Cumbrian 1 Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 I recently acquired a new 7x64 rifle from Dave at Valkyrie rifles, it was built with mountain hunting in mind. In my original spec. I stipulated a MacMillan HTG adj however being a lanky person the cheek piece was still too low on maximum elevation. I decided to fit a PSE Etac stock as I already have one fitted to a 6.5x47 and I knew that the desired comb height could be achieved. After 8 weeks the Etac arrived and it required a little bit of fitting especially around the recoil lug which I then bedded and little bit of material from around the trigger unit. After fitting I realised that the magazine was sitting too low for the rounds to feed, Dave kindly rectified the issue within days of sending him the rifle. Unfortunately the above issues left me with very little time to develop a load for a trip that I had planned for chamois hunting in France and Romania, I loaded up some 168 berger VLD heads over some H4350 and was very impressed with the initial accuracy, after some tweaking I started practicing daily out to 600meteres and by the time the trip had come around I was very confident with my chosen rifle and bullet combo. Rifle in its new stock 100 metre five shot group 600 metres I had assumed that when we arrived in Romania that we would be hunting chamois in the Fagras mountains which are bare rocky mountains, however the section of the Carpathian mountains we were to hunt in was wooded to the very summits. I borrowed a CZ rifle in .300 wm and used the open sights, it was hard going not because of the steepness of the mountains but because of the high temperatures and humidity, most days I hunted with my shirt off. To cut a long story short, on the last day we managed to jump a chamois at only 40 metres I hit it twice the chamois ran straight down into a steep river valley that was very thick, we found some blood and the gamekeepers decided to leave it to the next day in order to comeback with some dogs in the hope that the chamois would of bled out by then. We carried on but never got another chance. The next day I flew out and later that day I got a text to apologise that they had not found it. I wasn't pissed off as nothing is certain in hunting and I was the one that took the shot so the blame is with me. Carpathian mountains Later the same day I landed in Charles De Gaulle airport and got my connecting flight to Toulouse where I met my guide for the second leg of my trip. After a nice meal we headed onto the French Pyrenees and after a very early start the following day we climbed to the ridge which marked the highest point and the border of France and Spain. Shortly after first light we spotted a male, we stalked to close the distance to only 250 metres and the chamois (or Isard a they are know locally) was down with a single shot from the 7x64. The berger bullet was very efficient and caused massive damage to the lungs and heart. Up above the clouds at about 8,000 feet The ridge Me glassing Isard Cheers Dave for building me such a fantastic rifle, I am heading to Azerbaijan on the 8th of June for Eastern Tur and Caucasus chamois and I will definitely be taking this rifle again and I will post another report. Thanks for reading. Cumbrian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baldie Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 My pleasure . Wonderful pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gunnery Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 some fantastic views Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxing2night Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 Fantastic, thanks for sharing ,, Darrel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brown dog Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 Fantastic, thanks for sharing ,, Darrel Yup, outstanding Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rem700 Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 great write up and picks very jealous of your trip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz6br Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 Very nice Gaz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveW Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 Best of luck in Azerbaijan, lovely looking Chamois. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronin Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 Superb images, the Etac stocks are wonderful aren't they. Spent some time at ranges at the other end of the Carpathian range, fantastic place.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stonecutter Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 Nice pics, thanks for posting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotch_egg Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 I would like to see and hear more about your trip. Sounds like a trip of a life time with the right rifle to accompany it. Certainly not a common caliber in the uk, a testament to the rifle maker when load development is that easy Could you link the outfitter you used? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
varminter Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 A very enjoyable writeup and some very nice photos too ( shame about the rifle picture not being clearer ) Sounds like you had a great time and a interesting caliber too / may i ask what velocity the 168 Bergers are doing please??? Ray. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cumbrian 1 Posted November 6, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 Many thanks for all the kind comments. I would like to see and hear more about your trip. Sounds like a trip of a life time with the right rifle to accompany it. Certainly not a common caliber in the uk, a testament to the rifle maker when load development is that easy Could you link the outfitter you used? The Romanian outfitter was a nice chap called Horia Sandu, he website is www.unforgettablehunting.com, Horia has an excellent reputation as an outfitter. The problem was that I assumed (as the old saying goes "assumptions are the mother of all f#%^ ups) we would be hunting above the tree line which he could of arranged however we pursued chamois in the forests. Had I my express sighted .375 I would have found it a lot easier as the .300 win mag had open sights designed for more deliberate shots. Also the .300 was far too low in the comb where as my own rifles all have perfect eye alignment and allow proper cheek weld. The French trip was organised through a guide that I have used in the past, his name is Renaud Desgrees Du Lou and his company is www.seladang.com. Renaud started off as a PH in Indo China guiding for seladang, tiger, leopard and the various deers species. After the fall of communism he set out and established his own camps staffed by his own employees in Tajikistan, Kirghistan, Kazackstan, Siberian plateau, Kamcchacta peninsular, Azerbaijan, Iran, Pakistan and of course France. He is a fascinating man as well as being an expert in mountain hunting. One of the reasons that I chose 7x64 is it can utilise the great range of 7mm projectiles but ammunition can be found easily in Russia and its former territories, Europe, Africa, South and Central America also it is not classed as a military round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cumbrian 1 Posted November 6, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 A very enjoyable writeup and some very nice photos too ( shame about the rifle picture not being clearer ) Sounds like you had a great time and a interesting caliber too / may i ask what velocity the 168 Bergers are doing please??? Ray. I will try and get a better picture, the 168 vlds are doing 2755 however the as the bullet is loaded above the neck junction the pressure is too low to enable the case to seal properly, I will increase the powder charge until the either accuracy suffers or I get excessive pressure signs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1971silversurfer Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Lovely rifle, lovely pictures, thanks for sharing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
varminter Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 I will try and get a better picture, the 168 vlds are doing 2755 however the as the bullet is loaded above the neck junction the pressure is too low to enable the case to seal properly, I will increase the powder charge until the either accuracy suffers or I get excessive pressure signs. Thanks mate and i shall look forward to hear your results!!! Not tried the Berger Hunting 168 VLDs yet in my 280 Ackley - accuracy load with 162 A-maxs is 60 grains of Reloader 22 which is giving me 3025fps.. All the best , Ray. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DW58 Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Excellent - I had a 7x64mm rifle built back in the early nineties, loved it - shot it with 120gr/140gr bullets to great effect, often wish I hadn't sold it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
(200x135).jpg.0fd0a94f065c6cb243fdff1b40e0819a.jpg)
.jpg.0972b4e2bdf0b5a4109eb96f2b1b62ad.jpg)
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.