Slamfire

The quality that made the 7mm Mauser famous as a killing cartridge all out of proportion to its bullet diameter and weight, was the moderate velocity. The bullet had a chance to penetrate BEFORE it expanded. The 7mm-08 duplicates those velocities. If you can get within 300 yards of your quarry, you can't get a better cartridge, unless its a .260.

PaJack

I own both calibers and shoot the same bullet for deer,139gr Hornady SST but I like the 7mm-08 because of less recoil. The .280 is a good shooter also and has more energy...

nchawkeye

My brother has both...and has owned for 15+ years...7mm-08 in Remington Model 7 with Leupold VX-II..3x9x40 and a Browning .280 with a 22 inch barell with Leupold VX-III 3x9x50...He used to use the 7mm-08 for woods hunting and the .280 for fields...His son now uses the 7mm-08..
He has killed whitetails out to 300 yards with each...I have skinned deer killed with each...now that his son is old enough to hunt, we have skinned deer killed by each on the same hunt...You can't tell the difference in performance on deer...My other brother has two .270s...same situation...his son uses one...he uses the other...Skinning deer killed with any of these calibers...You can't tell the difference...You will see more difference in damage done, penetration etc. by using different type bullets within a given caliber....and this is the same with the 25-06, .260, 270, 7mm-08, .280. .308, .30-06 ...there is simply no difference in any of these calibers when it comes to harvesting whitetails....Good Luck

semi

I think ammo for either is pretty much available so i don't believe that would be a deciding factor. I have a 7mm-08 and it is becoming my favorite gun when hunting whitetail. Low recoil, lighter rifle and it is lethal for a good range. the 7mm-08 would be my pick again. I think if you were to hunt bigger game you should just get a bigger rifle. But for deer, black bear etc.. you won't need anything else. If you want to start hunting elk etc.. then buy a bigger rifle for the game you are hunting. my arsenal is a 30.06 and 7mm-08.. two of the best IN my opinion.

travelr

kraftworks3,
My 7-08 shoots the same heavier bullets about 100 fps less than my .280 Rem. And I've yet to see any animal respond differently with a well placed shot and a quality bullet, because one bullet was moving approx 100 fps fast or slower. You can't go wrong with either choice. Both are great cartridges. They only get better if you handload them.

New York Hunter

I think both cartridges are more popular now then ever before. If I could only own one deer rifle, it would be my Remington model "700 Classic" in 280 Rem. I'm also a big fan of the 308 Win., but I'd have to take my 280 Rem.

The 270 Win. and the 280 Rem. are as close as any two cartridges we have. The 280 Rem. does have an advantage because you can load 175 gr. bullets. Both shoot flatter then the 30-06 Spr.

The 7mm-08 Rem. is a fine cartridge also. As said before, on deer size game, you'll never tell the difference. The 7mm-08 recoils a little less then a 308 Win. shooting simular weight bullets (7mm-08 140 gr. and 308 150 gr.). My 308 Win with 150 gr. bullets recoils noticeably less then my 280 Rem. with 140 gr. bullets.

Handload

Ballistically I don't think you will tell much difference, as they are both shooters. The real difference is rifle preference, the long action (.280) vs the short action (7mm-08).

savage.308

I would choose the 7mm-08 and use Barnes TSX bullets exclusively. I use the 140 gr. now for deer but the new 120 gr. will be my choice this year. Use the 140 for Elk or Caribou and you'll get great performance up to 200 yds. Much nicer to shoot the 7mm-08 also, it's light and easy to point and you can shoot it all day long at the range.

ilbback

I have a 280 and do all my hunting with it....Used to hunt with factory 140 grain corelokt bullets. But am now hand loading with 130 grain sierra "single shot pistol bullets" and 56 grains of 4350. I have a remington 700 and the 130's are deadly on whitetails....Those thin jacketed bullets really do a number on em!! And ACCURATE!! shooting at slightly over 3000fps

Rootsy

my primary rifle is a 700 Mountain Rifle chambered in 280 Rem. I handload and therefore i have tailored my loads. I shoot nothing but 175 gr partitions for big game and 100 gr hornady HP's for "smaller" stuff like coyotes... The 175's handle anything from deer to elk and blackbear without so much as an issue... i only push em about 2700 fps and terminal performance is not an issue... BUT if i wanted to i could load hotter... this keeps recoil very managable, even with the light mountain rifle.