Browning A Bolt II 7mm WSM??

  • brian_peterson
    Eagan, MN
    Posts: 2080
    #210086

    I’m thinking about purchasing this gun, not real familiar with 7mm or the wsm. I currently shoot a Remington 7600 30.06. What will be the main differences? Thanks.

    kooty
    Keymaster
    1 hour 15 mins to the Pond
    Posts: 18101
    #84450

    The jury is still out for me on short mags. However, I’ve witnessed guys short stroking larger caliber shells in the heat of the moment. He simply wasn’t use to shooting the larger caliber.

    For me personally, I’m not a fan of the A bolt action. Just doesn’t feel right to me. This is simply a personal preference though. Nothing technically to knock on it.

    As for 7MM, well, it’s a great caliber. On the big end for deer in my opinion but not too small for out west big shots on an elk. A great all around caliber. For me it’s a great compromise gun so I don’t have to own multiple rifles. However, can a guy ever have to many rifles??

    robstenger
    Northern Twin Cities, MN
    Posts: 11374
    #84455

    7MM Mag is a fast flat shooting caliber. I’m not a big gun hunter but hunt many varying terrains and hopefully someday animals. I knew I wanted to hunt out West where a fast flat shooter was what I wanted, but I also knew I would be shooting deer here in MN. Just change bullet weights and I can go from 150 grian for deer up to something like 175-185 or so for Elk.

    For deer I’m sighted in dead on @ 200 and only like .5 ” high at 100. After that my ballistic reticle helps me determine hold over for anything down range.

    I have a Model 70 Feather Weight Bolt Action with a longer (26″) barrel in 7MM Magnum and love that gun for just about anything besides beating through the brush here in MN.

    PowerFred
    Posts: 395
    #84464

    I own a 270WSM and just picked up a 300WSM. I can tell you from personal experience that the 270WSM is wicked medicine for deer. My daughter uses it and every deer she’s shot literally dropped in its tracks. No jump, no mule kick, just straight down pole axed DEAD! I hope to have the same results from the 300WSM. Recoil is very managable. The 270WSM recoils similar to a 270win. It has less recoil than a 30/06 but has more power. I like the advantage of the short action.

    I’m sure you’ll be happy with the performance of the 7mm WSM.

    fishthumper
    Sartell, MN.
    Posts: 10673
    #84483

    I have been shooting a Browning A Bolt in 270WSM the last two seasons. I got this gun as a gift from my dad and being a lifelong shooter of all Remingtons I was a little unsure if I was going to like either the gun or the caliber. To make a long story short I love both. The A-Bolt have worked flawless and shoots great groups. If you take a look at the balistics on the 270WSm you will find that it had more Velocity and energy than either a 30-06 or 7MM all the way out to over 300 yards. Unless you are going to be hunting something larger than whitetail deer with it I’d go with the 270WSM over the 7MM short mag – just my $.02 worth. I think you will be really happy with the A-Bolt in either the 270 or 7MM short mag

    fishthumper
    Sartell, MN.
    Posts: 10673
    #84484

    Quote:


    I own a 270WSM and just picked up a 300WSM. I can tell you from personal experience that the 270WSM is wicked medicine for deer. My daughter uses it and every deer she’s shot literally dropped in its tracks. No jump, no mule kick, just straight down pole axed DEAD! I hope to have the same results from the 300WSM. Recoil is very managable. The 270WSM recoils similar to a 270win. It has less recoil than a 30/06 but has more power. I like the advantage of the short action.

    I’m sure you’ll be happy with the performance of the 7mm WSM.


    Just curious what round you have been using in your 270 WSM. I had a few issues with the rounds I was using last season ( Clean hits with the deer still traving a short distance with very little blood trail – Due to the round I was shooting I’m sure )and want to try something different this season.

    PowerFred
    Posts: 395
    #84506

    Quote:


    Quote:


    I own a 270WSM and just picked up a 300WSM. I can tell you from personal experience that the 270WSM is wicked medicine for deer. My daughter uses it and every deer she’s shot literally dropped in its tracks. No jump, no mule kick, just straight down pole axed DEAD! I hope to have the same results from the 300WSM. Recoil is very managable. The 270WSM recoils similar to a 270win. It has less recoil than a 30/06 but has more power. I like the advantage of the short action.

    I’m sure you’ll be happy with the performance of the 7mm WSM.


    Just curious what round you have been using in your 270 WSM. I had a few issues with the rounds I was using last season ( Clean hits with the deer still traving a short distance with very little blood trail – Due to the round I was shooting I’m sure )and want to try something different this season.


