# 7mm Rem Mag elk cartridges



## moabxjeeper (Dec 18, 2012)

Since I bought a dedicated deer/antelope rifle in 7mm-08, I am now using my 7mm Rem Mag as a dedicated elk rifle. I sold all of my 139gr bullets for it and now am now wondering what cartridges you all use for elk with it? I do not reload so unfortunately I am limited to what factory options are available. I do have a box of Hornady 154gr Interlocks that shoot well and I think may work, but before I go buy a few more, I want to hear all of your opinions. -8/-


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

The 140gr Swift A-Frames are very stout bullets, they come in the Safari Grade line from Federal.

I shoot the big brother to the 7RemMag, a 7mm STW. I only reload for it now and my goto elk load is 160gr Accubonds @3200fps.


-DallanC


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

Barnes, Nosler and Federal Premium would be solid choices. With that being said, all the Tikkas, Remingtons and Savages that I’ve had over the years have all shot Remington Core-lokts or Federal Blue Box very accurately. All the animals shot couldn’t tell the difference between those and “premium” bullets.


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## KineKilla (Jan 28, 2011)

I’ve been using 160gr Accubonds in my 7mm with great results. I handload mine but I’m sure they can be acquired in factory loaded form as well.


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

KineKilla said:


> I've been using 160gr Accubonds in my 7mm with great results. I handload mine but I'm sure they can be acquired in factory loaded form as well.


x2 and this post.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

I have killed a lot of elk with old Federal Premium ammo loaded with 150gr Sierra Boattails. I picked up a case of them from a store going out of business over 30 years ago. 

Are the the best bullet for elk? I don't know, but I do know that they killed a lot of elk with most being one shot kills. Are there better bullets? I believe so and I usually reload Barnes TTSX's. 

Find a round that shoots great in your rifle and then stick to it, then go out and kill some elk.


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## Kevin D (Sep 15, 2007)

160 gr Accubonds is what I've been using the past few years and they have yet to disappoint. Standard cup and core bullets like Hornady Interlocks that I used for ages always seemed to separate from the ones I've managed to recover out of elk and deer. But the Accubonds have held together giving that perfect mushroom shape.


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## RandomElk16 (Sep 17, 2013)

Tikka 7MM Mag-

Have used Berger VLD 168gr
Accubond 160gr
Barnes has been great in other calibers and their Vor-tx 160gr would be good.

Subconsciously I try and stay with 160gr or higher. 

We were talking about this the other day. Ammo has come SO far that you can kill a lot of stuff with a lot of different guns and ammo to 400. 

Between the ammo and the optic, and the rifles all getting so precise.... I don't even know how to answer these questions anymore. It's easier to be accurate now, and when you are accurate you kill stuff lol.


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## moabxjeeper (Dec 18, 2012)

Thanks everyone for the replies. I went to Cabela’s and picked up a box of Winchester Expedition Big Game Long (name) Range 168gr Accubonds to try out. They were insanely expensive so I’m going to see how they shoot before I buy any more.

Just some personal musings about traditional cup and core bullets. I personally find it a bit of a paradox to complain about how a bullet performed after trying to recover it from a dead animal.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Bullet construction and what they look like after they kill a animal could lead to a multiple page thread. 

I had no problems killing animals with old fashion cup and core bullets, and I recovered a lot of them from the dead animal. As bullet technology improved I changed what I was shooting out of my rifles. I now shoot Barnes exclusively out of all of my rifles except for my 22-250. I like how they perform and if I ever am able to recover a bullet I might change my mind or like them even better. However the only Barnes bullets that I have recovered were ones that I shot into a dirt hillside and dug out. All the animals that I have shot with them have been pass through shots from 90 yards out to over 600 yards.


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## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

160-165. Years ago prior to the introduction of the "tipped bullet" Nosler made a 165 solid base boat tail that was a phenomenal accurate, and deadly bullet from the 7 Mag.


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## moabxjeeper (Dec 18, 2012)

Is anyone familiar with the load I chose and does it seem like an appropriate choice for what I'm trying to accomplish? What's the difference between the Accubond and Accubond LR? I'm familiar with Accubonds since that's what I settled on for my 7mm-08. They seem like a great choice for longer range, but I try to keep my shots 400 yards and under when possible. Will they still perform well at closer range?


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## RemingtonCountry (Feb 17, 2016)

I just started reloading some 160 AB's like everyone else on this thread, and I immediately liked the accruacy with them. Looking forward to seeing what damage they do this fall!


