Range day with the 7mm Bee

[FOTIS]

Sometimes they do not like Boat tails!

That should have been the title to this post. Anyway i tried several and no joy!

Switched to the 150 gr partitions and got 3250 fps and 1.25" and 1" with 2 different powders.

I then just for fun tried RL 22 and the 154 Hornady Spire point!

Boom! 3300 fps and this






Love that EUROMARK. 7mm bee.












BTW any opinions on the 154 Hornady for game??????????

 

[Sas874runner]

That's a beautiful boom stick there. And as for the accuracy not a thing out of place there! Nice shooting

 

[FOTIS]

BTW any opinions on the 154 Hornady for game??????????

 

[Guy Miner]

Never used them myself, but it's been a standard offering in Weatherby factory ammo for a long time. I suspect that 154 Hornady has killed a lot of game...

 

[sask boy]

Fotis that is a beautiful rifle there ! I have never used that particular bullet weight but with a beee and that kind of accuracy I wouldn't stand infront of you at any distance. Lol

Blessings,
Dan

 

[DrMike]

I would imagine the 154 grain HDY SP will work. Cup and core bullet past a hundred yards will be pushing the envelope on velocity a little. However, on light skin game, it should work.

 

[JD338]

Nice work buddy. I can't speak on the 154 gr Hornady but the 150 gr PT is an awesome bullet.
How did the 150 gr ABLR's shoot?

JD338

 

[Oldtrader3]

If it will shoot the 154 Hornady's, it should also shoot the 150 or 160 gr Partitions well. I used the 154 Hornady's for awhile back in the 1960's. They shot well but came apart at 7mm Rem Mag velocities at closer ranges.

 

[FOTIS]

Nice work buddy. I can't speak on the 154 gr Hornady but the 150 gr PT is an awesome bullet.
How did the 150 gr ABLR's shoot?

JD338

They did not. No boat tail did.

 

[Darkhorse]

When my 7mag. was my number 1 rifle, the go to bullet was the 154 gr. spire point. Sure, I tried other bullets. Including the 140 Partition at max. and most did well but the 154 spire point just flat outdid them all.
I always loaded a maximum load of IMR 4350 and shot game from 10 yards out to a couple of hundred. I shot a huge boar hog at 25 yards. This would have sorely tested the integrity of any bullet but the spire point stayed together and the boar traveled about 50 yards. He was shot square through the shield which looked about 3 inches thick. The bullet did not make it to the other side of the ribcage but it penetrated deep enough!
This bullet killed those thin does quickly and the big bucks and hogs with the same aplomb. Not many bullets can accomplish both tasks this well.
I never worried about bullet failure on a close shot or a longer one. In fact the Hornady interlock spirepoints of all calibers have never failed. Not once.
In the .300 Win. Mag. I shoot the 165 Spire Point for deer and the 180 Spire Point for elk. I always shoot hot loads worked up for my rifles. The 165 has accounted for several deer kills from the 350 yd. mark out past 400. On my last elk hunt I shot a good 5x5 past the 400 yd. mark and it penetrated both shoulders and a portion of the spine, flipped the elk on his back and he kicked one (1) time and was still. He was slightly quartering to me.
And this; I shot a large 8 point (eastern) at 350 to 400 yards from a tripod with a sandbag. He was walking fast following a doe. It took me over an hour to locate where he was standing and I found it by the white chunks of fresh pine wood. The 165 SP had centered a dead pine about 4" dia. then hit a live pine about 2" into the tree. I knew I had missed the deer but I don't give up easily and found a spot of blood just beyond the tree. The blood trail just got better as I went and I found him bled out about 65 yards further on. There was a jagged hole right behind the shoulder and the bullet had completely took out the heart. Now that is some testament to the Interlock bullet.
In either caliber I've never had to hunt with a load that printed over .5 MOA they are very accurate bullets.
The only reason I'm looking at other bullets this year is the fact that I need a bullet that opens up faster at 400 yds. or more, as where I'm hunting I need a DRT if possible or close to it.
I can't say enough about the 154 gr. Spire Point it just flat out works. And btw the Hornady book loads for this bullet are sadly anemic. I started loading for the 7mag with some older manuals which specified several grains more than the modern books. It seemed the hotter the load the better they shot.

 

[boomer68]

Very nice FOTIS. Mine seems to like the Hornady 139 GMX factory load.

 

[FOTIS]

Nice!

 

[kraky]

The 154 hornady is a go to bullet for me in any 7mm that gives accuracy trouble. I don't know why but it shoots great in everything I've tried it in.
I've never tackled elk but a buddy used my reloads on a couple. They got dead but from why I saw of recovered bullets I'd sure stay away from shoulders.
THAT is a beautiful stock on that rifle. Love the oil rub type finish. Don't know why but the shiney gloss finish always looked way too gaudy for me on most wby rifles.

