33 PRC? when will it be announced? It only seems logical with the success of the PRC family that the 33 PRC will come out soon. What are your predictions? Maybe just a necked up 300 PRC is fine with me. Any thoughts are appreciated
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Initially I thought they'd go 22 PRC. I would say they did but just named it 22 ARC. If they go for the other end, a 33 or 37 PRC would probably be a new case (rather than necked up) competitor to the 33XC or 37XC (.585 bolt face size), with factory ammo probably the 300gr .338 ATIP or the 390gr .375 ATIP. It'd be kinda odd though to offer factory ammo on this end of the spectrum mainly because how many would actually buy factory ammo shooting these calibers? Not many I'd say.
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Just as the 300 prc is- essentially- a product improved 300 win mag, a 338 prc would/could be a product improved 338 win mag.
What the 338 Norma does terribly, is be a 338 win mag. A 338 prc could be everything the 338 win mag is, without the “dreaded” belt.
I mean, there’s shooters with rifles in 338 Federal for crying out loud. Not every rifle needs to be the most obnoxious fire breathing dragon on the line…
Aside from a belt the .338 Winchester Magnum does a pretty good job of being itself. I’m a bit skeptical that there’s a marketable niche to be filled by a PRC version of it as a hunting round.
I’m sure there was someone that said the same thing about the 300 win mag and the 7mm rem mag. Yet, here we are, at the end of 2023 with both 300 prc and 7mm prc.
The 7 and 300 prc have basically just updated the 7mm rem and 300wm to modern case designs without a belt and such. And people are buying them left and right.
I'm not sure if they will attempt the same with the 338wm.......but I am fairly certain that if they do, then it will sell. As Hornady has been pretty successful making the correct decisions. 6.5prc, 7prc, 300prc, 6arc, 22arc.....etc. Not too many commercial flops from them.
If they do something, I hope this is the route they take. However, the PRC stuff really seems to be aimed at hunters so they would probably stick with the same case as the 300
There are guys who have wild-catted the .375 Ruger case to the .338 already so there are chamber reamers out there that would probably be essentially what .33 PRC would look like.
I’m just going to make wild guess that .338 caliber rifle and ammo sales are a much smaller portion of the market for hunters than 7mm, and .308 diameter rounds. Then again Ruger and Hornady developed the .375 Ruger and it’s the parent case for all the PRC family so a .338 might be a thing. I wonder if the .338 RCM might be a good candidate for long loaded .338 pills in a standard length action?
I was going to reply to this one and then saw your later post. I think you are right. A lot of these are just improvements on an existing caliber.
For example, it has been stated by more than one person, and rightly so, that if you already have a 7 mm Rem Mag and can make the recipes you want for that, you don't need a 7 PRC. In addition, it was suggested that if you want a custom job with all kinds of flexibility, build on a 7 RM. If you want a factory rifle shooting factory ammo really well, get a 7 PRC.
I have not had a magnum or long action or a 7 before. I do not regret getting a 7 PRC. Plenty of people would say why bother. You have .300 PRC for long distance. 6.5 CM for nice accuracy and shootability. Even 6.5 PRC as a slight improvement over the 6.5 CM.
I have seen a discussion of the efficacy of .338 Federal. Good for some hunting with the shootability of a .308. But one could do the same with a 7 mm - 08. I heard someone once call that "308 lite" and it stuck in my head.
But I get the question, too. Seeing as how, especially Hornady, it is thing to bring out improvement calibers, what would stop them from an ARC or PRC version of the .338?
I have heard it said that the .338 NM performs better than most cartridges. But I remind myself that my book on long range was written by a guy who carried a .300 WM in service. One big caveat. Enemy interdiction is different than a gong at 1,000 yards. That being said, having rifle be at least certifiably 1 MOA was and is a plus. But I digress.
We could debate the viability of all these. And we could be fudds and say, well, why not just keep making recipes for .243 on the light end, .30-06 on the middle, and .300 WM on the heavy side?
Because we like to tinker. Otherwise, who would have ever heard of the Valkyrie?
I mean .338 kind of already exists in an ARC like package.
