In the firearms industry, SHOT Show is the event. It’s the flagship trade show that needs no introduction, an international gathering where manufacturers, retailers, media, and industry leaders from around the world come together to connect, negotiate, and unveil what’s next.
It’s when brands roll out their newest innovations and announce major product launches. Read on for the latest launches in new rifle cartridges.
Barnes
Barnes rolled out a different assortment of rifle ammunition product lines for 2026. Some are brand new, and others are line extensions.
Barnes’ new product lines for 2026 include Barnes Suppressor Series, the Barnes Harvest Collection, and Barnes Reserve. The former consists of ammunition loaded for peak efficiency in use with suppressed firearms.
Historically, Barnes has made a name for itself with its solid-copper hunting bullets like the TSX. However, the Harvest Collection takes things in a different direction by using lead-core Sierra-produced projectiles instead.
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Either way, it’s fair to say that both of these new Barnes product lines serve to reflect current industry trends. You’ve got both the surge in suppressor use and a revitalization of hunting arms and ammunition.
Suppressor Series Available Calibers (Rifle):
- 308 Win (205gr Sierra GameKing)
- 300 BLK (205gr Sierra GameKing)
- 300 BLK (220gr Sierra MatchKing)
Harvest Collection Available Calibers:
- 6mm ARC (90gr Sierra Tipped GameKing)
- 7mm PRC (180gr Sierra Tipped GameKing)
- 350 Legend (155gr Sierra Pro-Hunter)
- 400 Legend (200gr Sierra Pro-Hunter)
- 45-70 GOVT (300gr Sierra Pro-Hunter)
- 450 Bushmaster (260gr Sierra Pro-Hunter)
Additional Barnes Extensions
Barnes’ line extensions a few new SKUs for the solid copper Vor-TX series. There’s now a 6mm ARC load with a 90gr bullet. Furthermore, .400 Legend shooters now have a 190gr Vor-TX load as an option too. Last but not least, there’s also a new 170gr load for 7 PRC shooters.
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Similarly, 6mm ARC shooters also have a new Barnes Precision Match option too. This one is loaded with a 105gr Barnes Match Burner bullet.
Last but not least, Barnes Reserve series consists of professionally hand-loaded small-batch rifle cartridges in hard-to-find chamberings such as 6.5-284 Norma, 7mm RSAUM and .300 RSAUM, .300 “Super” WSM, .257 Weatherby Magnum and 6.8 Western. These handloads are loaded with Barnes LRX projectiles.
Black Hills
Black Hills is taking advantage of the recently-launched Sierra MatchKing X, which maintains the original SMK’s precision but with the added advantage of dedicated terminal effect on game (the original SMK was created solely to punch holes in paper or strike steel.)
As such, Black Hills is now offering three factory loads with Sierra MatchKing X projectiles:
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- 6mm ARC (107gr MKX)
- 6.5 Creedmoor (142gr MKX)
- .308 Winchester (175gr MKX)
Berger
This year, Berger Ammunition rolled out two new 7 PRC offerings under its Elite Hunter Ammunition line. These are loaded with either Berger 175gr or 195gr Elite Hunter projectiles. Currently, the 195gr Elite Hunter load is the heaviest weight commercially-available 7 PRC option. Elite Hunter bullets rely on sleek, high BC hybrid-ogive profile designs. They’re meant for hunters who demand an ethical long-range precision solution.
Servicing the match-grade .223 Remington segment, Berger Ammunition is now shipping a Berger OTM (Open Tip Match) 69gr .223 Remington load. This product-line extension is meant to complement Berger’s 73gr and 77gr .223 Remington offerings.
CCI
CCI is launching a new .22 LR load meant for small-game hunters under the new CCI Hunter Series. This line consists of both standard and sub-sonic velocity cartridges loaded with a 40gr lead flat-point bullet. These rounds ship in CCI’s signature plastic 100-round packages. This product line’s box has a transparent blaze-orange hue.
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CCI is also offering the CCI x Henry 275 round .22 LR bulk pack. This SKU which consists of a 36gr LHP “high velocity” .22 LR load comes with collectible packaging that references Henry Repeating Rifle’s 250th anniversary rimfire Golden Boy leverguns.
