7 SAUM bullet recommendations

[AZ_Hunter]

Afterburner .284" (7mm) - 147 gr | APEX OUTDOORS

.284" Caliber, 1:8.6" Min Twist Rate, 147 Grain, Afterburner, 50 Count

www.apex-outdoors.com

Give those a shot if you like the badlands.

Have you used these on animals?

 

[z987k]

Have you used these on animals?

Not yet, but I've got some loaded to use this month and next.

 

[Myhuntfish]

I can’t find the berger 175 elite hunter so Im using the 180 Hybrid and N565

 

[CouesFlagAZ]

Have not found another 7SAUM combo that kills or shoots as well as for me than the 175 Elite Hunter and H4831SC. I don’t push them particularly hard (2858fps) out of my gun.

 

[Myhuntfish]

Have not found another 7SAUM combo that kills or shoots as well as for me than the 175 Elite Hunter and H4831SC. I don’t push them particularly hard (2858fps) out of my gun.

I just wish I could find some

 

[waspocrew]

Have not found another 7SAUM combo that kills or shoots as well as for me than the 175 Elite Hunter and H4831SC. I don’t push them particularly hard (2858fps) out of my gun.

What’s your charge weight if you don’t mind? I have a 20” barrel and the 175 EH and 58.9 gr H4831sc yields an avg of 2720.

Going to try the 145 LRX soon and then make a decision on which projectile I’ll hunt with this fall.

 

[Maidenfan539]

I tried 162's with my 7 SAUM (proof 24" carbon) and they just didn't shoot. Tried bergers 168's with H1000 and was surprised I got to 3032. They just didn't tighten up like I wanted. I recently switched to H4350 and have found a wider node, although not as fast as H1000, the SD's and ES were lower.

 

[CouesFlagAZ]

What’s your charge weight if you don’t mind? I have a 20” barrel and the 175 EH and 58.9 gr H4831sc yields an avg of 2720.

Going to try the 145 LRX soon and then make a decision on which projectile I’ll hunt with this fall.

Current load is Norma brass, Fed 210M and 59.5gr H4831SC although I'm shooting a 24" barrel. Original load was the same charge weight but with CCI250s. I found I had more consistent groups with the 210Ms with no significant change in velocity.

 

[waspocrew]

Sounds great, thanks! I might up the charge a bit to see if I can get a little more velocity out of it, but so far, pretty happy with the accuracy.

 

[lineslayer]

I had good groups with 168 ABLR out of an 18" tikka

 

[waspocrew]

I settled on the 145 LRX and H4831sc for 3021 fps. Ready to head out Sunday night for a week of elk, deer, and antelope.

 

[Longgun1776]

You mentioned you wanted to stay away from Bergers but I’ll give my two cents. Myself and the group I shoot with have piles of bodies with the Berger 168gr VLDH and the 162 ELDm from elk to antelope. My personal 7 SAUM with 22” barrel and an ultra 7 pushes 168s at 2925Fps.

 

[calico pig]

Well I just went to buy more bullets for the season and discovered that Badlands Precision was no longer in business. Their owner passed away which is really sad.

I really fell in love with their 150gr bulldozer II’s in my 7 SAUM. Just this week I did a little load development and got them to 2995 FPS under 58.0 gr of H4350 in a SAAMI chamber out of a 22” barrel comfortably. I had been shooting them at 56.5 and 2906 FPS previously.

Regardless of the fact, I need a new bullet for this season and I don’t have a ton of time for load development.

I’ve used hammers before but their BC was abysmal, well below advertising. I don’t put everything into BC, but it was bad enough I won’t be going back.

I swore off ELD-X’s after a bad experience, but that was with a slightly smaller caliber. They do shoot well though and are affordable. I’m open to giving them another go. That experience very well might not have been due to the bullet, though that’s my suspicion.

