7mm-08 Deer Loads

[filmjunkie4ever]

My Father in Law bought a used Weatherby Vanguard in 7mm-08 today. It has the shorter (20"-22") tube and was a decent buy. He got it because he is having issues with the recoil of his old .30-06 these days, so after a discussion with myself and the other gun loonies in our circle o' friends he went for a 7mm-08.

I have never loaded for this particular round but have shot 2 different rifles (both Remington 700s) and was impressed. We want to get something going by deer season.

Any favorite standby's with 139-140 grain bullets?

Going to pick up a couple boxes of factory stuff tomorrow to try this weekend.

Was thinking the American Whitetail 139 grain load would be a good place to start.

Any advice on a good prescription?

 

[rmarshall]

I really like the 120 BT over R17, awesome, just awesome, great game performance as well, another one that did well Is Speer 130 over h414, the hornady 139 is a great bullet, we haven't used it on deer but I've put into water jugs, it's holding as much weight retention as bonded bullets, lots of great options, I want to try the 140 BT, the 140 AB is awesome also, I'm really liking R17 with about any Bullet now, hope that helps some , the 7-08 is a awesome cartridge!!

 

[filmjunkie4ever]

Yeah that Hornady 139 grainer has seen use in my Mother's 7x57 and also in a .284 Winchester (Savage 99F of course!) both at about 2700-2750 fps in their 24" tubes.

Never got to try that Speer 130 grain bullet but have heard great things.

The reason I am wanting to go at least 139 grain is my Father in Law is thinking he will get one of those general season cow tags for Tex Creek area and I think that should probably be a minimum bullet weight for this caliber.

 

[Gunner46]

If your going with factory stuff, Hornady, Remington, and Federal all use 140 gr bullets that will work just fine on any whitetail that ever walked. I can't say that I have ever read where anyone ever bragged about the accuracy of Hornady factory stuff though. Federal is a different story, there has been some pretty steady reporting on their accuracy.

If you're going to hand load, then look no further than 42-43gr of Varget and a 140gr BT. For elk, just switch to a 140AB and you're done.

 

[jimbires]

I find the 7-08 easy to load for . most loads seem to shoot well .
I use IMR4064 with a 139 BTSP . this is right around book max powder charge . I've also used IMR4064 with a 139 SST and innerbond . accuracy has been good . I have a bunch of IMR4064 that is getting old . when I use it up I'm going to try RL17 in this rifle too .

I use RL17 with a 140 berger hunting in another 7-08 rifle . RL 17 should get you about the highest velocity available , and accuracy has been good .

the third 7-08 I load for I use a slightly reduced load of H4895 with a 120 nosler B-tip . it also has good accuracy . I've never tried higher loads using this powder , so I can't say much about that . if I had this powder on the shelf I'd sure give it a try though .

 

[SJB358]

I'd look at Varget, RL15, 4064, 4320 or anything in a similar burn rate for the 140's. I use RL17 in my sons 7x57 Mauser and it works excellent with any bullet I've tried so far.

 

[JD338]

I had good luck with RL19 and 140 gr BT's and 140 gr PT's.

JD338

 

[Blkram]

Factory ammunition; the Nosler 140 AB load is printing 1 MOA groups and less in my wife's little Steyr with a and shorter barrel, when she does her part.

Handloads; the good Dr worked up an excellent load with the 140 ProHunters and 47.2 gr of IMR 4350 in once fired Nosler brass that prints 1/2 MOA in her rifle. Having used the 140 SGK on lots of game over the years, I'm confident that this load will perform excellently on the black bear deer and elk that she intends to hunt with this rifle and load combination.

Hope your Father in Law enjoys his new rifle and the memories he is about to accumulate with it!

 

[Silentstalker]

I have had great success with the 120 gr. BT which is my favorite load for that gun. It also shoots 140 gr. BT, 139 gr. IB, and 140 gr. AB's well under MOA with very little effort. All of them loaded with Varget.

 

[MAinAR]

I have found that terminal performance is best at the speeds the 7mm-08 cast with anything loaded with 140NBT.

 

[Jgraider]

Love the 7-08. The older I get, the more I like it. Work up to these:

140 AccuBond
41-42 g Varget
41-42 RL 15
44g H414
46.5g Big Game
45-46g IMR 4350

 

[tjen]

Do not over look the Speer 145 grain bullet. The 139/140's by Nosler and Hornady are top picks.

 

[Jimbeaux82]

I bought my daughter a Howa 1500 in 7-08 last year, and it is essentially the same rifle as the Weatherby Vanguard. Here is the load that I settled on, and it is a shooter.

140 gr NBT, 42.8 gr IMR 4895, 2.840" aol, cci 200, RP cases, 2700 fps chrono, 1/2" - 3 shot groups

 

[Anonymous]

In my son's 7-08 I like the 120gr. I used the 140gr Fusion last year and wasn't impressed much. That's a stout bullet at the speeds the 7-08 generates.

I love the 7-08 a lot.

 

[filmjunkie4ever]

Yeah with the shorter barrel, I figured 2700-2750 fps to be the expected velocity for the 140 grain bullet range. I cannot wait to shoot this gun!

Thanks for all of the input fellas.

FJ4E

 

[lhsako]

My Father in Law bought a used Weatherby Vanguard in 7mm-08 today. It has the shorter (20"-22") tube and was a decent buy. He got it because he is having issues with the recoil of his old .30-06 these days, so after a discussion with myself and the other gun loonies in our circle o' friends he went for a 7mm-08.

I have never loaded for this particular round but have shot 2 different rifles (both Remington 700s) and was impressed. We want to get something going by deer season.

Any favorite standby's with 139-140 grain bullets?

Going to pick up a couple boxes of factory stuff tomorrow to try this weekend.

Was thinking the American Whitetail 139 grain load would be a good place to start.
> my buddy uses RL19 and the 140 sierra bt or 140 nosler tip w/ 1" results. could shoot a 120 barnes to reduce recoil further....
Any advice on a good prescription?

 

[Divernhunter]

I have a bunch of loads worked up for my Tikka 7mm-08. I would suggest the Barnes 110gr TTSX if you are going barnes. Mine puts 3 rounds into a very tiny group at 33?? FPS. It works well on deer or hogs. Probably work well on other animals. I also have excellent loads using Nosler 120BT and 140PAR bullets.
I would pick lighter bullets for less recoil. But if you load barnes push them fast so the preform when they hit an animal.

PM me if you want exact data. I can scan and email the data I have.

 

[tecumseh]

I would think a 120 gr BT in the 08 would be the goods for deer! I can't imagine the recoil being all that bad.

 

[Polaris]

I have taken a lot of big deer with my .280 using the Speer 145 grand slam at aprox 2650 fps. Performance has been flawless. Since you're adding elk to the equation, I would go that route. I think you may find the Hornady 139s a little "soft" for that application. They are cheap though, and you should be able to come close to the 200 yard trajectory of the 145 GS and use them for practice or deer only.

 

[nvbroncrider]

Don't forget about the 150 PT as well. If your chasing elk as well only have to use one bullet.