i hunt in older right by Ranger

not if you handload the 7-08 with 120,s depending on which book you you look at it can smoke the 25 with 115 or 117,s
plus you can load up 140,s 150,s 160, 175,s
I am getting 3120fps with a modest load using 120's, a little hotter will put in the 3200fps range


ps nice hog, good job !

It's pretty easy to get over 3100fps with 120's in a 25/06, also.

But to compare apples to apples, the 120gr 7MM bullets has an SD of .213, which is comparable with the 100gr 257 bullet. Which can be pushed well over 3200 fps in a 25/06.

Not knocking the 7-08, it's a great cartridge, but for long range deer, it is not the equivalent of the 25/06.

LOL what are you smoking
Lets talk max loads acording to nosler book
a .284 120 gr bullet at 3260fps is not a long range deer gun
but a .25 120 gr at 3175fps is.

ya Ok
put those numbers in your calculator and come back and tell me which one shoots flatter, ill save you the time, the 7-08 does.

did not say the 7-08 is not a good long range deer gun. But as I did say, and you ignored, that a fair comparison would be the 25/06 with a 100gr bullet, since the SD's would be similar. In the same Nosler manual, the 25/06 reaches 3360fps with 100gr bullets.

BTW, I have not been smoking anything. If you would like to share data and have an adult dialog, let's do it. If you prefer cute, condesending remarks, I have better ways to spend my time.

fair enough.
I fully understand b.c. but s.d. is a bit confusing. I fail to see how a .243 100 gr bullet can out penetrate a 150 gr .308 based soley on s.d numbers.
the .25 numbers with a 100 gr are ever so slighlty flatter than the 7-08 numbers with a much bigger and heavier bulllet.
Its hard for me to compare the 2 based on s.d. numbers
For instance a 300 gr 45-70 has an s.d of .204 and is probably the deepest penetrating cartridge there is.
I am no way knocking the .25 its a bad mofo but you have twice insinuated
the 7 a short range gun and inferior to the .25 in trajectory. When that is absolutely not true.

vanguard: SD is just a ratio of mass to cross sectional area. If the old days, of only cup and core bullets, it was used as an index of potential penetrating ability. But with today's premium bullets, bullet construction trumps SD. I used it only to find a similar bullet in different diameters. All 120gr 7mm bullets have the same SD but can have very different BC'x.

But more to the point:

IMO factory ammo specs provide a much fairer comparison of cartridges than individual handloads.

With factory ammo, the 25/06 shoots flatter than the 7-08.
In 7mm, deer bullets generally start at 139/140grains. Factory ammo has a velocity of about 2800 fps. The only exceptions I know of are a 120gr TSX at 3000 fps ($50/box) and a 120gr Ballistic Tip at 2825fps (also $50+/box).
For the 25/06, plane ol’ 120gr CoreLokts are rated at 2990fps, and 100gr Core Lokts are 3230 fps.

Now if you want to talk handloads, I will agree that the 7mm 120gr Nosler Ballistic Tip is an amazing little bullet. It has a very good BC (better than other bullets of comparable weight) and it is apparently a very tough bullet too, supposedly designed with a very thick jacket for good penetration. And I won’t disagree that when pushed to 3100 or 3200fps, it will compete pretty well with a 25/06. But there are very few (only 2 that I am aware of) 120gr 7mm bullets which are designed for big game and not varmints. If your rifle doesn’t “like” these bullets, you are out of luck. In 25 caliber, I count at least ten 100 gr deer bullets (Speer, Nosler, Hornady, Sierra, etc.)

More over, if we are just going to compare the flattest shooting handloads we can find, I’ll pick the 80gr Barnes TTSX (a monolithic bullet designed for deer, not varmints) in my 25/06 at 3600 fps, and leave your 120gr in the dust.

By the way, just another option, the 130gr Speer can be pushed to about 3000fps with a 7-08. This provides 270-type performance in what is generally a very light and handy package.

And finally, I'd like to say that I hope we can agree that we are dealing with ballistic minutia. There are many good deer cartridges out there and any of them from say, the 243/257 Roberts up to the 30/06 will do a fine job and most folks could use any of them for the rest of their lives and not be able to tell the difference In performance on deer. The bullet is more important than the headstamp

I agree on all of that, but I am guilty of balistic racing as are many of my friends, it sure looks good on paper but in the field who is going to know the difference, not even an animal. will.
The 7-08 hasnt really done well becuase it just doesnt have the umph for the 140 gr to look good on paper, I bet money if ammo makers loaded 120's hot and people saw that on paper the 7 would do much better. I have never seen a 120 load other than a hollow point which sucks in the b.c and isnt very flat.
I have been a .243 shooter for many years but recently got into reloading, went with the little 7 just because of that 120 gr load, and the ability to go heavier if needed, doubt i ever will though.

Im looking for a heavier grain ammo for my 25. i have been shooting the 100 gr core lokts. Any recommendations?

120gr Rem Core Lokts; 120gr Winchester PEP's, 120gr Fusions. Your rifle ought to like at least one of these!