View Full Version : PRC here to stay, you got one?
I am getting the feeling that the somewhat new PRC is here to stay. I watched a Bergara video and they are making 6.5PRC and 300PRC as stock rifles.
Do you own one ? Are you considering one in the future?
Edit, Jake does and he is pushing 225 ELD's in the 3K fps, that is a solid bump in performance from WM.
What is barrel life on these bad boys??
PB
Jwknutson17
06-20-19, 18:42
300 PRC has been around for probably 10 years now. Dave Tooley / Accuracy International and a select few others have been developing and shooting it for some time. Just until recently has it gained traction with Hornady on board. With select powders and heavier bullets we see this round being 85+ percent of what the Norma can deliver without an XL action is huge . Couple that with being able to swap a barrel off a 300wm and keep the same bolt/mags is a big plus. Pending the COAL limitations of what factory rifles can support and certain chassis' that allow for CIP mags is a factor.
Right now the thing that holds folks back is the quality of brass. Hornady being the only option and a select few other slated for 2020, seems why some have not jumped ship to the 300prc. At least shooters I talk with.
For the 6.5 there are already others such as ADG with Brass and this round has been gaining steam. The fast 6.5s seem to do well with fast, high BC, long pills. Seems the market and trend is going this way. Longer COAL and more freebore in barrels to take these pills.. Powders such as RL26 has really stepped up the performance with both the 300 and 6.5 PRC. Gaining 100 fps over what H1000 can do in some cases, it really makes these a force to be reckoned with. But there is a reason we see the PRCs and SAUMs and all these custom actions coming with Mag Bolt faces. Couple that with most manufacturers picking these calibers up in factory offerings, I don't see them going away soon. Super long heavier pills, and high BCs aren't meant for rifles that can't move them. I have a few buddies that jumped the 6.5cm ship to the 6.5 PRC and 6.5 gap 4s (saum) and they wondered why they didn't sooner.
If your punching paper at 600, you can save the time and effort and not updrade. If your pushing the limits and want all the performance you can get with the new latest and greatest pills, then these are for you. I don't see a reason to not make the switch. On the 6.5 PRC for now and once better brass comes out for the 300 PRC many more are going to follow. I'm disappointed in my Hornady brass for the 300 PRC, but maybe it works better for others. I've had conversations with ADG on the 300 PRC brass going back almost a year now. They have the demand but can not supply for it yet in 2019.
57745
57746
I did not even consider in years down the road when I cook off a 300WM barrel, I can move to PRC. The components will be up to snuff etc when I make my move, if I do. Seems very promising.
PB
Jwknutson17
06-20-19, 19:00
Yep, that's a huge benifit in my eyes. You would need to run 3.775 or 3.850 mags to run factory Hornady ammo though. The 3.715 mags will not take the factory 212s or 225s. I run my 215 Berger's at 3.705 COAL at 20 thou off the land. Thats the longest COAL round I use. The 225s have a shorter COAL. Would have to look up the number in my notes.
I'm excited to use the new 230 A-Tips and see what those can do. With RL 26 I'm hoping for 3k+. That's one bad machine there if I can get it.
Yep, that's a huge benifit in my eyes. You would need to run 3.775 or 3.850 mags to run factory Hornady ammo though. The 3.715 mags will not take the factory 212s or 225s. I run my 215 Berger's at 3.705 COAL at 20 thou off the land. Thats the longest COAL round I use. The 225s have a shorter COAL. Would have to look up the number in my notes.
I'm excited to use the new 230 A-Tips and see what those can do. With RL 26 I'm hoping for 3k+. That's one bad machine there if I can get it.
Copy that, 100% agree
I'm excited to use the new 230 A-Tips and see what those can do.
What twist rate are you running?
Jwknutson17
06-22-19, 23:08
What twist rate are you running?
9.4 twist on the Cadex and a 10 on the hunting rifle.
Plug in your info / specs here to play around with it.
https://bergerbullets.com/twist-rate-calculator/
Jwknutson17
06-30-19, 20:06
Took the 300 PRC out to 1.5 miles yesterday. While that was just mainly for fun, it did really well going well into transonic. Hits on target looked good. No keyhole type marks of any kind on the plate. 36"x36". Shooting 215 Berger's right at 3k fps about.
