Why isn't the 7mm-08 more popular?

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Brother Horsey, the 7x57 Mauser (or .275 Rigby if one is in a sophisticated mood) and about all the 6.5mm calibers from many moons ago will kill most contiguous 48 state game animals very well. You are correct regarding twist matters. I'm not so sure about throat issues except for an extremely short throat preventing heavy bullets from seating.

I actually have no opinion about Remington marketing, but I see many shooters being sold on the high velocity myth. Walt Bell killed a whole passel of elephants with 6.5x54mm MS and 7x57mm rounds using standard issue military ammunition. Both with rather low muzzle velocities.
 
Archie said:
Brother Horsey, the 7x57 Mauser (or .275 Rigby if one is in a sophisticated mood) and about all the 6.5mm calibers from many moons ago will kill most contiguous 48 state game animals very well. You are correct regarding twist matters. I'm not so sure about throat issues except for an extremely short throat preventing heavy bullets from seating.

I actually have no opinion about Remington marketing, but I see many shooters being sold on the high velocity myth. Walt Bell killed a whole passel of elephants with 6.5x54mm MS and 7x57mm rounds using standard issue military ammunition. Both with rather low muzzle velocities.
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You know what would have guaranteed success for both the 6.5-08 and 7-08? A weatherby advertisement;)
 
LOL.

Pity the 7mm-08 wasn't the parent cartridge for the .308. ;)

Us Americans and our 'thirtys.
 
If I found a good deal on a gun I wanted that happened to be in 7-08 it would not detract me from buying it, but I can't see myself picking it out from a catalog over a 308 or 270 or 260, or 7x57 or 280 or 6.5x55. I don't really have an explanation for why that is.
 
I too have no explanation for my fascination with the 7x57, but at least it's shared by others so I don't feel so bad. LOL

For hunting deer, I don't think a .308 or 270 or 280 or '06 is necessary.

IMO, 7mm-08, 6.5x55 and possibly the 25-06 are right where the lines of recoil and capability meet, and of the three, the 7mm-08 in a short action will always be my preference because of the option for heavier bullets if one chooses to pursue a bigger critter.
 
I can't tell any difference between shooting my 25-06 shooting a 120 at 3000 and 270 with 150 at 2800. The energy is 200 ft lbs more with the 270 load but feels the same to me. A 308 feels like a but more than both but not much. A 30-06 is a bit more yet. I don't think I'd be able to tell any difference between a 308 and 7-08 with 150 and 140.
 
I can. My 308 with 150's is noticeable. As in, snug it up. My 7mm-08 with 140's is pleasant. Can shoot it all day.

My 7 lb. '06 on the other hand. LOL More like "okay, get ready...here it comes"
 
I just want to reply to this with what I see around here. First thing is 7mm-08 is not a household name, IE daddy did not carry one in Vietnam, Korea, Iraq. This holds more sway than many realize. It is our social shooting side, and listening to your dad, bro's.

Second, the coyote guys all want fast and light, ( 223, 22-250, swift, 243.) then when they switch to deer it is bigger and heavier (270 30-06, daddy had a 30-06.)
When I ran a state deer check station it was 3 to 1 for 30-06, no kidding.

SO If the Army carried 7mm08 into Korea You probably would have half your deer hunters carrying it, other half sticking to the ol -06, and the ranch pickups would still be full of those fast 223's and 243's.

My Remington Classic 7mm-08 was a pain to shoot from the bench and had as much recoil as many a 308. I get a kick out of people recommending 7mm-08 to women and such. Basically might as well start them with a full power 270 or 308.
1" pad helps
 
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Bones741 said:
I think its because someone forgot to put magnum or creedmore in the name....I really like my 7mm-08. But now at my local walmart only one flavor of ammo is available, and theres 3-4 kinds of creedmore. Would hate to see 7mm-08 go to the wayside. Not saying the creed is a bad round by any means. But it is the latetst and greatest so every just has to have one I guess.
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I gave up on it when the ammo dried up for it. Same thing on the 280.

Steve
 
It should be more popular than the .308 and .30-06, because it is superior in essentially every way (the same relationship of the 7mm RM to the .30-06 and .300WM). But inertia keeps lots of inferior things popular and even drives people to defend them because they have a vested interest.
 
It's just so close to a 308 or 270 that I just can't rationalize a need for it to exist. I wouldn't pick it myself because I don't care about the recoil. I hunt in the north woods so I don't care a out the ballistic coeficient. It's not soft enough recoil for me to recommend it to a recoil sensitive shooter.

Not to jump on the bandwagon but the round that I really see filling the space between 308/270 and a 243 is the 6.5 creedmore. It seams to have gained the traction that the 260 should have but never did. We have about 6 times more calibers than we need.
 
Someguy, not all of us want to carry a long action rifle if we don't need it. I'm always trying to save weight wherever I can. I agree the .270 is a great caliber.

