7mm TCU, not used in rifles?

[shovelstrokeed]

Have a bit of pity on me, I'm old and out of the sport for the last 20 or so years. Last serious reloading I did was for IHMSA competition and I fondly remember loading 7 TCU for its low recoil and very nice balance between accuracy and knock down power on the rams.

I've been around here a couple of weeks and see no mention of it. A bit more about 6mm versions. Is it more about better bullets available for the 6mm? I even thought about doing an AR upper in that caliber but then realized the 139g bullets I was used to might just be a bit long.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[Delta4-3]

I have an AR in 7TCU and it works great with bullets up to 120g. Then they are too long. I prefer 6x45mm. Flatter shooting, higher BC, much better bullet selection.

 

[ksthomas]

Shovelstrokeed,

I had several friends back in CA that used the 7mm TCU for HP Rifle Silhouette shooting. It worked decently (for the most part), gave outstanding accuracy and very mild recoil. Leaves lots of rams standing, which isn't much of a surprise, but they were a ball to shoot. Seemed to be mostly a regional thing, and I know several of those rifles were all cut with the same reamer, being passed from friend to friend.

Eventually, they all switched to more potent cartridges such as the 7-08s, or even the 7mm BR (which I still use for this game). Neat little round, though, an a lot of fun. Definitely a length issue involved in trying to stuff these in the 2.260" confines of an AR mag. I wouldn't bother in a gas gun.

 

[armorpl8chikn]

No need to bother in a gas gun. If anyone does it DTech (Mike Milli) does. No problems in a bolt gun except opening up your mag box and lengthen the follower. Great cartridge but sometimes problematic with fire forming loads. I have owned several pistols but no rifles. I would opt for the 6x45 if I wanted a gas gun. In my opinion the 7TCU would present a lot more problems in a gas gun than just mag length.

Where did you shoot IHMSA? I am a former member, and pretty well known in the southeast. Was known locally as Flopmeister. (not an indication of my shooting skills but my style of shooting)

 

[shovelstrokeed]

Thanks guys, about what I figured. Even at only 200m for the pistol silhouette, you had to hit the ram pretty good with a 139g bullet to get it to topple.
Oh well, I've been thinking about an upper for my KAC SR-15. I like the gun, not a huge fan of the 223 but I have a thousand or so once fired cases floating around of .223 and sitting for an afternoon trying to get them all loaded again is not my idea of fun, at least not with my Rock Crusher. Was hoping to make something useful out of all that brass though.

 

[Delta4-3]

Thanks guys, about what I figured. Even at only 200m for the pistol silhouette, you had to hit the ram pretty good with a 139g bullet to get it to topple.
Oh well, I've been thinking about an upper for my KAC SR-15. I like the gun, not a huge fan of the 223 but I have a thousand or so once fired cases floating around of .223 and sitting for an afternoon trying to get them all loaded again is not my idea of fun, at least not with my Rock Crusher. Was hoping to make something useful out of all that brass though.

Look hard at 6x45. No fire forming, just run it into the sizer like you normally would and load. It's my favorite cartridge. If you would like some loads, I've got some that jive with my setup. I will say that I had no issues with 7tcu in the AR, just the bullet length. The 120 Sierra is a great deer killer. That said, there are a metric ton of great bullets for the 6x45.

 

[Delta4-3]

I have had a .257-223 as well. It's a pretty cool little round.

 

[6.5BR]

If you liked the TCU, you might prefer a 6.5 Grendel. Had a 7 in a Contender. Grendel fits in the AR no problem, some shoot a 6mm version

 

[shovelstrokeed]

Armourpl8,
Shot mostly in NE TN, Kingsport, Oak Ridge, a long time ago though. Did get over to a club in NC, Concord, as I recall. I had a couple of guns in 7 TCU, a Contender for Prod and an XP-100 with a longer bbl for Unlimited. Didn't like the performance of the XP so built a different gun in 7mm IHMSA that really out performed the TCU. Wouldn't work in an AR15 chassis, might be nice for an AR-10 but with modern stuff, I guess 6 or 6.5 mm is the way to go.

 

[Iamironman]

I have an AR in 7TCU and it works great with bullets up to 120g. Then they are too long. I prefer 6x45mm. Flatter shooting, higher BC, much better bullet selection.

I have an AR pistol chambered in 7mm TCU. I've successfully loaded bullets up to 140 gr, but my magazine was modified.

 

[armorpl8chikn]

Armourpl8,
Shot mostly in NE TN, Kingsport, Oak Ridge, a long time ago though. Did get over to a club in NC, Concord, as I recall. I had a couple of guns in 7 TCU, a Contender for Prod and an XP-100 with a longer bbl for Unlimited. Didn't like the performance of the XP so built a different gun in 7mm IHMSA that really out performed the TCU. Wouldn't work in an AR15 chassis, might be nice for an AR-10 but with modern stuff, I guess 6 or 6.5 mm is the way to go.

Conover is where you are most likely thinking. That is where I am a member. We no longer offer IHMSA. You probly know W.Fish, he shot over your way.

 

[shovelstrokeed]

Yep, Conover.

Had a good time. I was pretty new to the game back then and remember shooting a brand new Super Blackhawk 44 mag for revolver class, I also had a rear grip Wichita in 308. Couldn't really hit much with either. That 308 was too hard to control with a 1:11 15" bbl it wanted to torque right out of your hand. I hadn't learned yet to use a very relaxed grip on the gun and let whatever gun just recoil naturally into your hand. Try that with a SAA style grip and you ain't hitting squat. A whole bunch of what I learned in IHMSA transfers very nicely to this long range sport though.