Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 7x57 for Elk?

Worked perfect on a nilgai cow. I may have a picture of the recovered bullet somewhere.

Dad used 160 NP's over 48 grains of H4831 in a 7x57 for 3 elk, 1 booner BC moose, 1 Bighorn sheep, 1 Stone sheep, x antelope, y whitetails, 1 mulie, 1 mountain caribou, & 1 mountain goat. None required a 2nd shot.

I've found H4350 to work a little better in this rifle, but I'm sticking with the 160 NP's.

FC

I'm building a 7x57 around the 160 np now.

The more < 1950 production rifles I shoot, the more it seems these guys had things pretty well figured-out a long damned time ago.

FC

bluefish,
Keep us posted on your project!

Will do. Just got the barreled action back.

Prudently handloaded in a modern action it is identical (or nearly so) to the 7-08 Rem. A 140 grain TTSX does the job nicely.

Because elk can be shot at extended ranges at times, handloading is something to be desired.

I have a friend who has shot a number of elk with a .222.

I loaded a 140ttsx in a 21” barreled 7/08 ( I couldn’t decide on a20 or 22” barrel....where have I read that before!?) for my mom’s Africa trip. It killed everything from impala to a big zebra very well. I’m sure it would work equally well for your 7x57.

Ben

It really makes no difference in the case size, it's the placement, and energy of the bullet that counts. If the case was 5 inches long the bullet will have greater energy , but it's the same bullet. I have been personally been involved in two 7 X 57 kills. Both went fine, but the second required a backup shot with another rifle. It was hit a little far back and made it to the top of the ridge, stopped for an instant, and was finished with a larger caliber. There is nothing magical about any particular cartridge, its always the same factors, placement, and energy. More energy allows one a greater margin of error, but placement is the key. As was once said, "bring enough gun", was a result of a high velocity small caliber rifle failing to take down a hyena, The animal was attempting to eat a couple of folks and was dispatched by a 470 Nitro Express. Most likely overkill but still a lesson. Hence the phrase "bring enough gun".

280 rem with moderate loads, 140g partitions.

7x57 for all intents and purposes.

I have killed 4 elk with my .280 Remington loaded with Remington 175 gr Cor-Lokt,, 160 grain Speer Grand Slams (two elk) and 160 grain Nosler Partition. All were loaded around 2,800 fps. The 175 was loaded before I understood pressure signs, and it was severely overloaded. All four of these elk died instantly and never took a step. Shots were between 113 and 375 yards. I'm very sure a 7x57 similarly loaded would have given very similar results.

I've killed two cow elk with mine. 150 grain partitions.

Worked great.

Anybody know how many elephants Bell killed with the 7x57? Think they were calling it a 276 Rigby then!

"They" were not calling a 276 Rigby then. The British called it the .275 Rigby.

Bell's was a .275, and he killed a bunch of elephants with it--using brain shots with "solid" bullets, which is irrelevant to this discussion. In fact, he actually preferred the 6.5x54 Mannlicher-Schoenauer (which was called the .256 by the Brits) using solids of around 160 grains, because his customized M-S carbine. But the Austrian ammo available had brittle cases, which often separated--so he switched to his .275.. But for really tough-angle shots in thicker cover he used the .318 Westley Richards, with 250-grain bullets.

All of this is still irrelevant to shooting big game with expanding bullets.

Ah, the irrelephants again.

That ole 7x59 Westly-Schownower was always a classic.

The WHAT?

Don't ask, Tom, don't ask...

Sometimes I just can't help myself .....