No Love for the 7 Mag?

[Anonymous]

It seems when I grew up in the 1970s and the 1980s, everyone I knew wanted a 7mm Rem Mag. Especially those who set their sights on hunting the west. A lot of kids back then looked at our worn 30-30s and dreamed of a real long range rig.

The "Big 7" was a tremendously popular cartridge and it still ranks as one of the most popular worldwide hunting cartridges. But it seems in the last 10 years or so, interest in the 7 mag has waned. None of my friends and acquaintances hunt with one anymore and I can't remember seeing one in camp in ages.

Have newer cartridges stolen the thunder or is this one just a quiet performer?

 

[DrMike]

I owned a 7 RM early in my hunting career. I doubt that I'll ever be without a 7 RM. However, it is true that many other cartridges vie for attention now. Like many others (including many posting on this forum) I have succumbed to the siren song of different cartridges and rifles chambered for those cartridges. I'm not certain that the 7 RM has fallen out of favour so much as it is compelled to compete with a growing number of other cartridges, each of which is touted as the best chambering evah!

 

[Guy Miner]

Used one for quite a while, even had a pair of 'em! A sporter-weight 700 ADL, and a heavier 700 Sendero.

Good cartridge. Used it a fair bit. Moved on or back to the .30-06 eventually. Still have much respect for the good ol' 7mm Rem mag, and the very similar 7mm Weatherby Mag.

 

[c. schutte]

I think it was pushed heavily and folks could sport a "magnum" that they could handle. There was a time when I thought the 7 mag was the best "all around" cartridge out there when considering recoil. Recommended it to a friend and even bought one myself. Not sure I still believe it but, an argument can still be made for that cartridge.

For a long range deer rifle that can handle an elk while being easy on the shoulder it certainly has it's place.

 

[truck driver]

I have one that I picked up after selling my 300Bee a used M70 push feed primarily for a project rifle.
After shooting it I wondered what all the hoopla was all about since it had been touted as the best thing since sliced white bread and after shooting it I couldn't figure out why. It won't do anything I can't do with my 30-06 if I put a 26" barrel on it.
Maybe if I shot it more I could warm up to it.

 

[SJB358]

I'm one of the believers in a 7 mag. It was my first pick for a BG rifle and that rifle later became my 7mm Mashburn Super. A well designed handload is really a great hunting cartridge for most anything I'll ever hunt and the recoil of of the 7's is usually pretty acceptable by most shooters. A 160 at 3000 or a 175 at 2900 is pretty serious stuff that stacks up very closely to a 300 Win Mag using a 180 or a 200. It does have a shade less frontal area but today's Bullets negate that small gain in my mind.

I currently have a 7mm WSM and 7mm Mashburn Super that are very accurate and are quite easy to shoot well. So yeah, count me in as still a fan of the 7 mags. I'll have one of them in camp pretty much wherever I go. Between it and a 338/35 of some sort I feel pretty well covered.

 

[taylorce1]

I have no real love for the 7mm RM, and it's not that it's a bad round it just wasn't better than what I was trying to replace. My first big game rifle was a .270 Win it was my only big game rifle for several years. Well after a few years I decided that I needed to try a 7mm rifle, because of all the great bullet options everyone was talking about so I put the .270 in the back of the safe and actually wound up with a Savage 110 .280 Rem and two 7mm RM Winchester M70 XTR rifles to try.

The .280 proved to be a little finicky and only really like 140 grain bullets and nothing heavier, granted I didn't try many bullets in it mainly Sierra and Hornady. The 7mm Rem Mags were a lot less particular as to what they liked to digest, and I easily found some satisfactory loads. When all was said and done I killed a couple of pronghorn (1 ea .280 & 7mm RM), one mule deer (7mm RM) in two years of hunting.

In the end I went back to the .270 for a few reasons. It was a little lighter then the 7mm RM I owned, which made it easier to pack. The stock fit was much better with the .270 than the Savage .280. The rifle just seemed to shoot every bullet well from 130-150 grains, it would stack them into tight little groups. What I saw with the limited game I shot with the .280 and 7mm RM is that it didn't perform any better than the .270 Win.

