28 nosler vs 7prc build. What are your thoughts?

[Wyocritterdoc]

I currently have a 24inch, 1:8 twist .284 barrel blank sitting at the gunsmith. I'm trying to decide between having it built to be a 28 Nosler or a 7prc. I plan for this to be my do everything gun from speed goats to elk and everything in between. Even moose if I can get a tag. My main hangup is barrel life and cost to shoot. Is barrel life truly significantly shorter on the 28 nos? Once the initial investment of getting the brass for the 28 is over, I'm assuming it will be close to the same price to reload and shoot as the 7prc?

 

[TaperPin]

It’s always fun hearing what guys have been getting for barrel life. I’d think the PRC would be similar to the Rem mag and I would be happy if it made it to 1000 rounds with lots of cooling. I’ve heard a gunsmith say his 28 Nos barrels last about 800 rounds. If barrels are $1k that puts PRC barrel cost at $1 per shot and the 28 Nos at $1.25.

My first really good 7 mag barrel was so fun to shoot it was toast in 12 months. Since then I’m much more likely to save good hunting rifles for hunting and put most rounds down range with a lower cost trainer of some kind, even if it’s also a 7 mag.

Without RL26 for the PRC it’s not quite as fast as advertised. I’d be more likely to to use a 28 Nosler since it doesn’t have to be loaded to max pressure to get decent velocity.

 

[Wyocritterdoc]

It’s always fun hearing what guys have been getting for barrel life. I’d think the PRC would be similar to the Rem mag and I would be happy if it made it to 1000 rounds with lots of cooling. I’ve heard a gunsmith say his 28 Nos barrels last about 800 rounds. If barrels are $1k that puts PRC barrel cost at $1 per shot and the 28 Nos at $1.25.

My first really good 7 mag barrel was so fun to shoot it was toast in 12 months. Since then I’m much more likely to save good hunting rifles for hunting and put most rounds down range with a lower cost trainer of some kind, even if it’s also a 7 mag.

Without RL26 for the PRC it’s not quite as fast as advertised. I’d be more likely to to use a 28 Nosler since it doesn’t have to be loaded to max pressure to get decent velocity.

I currently don't reload so I will likely be shooting factory rounds for a while. I'm not opposed to looking into getting started though. Would shooting factory loads change your thoughts any?

 

[Taudisio]

They are in different leagues imo. Think 7mag vs 7rum. Decide what your goal is and pick the one that suits your needs. 200ish fps difference from load data.

 

[Wyocritterdoc]

They are in different leagues imo. Think 7mag vs 7rum. Decide what your goal is and pick the one that suits your needs. 200ish fps difference from load data.

Can you elaborate what you would think some goals would be if this was your rifle. I'm in Wyoming so that's where the majority of my hunting will be done.

 

[huntnful]

I currently don't reload so I will likely be shooting factory rounds for a while. I'm not opposed to looking into getting started though. Would shooting factory loads change your thoughts any?

Without reloading just go 7PRC and 180 ELDM’s. You’ll be set

 

[wapitibob]

Without reloading just go 7PRC and 180 ELDM’s. You’ll be set

^^ this is the answer

You are wasting the 28's potential without a custom throated reamer and hand loading. Even then, the barrel will be toast in 500 shots if you're using N570 to push the 195's. I'm on my 4th barrel in a 7stw which is almost identical to the 28. 5th barrel is at the smith and being chambered to 7PRC.

 

[huntnful]

^^ this is the answer

You are wasting the 28's potential without a custom throated reamer and hand loading. Even then, the barrel will be toast in 500 shots if you're using N570 to push the 195's. I'm on my 4th barrel in a 7stw which is almost identical to the 28. 5th barrel is at the smith and being chambered to 7PRC.

Facts. I started blowing 195 Berger’s apart after about 600 rounds with N570 in my 28. I had to switch to monos just before season since they’d hold together.

 

[TaperPin]

I currently don't reload so I will likely be shooting factory rounds for a while. I'm not opposed to looking into getting started though. Would shooting factory loads change your thoughts any?

You can’t go wrong either way - in general I’d recommend the smaller cartridge. If you don’t need the extra velocity the PRC would be just fine. Federal factory ammo for the PRC does use RL26 so velocities are good. Hornady has been cut off of RL26 and uses a different powder that doesn’t produce as much velocity in their ammo, but that will change eventually.

 

[Wyocritterdoc]

You can’t go wrong either way - in general I’d recommend the smaller cartridge. If you don’t need the extra velocity the PRC would be just fine. Federal factory ammo for the PRC does use RL26 so velocities are good. Hornady has been cut off of RL26 and uses a different powder that doesn’t produce as much velocity in their ammo, but that will change eventually.

My gunsmith is encouraging me to go 28 nos. Otherwise, I was planning on the 7prc. I'm just not convinced I can justify the 28 for any realistic hunting situations I plan to be in. But im not super familiar with the 28 nos and didn't know if there was something I'm missing.

 

[Diced]

If you do not reload definitely go with the 7 prc.

If you plan on getting into reloading the 28 nosler is a great high performance cartridge. I've had a ton of success with it and have generally found the barrel life concerns to be overblown.

 

[Taudisio]

I missed factory ammo. You will have cheaper factory ammo and longer barrel life with the prc, and both are more than sufficient to hunt out to 600 yards. The nosler will grant you more wind resistance though at the sacrifice of everything else. With only factory ammo usage in mind, I would push you towards the prc, and encourage you to look twice at the 7rm.

 

[Wyocritterdoc]

I missed factory ammo. You will have cheaper factory ammo and longer barrel life with the prc, and both are more than sufficient to hunt out to 600 yards. The nosler will grant you more wind resistance though at the sacrifice of everything else. With only factory ammo usage in mind, I would push you towards the prc, and encourage you to look twice at the 7rm.

