Which factory 7mm PRC?

[Xycod]

Weatherby imo, personally hate tikkas and their f’ed up recoil lug set up, the seekins is nice and l like Glen, the Wby is a rem700 and has unlimited potential and parts assuming everything is drilled right and machined correctly. Bergara is in the same boat as the why, rem 700 clone and also great, Ed Shilen set them up years ago on how to produce great barrels so they know how to make outstanding rifles. So definitely the wby or bergara, both outstanding but you do get the made in USA on the wby unless you go the B custom.

Glens for a little more are also on the high list, so a toss up, pick what you want and the setup you like looking at and using along with what name you feel the best about bragging to your buds. All great and highly capable.

 

[rileybassman]

Weatherby imo, personally hate tikkas and their f’ed up recoil lug set up, the seekins is nice and l like Glen, the Wby is a rem700 and has unlimited potential and parts assuming everything is drilled right and machined correctly. Bergara is in the same boat as the why, rem 700 clone and also great, Ed Shilen set them up years ago on how to produce great barrels so they know how to make outstanding rifles. So definitely the wby or bergara, both outstanding but you do get the made in USA on the wby unless you go the B custom.

Glens for a little more are also on the high list, so a toss up, pick what you want and the setup you like looking at and using along with what name you feel the best about bragging to your buds. All great and highly capable.

Not sure what the issue with with Tikka recoil lugs... we have had many and all have been rock solid and, in fact, are better than most styles... and ironically the PH3 now has the same lug where the action has the cutout, and the chassis/stock has the lug. I have both tikkas and seekins and prefer that style recoil lug to the 700 pattern and believe it is superior.

 

[Walker6]

I’d first buy a Tikka T3X lite SS JRTXB37122MT for about $900 (or a blued one for $770-ish).

I’d next back the trigger screw out as far as it would go until it broke at 2 pounds or hair under, and then drop it in the in-stock aftermarket stock of my choosing. Load up some 180 ELDM’s or Bergers over H4831SC and be done with it.

And if all that doesn’t work, buy a barrel vice and action wrench and start screwing on pre-fits and have some real fun.

 

[Xycod]

I’ve had issues with the Sako rifles in larger calibers in anything other than a chassis, by that I mean wood stocks or laminated, had a few lapua’s in the laminated grey stock and 3 h&h rifles go back, they lost accuracy where the notch was putting pressure on the alloy lug, replaced it with steel and tried to bed it but had the same thing happen again after 100 or so rounds. Ended up trading them.

Believe it or not my current fav Sako/tikka is a Sako s20, just wish they had a basic hunting stock without the thumb hole and a metal trigger guard. Otherwise imo the last great Sako was the 75 and the Av’s. Again this is a non issue if bolted down in an all metal chassis, and also this is on the bigger stuff so the lighter recoiling rounds may be fine,

I still don’t like it though and think it’s a cheap way of doing things, a price point, just as they advertised the older m995s. They were much cheaper that the 75’s at that time and had the same set up as a modern trg and the tikka and new Sako designs.

Again this a sample of one guy so this is only one guys opinion. Not gonna bag on anyone’s choice especially when it works. I do have an older tikka 695 thats great, has kind of an odd lug mounted to a flat bottom action. It’s in an 06 and never any issues. As always get what you personally like and want, otherwise you’ll not be happy no matter what usually, ask me how I know lol.

Cheers

 

[Deeker]

Not to hijack the thread but I just built a 18” tikka 7prc as well. If you reload I would be interested in speeds, powder, load data if u have any.

I do not reload yet, that is next on the list. Right now I am shooting accubond 160s. The gun really liked them and they shot into better groups than I can generally hold. The best was the federal 185 eldx. That stuff shot tiny groups and carried a es of 10.6 over 3 boxes of factory ammo. Would be what I hunted with but by the time I figured it out I couldn’t find it anywhere, so I went with second choice. Should prolly look again

 

[Ten_Ring15]

I’ll be honest, I’m surprised to see 0 votes for Bergara and 5 for Weatherby. I appreciate the feedback from everyone!
I really don’t have a bias towards any rifle. Don’t care what it looks like, primary concern is how well it shoots.

 

[hunting1]

Springfield Boundary

 

[B Harrison]

I'm definitely projecting my own biases but if I was going to buy an off-the-shelf 7prc, I'd have to have a Ruger Hawkeye in stainless and walnut.

