7mm-08 Ammo Recommendations for Whitetail Inside 150 Yards???

[brtt485]

Hey All -
I added a custom 7mm-08 to my safe about 3 months ago but have yet to be able to find factory ammo I want to shoot. I am in the Northeast and most hunting is done in wooded conditions with shots inside 150 yards, frankly most are inside 100 yards. Ammo for this caliber seems scarce right now so I was hoping you all could point me in the right direction on selecting a round for my use that is actually attainable.

I see a lot of the Hornady variations available, 139gr American Whitetail, 139gr Superformance, and 150gr Precision Hunter. I also see the Nosler 120gr Ballistic Tip, Barnes 120gr Ballistic Tip, and Norma 150gr Soft Point.

Given most of my shots will be from relatively short range which of these bullets be best? I'd also welcome any other recommendations of factory loads you guys have seen available.

Thank you in advance!

 

[EmperorMA]

In 7mm-08 I have had TREMENDOUS results on deer to 300 yards with the 120 NBT, 139 SST and 120 TTSX. These three bullets are absolute hammers at the ranges you are looking at. My personal favorite is the 120 NBT but the other two are fantastic. I've even taken elk with the 120 TTSX.

If your rifle liked any of these, I'd be happy as a clam headed for some linguine.

 

[SCHUNTER73]

Likewise with the Hornady 139 SST and 140 Partition. Both have been very good on whitetails and hogs for me.

 

[beerbucksducks]

120 Nosler Ballistic tips work well for us.


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[oldillini]

I have a Ruger American in 7mm-08. It seems to like multiple factory rounds. Within 150 yards I think several would work. For me at that range I am content with 140 gr. Core-Lokts. This morning I took the 7mm-08 to the range. Was ringing 12" steel at 225 yards off-hand with that load.

 

[slick]

0-150yds 140gr accubond
151yds- 153yds 140gr accubond
154yds-204yds 140gr accubond
204-311yds 140gr accubond
312-481yds 140gr accubond

 

[Kimber7man]

Hornady whitetail 139 SP and precision 150 eldx are great.
Federal Fusion are great deer killers too

 

[Boarmaster]

Thats about the range most of my deer get shot at. I Use federal premium with 140 nosler ballistic tips.
I have a good supply but if I ran out at those ranges on deer I wouldn't hesitate to use Corloks or the Norma Softpoints. The ballistic tips just happens to shoot really good groups and feeds really great in my 7mm08 deer rifle. I would shoot those from 15 yards to 300 should I need to. I would be hard pressed where I hunt to see over 200 And that would be a long shot.

 

[BugleMeTimber]

Like the Core Lokt PSP's in my 7mm-08 but haven't been able to find them in a while. Shoot the SST's in one of my .270's and it works really well on deer. Picked up five boxes of the American Whitetail SP's for the 7mm-08 to give a try when my last box and a half of Core Lokts run out.

 

[Macintosh]

Deer inside 150 yards? Whatever’s on sale will work just fine. Dont over complicate it.

 

[TxxAgg]

Any of them will work but those 120 NBT are awesome in 7mm08

 

[Oregonmuley]

If you can find it - the Fusion ammo typically works well and seems to shoot in most rifles. My personal favorite is the 120 grain Nosler BT which I shoot in all my 7MM-08's and I have/had a few over the last several years. Have yet to catch a BT - they may not look impressive on paper but certainly work great at killing stuff

 

[Newtosavage]

Whatever shoots best out of your gun. 150 yards and in with a 7mm-08 on deer is not a tough ask. I use 120 TTSX for deer but I've used 139 Hornady SP interlocks (Same as American Whitetail ammo) and 139 SST's. I only use the TTSX because it's lead free but if you don't mind conventional bullets, the 139 SST has really done a great job for me on deer, both muleys and whitetail.

 

[eaglemountainman]

I would hunt anything in the lower 48 with a Barnes 120 TTSX.

Also a great choice for your needs is Hornady American Whitetail 139 Interlocks.

 

[EmperorMA]

I forgot to mention a couple of more choices because I haven't used them in 7mm-08. However, the Winchester Deer Season XP has worked very, very well for me in both 6.5 Creedmoor and .270 Win. Great expansion, deep penetration and DRT kills. I am sure the 140gr version in 7mm-08 would be just as effective.

The other ammo I wouldn't hesitate to recommend is the Browning BXR Matrix Tip. It is similar to the Winchester above, but a slightly heavier bullet and a boattail design. The 129gr bullets have been impressively accurate in my 6.5 Creedmoor and they hit game like a bolt of lightning. The 144gr version should be lights out in 7mm-08.

Both of these options work very much like NBTs and SSTs on game.

 

[brtt485]

0-150yds 140gr accubond
151yds- 153yds 140gr accubond
154yds-204yds 140gr accubond
204-311yds 140gr accubond
312-481yds 140gr accubond

I wish! Cannot find them available anywhere. Any ideas?

Deer inside 150 yards? Whatever’s on sale will work just fine. Dont over complicate it.

I agree however I think some bullets work better and different ranges and with the limited 7mm-08 ammo available, I figured I might as well get some opinions and land on the best option.

 

[slick]

Nah, I can't find any either.

139 GMX would do the trick as well. I wouldn't over think it grab what you can get. I tend to shy away from match bullets although some on here don't.

 

[Macintosh]

fair enough. if you're only talking about deer sized game at 150yds or less I think you'll have a hard time finding anything that doesnt work well (not many non-hunting bullets available in 7-08 factory loads), I'd be looking for what shot well out of my rifle and was easiest to find. If you're looking for versatility with an eye to other game and other places, then I like the solid bullet performance--120gr ttsx's have worked well for me at ranges from 50-250 yards, I get DRT kills on deer with minimal meat damage. 140gr etips are good too. Both will penetrate very well on larger game, the common wisdom is to keep impact velocity above about 2000fps to make sure they expand properly--for me that's a bit over 400 yards on the 120gr and about 475yds on the 140gr, which is more than plenty for me anywhere I go.

 

[FLATHEAD]

I'd vote 140 Partition or 139 Interlocks.

 

[tt_johnsclist]

Deer inside 150 yards? Whatever’s on sale will work just fine. Dont over complicate it.

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