No ADI data for 120grn Hornday VMax (7mm-08)

[Late_Starter]

ADI do not have reloading data for 120grn Hornday VMax for 7mm-08 using AR2208 (Varget) in the 10th Edition Handloader's Manual.
I have looked to buy the Hornady Hardcover Reloading manual but it is sold out. Does anyone have the data in the Hornady Manual for 120grn Hornday VMax using Varget?

I have found conflicting information on the internet and would prefer to see the manufacturers recommendations.

Also interested to hear of anyone's 120grn Hornday VMax loads for a Tikka T3x superlite and if it shoots well.

[bigpete]

Just use other 120gn data. There's data there for the nosler ballistic tip. Use that

[bigrich]

ADI do not have reloading data for 120grn Hornday VMax for 7mm-08 using AR2208 (Varget) in the 10th Edition Handloader's Manual.
I have looked to buy the Hornady Hardcover Reloading manual but it is sold out. Does anyone have the data in the Hornady Manual for 120grn Hornday VMax using Varget?

I have found conflicting information on the internet and would prefer to see the manufacturers recommendations.

Also interested to hear of anyone's 120grn Hornday VMax loads for a Tikka T3x superlite and if it shoots well.

i have hornady 9th edition manual. it lists 120gn vmax loads with varget (adi 2208) as follows

hornady case, rem 9 1/2 primer ,start load 36.5gn - max load 43.7gn @2.7" col .

my 7_08 tikka loved 45.1gn 2209 with 150gn bt noslers @ 2.8" col . i couldn't seat out longer than 2.8" with the standard mag , mild load 2625fps , but stupidly accurate out to 300 yards .took out a large red stag with the 150 nosler accubonds with this load also . nice exit .

130gn sp bt speer's also very accurate, cloverleafs with 2208, 42.5gn 2208 , 2.735" col . very soft projectile but

had no luck with 140sst hornady's due to mag length . order yourself a "M+" tikka magazine , they make these in 3" col for the 6.5 manbun . being limited to 2.8" col limits what you can do with heavier projectiles and case capacity in 7-08, and tikkas have a long free bore to the lands. hope this helps , cheers

[Jorlcrin]

Mate of mine set my T3 7mm-08 Hunter Stainless Fluted up about 10 years ago.
He had some difficulty getting decent groups on 140gn and 120gn projectiles.

Recipe that I've been using ever since is same as he'd worked up for the 120gn BT projectiles:-
[STRONGLY reccommend working up to this; it is at the top end of whats listed in the ADI manual, but was showing no pressure signs]

44.7gns AR2208
COAL:- 2.790"
I have a note here that says the V-Max are a flat base, and so require slightly deeper seating than Ballistic Tips.

I did have a recipe for the 140gn pills that used AR2209, but I've rarely used anything other than the 120gn V-Max pills.

Mate got the grouping on the 120gn pills to just under 1" @100 metres, but he felt it was capable of much better.
However, to chase a tighter group, he'd run out of room in the Tikka Mag.
To get around this, we later fitted the longer bolt-stop, and I bought some magnum-length magazines, so I have the option of pursuing tighter groups if I choose.
But, to be honest, I havent found the need, as I'm not shooting it on a range.
Nailed a crow @ 355 meters from a rest, one day.
Poor Corbey was just starting a long lunch of macropod, when he failed to keep watching the house..
There are an awful lot of Hoppys and Porkeys that have regretted just how far this rifle/cartridge/loading can reach out and give them a religious experience.

I've had my 7-08 muzzle threaded and fitted with a 3-chamber brake (Trentech), and that drops recoil to about similar to a .243 or less.

I did also trial some 100gn HP Sierra Varminter projectiles, and got down to a 20mm group with 45.0gns AR2208.
Again; didnt really try to get them much tighter, but likely could have.

Hope this helps.

[Billo]

I load 45.4gr of 2208 at 2.830 coal behind a 120gr OEP for 3055fps. 24inch T3 Super varmint

[Late_Starter]

I should have put in a bit more background in the original post, I am a probationary member of the Conservation and Wildlife Management Group in SA. The primary use for the 120grn Hornday VMax will be for culling goats.

