Long range gun: .308 or 7 rem mag

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How much are you going to shoot? How much money are you willing to fork out a month for ammo? How far do you want to shoot? What range will most of your shots be? Are you going to reload?
 
If you can afford a 700P, you can afford to buy a cheap Stevens or Savage, a Shilen .260 barrel, aftermarket trigger & quality aftermarket stock and make a "custom" rifle yourself.

Or, simply pick up an 11LRH which comes in .260 or 6.5 Creedmoor and be done with it.

...but since you're SETTLED on a 700P with "no other calibers, no other rifles, period" then I'd say go with the 308 simply because of recoil. But since you have a line on a 7mmRM that you apparently like, go with it and get a threaded brake that you can remove if competition requires.
 
Maybe I'm missing something here, but on the range of shooting you said to 1000 yards. I have a .308 and it is a great cartridge. But I don't see the .308, 7mm-08 or .260 as 1000 yard cartridges. I do see these cartridges doing well to 600 yards. Shooting a 168 gr bullet my .308 keyholes past 600 yards.

I have nothing against any of the above cartridges other then the fact that the .260 is not very popular. The .260 is a good cartridge and it may become popular but I don't see many rifles available in that chambering presently.

For 1000 yards I'd want a 7mm or .300 Mag.
 
If you have to ask which rifle do I need to start shooting long range, the answer is always a 308 and a case of match grade ammo. You would be wasting your time and money starting on a 7mag.
 
I'm not a long-range shooter or reloader, but with regard to groups, doesn't the 7mm RM belt limit ability to seat deep into the lands? Seems like that would prevent it being a real match threat. That, and the selection of .30 match ammo far exceeds the .284. If those are your two choices, I would go with the .308. As for recoil, I have both. No comparison. I can shoot my308 all afternoon w/o a flinch. My flinch becomes an issue in 10 or so rounds from the RM.
 
I like the idea of the threaded muzzle brake that you can take off for competition if need be. Anybody have a 7mm mag with a brake on it? I'm just wondering how much difference it makes. I'm sure it depends on the brake, how hot the load is, etc. Just looking for any experience.
 
Shooting a 168 gr bullet my .308 keyholes past 600 yards.
Click to expand...

That's why we shoot 175 gr SMKs or 155 gr Scenars or 155.5 gr Bergers in .308; heavier bullets in bigger .30s.
A little history, the 168 gr SMK was originally known as the International, optimized for 300 metre competition. You need something else for longer ranges.
 
blackops said:
How much are you going to shoot? How much money are you willing to fork out a month for ammo? How far do you want to shoot? What range will most of your shots be? Are you going to reload?
Click to expand...
As I said in a previous post, I will be shooting out to 1000 yds. I have access to a great range within an hour of my house with 500, 750, and 1000 yd steel. I also shoot out to 800 once or twice a year with my dad just for fun.

I reload so ammo cost is not a huge factor.

Realistically, I shoot about 500 - 600 rounds a year from my long range gun. I married with 2 kids so... I'm lucky to get out that much.
 
If you are loading your own, I would go 260.
Light recoil, great ballistics, decent barrel life. It WILL reach out well beyond the 308 accurately.
BUT components can be tough to find at times and factory ammo is tough too.

If you are buying factory ammo, I vote 308.
Just plain works, LOTS of factory ammo that will shoot well, great barrel life.
BUT there are much better calibers from ballistic standpoint.

That 7 mag is no slouch either. My dad hunts with one a lot and it definitely shoots.
 
If you are looking for a high BC long range round why not 7WSM?
Better on pretty much all aspects than 7mm RM.
OTOH my go to is an Ackleyized 260 Rem shooting 139 Lapuas.
 
APIT50 said:
If you are looking for a high BC long range round why not 7WSM?
Better on pretty much all aspects than 7mm RM.
OTOH my go to is an Ackleyized 260 Rem shooting 139 Lapuas.
Click to expand...
Again, I can't really afford a custom rifle at this point in my life... Anybody making a target/tactical/"sniper" grade rifle in 7mm wsm?
 
Comparison at MV/400/600/1000yd

.260 Rem 140gr SMK BC=.535
Vel: 2700/2069/1792/1333
Drop: 0/46.9/115.59/398.8
ToF: 0/0.51/0.82/1.6


.308 Win 190gr SMK BC=.533
Vel: 2525/1920/1658/1241
Drop: 0/53.8/133.1/461.8
ToF: 0/0.55/0.88/1.73


7mm RM 168gr SMK BC=.488 (using 175gr would need barrel with 1:8" twist - probably not stock, .308 will be OK with 190gr, not sure what twist is needed for the .260)
Vel: 2800/2096/1791/1296
Drop: 0/44.3/110.4/390.5
ToF: 0/0.5/0.81/1.6
 
I'd be real curious to see how the 7mm RM with a 162gr Amax (BC .625) or 168br Berger Target VLD (BC .612) compares in place of the 168gr MatchKing...
 
better...
(Funny thing, Hodgdon says 7WSM will get this bullet up to ~2950+)

7mm RM 162gr AMax BC=.625 (I wonder if this is a valid @2850fps, but here goes...)
(note: 50fps more MV than before)
Vel: 2850/2285/2032/1583
Drop: 0/40.8/98.8/325.8
ToF: 0/0.47/0.75/1.42

Apples to Apples MV...

Vel: 2800/2425/1991/1550
Drop: 0/42.3/102.5/338.5
ToF: 0/0.48/0.77/1.45

@2950fps (wow)
Vel: 2950/2372/2213/1651
Drop: 0/38.1/92.0/302.5
ToF: 0/0.46/0.72/1.37
 
Last edited:
BoilerUP said:
I'd be real curious to see how the 7mm RM with a 162gr Amax (BC .625) or 168br Berger Target VLD (BC .612) compares in place of the 168gr MatchKing...
Click to expand...
I used to shoot the Hornady 162 A-Max in a Savage model 112 and they were excellent. Ballistics are outstanding.
 
I tried the 168 gr Match in my 7mm RM and it was accurate. That rifle did recoil though. Funny thing is I sold the 7mm RM because I also had a .300 H&H Mag. The .300 H&H did not recoil as bad as the 7mm shooting a heavier bullet.
 
ooooooh. This throws a whole new kink in things now. Thanks a lot!
Click to expand...

I linked that for you yesterday (post 19, I believe), what my links no good? LOL!

A good friend of mine has a savage .308 setup for "sniperish" duties, actually built by a former trained sniper, and loves it. I can only imagine how fun a .260 would be setup the same way.... And even better that savage is making a target model right out of the box.
 
I load my 7mm with162 amax @2900 amd my brothets 270 kicks harder. The 308 you'll gave to run 200 gr bullets to get the same bc and only run 2400 or so. I love my magwouldnd build or buy anything else for myself.
 
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