me well for field target shooting out to 600m and the very occasional hunting shot outside 300m.
The trajectory from 30m to 130m is within 1cm of the sight line so no aiming off is needed and I can shoot a hare that far if I get the opportunity.

Here's the obligatory pig to show it can kill one:


Smallest animal I've shot with it is a rat and biggest a 11" bull tahr so its a very all rounder cartridge.

After one or two thousand rounds it got a bit hard to start the cleaning rod down the bore.
I did a good carbon clean and soaked out a certain amount of copper.


That really made no difference and there was just a little etching and firecracking in the first few centimetres past the throat but the rifling was basically still all there.


I dealt with this using the scotchbrite pad method recommended by Nathan Foster, followed by JB Bore paste and then the patches went smoothly down the bore again.


I think it will need this about every 1000 rounds by the feel of it.
It's done 3000 rounds now and still seems to have the same accuracy as when new and the trajectory hasn't changed.
My brass has been reloaded about 15 times and only 1 in a hundred each time I fire them gets has got a wee crack in the neck. They've been annealed once.

The 7mm08 is good for barrel and brass life.

More recently, Norma ammo has been hard to find. A shipment of Sako brand 7mm08 came in about this time last year and I bought a hundred. It's not every year you can get the 7mm08 factory ammo of your choice but if you put aside $500 for the sunny day, you can keep yourself going.