Is This The Best Long-range 7mm Ever?

Ever since the Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute (SAAMI) published the specs for Hornady’s new 7mm PRC cartridge, the Internet was buzzing with speculation. Now that the cartridge has officially launched, it’s time to quell the rumors, answer the questions, bust the myths, and provide the facts.

First, the cartridge is a profoundly worthy addition to the PRC family. Let me just state that right up front. I’m a fan. But I didn’t start out that way. When I first heard the 7mm PRC rumors, my jaded thought was, “Just what we need—another 7mm that won’t do anything a 7mm Rem. Mag., 7mm Short-Action Ultra Mag., 28 Nosler or .280 Ackley can’t do.

I was wrong.

Much as it pains me to admit it, the 7mm PRC does just about everything better. I’ve been shooting, handloading for and hunting with it for more than a half a year now, and I’m sold on it.

TECH SPECS

Let’s look at just what the 7mm PRC is and does. Fundamentally, it’s a standard-length cartridge that fits into .30-06-length actions. Cartridge case length is 2.280, which is nearly ¼ inch shorter than a 7mm Rem. Mag. case. Likewise, the base-to-shoulder length is shorter.

However, the 7mm PRC’s case is not belted, so it’s bigger in diameter than the classic “Seven Mag” and holds plenty of gunpowder. The parent case is the .375 Ruger, which is derived from the .404 Jeffries case. As cartridge savants amongst us will know, that gives the cartridge an almost divine ancestry. Cartridge case-head diameter is .532 inch—the same as standard belted cartridges, so common bolt faces are compatible.

Having a shorter cartridge case than a 7mm Rem. Mag. but with the same overall length, the 7mm PRC leaves a lot more “head height” for long, super-sleek high-BC bullets that protrude way out of the case mouth. This makes it ultimately compatible with the best long-range bullets on the market—without the need for custom magazine-lengthening work performed by a gunsmith.

Another critical piece to the 7mm PRC puzzle is fast-twist rifling. It’s spec’d with a rate of 1 turn every 8 inches, which enables it to stabilize super-long, aerodynamic bullets in every atmospheric condition on the planet. All other 7mm cartridges are spec’d with slower twist rates, generally 1:9 or slower. Unless you’ve got a custom fast-twist barrel on your favorite shootin’ iron, or purchase from a forward-looking manufacturer that rifles its barrels faster than SAAMI spec, you can’t utilize those long-distance super bullets.

PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS

How about velocity? The 7mm PRC is plenty fast enough. It’s slower than the 28 Nosler, but faster than the rest. And unlike the 28 Nosler—which is a fire-breathing dragon of a cartridge that’s awesome for long-range hunting, but can be finicky about accuracy—the 7mm PRC is beautifully balanced. The 7mm PRC has far better barrel life, is easier to handload for accuracy and is considerably more efficient.

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Hornady blessed the 7mm PRC with the same chamber-design parameters and match-grade tolerances possessed by the ultra-accurate 6.5 Creedmoor, 6.5 PRC and .300 PRC. Likewise, factory-loaded ammunition is created to exacting, match-grade specifications. As a result, rifles chambered in 7mm PRC are almost sure to shoot well. I’ve worked extensively with two—a premium, custom-level Gunwerks Nexus and a Remington Model 700 right off the production line. Both shot splendidly.

Recoil is zesty in light rifles without muzzle brakes, but not intolerable. With a muzzle brake or—better yet—suppressor mounted, it’s mild. My 10-year-old daughter used it on her bear and didn’t even mention recoil.

FACTORY LOADS

Initially, Hornady offered three distinctly different factory loads. Most deer hunters will gravitate to the 175-grain ELD-X bullet loaded in Hornady’s Precision Hunter line. It’s got a G1 BC of 0.689 and is pushed to about 2,975 fps in 24-inch barrels, making it a top-notch long-range load for deer- to elk-size game. Remington is also offering a 7 PRC load under the Long Range Premier line topped with Speer Impact bullets.