Ruger Hawkeye Hunter 7MM PRC 3+1 Capacity, 24

Engineered for hunters who demand precision, strength, and long?range capability, the Ruger Hunter Hawkeye is a modern firearm chambered in the advanced 7MM PRC cartridge. This caliber is known for its efficient ballistics, high velocity, and excellent energy retention at extended distances...

www.smga.com

View attachment 1053366

Have you got some of these? Do that shoot well?
I have a Hawkeye African, and love it, but for the function, not the accuracy.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[glock233]

Tikka and upgrade the stock.

 

[dårlig jeger]

Have you got some of these? Do that shoot well?
I have a Hawkeye African, and love it, but for the function, not the accuracy.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I have an m77 mk2 in 7mm mag. It shot phenomenal until the barrel was toast. I re-barrelled it in 7prc and it still shoots fantastic. I love the action, it's got some beef to it. It's perfect for magnums.

 

[rbloom761]

Yep a $600-800 x-bolt or x-bolt 2.
Last few years, we've used 300wsm, 7mm-08 and 6.5 Creedmoor with zero complaints. Son, brother and myself normally kill 30 or more a year.

I have a nice xbolt in 7 PRC with a Viper 4-16x50 on it, so far out to 500 I can't imagine why I'd spend more.

 

[Ten_Ring15]

Since posting I’ve narrowed/changed my options down to Tikka T3x lite or Roughtech, Weatherby 307 range xp or one of the browning x bolts.
Not gonna lie, I was probably overlooking the brownings. Handled one today and it felt nice. It was a ShotShow special. Xbolt 2, black synthetic with stainless threaded barrel. No adjustable cheek. $775. I noticed they don’t advertise guaranteed sub MOA so I called and the rep said in 7prc accuracy would be covered under the 5 year warranty. Good enough for me.
You guys have been helpful so far getting me to this point. Any other words of wisdom helping this indecisive, over researching fellow?

 

[glock233]

Tikka in 6.5 PRC shooting 153 TMK, 147 ELDM, or 143 ELDX. Going bigger adds no meaningful utility unless you’re planning on hunting above 1000 yards.

I say this as a guy with a sweet custom Tikka 7mm PRC gathering dust.

I’d buy a base threaded stainless tikka and upgrade the stock. Roughtec is ok too, but a lot of product on the market whips it.

 

[Ten_Ring15]

Tikka in 6.5 PRC shooting 153 TMK, 147 ELDM, or 143 ELDX. Going bigger adds no meaningful utility unless you’re planning on hunting above 1000 yards.

I say this as a guy with a sweet custom Tikka 7mm PRC gathering dust.

I’d buy a base threaded stainless tikka and upgrade the stock. Roughtec is ok too, but a lot of product on the market whips it.

I have a 6.5 creedmoor that I like for deer. Getting a 6.5 prc feels a little redundant in this case but I’ve definitely given it some thought.

 

[Deeker]

Tikka in 6.5 PRC shooting 153 TMK, 147 ELDM, or 143 ELDX. Going bigger adds no meaningful utility unless you’re planning on hunting above 1000 yards.

I say this as a guy with a sweet custom Tikka 7mm PRC gathering dust.

I’d buy a base threaded stainless tikka and upgrade the stock. Roughtec is ok too, but a lot of product on the market whips it.

I am going to second this. As another guy with a 7 prc custom tikka. Wish I would have done a 6.5 prc or a 6 creed. I already have a 6.5 prc and a 6 Remington. But if you are dead set on a 7 I would really look at browning for a plug and play gun.

 

[Ten_Ring15]

I am going to second this. As another guy with a 7 prc custom tikka. Wish I would have done a 6.5 prc or a 6 creed. I already have a 6.5 prc and a 6 Remington. But if you are dead set on a 7 I would really look at browning for a plug and play gun.

You guys are gonna make me overthink this more haha. Are you saying this mostly due to the added recoil of a 7?
I don’t know enough to have an opinion on this next question but at 500 yards, a 7prc won’t have any meaningful advantage over a 6.5 prc?
I’m pretty dead set on using a bonded bullet regardless of my caliber. Terminal ascent, accubond, bond strike or the new Speer bullet I think it is.

