7mm wsm

so i am wanting to handload some rounds for the 7mmwsm win model 70 black shadow. i would like one specific load to work for mule deer and elk. what do you brianiac reloaders suggest? i'm thinkin a 150 ish grain bullet would be suffienct for both? i dont have a lot of money so the cheaper the better ( i cant afford barnes bullets). hoping something a little cheaper that will get the jobs done. i usually archery hunt but when i do out of state hunts id prefer the rifle. ive got pretty good odds of drawing a mule eder nm tag this year so thats my main focus. i'd mostly like to just stick to one load just for ease not a elk load and a seperate deer load. anyway i think you get what i am getting at so any help would be great just something strong enough to hold together for elk yet not sso well that it wont get good expansion on deer.
thanks in advance for any suggestions. im open for anything that would work on a budget thanks!
9,327
sneekeepete
Look into some 162 Gr. Hornady SSTs or A-Max. You should be able to load them to shoot pretty flat and I've heard pretty good stuff about them. I had a buddy come from Pennsylvania in 2009 and he shot his cow elk and muley with Hornady 30 Cal 168 Gr. AMaxs. Both dropped on the spot. I personally shoot Barnes but understand the price issue.
We all know it is the shot placement that matters most of all.
Good luck!
16
Snake River Marksman
I'd probably go with a hornady 150 or 160 interbond or a Nosler partion or Accubond of the same weight. I'm a little leary of using the A max as an elk bullet. Hornady recommends them as a deer bullet, but elk might be another matter entirely. You're talking about elk so just keep thinking Heavy for caliber and bonded or controlled expansion.
16
chet
160gr Nosler Accubond....... nuff said

that 7mm wsm is a dang cool cartridge! easy to load for too!
16
Default Avatar
With price being the deciding factor in your decision per your opening post, I would suggest the 162 Hornandy as a decent priced cup and core bullet. At magnum velocities and close range the lighter standard bullets (139-150) have some trouble holding together on larger game. The Accu-bonds (I love the 160 grain in 7mm) and all other "premium" bullets are too close in price to make any appreciable difference in savings ($30-$35 per 50 for various premiums vs $25-$30 per 100 for various standard bullets). I personally use the Barnes TTSX 150 in my 7 Rem Mag for elk, deer, and antelope.I sold my my model 70 Super Shadow 7 WSM a couple of years back, but the bullet performance would be the same for both. Look at Reloder 17 for powder choice. It was designed for the short mag cartridges. Good luck!
16
southwind
I love the tsx bullets but with the high bc 168 grain berger .617 I think I would build a round around that. I agree with RE 17 I use it with success in both my 270, 300 wsm's.

Good luck, let us know what you end up with.
16
quebechunter
Hi!
I just finished developping a load for my Savage
I use the 150 gr scirocco and 67 gr imr 7828 at 2.920" coal
Gives me 3145 fps average and .75" 5 shot groups

Forget rl17 for the 7mmwsm, although it's perfect for the other 2 wsm
It tops on pressure before getting to the min of 90% case capacity as predicted by quickload

Cartridge : 7 mm WSM
Bullet : .284, 150, Swift Scirocco
Useable Case Capaci: 71.593 grain H2O = 4.648 cm³
Cartridge O.A.L. L6: 2.860 inch = 72.64 mm
Barrel Length : 24.0 inch = 609.6 mm
Powder : Alliant Reloder-17

Predicted data by increasing and decreasing the given charge,
incremented in steps of 1.0% of nominal charge.
CAUTION: Figures exceed maximum and minimum recommended loads !

Step Fill. Charge Vel. Energy Pmax Pmuz Prop.Burnt B_Time
% % Grains fps ft.lbs psi psi % ms

-10.0 79 54.45 2849 2703 47947 10740 100.0 1.297
-09.0 80 55.06 2875 2754 49408 10807 100.0 1.279
-08.0 80 55.66 2902 2804 50910 10873 100.0 1.262
-07.0 81 56.27 2928 2855 52456 10939 100.0 1.245
-06.0 82 56.87 2954 2906 54047 11004 100.0 1.228
-05.0 83 57.48 2980 2957 55685 11068 100.0 1.212 ! Near Maximum !
-04.0 84 58.08 3005 3008 57366 11132 100.0 1.196 ! Near Maximum !
-03.0 85 58.69 3031 3060 59089 11195 100.0 1.180 ! Near Maximum !
-02.0 86 59.29 3056 3111 60856 11258 100.0 1.165 ! Near Maximum !
-01.0 87 59.90 3081 3163 62671 11320 100.0 1.149 ! Near Maximum !
+00.0 87 60.50 3107 3215 64536 11381 100.0 1.135 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+01.0 88 61.11 3132 3267 66455 11441 100.0 1.120 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+02.0 89 61.71 3157 3319 68428 11501 100.0 1.106 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+03.0 90 62.32 3181 3371 70456 11560 100.0 1.092 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+04.0 91 62.92 3206 3424 72543 11618 100.0 1.078 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!
+05.0 92 63.53 3231 3477 74690 11676 100.0 1.065 !DANGEROUS LOAD-DO NOT USE!


Rl 25 gave good result too, with same accuracy and velocity close to 3100
I think it would great with heavier bullets.
i also haad great accuracy with h4350 but velocity was slow at around 2950 but extreme spread in the single digit.

Good luck!
16