I really don’t love the idea of Bergers, but again they are excellent shooters. I just generally prefer traditional controlled expansion bonded or copper solid bullet on bigger game like elk. That said, I’m open to giving them a shot.

I tried ABLR’s when the rifle was new, but they just didn’t shoot well.

Rifle is as follows, 22” Short Action SAAMI chambered 1/8.

I would prefer to stick with H4350 as I have over 10 lbs of it on hand and it’s also my go to for several other calibers. However I do have some H4381 available as well.

I hunt elk most often but occasionally mule deer and antelope. Though I usually will swap to my 6.5 barrel for antelope. I like to say my max range is about 500-600 yards, but this is entirely conditions dependent. I’ve passed on much closer shots and could be tempted by longer if conditions and animal behavior is ideal.

I’m open to anything really. I’d love to hear your experiences, and if anyone has a similar rifle what your load data is.

Thanks!

I shoot a Berger 180 HVLD out of my 7 Saum. I get 3015 FPS out of a 26 inch barrel. Generally I prefer a Barnes bullet or something that penetrates when hitting dense bone. But I will say if you hunt long distances (Like past 650 yards) and in mountain wind, the 180 Berger HVLD performs quite well. Especially with wind. I'm feeding them out of a box mag and load them as long as the mag allows. Anyways, I know more about this set up than I should and this week I've shot distances I won't post as well as a once in a lifetime animal at a distance I'd prefer not post. But if you PM me I'm happy to share with you.

 

[calico pig]

I tried 162's with my 7 SAUM (proof 24" carbon) and they just didn't shoot. Tried bergers 168's with H1000 and was surprised I got to 3032. They just didn't tighten up like I wanted. I recently switched to H4350 and have found a wider node, although not as fast as H1000, the SD's and ES were lower.

The trick is they almost have to touch the lands, as in minimal jump, not actually. If not, they don't shoot. Once you get the seating depth right they bug hole. Assuming you have looked at twist rate and all the basics already.

 

[Hunter14]

24” proof carbon shooting 145LRX using H4831sc gets me 3100 fps. Used it for antelope last week. Worked great.

 

[Brucebarker024]

Shot a couple deer and an elk with the 162 eldm from my SAUM and they worked great. Shot some with the 180 hybrid and they work great as well. Shot a buck a few days ago with the Berger 180 hybrid and it worked great. Was a Medal of Honor buck though, took 3 through the lungs and heart before he gave it up. Insides were completely jelly and the heart was in pieces.

 

[eLightfoot]

I was shooting 162 ELDXs out of a Tikka 7 SAUM past 1,200 yards accurately. The damage it did to the insides of a mule deer at 750 yards was impressive.

I probably have a bunch of these sitting around that I could sell you cheap if you want to try them.

You still selling those 162s?

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

You still selling those 162s?

Let me see what I have I’ll PM you.

 

[rootacres]

168 VLDs, 21” PROOF, H1000, 2930 FPS

I know you’re fighting the idea of using Bergers. To be honest, I did too for a while. After seeing the internal devastation on a few elk and deer my opinion has changed. There are a handful of podcasts out there that really challenge the conventional thought process on bullets. The long in short of it basically supports using match style bullets on big game and having great wound channels. It’s been funny seeing how much attention my 7 SAUM has received from guides after quartering out an animal.

“That stumpy little thing did all of that” from a guide in NM on an elk hunt.

 

[calico pig]

168 VLDs, 21” PROOF, H1000, 2930 FPS

I know you’re fighting the idea of using Bergers. To be honest, I did too for a while. After seeing the internal devastation on a few elk and deer my opinion has changed. There are a handful of podcasts out there that really challenge the conventional thought process on bullets. The long in short of it basically supports using match style bullets on big game and having great wound channels. It’s been funny seeing how much attention my 7 SAUM has received from guides after quartering out an animal.

“That stumpy little thing did all of that” from a guide in NM on an elk hunt.

That's a pretty sweet set up.