I think it really boils down to the fact I was very successful with the .270 Win, killing several pronghorn, mule deer and elk with that rifle. I used a Sierra PH 130 grain for deer and pronghorn, and 150 grain Nosler Partition for elk and everything I pointed the rifle at just seemed to crumple. So the .280 and 7mm RM was trying to overcome some serious bias and in the end they just couldn't do it.

In the end,I realized I didn't need a huge selection of bullets to choose from the limited choice the .270 gives me is plenty to do what I need it to do. I also found out the .270 Win will kill game beyond my comfort range of shooting with its inefficient bullets. Had I started with the 7mm RM or .280, I would probably feel the same way about them as I did my .270 Win.

 

[Ridgerunner665]

I'm still a fan, but found a better mouse trap, so to speak...

The 280 Ackley can do most of what the 7mm Rem mag can do with less recoil, more rounds in the mag, and a little easier on barrels (not that barrel wear matters to a hunter).

 

[Thankful Otter]

Hodgeman, I have, like and use a 7mmWSM, does that count, or does it have to be a 7mm Rem., which I have never owned. The BLR 7mmWSM is a very handy and versatile caliber and rifle.

 

[preacher]

I love 7mm caliber, have used .280, 280AI, 7mm Rem mag, 7mmSTW, 7mm RUM, played with a 7x57 in an old '93 Mauser and a Mod 70 FWT back in the 90s...now, the only 7mm I have is a Mod 700 classic in 7x57. For me, I discovered that for the way I enjoy hunting, and the ranges I feel comfortable with, the magnums were just too heavy and didn't do anything my 280 didnt. On elk, a properly loaded 30-06 seemed ( to me) to thump then "harder", but did it in a lighter, easier swinging/handling rifle. I feel the 35 Whelen and 338 mags hit them harder still! I feel that the 7mm mags only come into their own when ranges get out to 400 to 500 yds. Beyond that, the bigger 30's and some 338s just hit them harder. Since 1973, I guess I have only met a mere "handful" of any magnum shooters of any caliber who actually handloaded for them! They use factory ammo and kill their game at "normal" ranges ( think way under 300yds! ha) Nothing wrong with it of course, and in the South, most folks hunt out of a blind, so weight adds to "shootability". But for tip toeing along a game trail through the edges of aspen/dark timber...make mine a nice "Sporter". Too light and I swing "past" my game; too heavy and I start out behind the curve and never catch up. Sporter weight and I find I can "put the finesse" on him whether he's standing still ( always preferred!) or if I jump him up. The 3 most popular calibers I have seen here in Utah are still the .270, 30-06 and 7mm Rem Mag. All good choices, just depends on what a hunter wants.

 

[jimbires]

I like my 7 rem mag . it's my go to for most of my hunting trips . it's hunted caribou in Kuujjuaq Quebec . it's hunted moose close to the Gros Morne park Newfoundland . it's hunted elk in Co, Wy ,and Id . I've hunted deer with it a few times . I've never felt under gunned while hunting with it . at times I do get to thinking I'd like to have something a little bigger in 7mm , like a 7-300 win , or 7 mashburn , or the 28 nosler . then I think , I have a 300 wby but I always grab the 7 rem mag , I guess it's the confidence I have with it . right now I just don't think I'll ever be without a 7 rem mag . my rifle is getting a lot of rounds through it , but it still shoots well . one day I'll need to rebarrel it , I guess this will be when I decide if I'm going bigger .

 

[longrangehunter]

I've had more then a few 7mm/.284 calibers, and always loved them for their High BC and SD, along with their somewhat mild recoil depending on how much powder was behind the bullet. I now only have the 280 AI which is close to the 7mm Remington Magnum, and frankly are interchangeable.

Not sure why that is, the guys over at Gunwerks were using it a lot before the 7mm LRM. So was everyone else when it first appeared for decades, we just now have so many new or old flavors to choose from I'd guess?

 

[SJB358]

I've had more then a few 7mm/.284 calibers, and always loved them for their High BC and SD, along with their somewhat mild recoil depending on how much powder was behind the bullet. I now only have the 280 AI which is close to the 7mm Remington Magnum, and frankly are interchangeable.

