A buddy of mine wants a nice hunting rifle, for deer, elk & black bear "out west." He's got the cash for a nice rifle, and has been asking me about the .280 AI. I have no experience with that cartridge, but have heard good things about it. Perhaps you could educate me a bit?

He's not (yet) a handloader. Is Nosler the only source of loaded ammo for the .280 AI?

Is there more than one version of it, and will a rifle from say, Cooper, digest ammo from Nosler?

He's looking to get near 7mm Rem mag performance, without the blast & recoil of the magnum. Not a big guy, not a young guy, but a pretty doggone good shot. He's moving away from a .300 Win mag he's been using. Looking at rifles from both Cooper & Nosler, and also considering having a custom rifle built. He handled my .30-06 700 CDL very well recently.

Any other problems he should be aware of?

Thanks, Guy