7mm Rem Mag

[eric1115]

I'm inclined to slightly disagree... I would say it takes hand loading to unlock the 7mm RM's full potential. If you are shooting factory ammo the PRC is going to be much closer to maximizing its potential with factory ammo.

I say this as a 7mm RM owner who loads 180 Bergers longer than SAAMI, and gets roughly PRC performance.

With 7mm PRC even hand loading you won't do much better than factory.

I think the PRC will only get better in terms of availability, though it is definitely limited right now.

 

[Sled]

I'm inclined to slightly disagree... I would say it takes hand loading to unlock the 7mm RM's full potential. If you are shooting factory ammo the PRC is going to be much closer to maximizing its potential with factory ammo.

I say this as a 7mm RM owner who loads 180 Bergers longer than SAAMI, and gets roughly PRC performance.

With 7mm PRC even hand loading you won't do much better than factory.

I think the PRC will only get better in terms of availability, though it is definitely limited right now.

This is true of most of the newly created magnums. Sure you might leave tens or a hundred FPS on the table by not reloading but you may not notice the difference unless you're shooting side by side with the PRC at distance. It remains to be seen how the ammo makers and community will adopt the 7PRC but the rem mag doesn't seem to be forgotten after 60 years on the shelf and that's worth something.

 

[Jeff_Gibbons]

7 Mag for the win! I've had 3 and think it's the best western hunting caliber out for multiple reasons.

That being said, when new stuff comes out, there's always a few thoughts i run through. Hope they help in your decision.
- what's the marginal gain?
- short term benefit
- long term benefit
- switching costs (if you have one already)

In my thinking - the ballistic gain is indistinguishable. Some gain on the extreme margins. Long range ballistics - yeah but good hunters can get close. So, nope. If i were punching steel at distance - maybe. Accuracy difference - meh i don't buy it. Short term benefit - nope. supply for 7RM will win through numbers alone. I do concede that 7RM higher end brass isn't what'd like (Lapua?). Long term - that's the question with 7PRC. There are an awful lot of competitors for the space and volume wins. The field for 7 mags is tight and already amply filled with pressure on both sides which likely won't change.

My conclusion - i don't see 7PRC becoming a 6.5 Creed.

 

[SDHNTR]

Buy the custom Win M70 in 7 mag that’s been in the classified here for a while. Excellent rifle at a great price.

 

[f16jack]

Consensus above is 7mm Rem Mag. 6 of 7 guys in my elk camp shoot it. No issue killing elk. 7RM for me. Perhaps for you too.

 

[H80Hunter]

I ended up buying a Bergara B14 Hunter, 7 rem mag. Shoots great. Had a little issue ejecting some Barnes LRX ammo (tough to open bolt, find the different thread) but now have put 5 other flavors through it and they all feed flawlessly so must have been a weird brass sizing issue. Got a Zeiss conquest v4 for $749 on sale a couple weeks back. Should be a great elk rifle.

 

[f16jack]

I ended up buying a Bergara B14 Hunter, 7 rem mag. Shoots great. Had a little issue ejecting some Barnes LRX ammo (tough to open bolt, find the different thread) but now have put 5 other flavors through it and they all feed flawlessly so must have been a weird brass sizing issue. Got a Zeiss conquest v4 for $749 on sale a couple weeks back. Should be a great elk rifle.

I had ejection issues with a new Kimber Mountain Ascent in 7mm Rem Mag. This was with handloads that fed flawlessly in all out other rifles - Brownings, Weatherby, Remington, Christensen. I backed the powder load off just a bit and the ejection problem went away. The chamber had tighter tolerances.

Congrats on your rifle. It's an elk killing machine.