Not sure why that is, the guys over at Gunwerks were using it a lot before the 7mm LRM. So was everyone else when it first appeared for decades, we just now have so many new or old flavors to choose from I'd guess?

I think you are right Kevin. There are a slew of bigger 7's nowadays. I absolutely love my Mashburn and jokingly call it my 7mm Rem AI, cause that is about what it is. Just a touch extra but honestly if I had an awesome 280 Ackley or 7mm Rem I wouldn't miss out on much either.

 

[cloverleaf]

Dads 7Mag was mythical to me as a kid. I never heard of or saw anything go more than 10yds after that gun went off, honestly. But I wasn't there for everything and Dad was a good and careful shot. Dad never let me shoot it. He always said it was too much for me to handle. He was a big man, well over 6ft and big. I'm 150ib soaking wet to this day. Never shot it, but it been in my safe for a few weeks. One of these days....I just want to shoot it well... Will post when I do. Incidentally, 130 Gr Speer was the only bullet he used. CL

 

[TackDriver284]

I had two 7mm's, the big 7 and the 7STW since the early 90's. Both had 3 barrels installed on them until I decided to convert the 7STW to 300 Win Mag due to lack of good brass. I still shoot my 7 Mag year round for deer and hog hunting. Usually use bullet weights from 140 to 160 most of the time and can't keep count on how many animals I bagged with the big 7. It's my go to hunting rifle.

 

[JD338]

I always admired the 7mm Rem Mag but I ended up with a 280AI. I do like those sleek 7mm bullets.

JD338

 

[drakehammer]

When I was a kid, there were essentially two groups of buddies I hunted with and/or associated with....those with old 30-06s or those "lucky" enough to have 7mags. All us 30-06 boys coveted those 7mags. Strange cause us '06 boys never ever tracked those smallish GA deer...but those 7mag boys were constantly having to track. Just never made much sense to me. Today, I've got a pile of different rifles in many different flavors to choose from. To this day, I've never seen anything kill a whitetail faster or deader than an 06' with a 150-180gr Sierra or Nosler Partition bullet. Only explanation I can come up with is "magnum" and "speed" hype sells better than it kills. And I'm the proud owner of a 7STW and a 7Rem Mag so I can say this without talking out my butt. There, that ought to start a ruckus...lol.


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[Gunner46]

I was right on the 7RM band wagon for about a decade. No doubt it was, and still is a wonderful performer. Then I changed home locations and it finally proved to be a less than optimal rifle configuration.

Thus came the 308 Win carbine. A lot easier to climb trees with and had all the necessary uuumph for any whitetail, or black bear. Still stands as my #1 most productive Dinner Provider.

BUT....

I've always been a 7mm fan and finally just 'had to have' another one. So, what to do? 7RM too much....308 just ain't a 7mm....soooo.

TADA !!! 7mm/08 !!!! Love it. Never looked back, never regretted it, not even once.

And I think that progression is what many experienced hunters have worked out for themselves over the "Hay Day" years of the magnum mania. I just didn't 'need' the 7RM. I'm doing just as well (thank you) with the 7/08 and not having to deal with the weight, the recoil, the expense of burning 50% more powder etc. etc.

 

[drakehammer]

Gunner46 we could be friends. That's exactly where I am. 7mm-08 gets the call 95% of the time.


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[Darkhorse]

I think it was in '69 and I was 16 when I got captivated by the 7mm mag. while reading an article in Outdoor life. When I got the money I was going to get one.
It took a few years but one day I ordered a Lefthand Model 700 BDL in 7mm Rem Mag. This was around '81 and I had several RH bolt guns and had gone through Automatic phase also.
I still have this rifle, it still looks almost new and will consistently shoot .600 and under consistently with my handloads. It's taken elk, deer and a few really huge boars. It has never disappointed me.
I hunt with it some but now for the long shots I opt for my .300 Win. Mag. I just feel it gets the job done better. But I hardly ever shoot the .300 either, my rifle of choice for over a decade has been a .308 as my hunting is pretty close up.
One thing about how well the 7 mag. kills is the chosen bullets. Many load a heavily constructed bullet then blame the cartridge because a whitetail deer ran a long way after being hit.
I still feel the love for the cartridge and plan on keeping mine around while I'm still around.