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## RandomElk16 (Sep 17, 2013)

moabxjeeper said:


> Is anyone familiar with the load I chose and does it seem like an appropriate choice for what I'm trying to accomplish? What's the difference between the Accubond and Accubond LR? I'm familiar with Accubonds since that's what I settled on for my 7mm-08. They seem like a great choice for longer range, but I try to keep my shots 400 yards and under when possible. Will they still perform well at closer range?


Simple terms: Bullets have a few key elements to them. They like to expand at a certain velocity. Long range bullets take this into consideration so their best expansion happens at those longer ranges(low velocity expansion), which means they don't love to expand at shorter ranges(higher velocity expansion).

Any bullet can kill animals when hit in the right spot. With bullets like the Accubond LR, Bergers, and all these other "long range" you will see lots of pass throughs at short ranges. The reviews (really like any other bullet) will be very mixed at short range.

My big thing with this long range craze is: Are you going to be hunting at 300-400 yards, or will you most likely be hunting at 600+ yards? If you answered 300-400 yards, you don't need a long range bullet or the price range that comes with it.

I like expansion with elk. Especially Bull elk who can take a beating. I also don't love small pass through wounds that had no expansion(like you see in LR bullets) because elk (to me anyways) seem to coagulate faster, stop leaving blood trails, and then use all that adrenaline to disappear. A .284 hole in an animal that size that didn't expand or pass any energy into the animal has the potential to hardly phase it.

So - my answer at less than 400 yards would be to use those LR for a fun day at the range shooting absurd shots, then snag a regular Accubond to go hunt with. Again, you can kill with both but if you can use the best tool for the job why not?


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## moabxjeeper (Dec 18, 2012)

RandomElk16 said:


> So - my answer at less than 400 yards would be to use those LR for a fun day at the range shooting absurd shots, then snag a regular Accubond to go hunt with. Again, you can kill with both but if you can use the best tool for the job why not?


Shoot, I was afraid that might be your answer. I didn't realize they were different bullets until I was looking at the box the day after I bought them. I just figured they were the regular old Accubonds. I'm not a long range hunter by any means, unless you consider 360 yards "long range" (I do) which is the furthest range I've taken game at. I actually calculated it out last year and the average range that I've shot my animals at was only like 178 yards or something. I may have to go back and see what I can find.


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## KineKilla (Jan 28, 2011)

The way I understand it is that these LR bullets, as stated, are designed to expand effectively at lower velocities.

I, however, think that their design would lead to over expansion at closer ranges and higher velocities. You may get some fragmenting or core/jacket separation when your velocities are at their highest.

You really need to find which bullet provides you the best of both worlds for the distances and environments you will be hunting in.


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## waspocrew (Nov 26, 2011)

The 160 gr Accubond would be great. We killed 2 bull elk and 2 cow elk with the 168 gr ABLR (Nosler Factory ammo) and the bullets did their job well.


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## moabxjeeper (Dec 18, 2012)

waspocrew said:


> The 160 gr Accubond would be great. We killed 2 bull elk and 2 cow elk with the 168 gr ABLR (Nosler Factory ammo) and the bullets did their job well.


What ranges were they shot at? Any idea on weight retention?


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## waspocrew (Nov 26, 2011)

moabxjeeper said:


> What ranges were they shot at? Any idea on weight retention?


Cows were roughly 250 yards or so. Bulls were 350 and 700. Not sure on the weight retention as I did not recovery any projectiles. Both cows and the bull at 350 were pass throughs - shot in the lungs. The bull at 700 may have had a projectile in the lungs, but I didn't look too hard when field dressing it.

It's expensive ammo, but it shot very well in both of my brother's rifles. Very consistent.

Here's a chance to try it out at a discounted price. They are "blemished" but I've never found a reason why. Still shoots just as good as the full price. Might be worth it to try a box or two.

http://www.shootersproshop.com/ammu...-168-grain-accubond-long-range-blem-20ct.html


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## moabxjeeper (Dec 18, 2012)

waspocrew said:


> Cows were roughly 250 yards or so. Bulls were 350 and 700. Not sure on the weight retention as I did not recovery any projectiles. Both cows and the bull at 350 were pass throughs - shot in the lungs. The bull at 700 may have had a projectile in the lungs, but I didn't look too hard when field dressing it.
> 
> It's expensive ammo, but it shot very well in both of my brother's rifles. Very consistent.
> 
> ...


Dang, that's still a fat stack for blemished rounds. The ones I bought were Winchester Expedition. I got Cabela's to price match some website so they were $38 with nice nickle plated cases. Which I still thought was plenty.

Anyway, I'm glad to hear some personal experience with those rounds. I didn't doubt they would work well so there's a chance I may still use them, but I may also buy a box of 160gr Accubonds and see how they compare. So far, my gun has been absolutely not particular about what it shoots. Between 139, 150, and 154gr bullets I've tried so far, I've been able to get 1" groups easily. I hope that trend continues when I try these heavier ones. Ultimately I need to leave it up to the rifle to see what shoots best.