Behold the .338 Ruger Compact Magnum:
en.m.wikipedia.org
Stick that in a standard length action with long loaded COAL high BC bullets, and you’re pretty much there. Downside is that the high BC .338 pills are getting pretty damn long and I’ll bet a loaded round with a 250gr to 300gr projectile will take up all the magazine length you’ve got.
Keep in mind a .338 Norma Magnum is a 2.48” long case, but due to high BC bullets being long gives a 3.68” COAL. For reference the .300 PRC is a 2.58” long case, and 3.7” loaded COAL.
So what is a hypothetical .33 PRC buying again aside from a .532” case head vs the .585” of the Norma? Loaded they’re both the same length.
Behold the .338 Ruger Compact Magnum:
.338 Ruger Compact Magnum - Wikipedia
Stick that in a standard length action with long loaded COAL high BC bullets, and you’re pretty much there. Downside is that the high BC .338 pills are getting pretty damn long and I’ll bet a loaded round with a 250gr to 300gr projectile will take up all the magazine length you’ve got.
Keep in mind a .338 Norma Magnum is a 2.48” long case, but due to high BC bullets being long gives a 3.68” COAL. For reference the .300 PRC is a 2.58” long case, and 3.7” loaded COAL.
So what is a hypothetical .33 PRC buying again aside from a .532” case head vs the .585” of the Norma? Loaded they’re both the same length.
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If the Hornady 338 PRC was loaded to say 3.715” or so with the 250 Berger or 270 grain eldx,I mean .338 kind of already exists in an ARC like package.
Behold the .338 Ruger Compact Magnum:
.338 Ruger Compact Magnum - Wikipedia
Stick that in a standard length action with long loaded COAL high BC bullets, and you’re pretty much there. Downside is that the high BC .338 pills are getting pretty damn long and I’ll bet a loaded round with a 250gr to 300gr projectile will take up all the magazine length you’ve got.
Keep in mind a .338 Norma Magnum is a 2.48” long case, but due to high BC bullets being long gives a 3.68” COAL. For reference the .300 PRC is a 2.58” long case, and 3.7” loaded COAL.
So what is a hypothetical .33 PRC buying again aside from a .532” case head vs the .585” of the Norma? Loaded they’re both the same length.
I’d say it would be more than just an updated .338 Win Mag.
Looking at the cost vs. performance, it would be roughly 85-90% of a 338 Lapua at 50-60% of the cost.
I can’t help but believe it would sell.
Why would you buy such a thing over the .338 Lapua or .338 Norma though? Loaded length will be the same, so you still need a big old action. Ammo for any of them will be dirty ass $$$. Recoil will be heavy for any of them. The .33 PRC will just be less powerful.
I see the 300 PRC is 3.700”.
Holding that it would be an improved 338 Win Mag with a lot better ballistics.
I don’t want to deal with the .585” bolt face but I do have a AG new stock, a Wyatt’s box, & a Remington 700 patterned action ready for this very chambering.
I’ve got new ADG brass on hand & would load my own.
There's always going to be wild cat cartridges that already do things. The difference is getting saami and factory ammo. And that is a huge difference.
Ammo sales are smaller, but not small enough that Hornady doesn't turn out a ton of ELD and Precision Hunter 338 Lapua ammo. Hell, look how many Savage 338 Lapua are out there. Those rifles sell like candy.
I can see the attraction for someone with an existing .532/.535 bolt face action.
For me personally if I wanted a .338 low drag freedom seed dispenser I’m accepting a .585 bolt face and launching the freedom seeds with more oomph.
According to their podcasts, The Hornady bunch did the 375 Ruger based 338 along with the 300 years before they rolled out the 300 variant.
I hear you on the .585 bolt face but I don’t want it. I like the 375 Ruger case & want a 338 variant.
I understand the increases when going to the .585” BF, but it just seems like a lot more squeeze for not as much return.
On Paper anyway.
Exactly.
I believe it would be akin to a modern .340 Weatherby.
Hornady’s reloading manual calls for the Weatherby pushing the 250s to around 2900fps.
I surmise the 265-270s would be around 2800-2825.
~85 grains of powder. Seems like a logical offering to me.
