The case for the 7mm-08 being the best whitetail round.

[Grouse]

I use a 7mm-08 for deer and I have to say I agree with the author.

https://www.americanhunter.org/content/opinion-why-the-7mm-08-remington-is-the-ultimate-whitetail-cartridge/?utm_source=newsletter

[fasteddie]

My grandson and I both shoot a 25-06 . Two of my sons shoot a 270 . They all take deer . 'Nuf said ............

[steve863]

22 minutes ago, fasteddie said:

My grandson and I both shoot a 25-06 . Two of my sons shoot a 270 . They all take deer . 'Nuf said ............

As will a .30-06, .308, .30-30, 7MM Rem Mag, .300 Win Mag, etc. etc.   And of course there are still new cartridges coming out every day it seems that claim to be better than any of the older ones.  All BS in my opinion and only brainwashing people into thinking they need to buy something new that will work better.  A guy who knows how to hunt and can shoot straight will kill deer with any of them just the same.

[CharlieNY]

2 hours ago, Grouse said:

I use a 7mm-08 for deer and I have to say I agree with the author.

https://www.americanhunter.org/content/opinion-why-the-7mm-08-remington-is-the-ultimate-whitetail-cartridge/?utm_source=newsletter

I also have a 7mm-08 and I agree. Every deer I have shot with it has either dropped dead or ran no more than 25 yds. In addition there is very little meat damage. 

[fasteddie]

My NEF 25-06 single shot has anchored many deer over the years . I see no need to change . The only 7mm I have is a 7-30 waters ( 7 mm bullet in a necked down 30-30 cartridge)  Thompson Contender single shot pistol that I have taken a couple deer with . 

[luberhill]

4 hours ago, CharlieNY said:

I also have a 7mm-08 and I agree. Every deer I have shot with it has either dropped dead or ran no more than 25 yds. In addition there is very little meat damage. 

I have seen the same with my .243

Most die before taking a step 

[Grouse]

The article is making a case for the 7mm-08 being the best whitetail round considering a multitude of factors from ballistics to recoil. 

It doesn't claim other rounds aren't good for deer hunting.  It simply makes a case why the 7mm-08 has advantages over other rounds.  Nobody is saying anyone needs to buy a new rifle in 7mm-08, but if a new hunter is getting into deer hunting and needs his first deer rifle, the case being made is a 7mm-08 might be his best choice.

At the end of the article, the author even makes a request of the reader.  He asks for a good debate.  Is anyone going to accept his challenge and refute his case with counterpoints?

[airedale]

Personally I think the 7mm-08 is a wonderful Deer hunting cartridge and it checks a lot of boxes, I do not have one but all the parameters and the actual hunting use of many hunters point to it as being very effective. I do have experience with 7 mm cartridges, one of my favorite rifles is chambered in 280 Remington, a couple of ticks up in performance over the 7 mm-08. I have killed a bunch of Deer with that rifle and also several Moose.

I refrain from using the term the best because there are so many different ways and techniques to hunt it would be hard to actually prove. What may work out to be the best for me might not be so great for a hunter that hunts differently.

These days the cartridge-gun choices have never been better, let the good times roll.

Al

Edited December 22, 2023 by airedale

[Daveboone]

And every year the firearm and cartridge manufacturers release a new wonder cartridge that we cant live without. 

Yet the trusty old 30-30 manufactured for well over a hundred years is still probably the single best selling and most used cartridge out there. Myself....personally for my hunting I cant be without a .308....but dammit, my 98 Mauser in the original 8x57 is what I usually choose, prefer and trust most.

 

[Grouse]

5 hours ago, Daveboone said:

And every year the firearm and cartridge manufacturers release a new wonder cartridge that we cant live without.

 The 7mm-08 was commercialized as a factory round in 1980 after many years winning as a wildcat round in the silhouette shooting world.

Edited December 23, 2023 by Grouse

[Daveboone]

18 hours ago, Grouse said:

 The 7mm-08 was commercialized as a factory round in 1980 after many years winning as a wildcat round in the silhouette shooting world.

Yep, as a lifetime reloader well aware. Wasnt referring to it. Just as the .270 was also a wildcat of the 30-06 (a hundred years ago), .44 mag from the .44 special, on and on.....aint nothin new under the sun.

[Larry]

You can put a 100 deer hunter in the same and ask them what the best deer caliber is, and you will get a 110 answers.

[Doc]

Don't you all think that first you have to have a discussion about what features make any of the calibers better for taking deer? Then the discussion about what caliber satisfies those features. Such things as trajectories for the distance shooters. Terminal energy, meat damage, etc., etc. might be part of that discussion and probably a whole lot of other features that I'm not thinking of right now.

[Moho81]

The 7mm-08 will probably be the next hunting rifle I buy. I currently use 30-.06 and there is nothing wrong with it but when I have a scratch to itch it will probably be the 7mm-08 that will do it. It will certainly be more enjoyable to shoot at the range that's for sure. I thought about the 6.5 Creedmoor as well but after seeing some less than stellar performance in person it's no longer on the list.  

[Doc]

One important criteria that I applied when I bought my .270 was recoil. I wanted a deer rifle that I could shoot for long periods of time without being punished for it.

[Grouse]

35 minutes ago, Doc said:

One important criteria that I applied when I bought my .270 was recoil. I wanted a deer rifle that I could shoot for long periods of time without being punished for it.

The 7mm-08 wins the lightest recoil title here. In a 7-pound rifle it will recoil with a velocity of 13.57 fps and energy of 20.04 f-p. The 270 will kick at 15.1 fps with 24.81 f-p.

https://ammo.com/comparison/7mm08-vs-270

 

Edited February 28 by Grouse

[Nytracker]

I've got a few rifles. My go to rifle caliber is 308 for deer.  If I thought I had to have a new toy I'm not sure it would be a 7-08. Round doesn't do anything  better than the calibers I already have . 243,270,308,30-06. Now I have contemplated on a 45-70 in a lever gun. We have some pretty heavy bears down here and I'm fond of big heavy bullets and full pass through  when it comes to animals over 300 lbs. This would be a nitch gun .

Edited February 28 by Nytracker