    Winchester Supreme 130gr. Ballistic Tips. I’m usually not a fan of Ballistic Tips, but this gun seems to love them. They can be fairly destructive if you hit the shoulder blade.

    muskybones
    Posts: 372
    #84523

    Quote:


    Winchester Supreme 130gr. Ballistic Tips. I’m usually not a fan of Ballistic Tips, but this gun seems to love them. They can be fairly destructive if you hit the shoulder blade.


    I love the ballistic tips, they make a small entry hole but the exit hole when they hit bone is huge from the 270 i shoot. i have saw holes as big as one from a 300.

    fishthumper
    Sartell, MN.
    Posts: 10673
    #84586

    Ballistic Tips – Thats the round I shoot last season. I had a small issue with the deer running 40-50 yards and leaving very little or no blood trail. This happened on 2 deer. Both were rather good shot placements. I made a post about it last year and most of the responses were not positive on the Ballistic Tips. Now I’m going to have to re-think my plans about changing rounds. Thanks for the response.

    tom_gursky
    Michigan's Upper Peninsula(Iron Mountain)
    Posts: 4751
    #84612

    First of all, ballistically, the 30.06 and 7MMs are very close in normal (0-300yd) hunting ranges…past that the 7MM Mag shines…

    The 7MM WSM is the least popular of the .270,7MM, 300 WSMs.

    One reason may be that with the reduced case capacity I am not sure a 175gr can be loaded, as it can in the std 7MM Mag.

    The .270 WSM will drop anything a 130 or 150 gr bullet will drop…w/o the 7MM recoil. I’d opt for the .270 in a WSM.

    BTW…the 30.06 is more versatile than the other two as it can push up to 220gr bullets.

    wade
    Cottage Grove, MN
    Posts: 1737
    #85098

    I picked up a 7mmWSM last year and love my 30.06 and my .270, but using this gun last year was great. I had 2 shots that were well over 275yds and fast, flat shooting gun. It took a little time at the range to adjust to it, but glad I purchased it.

    Good luck, always great to have options in your gun cabinet.

    Steve Plantz
    SE MN
    Posts: 12240
    #85184

    Here is an artical I found that I posted a couple of years ago with alot of good info.

    The Perfect Deer Rifle
    By Mike Moen

    There is something about human nature that makes people appreciate perfection. A Major League pitcher captures the headlines when he pitches a perfect game. A first grader who answers all of her math questions correctly is rewarded with a big star on top of her test. Even the local bartender is sometimes held in high regards for producing the perfect martini. Why should it be any different when it comes to deer rifles? Through the years gallons of ink have been spilled by writers discussing this matter. Some followed the lead of Jack O’Connor who favored smaller calibers that tossed bullets at breakneck speeds. Others found themselves in the Elmer Keith camp favoring large calibers with heavy bullets and large wound channels. With the vast experience that these two men had, it is obvious that both knew what they were talking about, and both were right. In fact, there are very few poor deer rifles. If someone really wanted to, they could spend their entire hunting career shooting at mulies and whitetails with a 375 H+H and probably never be disappointed. The same could be said for a 243 Winchester, which lies on the other end of the spectrum. However, not many people would view either of these guns as “perfect” for deer.

    The first step in building the perfect rifle is to decide what the gun will look like. While levers, pumps, and semi-auto loaders have their place, few would disagree that the bolt action is king. Overall the bolt action is more accurate, and is available in more factory rifles than all the others combined. Where I hunt in northern Minnesota, the lever action 30-30 has always been one of the most popular choices for folks heading to their deer stands. With most shots held under 100 yards by the thick vegetation, a lever gun shooting flat nosed bullets is plenty good for dropping deer in their tracks. That same gun, however, might feel a little outmatched trying to reach across 300 yards of Wyoming prairie after a distant mule deer. A bolt action rifle would be at home under both conditions.

    Barrel length is also something that needs to be considered. A short barrel tends to be more maneuverable and can result in a quicker shot in heavy brush at running game. Short barreled guns are also usually lighter, which can be a blessing if hunting in rugged or steep country. The payoff, though, is a loss of velocity and stability. A lighter gun can make it harder to hold the cross hairs steady, and the difference in velocity for some guns can be over 50 feet/second for each inch of barrel lost. A rifle wearing a 26″ spout will generally give out higher velocities, but may make snap offhand shooting a chore. When talking about deer rifles, I feel that a 22″ barrel is a good compromise. A barrel of this length will utilize most of the ballistic potential of any of the popular deer rifle chambering, and will still slide nicely through the trees.