Just use other 120gn data. There's data there for the nosler ballistic tip. Use that

Thanks Big Pete, I was looking at that but I was concerned about the difference a flat bottom vs a boat tail would have on the load.

i have hornady 9th edition manual. it lists 120gn vmax loads with varget (adi 2208) as follows

hornady case, rem 9 1/2 primer ,start load 36.5gn - max load 43.7gn @2.7" col .

Thanks Big Rich this is exactly what I needed to get started with the 120grn load.

had no luck with 140sst hornady's due to mag length . order yourself a "M+" tikka magazine , they make these in 3" col for the 6.5 manbun . being limited to 2.8" col limits what you can do with heavier projectiles and case capacity in 7-08, and tikkas have a long free bore to the lands. hope this helps , cheers

I have already bought a "M+" tikka magazine and was attempting to load Hornady 139grn SST. I am down to a 0.7" group but this is not consistent and is not any better than what I am getting with the Hornady Factory Whitetail ammunition. Which is half of the reason I am stopping this load development and trying a different projectile.

130gn sp bt speer's also very accurate, cloverleafs with 2208, 42.5gn 2208 , 2.735" col . very soft projectile but

This is very interesting and gives me another option to look at. I have done a quick search on line but could only find the flat bottom Hot Cor not the boat tail. If I am putting the effort into handloading I want a very accurate round when I am finished.

Mate of mine set my T3 7mm-08 Hunter Stainless Fluted up about 10 years ago.
He had some difficulty getting decent groups on 140gn and 120gn projectiles.

Recipe that I've been using ever since is same as he'd worked up for the 120gn BT projectiles:-

Thanks Jorlcrin, if I cannot get the Hornady 120grn VMax to work I will switch to Nosler Ballistic Tips. It is just the price and availability that is the problem. Hornady is half the price of the Nosler projectile and this ammo will be used for culling goats.

I've had my 7-08 muzzle threaded and fitted with a 3-chamber brake (Trentech), and that drops recoil to about similar to a .243 or less.

I was having trouble with the recoil on this rifle as it has a light scope on it also, so I did a stablising, pillar and bedding job to add about 200gms. This has reduced the recoil and made it much easier to shoot. No sore shoulder the next day makes a big difference.

I did also trial some 100gn HP Sierra Varminter projectiles, and got down to a 20mm group with 45.0gns AR2208.
Again; didnt really try to get them much tighter, but likely could have.

The 100gn HP Sierra Varminter projectiles are another projectile I am looking at for culling goats. Good price but not sure about availablity.

I load 45.4gr of 2208 at 2.830 coal behind a 120gr OEP for 3055fps. 24inch T3 Super varmint

Thanks Billo, it looks like most people are getting the loads to work at the top end of the range. I will work up to it slowly, but gives me an idea of the sweet spot will be.

Thanks All, Late Starter.

[Wyliecoyote]

Just a note on 2208. BTI batches are quicker than older batches so once you get to around 45 grains of 2208 you are at wood with a 120 grain pill. Generally all the BTI range are a tad quicker than their predecessor. My initial load in the 7/08 was 44 grains of 2208 and 120 BTs at 3060 fps out of a 24 inch barrel. At 45 grains it showed ejector marks on case heads. Accuracy is sub inch at 300 metres in a wide range of temperature as this was my go to thermal setup for long range hogs where temperature can vary 20 degrees C from the evening through to 4am. This is where the BTI technology really shines. I could get more speed with other powders but I can't get the control in big temp swings.

I do not have any personal knowledge of the 120 Hornady bullet but the 120 Nosler is fragile on big boars, especially the really old stinkers with thick gristle shoulder plates. Hits on the shoulder and leg bones often ends in wounded pigs where on close inspection the bullets just fragged. Literally just a pile of copper and lead fragmenents with very little evidence this was once a bullet. These are no longer the solid base bullet Nosler built its reputation on. I have since gone to the 130 Speer SPBT with 43 grains of the same 2208 at 2940 fps. Accuracy is excellent and they are way cheaper but they penetrate better at long range on bigger pigs. Just a week ago I got a massive boar at night using the RH50R on the 7/08 at over 400 metres. Hit the front shoulder and smashed the off one and he fell in his tracks.

