First, I'd like to say you'd be happy with either. Both rounds really are nearly equal. But the key here is handloading. The 7x57 is more versatile, and certainly can handle 160-175gr bullets much better than the 7mm-08. <img src=icon_smile_cool.gif border=0 align=middle>

The 7x57 is probably the greatest big game cartridge of all time. It has taken more different types of game than any other, and is adequate for animals up to and including elephant. In fact, it was the cartridge of choice for the most famous and prolific elephant hunter of all time, W.D.M. Bell. He killed close to 1000 elephants with it. That long 175gr bullet penetrated so far and the mild recoil made it so easy to shoot that bullets could be placed with surgical precision. <img src=icon_smile_dead.gif border=0 align=middle>

Even the most famous American hunter, the great Jack O'Connor, who was paid a hefty sum by Winchester to tout the .270, often remarked how the 7x57 was a better all-around cartridge, and his wife still carried one on all their hunts together. O'Connor even went as far as saying that it would do everything a .30-06 would do, except with considerably less recoil. <img src=icon_smile_blackeye.gif border=0 align=middle>

For the handloader, I can't think of a better cartridge for hunting big game than the 7x57 Mauser. I am going to make my son's first rifle chambered for this cartridge, and I hope it will serve him the rest of his life. Judging by its history, it should do so admirably. <img src=icon_smile_approve.gif border=0 align=middle>

Good Dogwork and Good Hunting