What do yall think about the federal hevi weight 7s

[savduck]

Do a lot of reading about on this page. Tons of Hevi 7 stuff, but not much about the Federal 7s. I got the 20 ga rig to set up for next year and Im thinking the Federal 7 is the way to go.

[ILIKEHEVI-13]

And there's agood reason for that.  Flite control wad seems to be the main culprit.  These loads just don't seem to pattern as well as the Hevi-13 loads.  Federal doesn't seem to want to change their wad anytime soon.  Nor will they up the loads in the 12GA offerings. 

[savduck]

Im more interested in its performance and how it hits than how many pellets its puts in a 10 inch circle. Im sure a lot less 15g 7s have to hit bone than a 12g 7s to get the job done. Does it seem to be a consistant load with a nice even spread pattern  or are they all over the board with holes in the pattern? With the right choke does it seem to peak at forty or were there guys getting 50 yard guns out of this load? Any pictures of mushed heads with them at longer ranges 35 to 50?

Truth be told. If I have 30 to 40 pellets in a 10 inch circle at 40 yards, Im pulling the trigger, cant break that habit from my lead number 4 days.

[pdqt]

I have not tried them in my 20 yet. Have a small stash of tss 8. Some of the guys have written about good #'s with that shell. Some guns will shoot that flight control wad.   

[TrkyHntr]

I like how they pattern in my 870 20ga with a 21" barrel. With a hastings .562, I get an average the low 170's in the 10" at 40yds. I didn't get to test them in the field, so I can't tell you how they perform on the real thing.

168 in 10" at 40yds


174 in 10" at 40yds




Shane

[savduck]

TrkyHntr.......thanks, that helps. im setting up a youth model rem 870. Didnt measure the barrel.

Thats a pretty good even pattern, I like how its spread and as a plus looks like its putting up good numbers. How bad does it open up from 40 to 45 or 40 to 50.

[TrkyHntr]

I haven't tried them past 40yds.



Shane

[Jay Longhauser]

They have been consistent for me in my 870 20 gauge.  I had good numbers with a carlson .575 and remington super full choke tube.  Shot one at 32 steps and they worked fine.  Ill keep shooting them in my 870.

[Longshanks]

Rem 870 12g  Hastings .665
200 in a 10in circle @ 40yds with the Fed HW 7's

Have tryed them in numerous other 12's with different chokes and no success.

Beretta 390 20g Pure Gold .570
Hevi 13 7's patterned better than the Fed HW 7's at 35 and 40yds despite having less shot.

*The Fed HW  7's seem to love the non ported Hastings chokes. Flight Control seems to be the issue.

[gobbler74]

Its a smokin shell in the 12 at 1300 fps..Its all in the choke as to what you get out of the pattern.. for hunting 125-150 pellets in a 10 at 40 is fine. The FCW in my opinion does more for marketing towards new shooters than it does for performance. "Flight control wad" just sounds magical to some. The 300 pellet count patterns from the much slower popular 12 gram shells is hard to look at after patterning with HW.. You can get your pellet count up with that shell though. Look for long parralel non ported chokes. You will get more density in your pattern than flush full chokes.

   

[davisd9]

I shoot Federal HW 7s in my 20 gauge.  I have actullay seen the results from people I know with these shells.  The Hevi 7s produce a lot of talk.  I am getting a new Remington 870 20 gauge this offseason and going to use these shells with a Truglo SSX.  I have a good buddy who shoots that setup in a 20 gauge 11-87 and is putting up 185-205 at 40 yards in 10".  Seen his kills with the shells and they are devasting.  In my 835 I am sticking with Hevi 6s or either Mag Blends, but in my 20 I will definitely be shooting Federal HW 3-1.5-7.  Good luck!

[gophert]

Do a lot of reading about on this page. Tons of Hevi 7 stuff, but not much about the Federal 7s. I got the 20 ga rig to set up for next year and Im thinking the Federal 7 is the way to go.

Check out the 20 ga section.  There are lots of discussions about that load with patterns.  Here are a few of mine.

http://oldgobbler.com/Forum/index.php/topic,2473.0.html
http://oldgobbler.com/Forum/index.php/topic,2474.0.html

Quite a few more just search and you will find that they are a VERY GOOD load out of the 20's. 

[gobbler74]

 150 or so is fine with that shell..I like coverage patterns myself for hunting. Some complain that is doesn't shoot 300. Others complain when its too much. I switched to pure gold tempest for that shell and get @180. That pellet means business..tss is one of if not the only advantage.

[R AJ]

I have both shells and although I can generally get more shot with the H-13 load,I prefer the Federal HW7 load . If you can get a decent pattern from the Fed I would go with it. Th eFCW in 20 gauge is much more pliable than the wad in 12 and is more forgiving. They have also shown strong patterns in more open chokes with some preferring the factory full or ex full. I like the ones in the 560 range like 562 . Right now you can purchase some H-13 and still get a rebate . Check both mfgrs for rebates.

Ammo is going up June 1 again.

[stinkpickle]

If they would bump up the payload (you get fewer 15g pellets per ounce already), I might try 'em.  Heck, I would even trade some velocity for more pellets.  But for right now, I have no need.