[bigrich]

Just a note on 2208. BTI batches are quicker than older batches so once you get to around 45 grains of 2208 you are at wood with a 120 grain pill. Generally all the BTI range are a tad quicker than their predecessor. My initial load in the 7/08 was 44 grains of 2208 and 120 BTs at 3060 fps out of a 24 inch barrel. At 45 grains it showed ejector marks on case heads. Accuracy is sub inch at 300 metres in a wide range of temperature as this was my go to thermal setup for long range hogs where temperature can vary 20 degrees C from the evening through to 4am. This is where the BTI technology really shines. I could get more speed with other powders but I can't get the control in big temp swings.

I do not have any personal knowledge of the 120 Hornady bullet but the 120 Nosler is fragile on big boars, especially the really old stinkers with thick gristle shoulder plates. Hits on the shoulder and leg bones often ends in wounded pigs where on close inspection the bullets just fragged. Literally just a pile of copper and lead fragmenents with very little evidence this was once a bullet. These are no longer the solid base bullet Nosler built its reputation on. I have since gone to the 130 Speer SPBT with 43 grains of the same 2208 at 2940 fps. Accuracy is excellent and they are way cheaper but they penetrate better at long range on bigger pigs. Just a week ago I got a massive boar at night using the RH50R on the 7/08 at over 400 metres. Hit the front shoulder and smashed the off one and he fell in his tracks.

the speer 130's your referring to are the ones i've used with cloverleaf accuracy . they are soft at close range however .speer part number is 1624 . with regards to the OP's use of knocking goats i reckon these would be a good bullet . nosler projectiles are funny things , they use the same copper blank for different bullet weights according to what i've read on american forums , which means the 120gn 7mm bullet has a reputation for being stouter than the 140gn . whether or not this is the case with current production , who knows . i used nosler 150 bt's in 7-08 on pigs and 150 accubonds on red stag with good success . i've also used 165bt's out of a 30-06 on pigs, which pin holed at close range but worked very effectively at distance bizzare .

ballistics is a funny thing, and with large range of projectile choice today it's confusing at times . i would try the hornady 139gn interlock as a general purpose bullet in 7-08 , it's a flat base and may work better than sst's with accuracy

[Billo]

Wyliecoyote great post, its worth mentioning not all cases have the same case capacity. Just last week I checked the water capacity with some new Winchester 358 brass and it had 1.0gr more water capacity over some older WInchester brass I had been using for the last 15yrs, the same can be found with 7mm-08 brass.

I often check water capacity with 3 cases when I starting reloading and testing brass. Also the higher 45.4gr of 2208 load I mentioned is possible due to the design of the OEP projectiles which have a massive pressure reducing groove and coating. OEP retain close to 95% of their weight with guaranteed penetration. Accuracy is superb

[Late_Starter]

Thanks BigRich and Wyliecoyote"

the speer 130's your referring to are the ones i've used with cloverleaf accuracy . they are soft at close range however .speer part number is 1624 . with regards to the OP's use of knocking goats i reckon these would be a good bullet .

I have since gone to the 130 Speer SPBT with 43 grains of the same 2208 at 2940 fps. Accuracy is excellent and they are way cheaper but they penetrate better at long range on bigger pigs.

Just found two boxes of Speer 130grn at my LGS. I am going to reload these first and then do the Hornady 120gns. They were only $62.50 each, but may be old stock.
Thanks for the advice.

[bladeracer]

You don't need data for the VMax specifically, just use data for 120gn jacketed bullets, even 100gn data will get you started. I use AR2206H so don't have AR2208 data. The bullet shoots very well for me in the Ruger American.

ADI do not have reloading data for 120grn Hornday VMax for 7mm-08 using AR2208 (Varget) in the 10th Edition Handloader's Manual.
I have looked to buy the Hornady Hardcover Reloading manual but it is sold out. Does anyone have the data in the Hornady Manual for 120grn Hornday VMax using Varget?

I have found conflicting information on the internet and would prefer to see the manufacturers recommendations.

Also interested to hear of anyone's 120grn Hornday VMax loads for a Tikka T3x superlite and if it shoots well.

[Uyenner]

As for the Tikka T3x Superlite, I've heard they can be a bit picky with loads. Some guys swear by seating the bullets closer to the lands, but again, it's all relative.