THE RISE OF THE PRC CARTRIDGES

New precision rifle cartridges always make shooters scratch their heads, and the rise of the Hornady PRC rifle cartridges is no different. Is it worth buying a new rifle? What benefit does this new caliber bring to the table? Can I find ammo for the new cartridge? Is there going to be high-quality ammo? Will this caliber stick around? How will the PRC cartridge benefit competitive shooters, target shooters and hunters? These are all valid questions you should ask yourself before pulling the trigger on a new rifle.

TAKING THE HUNTING AND SHOOTING INDUSTRY BY STORM.

In recent years, we have witnessed the uproar in the PRC cartridges from Hornady. The6.5 PRC and 300 PRC have proven outstanding cartridges forhunting andlong-range shooting. The PRC cartridge offers excellent accuracy and boasts impressive power, making it well-suited for taking down a wide range of big-game animals. Furthermore, long-rangeshooting has been revolutionized with the introduction of precision rifle cartridges. With the recent release of the 7mm PRC, it is shaping to be another market competitor. But what sets these apart from calibers that have been around for years?

MAXIMIZING CASE CAPACITY IN PRECISION RIFLE CARTRIDGES

Each PRC caliber brings similar attributes to cartridges that have been around for years. 6.5 PRC vs 6.5 Saum, 300 PRC vs 300 Win Mag, and 7mm PRC vs 7mm Rem mag. Although the case designs are similar, Hornady has tailored the cartridges to favor the heavy-for-caliber bullets that have recently been introduced.

With the development of these new bullets, Hornady has been forced to design new cartridges that maximize case capacity without being too long to fit inmagazines.

"COULDN'T THEY MAKE 300 WIN MAG AMMO WITH BIGGER BULLETS?"

This was a question onRokslidethe other day, and it was a good one! Yes, making a 225-grain 300 WM ammunition SKU is possible, but the SAMMI spec cartridge's overall length is 3.403" for 300 win mags. To make the overall length that short, the 215+ grain bullets would protrude deeply into the case affecting the case capacity. 300 PRC, on the other hand, has a Sammi spec Cartridge overall length of 3.575. By setting the length that long, they know that Tikkas will not be capable of being chambered in 300 PRC, but they can focus on the utmost performance out of Remington and Savage rifles.

THE NEW 7MM PRC.

In the world of precision shooting, the7mm PRC is another caliber that showcases Hornady's innovation. They've strategically adjusted the cartridge length to optimize performance across various actions. Instead of sticking to longer action lengths, their focus shifted towards shorter actions, includingTikkas, Thompson Center, and even medium Remington footprint actions (as discussed in the medium action articlehere).

For the 7mm PRC, they've adhered to the Sammi spec length of 3.090". This smart move involves shortening the case while still providing a generous .234" freebore. What's the result? Factory ammo producers can seat those high BC bullets further out, effectively maximizing the cartridge's case capacity. And when you optimize case capacity like this, you're in for higher velocities compared to other cartridges of similar length. It's all about pushing the limits with high BC bullets!

PRECISION RIFLE CARTRIDGE MARKET AND LONGEVITY.

As we can see from the numbers, thePRC lineup brings a new modern cartridge design to the table that combines cartridge and bullet lengths to fit the action lengths. Some shooters may not believe that the PRC lineup will stick around, but with the advancements listed above, the PRC cartridges will be viable options for years to come!

Hopefully, in the coming years, we will see more factory ammunition on the shelves so all customers can find value in the PRC lineup.