Federal
Federal Premium rolled out over 20 new and different centerfire rifle cartridges at SHOT Show 2026.
This year, the ammunition giant is also selling many of its established product lines such as American Eagle and Top Gun with commemorative packaging under America’s 250th. This covers more than just rifle cartridges, but its purpose is to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States Of America. This year, Federal is also expanding its American Eagle rifle product lines. Federal is advising its customers to be on the lookout for several more loads in 223 Rem., 5.56x45mm, 6mm ARC, 308 Win, 338 Lapua and 450 Bushmaster.
Speaking of 6mm ARC, this newer intermediate rifle cartridge is becoming a standard chambering loaded and sold by Federal. Besides the American Eagle 110gr TMJ load already referenced, the Minnesota ammunition company is offering 6mm ARC Tipped Fusion and Berger Gold Medal Target BT loads too.
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Federal Subsonic
Like the Barnes Suppressor Series mentioned above, Federal is also launching its own line of suppressor-optimized rifle cartridges under the new Federal Subsonic product line. Federal Subsonic cartridges are loaded with either tipped or soft-point Federal Fusion bullets, depending on projectiles.
Available calibers at Subsonic’s launch include:
- .30-30 Winchester (190gr SP)
- .300 BLK (190gr Tipped)
- .308 Winchester (190gr Tipped)
- .45-70 Govt (300gr SP)
Federal’s long-distance Terminal Ascent line is getting a few new caliber SKUs too, with the addition of .300 Remington Ultra Mag and 6.5 PRC.
Federal’s Custom Shop
Also their boutique Custom Shop line is now offering more expertly handloaded rifle cartridges. These include:
- Hammer 6.5 Creedmoor (121gr)
- Hammer 6.5mm PRC (121gr)
- Fusion 284 Winchester (140gr)
- Trophy Bonded Tip 284 Winchester (140gr)
- Hammer 7mm PRC (131gr)
Something I’ve noticed about Federal is that they’ve begun selling factory loads loaded with competitors projectiles over the past few years. This year, Federal is rolling out a 7 PRC load loaded with Berger’s Elite Hunter bullet. Similarly, it’s also releasing a 300 PRC load topped with Hornady’s ELD-X bullet.
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Lastly, Federal is collaborating with Henry Repeaters and offering two levergun loads. The first is the Federal x Henry Cattleman Edition .30-30 Winchester cartridge loaded with a 150gr bonded softpoint. The other load is the Federal x Henry Collector’s Edition 300gr.45-70 Govt load. This line ties into Henry’s own 250th anniversary models of its popular Golden Boy leverguns.
Fiocchi
Fiocchi threw its hat into the solid-copper lead-free hunting cartridge category with its introduction of its Backwoods Hunter line. Its introduction to the market indicates the wider industry trend of lead-free solid copper high-performance rifle cartridges.
Hunters can select from 8 different chamberings including:
- .243 Winchester (80gr)
- .270 Winchester (130gr)
- 6.5 Creedmoor (120gr)
- 7mm-08 Remington (140gr)
- 7mm Remington Magnum (160gr)
- .308 Winchester (150gr)
- .30-06 Springfield (150gr)
- .300 Winchester Magnum (165gr)
Fiocchi also expanded its long-distance high-ballistic coefficient Hyperformance Hunt product line. These cartridges are loaded with premium bullets from companies such as Swift, Barnes, Hornady and the like.
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The latest calibers consist of:
- 6mm Creedmoor (80gr Barnes Tipped TSX)
- 6.5 PRC (120gr Barnes Tipped TSX)
- 6.5 Creedmoor (120gr Barnes Tipped TSX)
- .308 Winchester (168gr Barnes Tipped TSX)
- 7 PRC (150gr Barnes Tipped TSX)
Fiocchi’s Field Dynamics, which offers plenty of rifle calibers is also getting a line expansion with new SKUs including a 200gr .360 Buckhammer SP and a 180gr .350 Legend FSP.