Quick two shots at 100 to confirm zero and nothing new here.
Skipped the 1k plate and went right to 1500. Hits at 1500 were pretty consistent. Wind was a factor all day. Changing wind by the minute at 45 degree head wind to direct head wind. The lift from the strong headwind changed elevation by a whole mil at times. At a mile we saw some good hits and I would just cap the 215 Berger at a mile for usefulness. Even through we got good hits at 2k and 2560.
Switched to some factory 225 Hornady to see how it would do and it was fairly consistent. But not like the hand loads. Because these were 180 fps slower then the 215s the dope for the 1500 was the same as the 215s at a mile. Right around 15.5 mils give or take. We were shooting at 3500 elevation yesterday.
Buddy had his 375 CT with 400gr cutting edge bullets right above 2900 fps and he made short work of the mile, 2k and 1.5 mile plates. He went back to 2 miles and made a hit on his 4th round. Dialing 60.9 mils. Well dialing and using a Charlie Tarac. Crazy!
All I can say is wind is a bit*h at distance. I was dialing wind at 5.6 mils at 1.5 miles. Then 30 seconds later I would be at 3.2. that's a big difference. The direct head wind would come on and wind was .2. Just insane.
The 300 PRC is an easy 1 mile round. Easy. At 2000 yards pending your bullet and conditions it's at it's useful limit 1.5 miles is just not the correct tool for the job. Proved that we can get good consistent results. But it's really not what it's meant for. I had to dial 19.7 mils and hold 16 more at 1.5 miles. I had to dial the ZP5 mag back to 8-9x magnification to see down to 20 mils on the reticle and then held the 16. As you can see that just that half mile more, more then doubled the dope. Just using a 20 moa base. No can't in the spuhr. I could have used a 20moa spuhr also and that would give me another 6 mils in the scope and would have to only hold 10.
Was a fun day. 13 straight hours out there. Shot 120 rounds during the day. Heat was about 100 degrees give or take.
Eurodriver
06-30-19, 20:15
That’s awesome! If my math is right that’s a 228” (19 feet!) shift in wind.
Ned Christiansen
06-30-19, 20:20
I got 44' (5.6 mils at 1.5 miles)...
Jwknutson17
06-30-19, 20:48
I pretty much had to shoot a sighter every time for wind. I would try to judge the wind but there is just so much that happens in that time between you and the target. At 1500 it was much much easier. But still, if your .2 or .3 mils off, you miss the plate even.
Here is the rifle right now. Put the TB ultra 7 on it instead. And just got the new TBAC bipod (finally). The other pic is me standing at 1.5 miles looking back at the truck. Its the tiny black dot at the arrow. The larger black thing to the left of the arrow is a grain silo.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48165529887_e197c4465e_k.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2godVYt)
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48165456806_108c1f333d_k.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2godyfs)
Great report JW.
We’re you shooting in Eastern Co.?
Jwknutson17
06-30-19, 21:03
Thanks. It was in Kansas. Right at the CO,KS boarder. About 4 hours from my house. Left at 4 am. Arrived at 8. Out at range til 9pm about. Lets just say I got a little too much sun!
Another mention... we were using Magnetospeed LED target indicators. So when you hit the plate it flashes a strip of bright Red LEDs you can see it through the scopes and spotters. (Using Swaro and Hensoldt)
Ned Christiansen
07-01-19, 10:38
Sighter for each shot, I would think so! The God of Wind hisself could not call it at that distance if there was a flag every 100yds.
Very interesting stuff, thanks for sharing.
Jwknutson17
07-01-19, 15:28
Sighter for each shot, I would think so! The God of Wind hisself could not call it at that distance if there was a flag every 100yds.
Very interesting stuff, thanks for sharing.
We would shoot about 5-7 rounds at a time in this PRC before we would let it cool down. First round typically I would hold much less wind then I was at the time before. We had a general idea at 1500 that it was around 1 mil, so we started there. Sometimes it hit and sometimes not even close. So pretty much without wind flags as you just mentioned it's a crap shoot. The ground wind could be 10mph and 30 where the bullets flying. Then it would be 30-45 minutes before we would shoot again sometimes and conditions changed big time. Part of the fun and I can say it's not easy. That's for sure.