Agreed we have about 6x more than we need though.
 
someguy2800 said:
It's just so close to a 308 or 270 that I just can't rationalize a need for it to exist. I wouldn't pick it myself because I don't care about the recoil. I hunt in the north woods so I don't care a out the ballistic coeficient. It's not soft enough recoil for me to recommend it to a recoil sensitive shooter.

Not to jump on the bandwagon but the round that I really see filling the space between 308/270 and a 243 is the 6.5 creedmore. It seams to have gained the traction that the 260 should have but never did. We have about 6 times more calibers than we need.
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The big thing that drives the 7mm calibers is the faster twist rate. If the .277s were 1:8" twist, there'd be no need for the 7mms, but Winchester made a bad decision and chose 1:10" and then doubled down on their bad decision when they chose it again for the .270 WSM. Same thing happened to .308 - the .30-06 was twisted 1:10 which is suitable for the larger bore, but someone at Winchester the brilliant idea to twist a nearly identical caliber at 1:12" - a bad decision to say the least. Remington almost screwed up the 7mm-08 the same way, but thankfully a lot of manufacturers realized they screwed up and are going to faster twists. Barrett just released their 7mm-08s in 1:8" which is really the right choice.

I think the Creedmoor will have legs as a hunting caliber in the long run because it's a well executed idea. Can't say the same for the .260.
 
Newtosavage said:
Someguy, not all of us want to carry a long action rifle if we don't need it. I'm always trying to save weight wherever I can. I agree the .270 is a great caliber.

Agreed we have about 6x more than we need though.
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I seam to prefer the 06 and x57 length cartridges for reasons I also cannot explain, but the 7-08 is basically the short action 270 so I can see the appeal there if a short action is desired.
 
I view it as the closest I can get to the venerable 7x57 in the rifles available today. Don't get me wrong. I love my '06. But I don't always need a 3 lb. hammer if I'm just framing.
 
Llama Bob said:
The big thing that drives the 7mm calibers is the faster twist rate. If the .277s were 1:8" twist, there'd be no need for the 7mms, but Winchester made a bad decision and chose 1:10" and then doubled down on their bad decision when they chose it again for the .270 WSM. Same thing happened to .308 - the .30-06 was twisted 1:10 which is suitable for the larger bore, but someone at Winchester the brilliant idea to twist a nearly identical caliber at 1:12" - a bad decision to say the least. Remington almost screwed up the 7mm-08 the same way, but thankfully a lot of manufacturers realized they screwed up and are going to faster twists. Barrett just released their 7mm-08s in 1:8" which is really the right choice.

I think the Creedmoor will have legs as a hunting caliber in the long run because it's a well executed idea. Can't say the same for the .260.
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We look at it from two different angles being in different parts of the country and that's fine. You look at it from a western hunters perspective where you need a cartridge with some legs and a good BC, and I look at it from an eastern hunters perspective where anything past 250 yards is pretty much irrelevant. I do appreciate your perspective.
 
someguy2800 said:
We look at it from two different angles being in different parts of the country and that's fine. You look at it from a western hunters perspective where you need a cartridge with some legs and a good BC, and I look at it from an eastern hunters perspective where anything past 250 yards is pretty much irrelevant. I do appreciate your perspective.
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That is true.

I haven't had a chance to hunt east of the Mississippi, but I get the impression that game is mostly smaller (with the exception of a few Maine moose) and shots shorter. That would certainly change things - your basic .30-30 would look pretty darn good.
 
I'm in northern Minnesota so we have big deer as far as whitetail go. A good bit bigger than southern deer but not quite Saskatchewan size deer. Most of our shots are less than 150 yards as it's all woods and swamps up here and is usually a close up affair. My priorities are reasonable trajectory and wind drift out to 200 yards and to blow a good hole out the other side to produce a good blood trail so I can actually find the deer in the 5 foot tall slough grass. As such any time I can gain weight and diameter I see that as a plus. The most popular cartridges here are 30-06, 270, 243, and a few people using 30/30. This year I used a 444 marlin and a 45-70 with my 3 deer taken within 50 yards. Our best hunting spots also happen to be the ones in the thickest brush. We have some spots with longer shooting opportunities and I normally take something flatter shooting there. I think the longest hunting shot I ever took was 240 yards, except coyotes.
 
Here in TX, a person can get everything you just described in East Texas, or find themselves on a sendero in S. Texas, or on a canyon rim in the hill country, or shooting across the plains of West Texas or the panhandle. Maybe that's why we all have so many guns. :D
 
Great cartridge, great ballistics, great performance on the target range and on mid-sized game... but it came along as a SAAMI factory load about 40 years ago and it nearly duplicates too many older, much more established rounds that are also great performers...
 
I’m glad we have so many rifle chambering choices. It would be rather boring if all we talked about were 2 or 3.

I also find I usually enjoy a spirited debate about the differences between cartridges. We may be splitting hairs but thats fine. ‘Merica!!
 
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