 

[glock233]

You guys are gonna make me overthink this more haha. Are you saying this mostly due to the added recoil of a 7?
I don’t know enough to have an opinion on this next question but at 500 yards, a 7prc won’t have any meaningful advantage over a 6.5 prc?
I’m pretty dead set on using a bonded bullet regardless of my caliber. Terminal ascent, accubond, bond strike or the new Speer bullet I think it is.

I’d rethink it all frankly. If you are hunting animals in North America, there are almost no meaningful advantages to a 7 PRC, including at 500 yards. Vs a 6.5 PRC, 7 will drifts slightly less in the wind but it’s not that meaningful. But it comes with penalties.

More powerful cartridges do not meaningfully make things more dead. A hit with any of these cup and core bullets in the vitals will kill anything in North America quickly in any caliber 22 and up.

What big cartridges actually do is significantly reduce your hit percentage by significantly increasing recoil and noise. These are real accuracy penalties.

The real question you should be asking is: “what platform aids my ability to achieve a vital hit more often at the ranges I actually shoot?” Under 600-700 yards, the answer is one of the Creeds. Between that and 1000, it’s 6.5 PRC. Above 1000, it’s maybe 7 PRC.

So 6.5 PRC is the easy button for guys who are looking for some power and range but are trying to focus on accuracy too.


On bullets: rethink that if the goal is to kill quickly and recover animals. Bonded bullets are simply less effective at killing. They solve very few problems and their popularity is mostly based on imaginings and misunderstandings about how bullets kill. There are extensive threads on the forum about that. And the people using match bullets are correct if the goal is to kill quickly.

 

[Ten_Ring15]

I’d rethink it all frankly. If you are hunting animals in North America, there are almost no meaningful advantages to a 7 PRC, including at 500 yards. Vs a 6.5 PRC, 7 will drifts slightly less in the wind but it’s not that meaningful. But it comes with penalties.

More powerful cartridges do not meaningfully make things more dead. A hit with any of these cup and core bullets in the vitals will kill anything in North America quickly in any caliber 22 and up.

What big cartridges actually do is significantly reduce your hit percentage by significantly increasing recoil and noise. These are real accuracy penalties.

The real question you should be asking is: “what platform aids my ability to achieve a vital hit more often at the ranges I actually shoot?” Under 600-700 yards, the answer is one of the Creeds. Between that and 1000, it’s 6.5 PRC. Above 1000, it’s maybe 7 PRC.

So 6.5 PRC is the easy button for guys who are looking for some power and range but are trying to focus on accuracy too.


On bullets: rethink that if the goal is to kill quickly and recover animals. Bonded bullets are simply less effective at killing. They solve very few problems and their popularity is mostly based on imaginings and misunderstandings about how bullets kill. There are extensive threads on the forum about that. And the people using match bullets are correct if the goal is to kill quickly.

Admittedly, I’ve never killed an elk so my thoughts don’t have much merit. My understanding is a bull elk is a lot tougher than a whitetail, which isn’t breaking news. I have killed a pile of whitetails, including 11 last year. 3 archery, 4 rifle, 4 shotgun. All of the rifle kills were 6.5 creed, hornady eld-M. Almost every deer I’ve take with that combo has been bang flop. Except for the 4 year old buck I took this year. Double lung shot at 90 yards. He went over 200 yards. Good blood trail and snow so didn’t matter. When I examined the wound, the entry side body and lung had basically no trauma. It penciled through until it got to second lung and blew a golf ball sized hole in it and larger exit hole. I’m not complaining but it was memorable if nothing else.
Not looking to argue, but appreciate the feedback.

 

[glock233]

Bonded bullets will do much more of what you saw in your 200 yard runner deer.

Elk are tougher in some senses. But they’re not hard to kill with vital shots. Their vitals are only protected by 4-6” of meat.

Rodeos with tough elk happen when you miss vitals. It will make your 200 yard deer chase look extremely mild. Pick the thing that helps you hit the vitals.

And one option is you don’t need to love away from Creed. You seem to be doing well with it. Keep yourself under 600 yards and you’re gold.

 

[4570neal]

I like my Weatherby Talon 6.5 prc with the peak44 stock is light and fits great.
Just picked up a Springfield 2020 boundary in 7prc and really enjoying it. Can’t for elk season this year. The ole 300 gonna have to wait a year.