Would a .33 PRC hit ~85 grains of powder though?
Just guessing by the case length of .338 Norma being shorter than a .300 PRC to accommodate heavy match bullets and still fit in a magazine, one could predict a basically identical length case for a .33 PRC, with a shoulder pushed back to about the same spot. So the hypothetical .33 PRC would probably have less powder capacity than the .300 PRC.
Maybe that is why we haven’t seen one, it doesn’t get to where Hornady would want it for velocity with match bullets?
Just guessing by the case length of .338 Norma being shorter than a .300 PRC to accommodate heavy match bullets and still fit in a magazine, one could predict a basically identical length case for a .33 PRC, with a shoulder pushed back to about the same spot. So the hypothetical .33 PRC would probably have less powder capacity than the .300 PRC.
Maybe that is why we haven’t seen one, it doesn’t get to where Hornady would want it for velocity with match bullets?
This is hypothetical since I have not seen a reamer print that Hornady used for their 338 however,
This is in the realm of what others have done with the Campfire & 375/338 previously.
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I see it as being to the 338 class what the 7PRC is to the 7mm class.
A better .338 that functions well in a standard Magnum action.
It doesn’t do Lapua or Norma Magnum, but it also doesn’t require a special action or extra large bolt face.
A modern 338 Win Mag with higher BC bullets.
With the Hornady backing providing loaded ammunition & SAAMI acceptance, it would do to the .338 what the PRC has done for the 7mm & .30 cal.
I can’t help but see it benefit the industry as a whole.
Again, it is the 338 edge, which competes VERY well with the 338 Lapua with a standard magnum bolt face
I’ve never handled an Edge, but I understand a 4” Wyatt’s box is needed. Doesn’t this make it more of a Custom than something that would stay at or under 3.800”?
Thanks, that makes a lot of sense to me. Just as the 7 PRC does marginally better for its class with heavy for caliber bullets, this could do the same. And for someone who does not already have a .338 LM, this might be the one to try.
I wonder how open to experimentation it would be. Some have said that with 7 RM, you get quite a bit of room. But Hornady also provides data and dies for the 7 PRC and I have read of some who want to push slugs heavier than 180 gr.
Shooter preference, it would seem.
This is the test load from Defensive Edge:
Load Data: Note these are max loads in our rifles, start 10% lower and work up watching for pressure signs. Remember stupid hurts!
300 SMK
OAL 3.795″
CCI 250
H1000 – 90.0 gr
Velocity – 30 Hart Barrel 2810 fps
Brass – Remington
ETA
Seekins has a magazine the allows 3.9", you must use their bottom metal, which probably isn't a bad thing.
Havak long action carbon fiber 3 round mag
<p>THE WAIT IS OVER!! Seekins Precision now offers our proprietary hand-laid carbon fiber magazines for individual purchase. Proprietary design maximizes internal length, allowing for extended cartridge overall length of 3.9” for all of our long-act
seekinsprecision.com Last edited:
That is nice: I was unaware of that length being typical as I’ve ready repeatedly that ~4.00” was required.This is the test load from Defensive Edge:
Load Data: Note these are max loads in our rifles, start 10% lower and work up watching for pressure signs. Remember stupid hurts!
300 SMK
OAL 3.795″
CCI 250
H1000 – 90.0 gr
Velocity – 30 Hart Barrel 2810 fps
Brass – Remington
ETA
Seekins has a magazine the allows 3.9", you must use their bottom metal, which probably isn't a bad thing.
Havak long action carbon fiber 3 round mag
<p>THE WAIT IS OVER!! Seekins Precision now offers our proprietary hand-laid carbon fiber magazines for individual purchase. Proprietary design maximizes internal length, allowing for extended cartridge overall length of 3.9” for all of our long-act
I just don’t see Hornady supporting the Edge: certainly not getting it SAAMI approved.
I do see them supporting a 338 PRC.
I think it will lend to more .338 bullet & barrel options.
H1000 is what I’m hoping to use.
The 300RUM being the parent for the Edge it does have about 12% more case volume than the 375 Ruger.
With the 375 Ruger being .300” shorter, would the extra room not taken up by the projectile close that gap some?