 

[SJB358]

That is a beautiful Weatherby Fotis. Love that cartridge as well!

If it shoots the 150 PT's I'd probably buy into a bunch of them, cause that bullet seems to be the most overlooked bullet of all of us 7mm shooters. Good BC and it always seems very accurate.

I am thinking if my son draws an elk tag this Fall, that or the 140 AB will be the bullet that he uses in his 7x57.

Again, great shooting buddy. What are your intentions with the 154 Hornady? I would say if your just smacking deer around it should work more than fine. If your tackling elk, I'd really lean on the 150 PT, just because it's cheap insurance..

 

[OU812]

Put a couple into some jugs and see what you think? I myself wouldn't worry a bit about hitting elk with that bullet.

 

[JD338]

I like the 7mm 150 gr PT which is a dandy bullet for elk.

This would be an awesome bullet in the 7mm Bee.

JD338

 

[SJB358]

I just found a box after I posted on this. Went and loaded up some test loads in my son's 7x57 Mauser. Should be interesting to see what it does. QL predicts some good performance..

Cartridge : 7 x 57 mm Mauser (SAAMI)
Bullet : .284, 150, Nosler PART SP 16326
Useable Case Capaci: 53.942 grain H2O = 3.502 cm³
Cartridge O.A.L. L6: 3.120 inch = 79.25 mm
Barrel Length : 22.0 inch = 558.8 mm
Powder : Alliant Reloder-17

Predicted data by increasing and decreasing the given charge,
incremented in steps of 2.0% of nominal charge.
CAUTION: Figures exceed maximum and minimum recommended loads !

Step Fill. Charge Vel. Energy Pmax Pmuz Prop.Burnt B_Time
% % Grains fps ft.lbs psi psi % ms

-20.0 78 40.80 2336 1818 31398 9526 95.4 1.452
-18.0 80 41.82 2394 1910 33521 9793 96.5 1.412
-16.0 82 42.84 2453 2004 35786 10043 97.4 1.374
-14.0 84 43.86 2511 2100 38209 10275 98.1 1.334
-12.0 86 44.88 2569 2198 40801 10486 98.8 1.293
-10.0 88 45.90 2626 2297 43574 10677 99.3 1.253
-08.0 90 46.92 2684 2399 46543 10845 99.7 1.216
-06.0 92 47.94 2740 2501 49726 10989 99.9 1.179
-04.0 94 48.96 2797 2605 53140 11109 100.0 1.144
-02.0 96 49.98 2852 2710 56806 11210 100.0 1.110 ! Near Maximum !
+00.0 98 51.00 2908 2816 60746 11306 100.0 1.077 ! Near Maximum !
+02.0 100 52.02 2962 2923 64983 11399 100.0 1.045 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+04.0 102 53.04 3017 3031 69548 11488 100.0 1.015 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+06.0 104 54.06 3070 3140 74471 11573 100.0 0.985 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+08.0 106 55.08 3124 3251 79790 11655 100.0 0.957 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+10.0 108 56.10 3177 3363 85539 11731 100.0 0.930 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!

Results caused by ± 10% powder lot-to-lot burning rate variation using nominal charge
Data for burning rate increased by 10% relative to nominal value:
+Ba 98 51.00 3017 3031 74189 10863 100.0 0.997 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
Data for burning rate decreased by 10% relative to nominal value:
-Ba 98 51.00 2740 2501 49005 11624 98.1 1.181


It'll be interesting to see how they shoot. His little rifle seems to shoot everything pretty well once it finds a load it likes.

 

[gerry]

Would make a great load for everything in the 7x57 Scotty or for pretty much any 7mm round actually.

I would think you would be fine with the 154 gr Hornady Fotis in the wide open spaces you live in, it would be reliable once you get out about 100 yards or so. Close up it would likely be a bit erratic on heavy bones.

 

[DrMike]

Beginning to think that I need to focus on this bullet for my 7X57, Scotty. I know it works well in my 7RM and in my .280.

 

[Darkhorse]

Another thing about Hornady Spire points is they build them tougher as they get heavier.
This was from a Hornady engineer who I called about the Interlock bullet.
The 154 is designed to be a deer or antelope bullet. So no, I personally would opt for a heavier bullet for elk.
In .30, the 165 is designed as a deer bullet. From use I think it is better as a mule deer or large whitetail bullet. It is too tough for does and passes through without causing a lot of damage. This allows the deer to run a long ways before expireing.
The 180 is designed with a heavier jacket to be a elk bullet and a good one it is.
I shoot the 150 Interbond in my .308 with stellar performance so far.