4 long years and it's finally here....Sendero 7mm Rem Mag

[VMUTH]

I've been wanting to try long range shooting for a looooong time (1000 yards max). Just couldn't do it with the family responsibilities till now. Finally was able to make it happen and now want to make sure i do it right first time round.

I bought a used Remy Sendero in 7mm Rem Mag. It's one of the original models from what i can gather. All black in a 26 inch barrel NON-fluted. I already emailed Remington with the serial number to get the details like year produced and twist rate. (Hopefully they'll respond soon.) The owner i bought it from said he has about 150 rounds through it and it was his elk and mule deer rifle. He bought it used and said the original owner didn't put many rounds through it either.

The guy at the shop that received the rifle happened to be the gun smith. He pulled out the flashlight and took a quick look and said it was dirty but the rifling looked pretty good and sharp. The rifle came with an Atlasworx DBM, 1 Accuracy International magazine, about 60 pieces of brass, Timney 150 trigger, RCBS 2 piece die set, and a weaver rail.

I did a ton of research and reading and pulled the trigger on a Vortex Viper PST 6-24x50 FFP in MOA on Saturday and it should be here on Tuesday.

So I'm looking for some info and experience to make sure i do it right the first time around.

1) I plan on getting an extra polymer magazine from Magpul. I would like to the rifle to be a long range hunter (Coyote and Pig) besides target shooting so does anyone make a flush mount or 3 round magazine for it?

2) Suggestions for a 20 MOA rail.

3) Favorite pet load details.

4) Any and all info and experience appreciates.


BTW, i know you purists are going to hate this but soon as i can save up some more money, i'd like to get a 24" fluted barrel for it. (Slightly lighter, handles better, and looks so cool)

Thanks.

 

[CarJunkieLS1]

Nice rifle and Congrats. But if your gonna rebarrel it why didn't you just get an ADL in a magnum caliber.

 

[VMUTH]

Thanks Carjunkiels1. I am told the Senderos are crazy accurate out of the box. When I did the numbers, this was a good deal. The HS stock is about $400, Timney trigger is about $140, the DBM was $140, the magazine $90, Dies $30+, and some brass.

I would definitely like to cut and flute the barrel right away but it'll be outside of my budget. I figured I would shoot it and enjoy it for a while till I get the dough to do it. Maybe a later project.

 

[FiveInADime]

I would definitely like to cut and flute the barrel right away but it'll be outside of my budget. I figured I would shoot it and enjoy it for a while till I get the dough to do it. Maybe a later project.

Why do you want to shorten the barrel? I like having a longer barrel in 7mmRemMag to get that muzzle blast away from me.

Fluting a barrel after manufacture may not be a good idea, according to some people.

If that thing shoots, I wouldn't mess with it. It's a purpose built, long-range big-game rifle.



Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[Sure Shot Mc Gee]

I know a fellow who has a Sendero in 300 Win mag.. His typical deer target range from 250 to 350. Being a welder-fabricator by trade he's has the most usual scissor lifted stand I've ever seen. {enclosed_carpeted_ insulated_ LP heated w/12 volt lights & TV.} His field of view is 40 wide but lon~~g bean field. I have seen a number of his & son/s deer sent via cell phone or Ipad pix immediately after their demise. Always and only Big BIG bucks year after year for well over 10-15 years
He's commented to me in person more than once he would never buy another rifle so long as he has his Sendero. Outstandingly accurate he's boasted his is.

 

[Mike / Tx]

I have one sitting in the middle of my safe somewhere. I haven't played with it in a while. I will tell you that you should look REALLY hard at the Hornady 162gr SPBT. Those shoot VERY good out of mine. Also Midway has some 162gr polymer tipped factory seconds in stock which should also do very well.

I tried numerous bullets when I got mine and found nothing that could top the Hornady. Of course things have come a bit further in development as well since then as well. I chose this weight because it is heavy enough to carry, and has a high enough BC to shoot good enough for my uses, and was cheap enough to get in plenty of practice with. I tried the Berger and still came back to the Hornady. I just found that it was a great all around bullet even on a close shot. Once you work up the loads for the extreme ranges and have something come out at 50-75yds you want to have something that isn't going to ruin most of what you might want to put in the freezer. This was another reason I went with it. Nowadays they have the bonded bullets, which I admit are very tempting to try, but I probably have enough of the others sitting on the shelf to shoot out both the standard 7 RM and my STW.

For powders I liked RL-19 and 22 the best and got the best velocities and accuracy out of them. I have some other powders now to play with if I ever get around to it, but I doubt I will try out the other newer bullets. The 162gr does everything I need out to past 600yds. Trust me when I say, it will slam dunk a 200 pound hog. I used it for numerous hog culling trips and also shot one of my best deer with it. I want to give some 7828 a try as well as some Ramshot Magnum.

