Advice for which 7mm (.284”) bullet and muzzle velocity for leopard

[Schüler Jumbo]

Hello all,

Where legal what would be your choice of 7mm (.284”) bullet and muzzle velocity for leopard?

Best regards

 

[meigsbucks]

I’ve never hunted leopard and never will, but if I was going with a 7mm, I’d use a 7x57 or 7mm-08 with a 160gr Nosler Partition or Accubond @~2600fps. Fast expanding and yet give good penetration. The 7x57 (or it’s ballistic twin: 7-08) has been killing leopards for over 100 years.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Don’t overthink this. Just about any factory ammunition will work. I used a 338 WM with Norma Oryx. 100 yard shot, on bait. Remington Core-Lokt or Nosler Partion will work. I would use 175 gr in a 7mm RM

 

[wildwilderness]

Accuracy single most important aspect. They are not big, or tough, but deadly.

A fast soft bullet is recommended to dump all energy into the cat and “stone” it, DRT. Nobody I know wants to track a shot Leopard!

A lot of the PHs like a 300 WM for velocity and KE

For a .284 something fast and soft. For non-magnum I’d go 140 gr or lighter and if it’s a magnum cartridge then you have more options

 

[Bandera]

Heaviest fast expanding bullet that my rifle would shoot sub MOA groups with.

 

[Rare Breed]

Hello all,

Where legal what would be your choice of 7mm (.284”) bullet and muzzle velocity for leopard?

Best regards

175 Grain Nosler Partition is what I took

 

[Rare Breed]

No joy so 0 for 1. Going to Moz for second try in 07 and minimum 9.3x62 with me taking 270 grain Speer or Swift A Frames in 286 grain

 

[gillettehunter]

180 gr Berger VLD hunting at 2900 fps. I've used it for years in my 7 SAUM and taken perhaps 50 animals with it. A 7 Mag or PRC will get the same or similar velocity. Mostly one shot kills. That includes 3 eland so its not "too" soft for a leopard. My last Sable was a 1 shot kill as was my only zebra. The caveat is you MUST check the tips of the bullets. If plugged then use as a practice round or use a small drill bit to open the tip.
That speed is perfect to open that bullet up and do a good job of killing the animal quickly. @LivingTheDream has used my rifle with that load. Ask him his thoughts about it.
Bruce

 

[Hunter-Habib]

My favorite 7x57mm Mauser cartridge for hunting the great cats, used to be the 175Gr Winchester Super X round nosed soft point (2440 FPS velocity). Unfortunately, Winchester last made these in 1988.

Amongst currently manufactured 7x57mm Mauser ammunition, I personally prefer the 173Gr Sellier & Bellot SPCE (2390 FPS velocity). But one word of warning is quite imperative here- When employing them against leopards, always take care to avoid the ball-and-socket joint in the shoulder. Or else, they WILL break apart without being able to penetrate into the vital organs.