A very versatile cartridge with more knockdown and penetration than the 6mm's.  Good for varmints and deer-sized game.  Relatively low recoil in standard hunting rifles and thus pleasant for ladies and youths to shoot.

used one for 25 years

I grew up on this rifle, so I may a little biased...hehe. I truly believe that this firearm is a true 'middleweight' in that is better than some but not as good as others. It is truly versatile when hunting. It will easily knock an animal's arse in the dirt from a decent distance. This particular bullet does some damage though due to bullet size and powder grain. Which also makes it a great varmit shooter, such as: coyote, fox, or even rabbit). But a few cautions! This gun does have a fair bit of recoil, although far less then a 7mm. And since it does a good deal of damage please aim carefully if you wish to save the hide/fur for mounting purposes, as there tends to be large chunks of animal missing(and sometimes half a smaller critter!).