7rm just because it's so common and you don't feel you gain that much more with the 7prc factory ammo?

 

[Taudisio]

7rm just because it's so common and you don't feel you gain that much more with the 7prc factory ammo?

Even with hand loads, you are effectively looking at the same thing. Magnum bolt face, long action, very similar velocities. You will have a lot more factory options with the RM for a little while until others get on board. Buddy has been shooting 180’s at 3000fps with a rm years before the PRC was a thought.

 

[Wyocritterdoc]

Even with hand loads, you are effectively looking at the same thing. Magnum bolt face, long action, very similar velocities. You will have a lot more factory options with the RM for a little while until others get on board. Buddy has been shooting 180’s at 3000fps with a rm years before the PRC was a thought.

Sounds good. Thank you

 

[TaperPin]

Sounds good. Thank you

If you’re also open to the 7 rem mag, that’s been my favorite for a long time as a do-it-all Wyoming cartridge. It always works well and is easy to get an accurate load. It’s a little larger case than the PRC so a wider variety of powders work well in it, doesn’t suffer from clickers caused by overly straight case walls, the standard chamber has neck and freebore diameter essentially the same as the PRC and if it’s throated for long bullets and a fast twist barrel is used, it performs slightly better than the PRC with any weight bullet.

I only use 160 gr bullets and limit hunting to 600 yards so I don’t have a need for an extra long throat. A quality barrel and good basic reloading techniques with federal cases CCI primers, RL or IMR powders, Nosler bullets, and standard RCBS full length dies has resulted in 1/2 MOA to 3/4 MOA results depending on luck of the draw with barrels. (Multiple 5 shot groups stacked on each other) There would be no benefit to me with either PRC or Ruger, but someone with either of those might say the same. You can’t go wrong with any of them - the animal definitely wont be able to tell the difference. The 7 STW and 280 AI could also be included in that group. The faster cartridges looked much better on paper before the days of dialable scopes and range finders - back then anything that would flatten out the trajectory was a good thing.

 

[Wyocritterdoc]

If you’re also open to the 7 rem mag, that’s been my favorite for a long time as a do-it-all Wyoming cartridge. It always works well and is easy to get an accurate load. It’s a little larger case than the PRC so a wider variety of powders work well in it, doesn’t suffer from clickers caused by overly straight case walls, the standard chamber has neck and freebore diameter essentially the same as the PRC and if it’s throated for long bullets and a fast twist barrel is used, it performs slightly better than the PRC with any weight bullet.

I only use 160 gr bullets and limit hunting to 600 yards so I don’t have a need for an extra long throat. A quality barrel and good basic reloading techniques with federal cases CCI primers, RL or IMR powders, Nosler bullets, and standard RCBS full length dies has resulted in 1/2 MOA to 3/4 MOA results depending on luck of the draw with barrels. (Multiple 5 shot groups stacked on each other) There would be no benefit to me with either PRC or Ruger, but someone with either of those might say the same. You can’t go wrong with any of them - the animal definitely wont be able to tell the difference. The 7 STW and 280 AI could also be included in that group. The faster cartridges looked much better on paper before the days of dialable scopes and range finders - back then anything that would flatten out the trajectory was a good thing.

I have been wondering of a guy could chamber for 7rm, use a 1:8 twist barrel, use high bc bullets like the prc uses and get performance somewhere between the 7prc and 28 nos with appropriate hand loads. But I have zero reloading knowledge

 

[Slick8]

Here's what it boils down to IMO, effective max range based on a minimum velocity threshold to ensure reliable expansion.

Let's use a 2000 FPS as a minimum. I know most bullets are good down to 1800 fps but I like a little margin of error. Additionally, when you reach that max range for a bullet, accurate ranging and dope becomes super critical. Lastly, these numbers are a really long ways out for factory ammo, IMO.

I set the base parameters at 5000 ASL, 45 deg and no wind. Again, just looking for a min threshold here.

The 7PRC with a MV of 2800 FPS which is a good known average drops to 2000 fps at 775 yards.
The 28 Nos with a MV of 3000 fps gets you to 950.

NOTE, I've not loaded the 28 Nos but have loaded a 30 Nos and loved it. IMO, It's about ideal for a 215-230 grain bullet. I used 3k as a safe margin in a 24 inch barrel and most powders. You'll likely need N570 to hit that 3100 FPS mark which is double hard on your barrel and only gets you and additional 75 yards effectively out to 1025.

Based on this, I'd say go 7PRC or step up to a 30 cal.
FWIW, I had this same mental maturational debate over the past few months and went 7PRC. Can't wait to get it here.

BTW, I'm like to ole 7.3 Powerstroke hands, no replacement for displacement.

 

[TaperPin]

I have been wondering of a guy could chamber for 7rm, use a 1:8 twist barrel, use high bc bullets like the prc uses and get performance somewhere between the 7prc and 28 nos with appropriate hand loads. But I have zero reloading knowledge

The heavy bullets and shooting past 600 are out of my wheelhouse.

 

[huntnful]

I have been wondering of a guy could chamber for 7rm, use a 1:8 twist barrel, use high bc bullets like the prc uses and get performance somewhere between the 7prc and 28 nos with appropriate hand loads. But I have zero reloading knowledge

Yes, that would/could be the case, IF you were at that level.

The 7PRC will offer enough performance right out the gate, then if you decide to reload, it has great components available and proper throat geometry for the heavy 7mm bullets. AND THEN if you still want more, just put another barrel on with a cartridge that is geared towards the exact performance you want/desire based off the experience you actually gained with the previous barrel. They’re cheap in the grand scheme.