Originally Posted by ruraldoc

As a practical matter most people are better off with the 7mm Rem Mag,rifles,brass,and ammo are generally avaiable anywhere that sells any of the above.

Ill disagree.If you prep your rifle for a important hunt.And lets say you loose your ammo.The ability to buy factory ammo isn't going to do you much good.You know what your handloads are doing.You wont know what storebought ammo will shoot like or what the drops will be.You loose your ammo.
Your screwed.
Originally Posted by ruraldoc

But here is the rub,I need a muzzle break to make the magnum as comfortable to shoot as the 280 AI.

The 280AI does gives us very good long range performance with a recoil level that is pretty much in the class of a 30-06.

The 280 AI tends to be super accurate as well,perhaps since probably 90% of the rifles out there in 280AI have custom barrels and chambers. Whether they would be just as accurate in 7mm Mag is open to debate.

Theres been some very good points made here for and against.
I seem to remember a test that Kenny Jerret did many years ago.He fired a 280 AI with a 140g bullet and a 7mm RM with a 140g bullet into a hanging white bed sheet at very close range.
The RM had a large number of unburnt grains of powder at the bottom of the sheet.
The 280 AI had two.
As a general rule of thumb.A more efficient round is quicker to tune for long range.
In the end the differences will be minor.
The 280AI is Parker Ackleys second best round.The fact you can get factory ammo for it now makes it a no brainer.
dave

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Only accurate rifles are interesting.