I use only Fed 210M primers and have had no issues what so ever. I tried some Win, and CCI but never quite squeezed out groups as good or as consistent as with the Fed's.

As for trimming it up into a shorter lighter package, I would not touch it. As it sits it is as good as it gets. If you did anything to it you might swap out the factory barrel with a Hart or Lilja in the same taper and length.

If your serious about really reaching out the added length is good to have for added velocity, and if you DID swap out the barrel you might even consider going with a 28".

Now if your looking for something lighter and sporty you should just pick up one of the newer LR type rigs or simply, like mentioned go with a ADL and work from there. The Sendero is a purpose built very solid rifle and is capable of better accuracy than most average shooters are able to take advantage of. Not trying to stir anything but the original ones were about as good as a factory production rifle gets.

Good luck with yours, I know mine, slung across my shoulder, has made many a trip being toted around my friends 1500 acre place numerous times with a Harris bi-pod attached. While it wasn't the best thing I could have had weight wise, it served the purpose for the task I had at the time, reaching out across an 600 acre cotton field and slam dunking some hogs.

 

[ms6852]

Those senderos are truly great rifles, especially in a 7mm caliber. This caliber will out shine the 300 win magnum in accuracy at very very long ranges. (I know I will get crucified for that statement). But ballistically speaking, the 7mm will remain supersonic to 1700 yards while the 300 mag is supersonic to 1500 yards.

To bad you want a shorter barrel.

 

[ndking1126]

VMUTH,

Based on the equipment you listed below, you are doing it right. The Sendero's are excellent rifles.

Having said that, you have to know what you are doing. I don't know your experience level with shooting, but make sure you learn how to do your part if you haven't already.

And fair warning... long range shooting is strangely addictive! Your groups will never be small enough and your targets will never be far enough away. I've shot to 1000 yds, but most of my experience is out to about 625 yards

It's definitely my favorite type of shooting! My experience was once I learned the basics and got a little bit of experience under my belt, the distance you can shoot starts to quickly increase because you the shooter do the same thing other than adjusting to account for more bullet drop. I'm certainly no expert and my biggest problem currently is lack of range time so I won't try to give you shooting advice, haha.

In respsonse to cutting the barrel, you will loose velocity. Maybe 30-50 FPS per inch. Slower bullets equals more arch (ie, drop) at any given distance. It's not conclusive, and I'm sure people smarter than me may disagree, but it does seem that shorter barrels can be capable of greater accuracy if you can tune your hand loads well enough. The theory is shorter barrels are stiffer which produces less "whip" of the barrel during the shot. I don't believe fluting adds anything to the barrel other than a specific look. The weight reduction you mention is correct. But keep in mind weight reduction means more felt recoil. More felt recoil has a tendency to cause flinching... trade offs for everything I guess.

Enjoy!

 

[jmr40]

Don't do anything until you've shot it, a lot. I like fluted barrels on some rifles, and I tend to prefer shorter barrels on most rifles. But not on THIS rifle. On a trim compact short action rifle in 7-08 or 308 that you are trying to use as a lightweight mountain rifle the small velocity loss from a shorter barrel isn't enough to matter out to 500ish yards. Fluting the barrel will save a few ounces without sacrificing accuracy nearly as much as a featherweight or mountain rifle barrel contour. The few extra ounces in the barrel will make the rifle easier to shoot at long distance.

Shooting at 1000 yards you need all the speed you can squeeze from the barrel and in my experience 7mm magnums stated velocity has always been optimistic. I had to work hard to get my 7 mag to shoot the same bullet weights faster than I could from my 30-06. I never could beat 30-06 by more than 50-70 fps.

You're not going to make this a lightweight anyway. The long action, and scope you've chosen, along with the HS-Precision stock is going to be heavy no matter what. I'd keep it as a heavy rifle dedicated for long range use.

Recoil won't be a factor. 30-06 and 7 mag recoil is almost identical. Even from a rifle a little on the light side 7 mag recoil is very tolerable. Muzzle blast is a little worse and getting it farther from your face will make it more pleasant to shoot. The noise fools a lot of people into believing a 7 mag kicks a lot more than 30-06.

 

[old roper]

I hate to say this but you don't have original Sendreo as your missing some parts. It would of been nice had you got trigger and magazine that Rem used.

Might was well change out barrel be done with it.

 

[Road_Clam]

I'm confused, I have a 26" R700 Sondero barrel in .300 Win Mag and it's stainless fluted barrel from the factory ?

 

[jrothWA]

Having bought a M70 7mm, don't be surprised..

if you can group tighter than a paper plate.

This is due to throat erosion, you may have to soft-seat a bullet is a case and close the bolt. then measure the bullet diameter to case head distance

compare that at with the SAMMI information as to how long the chamber throat is.

Seat reloads to that distance and see how your groups shrink.