A good projectile for 7x57?

[mchughcb]

I use 175gr hornady interlock with 45gr of 2209. I use RWS brass. I gave all my ppu away as its crap.

 

[Muir]

I use 175gr hornady interlock with 45gr of 2209. I use RWS brass. I gave all my ppu away as its crap.

How do you REALLY feel about PPU brass?
I use it without problems, but the discussion was about projectiles. Plus One on the Interlocks. Never had any issues with them.~Muir

 

[oldmate]

I use 175gr hornady interlock with 45gr of 2209. I use RWS brass. I gave all my ppu away as its crap.

What was so bad about PPU brass? All reports I've heard indicate good brass.is 2209 a good powder for 7x57? I run it in 6.5x55 and 243, the ADI book lists a lot of powders for the 7x57.
wes

 

[sinbad]

i use PPU brass for my .223 other than one split neck ive had no issues at all with them.

 

[Jackie Treehorn]

Hey guys, I've just purchased 2nd hand zastava m70 in 7 x57. I will be using the rifle for hunting fallow,reds and pigs.shots would range from close say10-20m to max 150m. What is a good bullet weight and type/ brand. I'm thinking on the heavier side say160 and up, I already have a 6.5 swede running 140g SST's. i have win 760 powder, is it a good powder for the 7x57 or is their a better choice?
thanks
wes

I've leaned towards the heavier projectiles in my 7x57s as well, with most of my data developed around Hornady 175 grain RN and Nosler 160 grain partitions with a few Hornady 154 grain RN slugs as well. Vihtavuori N160, IMR 4064, and IMR 4350 have yielded the best results for these weights and I've listed some of that data below:

• Hornady 154 grain RN, R-P brass, WLR primer, 37.0 grains IMR 4064, 2.970" OAL, 2378 feet/second
• Hornady 154 grain RN, R-P brass, WLR primer, 44.0 grains VV N160, 2.957" OAL, 2370 feet/second
• Nosler 160 grain partition, F-C brass, WLR primer, 46.8 grains VV N160, 3.135" OAL, 2620 feet/second
• Nosler 160 grain partition, R-P brass, WLR primer, 44.8 grains IMR 4350, 3.135" OAL, 2468 feet/second
• Hornady 175 grain RN, R-P brass, WLR primer, 37.0 grains IMR 4064, 3.015" OAL, 2410 feet/second
• Hornady 175 grain RN, W-W brass, WLR primer, 41.0 grains VV N160, 3.025" OAL, 2135 feet/second

All data was obtained from my Ruger No. 1A with 22-inch barrel (1-in-8.75" twist) and fired over a Shooting Chrony Beta chronograph. The Nosler 160 grain partition over N160 yielded the best accuracy with a group of 0.639" with the rest of the loads listed hovering just under 1 inch at 100 yards. I developed data with H4350 (ADI AR2209 in disguise), too, but for every bullet weight listed, the group size was roughly twice that of the other powders. (H4350 has been a good performer in my other rifles, but just didn't shine here.) I've managed to make a few one-shot kills on whitetails and a medium-sized cow elk with the 175 grain slugs.

I also have one load developed in my Model 70 Winchester with 1-in-9" twist 24-inch Lilja barrel:

• Hornady 154 grain RN, R-P brass, WLR primer, 44.5 grains VV N160, 2.957" OAL, 2416 feet/second

Accuracy was quite good with this combination, too, with a group size of 0.630" at 100 yards.

 

[mchughcb]

What was so bad about PPU brass? All reports I've heard indicate good brass.is 2209 a good powder for 7x57? I run it in 6.5x55 and 243, the ADI book lists a lot of powders for the 7x57.
wes

I found the rim thickness varied wildly. Some so thick it wouldn't fit in the case holder. You don't get the problem with the higher end brass. Of course you can dump the brass that doesn't make the grade but I like buying once with RWS and then using it for the next 10 years.

 

[oldmate]

Thanks for the info, much appreciated. I'll post some photos when I collect the rifle.
Wes

 

[tacklerat]

Thanks for the info, much appreciated. I'll post some photos when I collect the rifle.
Wes

I know this is an old thread, but as I'm about to take possession of a new Zastava I thought I'd chip in. I just bought 100 Norma cases from Magnum Sports for about $130 plus freight. I don't intend going any lighter than Hornady's 139gn bullet or heavier than the 162gn SST. I'm definitely going to get some Woodleigh 160gn Protected Points though. They also have a flat base, and for the ranges you'll be shooting at Old Mate, a flat base bullet is much better. I used them in my 9.3x62 and they shoot really well. My thoughts on brass and bullets are that apart from load development, a hunting rifle doesn't get fired as much as a target rifle. You might fire a dozen shots per season if you're a deer hunter, more if you want to chase pigs. Sometimes I'll go out after a fallow and fire one round. so short of shooting beer cans the cost of ammo is not a big issue. It becomes an issue though if you stuff up the shot of a lifetime because the gear wasn't up to it.

 

[Southern]

Did the OP, oldmate, ever decide on a load?

The 154-gr Hornady RN are great bullets, but discontinued. I am hoarding my last 100 of them.

There are so many good 150-gr and 160-gr bullets that you can work up loads which shoot to the same trajectory out to 200 yards, but have different construction, from the 162-gr SST, to the 160-gr Sierra SPBT GK, the tougher HPBT GK, the Speer Hot Cor and Grand Slam, and Nosler Partition. The flat base Sierra Pro Hunter, Hornady Interlock, and Speer Hot Cor are all you need to shoot most anything with a 7x57. Eleanor and Jack O'Connor shot a boatload of big game in Africa with the 7x57 loaded to 2,600 fps with a Speer 160-gr.