Being a fan of tough, controlled-expansion bullets for hunting, I gravitate to the brand-new, designed-for-the-cartridge 160-grain monometal CX 7mm bullet in Hornady’s Outfitter ammo line. It’s optimized for aerodynamics—sporting a G1 BC of 0.596, which is darned impressive for a monometal—and is rated to exit the muzzle at 3,050 fps or more. Assembled in nickel-plated cases that get sealant around the primer and case mouth, Outfitter cartridges are outstanding for use in the harshest climates and on anything bigger than deer.

For extreme-range use, Hornady’s 180-grain ELD Match bullet is properly incredible. Endowed with impressive accuracy and an eye-bulging G1 BC of 0.796, this bullet has legs. It’s the long-range champion of factory-loaded 7mm ammunition and is rated to produce 2,950 fps of muzzle velocity. Using it, I recently put five consecutive shots onto a 24x48-inch steel plate at 1,800 yards. That’s more than a mile! I was gobsmacked.

My introduction to the 7mm PRC came in the form of a special barrel made for Gunwerks’ switchable Nexus rifle. It’s just 20 inches long and was ginned up by Gunwerks’ smithy using a carbon-fiber-wrapped Proof Research blank with a 1:8 twist.

At that point in time, no factory ammo was available, but Hornady’s Seth Swerczek sent me cases, dies and component bullets. Using early data from Hornady’s lab, I assembled loads with 175-grain ELD-X bullets, which shot well, and with 180-grain ELD Match bullets, which shot so well I hardly dare admit it. Let’s just say groups averaged below half MOA.

With spring black bear season right around the corner, I worked up a handload using standard 150-grain 7mm CX monometal bullets, which I had on hand. Accuracy hovered around three-quarter MOA, and velocity was 3,005 fps from the 20-inch barrel. I screwed my suppressor on, and we went bear hunting.

FIRST KILL WITH THE 7MM PRC

Late May, in the middle of nowhere, Idaho, my daughter Audrey (age 13) lay prone, crosshairs glued to a mature, color-phase boar wrestling with a bait barrel 301 yards away across a canyon. When it finally paused, broadside, she sent a bullet through the sweet spot, folding the bear emphatically. She ran the bolt like an old pro and shot the bear again as it rolled down the slope, shooting the last wiggle out just like I’d taught her. Later, Swerczek told me hers was the first bear ever taken with the 7mm PRC.

A few nights later, her little sister Sophia (age 10) repeated her performance on the same bait. With kids tagged out, my wife sat over a different bait and hammered an ancient sow so big we all thought it was a good boar, killing it cleanly from 94 yards.

Being compulsively curious about terminal performance, I did informal forensics on each bear. Performance was stellar. Internal damage was significant, and no matter the angle, the CX bullets exited. Keep in mind that’s with the standard, relatively lightweight 150-grain CX. Performance with the new 160-grain version (which was not yet available at the time) should be even better.

Since then, I’ve used the 7mm PRC in Africa, consistently hit targets to 1,800 yards with it and mentally explored every potential use I can think of for the new cartridge. My conclusion is this: Although it will never completely replace the grand old 7mm Rem. Mag. and may never overshadow the super-popular 28 Nosler, the 7mm PRC is in my opinion (and on paper) the best 7mm magnum hunting cartridge ever designed. It’s efficient. It’s ultimately compatible with the best extreme-range projectiles on the market, and as a result has unprecedented long-range reach. It’s inherently accurate—obscenely so. It pounds big-bodied game with authority. It’s easy to handload.

Naysayers will grumble that they can achieve the same performance with their custom 7mm Rem. Mag. with a lengthened Wyatt’s magazine box, fast-twist custom barrel, match-tolerance chamber and tuned handloads. But that’s just the point—the 7mm PRC does all that with production guns right off the shelf, loaded with factory ammunition. It’s the ultimate turn-key solution for performance-minded open-country hunters.