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## muddydogs (Oct 7, 2007)

Here's some Accubond bullet pics and weight numbers.

From left to right here are the specs.
1. 30 cal 165 grain taken from bull elk weights 119 grains for 72% weight retention.
2. 7mm 160 grain taken from bull elk weights 114 grains for 71% weight retention.
3. 7mm 160 grain taken from Cow elk weights 102 grains for 64% weight retention.
4. 30 cal 165 grain taken from bull after passing through hind quarter ball socket weights 75 grains for 45% weight retention.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

Wait... you found accubond slugs in your animals? Wow... I've yet to find one in any of ours, even my sons 140gr Accubonds pass right on through.


I've found very very few slugs in any of our 100+ big game animals now that I think about it.





-DallanC


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

I could probably count on one hand the number of slugs that I have found on animals that I have shot in over 50 years of hunting.


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## muddydogs (Oct 7, 2007)

The bullets that were recovered weren't from optimal shot placement. My practice whether right or wrong is to shoot elk until there on the ground. 2 years ago I shot both the elk these bullets came from within a minute of each other. After the fact I found my first shot on both animals was a pass through lung shot but both animals didn't even act like they were hit. Both animals just kept strolling along like I wasn't even there let alone shooting at them. 
The cow was headed over a small ridge into some thick nasty stuff so I kept pounding away sending a total of 3 rounds down range connecting each time. The bullet recovered from the cow was my last shot which was a hard quartering away shot and the bullet was found in the neck.
After I gave the bull 3 warning shots that I was there banging away at the cow he stepped out and I put my first round, last round in my rifle through the lungs which didn't seem to have an effect and I thought I missed. While I was hand feeding the 5th round in my rifle my buddy decided to get in the game, I remember seeing the bull kick his hind leg in my scope as my buddy touched one off which is the destroyed bullet. As my buddy sent the round into the bulls rear I was sending the second round into the bull which was another hard quartering shot and this bullet was found under the hide on the off side shoulder. My third shot was another pass through in the chest.
So out of 7 rounds I recovered 3, 2 of mine from the 7mm and 1 30-06 that hit the hind quarter. Surprisingly I probably only lost 10 pounds out of the hind quarter, I was expecting a lot more loss.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

A few years ago I was on a Colorado muzzle loader hunt for elk. 

The elk that I shot took 3 300 grain Thor muzzle loader bullets right in his boiler room at 120 yards. Two were complete pass through's and the other lodged on the skin on the far side. He didn't even flinch on any of the shots. 

When asked why I kept shooting if the first round was a good kill shot I told the folks the same thing. As long as they are standing I am going to keep shooting.


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## KineKilla (Jan 28, 2011)

A commonly heard anthem of mine during hunting is “Shoot it again! Shoot it again!”


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## RandomElk16 (Sep 17, 2013)

https://www.federalpremium.com/products/rifle/premium-centerfire-rifle/nosler-accubond/p7ra1

Hadn't seen these before (I rarely need to go buy ammo) but I saw these at sportsman's for $40. These seem like a solid factory option for you.


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## Aznative (May 25, 2018)

Im loading hornady 162 elds for my 7mm rem and they seem to be awesome. I havent taken anything with them yet though. However the only rifle I dont reload is my 300wsm. It loves federal trophy bonded tip. Ive taken two bulls in AZ with that 180 grain both 1 shot and dropped. First was at 425 yards and second was at 300 yards. They make them in 165 grain too. They are pricey but after both those bulls im not even going to change that bullet for elk hunts.


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## StillAboveGround (Aug 20, 2011)

Probably lots of folks saying the same things... Since I decided to go 100% copper (and since Barnes Bullets shoot well in my gun)... After Barnes was bought out by the company that owns Remington, I had to switch from Federal to Barnes to get 160 grain bullet.
Here is a post where I compare ballistics of copper bullets:
https://www.backcountrychronicles.com/elk-cartridge/


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## moabxjeeper (Dec 18, 2012)

I don’t doubt those 168gr Accubond LR bullets would work, but I also decided they weren’t quite what I was looking for. I ended up picking up a couple boxes of Federal Premium 160gr Trophy Bonded Tips. They shoot well in my rifle and $35/box doesn’t seem terribly absurd for premium ammo.

I had planned on buying a box of those along with another box of 160gr Accubonds and seeing what shot better but Gallenson’s only had the TBTs so that’s what I got. I don’t see any reason why those wouldn’t work great for elk.


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