    So let’s see, so far we have a bolt action wearing a 22″ barrel. The next step is to figure out what round our perfect deer rifle will be chambered for. This is probably the topic that gets the most attention, and has sparked the most campfire arguments. Personal favorites can run the spectrum from the light 250 Savage or 243 Winchester, all the way up to the various supercharged 30 caliber magnums and beyond. Across the country the 30-06 is probably still the most commonly used round for harvesting deer, and there is little doubt that it is a very effective deer round, but I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that I don’t think it’s the perfect chambering for a deer rifle. It’s just a little more punch than what’s needed. Why should someone put up with useless recoil when there are other rounds that will get the job done with less punishment to our shoulders? Staying in the 30 caliber family and taking a step down is the 308 Winchester which is an excellent choice for deer. Mated with a 165 grain bullet and a muzzle velocity around 2700 feet/sec, it is a great choice for any deer hunting out to most sane distances. It also has the benefit of numerous factory loadings, and finding a load that shoots well is usually not a problem.

    An argument can also be made for going smaller by looking at a couple of 25 caliber rounds. The 25-06, which is a former wildcat based on the 30-06 case and made legit by Remington, has gained a reputation as the perfect antelope round, but the characteristics that make it great for pronghorn also make it great for deer hunting. With a 100 or 115 grain bullet flying along a string tight trajectory, it produces deadly results out to long ranges, but has very mild recoil when compared to larger calibers. It is also a fairly popular round so is offered in quite a few factory loadings. The other 25 caliber is the antique 257 Roberts. Even though this round has been with us for many years, it has consistently proven itself a deer slayer. Jack O’Connor was a fan of the Bob, and in the gun world, there is no larger endorsement than that. While the 257 Roberts doesn’t have the speed of some of the other rounds, it still carries plenty of punch for deer out to at least 250 yards, and does so with pleasant recoil. The drawback to this round is that finding rifles chambered for it can be tough. There are only a few factory rifles available now that carry the Roberts, and factory ammo is limited, but if you can find a gun chambered for the Bob and especially if you hand load, the 257 Roberts would be a great choice.

    For my perfect deer rifle though, I would probably choose a 7mm-08 Remington. This round came about by necking down a 308 Winchester case to accept 7mm bullets. When it comes to deer hunting, this round offers everything a person needs. The trajectory is flat enough to be effective for long range shooting out west, and with a 140 grain bullet is still carrying around 1500 ft/lbs at 300 yards, which is more than enough to take care of any deer. At the same time, it’s not too overpowering up close at woods ranges like some of the larger 7’s and 30 calibers tend to be. It does everything that some of the more powerful rounds can do, but with its mild recoil in most guns, it won’t kick you like a mule. With the popularity of this round, finding a rifle chambered for it is not a problem, and there is a good variety of factory ammunition to choose from if you’re not hand loading. Now if you are a 270 Winchester fan, you’re probably shaking your head and wondering how I could ever pick another round over Jack O’Connor’s favorite. Well, I will admit that the 270 is a great round but when only talking about deer hunting, I stand by my choice of the 7mm-08. To me it just seems perfect.

    So there we have it, a bolt action rifle with a 22″ barrel chambered for the 7mm-08 Remington. My version of the perfect deer rifle for hunting across the country. With this rifle a person could chase deer from the depths of a south Georgia swamp all the way to the peaks of a Montana mountain range and never skip a beat. Sure, there are a lot of other guns that could do the same thing, but in my opinion, they wouldn’t be perfect.

    stillakid2
    Roberts, WI
    Posts: 4606
    #85199

    As a big fan of the .41 mag, my concerns of a 7mmWSM are about the same as .41 mag. Where can I, the average Joe that doesn’t hand load his ammo, consistently find ammo? I have a friend that shoots this round and while he loves it completely, he has to order his annual tradition of 2 boxes.

    I drive all over this country and while I’m not looking for 7mm-WSM, I know I’ve been in some Cabela’s stores where the round isn’t offered at all! So, for $60/box and hard to find, I quickly lose my attraction to anything the ballistics might influence.

    brandon061782
    Posts: 2
    #1762503

    I have a Winchester Model 70 7mm WSM and I love it. I harvested a really nice 8 point buck a few years ago and he was about 30yds away and he only went about 10yds after a perfect heart shot.

    brandon061782
    Posts: 2
    #1762506

    I last purchased a box of Winchester SuperX 150gr ammo for my 7mm WSM at a gun shop in Topeka, KS but I don’t remember the name of it. I have also purchased it from Cabela’s in K.C. but Bass Pro bought them out. Hopefully they will continue to carry that ammo but I’ve also seen it online to purchase.

    brian_peterson
    Eagan, MN
    Posts: 2080
    #1762516

    Wow, nothing like seeing an 8 year old post come alive! Still have the gun!

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