Eurodriver
07-01-19, 15:57
That looks so much fun.
I got 44' (5.6 mils at 1.5 miles)...
5.6-3.2 = 2.4 mils difference.
Jwknutson17
07-01-19, 17:12
What twist rate are you running?
Here is the 10 twist gun..
57870
I know absolutely nothing about the s stuff. What does 6.5prc do that 6.5cm doesn’t?
I pretty much had to shoot a sighter every time for wind. I would try to judge the wind but there is just so much that happens in that time between you and the target. At 1500 it was much much easier. But still, if your .2 or .3 mils off, you miss the plate even.
Here is the rifle right now. Put the TB ultra 7 on it instead. And just got the new TBAC bipod (finally). The other pic is me standing at 1.5 miles looking back at the truck. Its the tiny black dot at the arrow. The larger black thing to the left of the arrow is a grain silo.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48165529887_e197c4465e_k.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2godVYt)
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48165456806_108c1f333d_k.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2godyfs)
That is a wicked sweet rifle. TB ultra doesn’t exactly suck either. Were you shooting slightly downhill, to get a good view. Or were you shooting off that platform ?
PB
Jwknutson17
07-08-19, 22:07
That is a wicked sweet rifle. TB ultra doesn’t exactly suck either. We’re you shooting slightly downhill, to get a good view. Or were you shooting off that platform ?
PB
Thanks PB. It was flat.. maybe slightly down to 1k. Then went uphill ever so slightly to the 1500, 1760, 2k and the 2560. Picture is a little deceiving going back to the truck. Was shooting off a bench with stools. I'll be putting my 338 Ultra on this rifle and then using the TBu7 on the other 300prc.
well done Jake
2 PRC's that's a commitment
PB
Jwknutson17
07-23-19, 22:05
Just received some of the 153 A-Tips and the 156 EOL Berger's for the 6.5 PRC build. Travis at TScustoms is spinning me up a couple barrels for the Cadex Sheepdog action for a somewhat shorter barrel suppressed high country mule deer gun. In a Manners EH1A. Have 22 and 24 inch proof CF Sendero barrels and plan on using a 5 inch suppressor on it. Hoping to see 2900 out of the heavy pills with the 22 inch barrel with RL26. Using ADG brass with Cci200 primers.
Compliments of MarkM and PB, I have some 135 A-Tips that I'll see how those do also.
Jwknutson17
07-23-19, 22:23
Plans changed on the Cadex 300prc a little. Putting a 29 inch bartlien Heavy Varmnit barrel on it with the 338 can. I am going for a little over 3k without getting into pressure with the new 230 A-Tips. Ended up snagging the ZCO 5-27 on this gun now with the Era-tac 20moa mount for a total of 40moa base/mount. This will get me 30ish mils roughly of come up in the scope with easily able to zero at 100. Scope has 35 mils so I'm about 5 ish mils off the bottom of erector at 100. Good by me. Trying to get a little more wind bucking ability at distance over the 215s and think this will do the trick. I'll update here after the next outing at the long distances. More consistent hits at 2k+ with less wind is the goal here and should be plenty capable.
Consistent hits at 2K+, in the "Wind Zone", will be impressive to say the least.
Looking forward to your results JW.
Plans changed on the Cadex 300prc a little. Putting a 29 inch bartlien Heavy Varmnit barrel on it with the 338 can. I am going for a little over 3k without getting into pressure with the new 230 A-Tips. Ended up snagging the ZCO 5-27 on this gun now with the Era-tac 20moa mount for a total of 40moa base/mount. This will get me 30ish mils roughly of come up in the scope with easily able to zero at 100. Scope has 35 mils so I'm about 5 ish mils off the bottom of erector at 100. Good by me. Trying to get a little more wind bucking ability at distance over the 215s and think this will do the trick. I'll update here after the next outing at the long distances. More consistent hits at 2k+ with less wind is the goal here and should be plenty capable.
230’s at over 3k FPS is wicked. I’m with Gaijin, consistency at 2k is a worthwhile endeavor.
PB
Jwknutson17
12-22-19, 11:50
Thought I would circle back here on the 6.5 PRC...
