7mm-08?

[elkguide]

Good choices.

To many rifles is like a unicorn...…… both do not exist!

 

[Tod osier]

Well - I don’t have great self control. I went to a gun store to check out rifles for my son and ended up buying two guns today. I got a Model 70 Compact in 7mm-08 for my son as his first rifle (his birthday is in a few weeks) and bought the Model 70 Extreme Weather in .300 Win Mag for myself.

With my .270 and .300 Win Mag I feel I’m covered for anything I might hunt and my son has a rifle he can grow into that covers him from whitetail on up to antelope, mule deer and elk as he starts hunting more.

Do what you can to limit recoil for your son (get a good recoil pad and consider reduced recoil loads). The 7mm-08 is not a hard kicker, but it can slap you pretty good in a light gun. I have a 7mm-08 that seemed to have a decent recoil pad, but I found it kicking more than I thought that little cartridge could, it was downright unpleasant on the bench in a t shirt. I have far harder kickers (with good recoil pads and better stock fit, that I'd prefer shooting to that lil 7-08).

 

[Lowndes]

Do what you can to limit recoil for your son (get a good recoil pad and consider reduced recoil loads). The 7mm-08 is not a hard kicker, but it can slap you pretty good in a light gun. I have a 7mm-08 that seemed to have a decent recoil pad, but I found it kicking more than I thought that little cartridge could, it was downright unpleasant on the bench in a t shirt. I have far harder kickers (with good recoil pads and better stock fit, that I'd prefer shooting to that lil 7-08).

Thanks - I’m getting a few adjustments made to the gun to fit him better and they are putting on a better recoil pad as well. He definitely will be shooting reduced recoil loads. For the range and even when he starts going after whitetail and hogs he will never have a shot more than about 70-80 yards to start so those will work there too.

As he gets bigger and stronger he can start using regular loads and hopefully use this gun on western game once he is old enough.

 

[Tod osier]

Thanks - I’m getting a few adjustments made to the gun to fit him better and they are putting on a better recoil pad as well. He definitely will be shooting reduced recoil loads. For the range and even when he starts going after whitetail and hogs he will never have a shot more than about 70-80 yards to start so those will work there too.

As he gets bigger and stronger he can start using regular loads and hopefully use this gun on western game once he is old enough.

I bet that will work great, I wish my dad put me in the position you are putting your son with a great setup like that. My son shoots a lightweight .308 with a great pad, reduced loads and we added a brake so I could bump the loads up a little bit hotter (about 90% max with light bullets). Fun watching them master a real gun. Ring some steel at 50 to 100 is great practice.

 

[Ndbowhunter]

In the 7mm-08... 120gr Nosler ballistic tips with 30 grains of either reloder 7 or h4198 has been stupid accurate and pretty decent on velocity deviations. H4895 not as much in the below 80% reduced range.

that said I sold off my 7mm-08before Hornady releases their 120gr ftx, I’d use that bullet if I was going to keep bullet velocity below 2400fps or so for whitetails/sub 300 lb animals.

the old Hornady FB 120gr ssp bullets were a go to for 7-30 waters/ 7tcu pistol hunters back in the day. 25gr of 4198 will mimic those exit velocities and I’m guessing make one ragged hole at 100. I know mine did. Can be found regularly on gunbroker.

One thing I can say is that in the 7mm-08 full house 120gr loads and full house 162gr loads are pretty much identical in felt recoil. The energy numbers at the muzzle prove this.

If large animals like elk and moose are on the menu I might vote shooting a starting load of h4350 and 162gr eld-m and a great muzzlebrake. And a limbsaver. Felt recoil will be in the 223 range.

 

[Kimber7man]

Back when my oldest son started hunting I had him start with reduced loads with H4895 to practice shooting as much as possible. Then when we went hunting I had him use a little hotter load with a TTSX and drill the shoulders. He never noticed the recoil!