After a 100 rounds through the 22" 6.5 PRC I did another load workup with RL26 and the 156g Bergers. ADG brass. CCI200 primers. Seated at the lands at 2.970. Freebore is .125 on this TS Customs spun up barrel. Barrel sped up 30 fps since new.
22" TUBE
RL26..FPS
53.7.. 2813
54.0.. 2821
54.3.. 2837
54.6.. 2869
54.7.. 2889 shot this after to see where this node began
54.9.. 2895
55.2.. 2898
55.3.. 2891 shot this after to see if I was still in this node.
55.5.. 2907
55.8.. 2920
My original load workup when the barrel was new was a little different and when the barrel sped up, got me out of it. Accuracy was in the .5moa range 5 round groups. 3 round groups were in the .18-.22 moa range. ES is 8 and SDs of 3.0. Never over 5 for SDs. May use this same load still if the 54.9-55.2 range doesn't show good results. If its decent I'll work back from the lands in ten thou increments and see if it tightens up.
More to follow.
60073
Very nice velocities. Well done, that 6.5PRC should be a great mountain gun.
PB
hotrodder636
12-26-19, 19:48
Awesome write up on these, thanks!
Jwknutson17
12-26-19, 23:05
Very nice velocities. Well done, that 6.5PRC should be a great mountain gun.
PB
That's the plan. Built to be my high county mule deer rig. Wife is using it on her elk tag this year also. Goes through the 31st of January so well see how it does on a cow elk. 2900 with the 156s was my goal out of the 22" tube. So I am pleased. Shouldn't let me down when I burn my 12 mule deer points on a timberline buck!
In a round about journey I bought a Seekins Havak PH2 in 6.5PRC. I started with a Bergara Highlander and had issues right off the bat. Would only hold 2 rounds in the magazine and could barely do that! When chambering a round the bolt would ride over the cartridge. Sent it back to Bergara and the said they fixed the bolt issue but didn't really. Depending upon how you load the cartridge in the internal magazine the bolt would still ride over the round when trying to chamber a round. Bergara also said the mag only holds 2 round even though they advertise 3. Ended up selling it at a loss and then getting the Seekins. Absolutely love it! I'm hunting with Copper Creek 140gr Berger Elite Hunter ammo. Easily shooting .5" 5 shot groups at 100 yards. So far I've only had the opportunity to shoot out to 750 with this. I REALLY wish I had someplace to go out to 1000 and beyond. 750 is getting pretty boring and I'm nowhere near the shooter y'all are.
That's the plan. Built to be my high county mule deer rig. Wife is using it on her elk tag this year also. Goes through the 31st of January so well see how it does on a cow elk. 2900 with the 156s was my goal out of the 22" tube. So I am pleased. Shouldn't let me down when I burn my 12 mule deer points on a timberline buck!
Would the 6.5PRC do well in a 20” tube? How much velocity loss would you expect vs your 22”?
And same question for your 300PRC.
I seem to remember Todd Hodnett saying 20” was a great length for a general purpose rifle even in 300WM. My experience is that i do like 20” as a good compromise between velo and handiness, but just curious if y’all would see it the same way in these PRC cartridges? Or do these really need the extra 2-6” of bbl length?
Jwknutson17
12-28-19, 11:00
I was not burning all the powder in my 300 prc with H1k and over 80grs in a 26 inch tube. Was seeing it in my can big time. I think with the powders like RL26 we can get away with shorter tubes and retain velocity and a good burn rate. I would venture to say that in a 20" 6.5 PRC we would lose 50 fps. Just a guess. So in my case, I would be at 2850 ish with 156gr bergers. That still does better then other cartridges with 26" tubes. I was debating 22-24 and I'm glad I went with 22. I would have a good smith spin one up with the freebore you are after if shooting a specific pill. The .125 freebore is good for the 156gr pills. The GAP spec at .130 is a good compromise. I wouldn't use the .188 unless your only shooting the 147 ELDs..
I would have a good smith spin one up with the freebore you are after if shooting a specific pill. The .125 freebore is good for the 156gr pills. The GAP spec at .130 is a good compromise. I wouldn't use the .188 unless your only shooting the 147 ELDs..
By freebore, do you mean the jump/leade to the lands?
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