Hornady
Nearly every ammunition company offers an everyday” /deer hunting cartridge line, and Hornady is no exception, with its popular American Whitetail series. At this show, Hornady launched its sister product line, the American Whitetail Tipped line. Whereas the regular Whitetail Line is loaded with Hornady’s SP Interlock bullet, the new American Whitetail Tipped line instead uses tipped Hornady FTX or SST projectiles.
At launch, American Whitetail Tipped calibers include:
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- 243 Winchester (95gr SST)
- 6.5 Creedmoor (129gr SST)
- 6.5 PRC (129gr SST)
- 270 Win (130 gr SST)
- 7mm-08 Remington (139gr SST)
- 7mm Remington Magnum (154gr SST)
- 7mm PRC (154gr SST)
- 308 Winchester (150gr SST)
- 30-06 Springfield (165gr SST)
- 300 Winchester Magnum (165gr SST)
- 300 PRC (165gr SST)
- 350 Legend (165gr FTX)
- 450 Bushmaster (250gr FTX)
Hornady Expansions
Big Red also expanded several of its existing product lines. On the topic of American Whitetail, .400 Legend is now available with a 210gr Interlock bullet. Similarly, the Hornady Custom line now includes a 90gr 6mm ARC load with a solid-copper Hornady CX bullet. The Black line received two new .338 ARC SKUs, a 170gr MonoFlex and a 215gr FTX load. Superformance Varmint has new V-Max 55gr and 75gr loads for .223 WSSM and .243 WSSM respectively.
The .25 Creedmoor cartridge found its way into three of Hornady’s product lines:
- Hornady Match: (134 gr ELD Match)
- Precision Hunter: (128gr ELD-X)
- Superformance: (112gr CX)
The V-Match line also received four new cartridges:
- 224 Valkyrie (62gr ELD-VT)
- 25 Creedmoor (95gr ELD-VT)
- 6.5 PRC (100gr ELD-VT)
- 300 PRC (174gr ELD-VT)
Lapua
Lapua of Finland unveiled its new TRX product line consisting of loaded cartridges and tipped solid copper hunting bullets. TRX which stands for “True Range Expanding” follows suit in the long-range precision hunting category which has been on fire during the last few years. TRX bullets have high ballistic coefficients with polymer tips for aerodynamic efficiency and terminal performance.
Lapua is covering the classics by having factory-loaded TRX ammunition in the following calibers:
- 6.5 Creedmoor (120gr)
- 6.5 x 55 mm Swedish (120gr)
- .308 Win (150gr)
- .300 Win Mag (165gr)
- .30-06 Springfield (165gr)
Norma
While Norma USA didn’t specifically release any product during this year’s SHOT Show, the company did release two rifle cartridges towards the end of 2025.
First is Norma’s USA Whitetail 155-grain, .350 Legend soft-point. As the name implies, it’s a deer cartridge for the popular .350 Legend straightwall chambering.
Tactical and defensive shooting will appreciate Norma USA’s other release, the 5.56mm NATO MLE cartridge. It’s loaded with Barnes’ famous and effective 70gr solid copper TSX bullet. The Barnes TSX (Triple Shock X) bullet has gained a famous reputation for consistent performance across different types of barriers and mediums. Ballistically, these copper projectile’s design lends itself to great weight retention across the board.
Nosler
On the rifle ammunition side, Nosler announced a further product line expansion of its Whitetail Country line. Originally launched for the 2024 autumn hunting season, Whitetail Country is Nosler’s solution for regular hunters chasing after regular deer in the woods across the country.
The 2026 line expansion includes four new SKUs:
- .243 Winchester (100gr Solid Base SP)
- .308 Winchester (150gr Solid Base SP)
- .30-06 Springfield (150gr Solid Base SP)
- .400 Legend (215gr SP)
Remington
Big Green is also taking on some 250th Anniversary collectible packaging for some of its ammunition products in 2026. For rifle cartridges, at least three calibers are included under Remington’s “We The People” special packaging, including .22 LR (33gr Yellow Jacket), .22-250 Remington (55gr PSP), and .223 Remington (45gr JHP, 250-round bucket.)
Like Barnes and Federal, Remington is also launching a dedicated suppressor-friendly ammunition product line called Remington Subsonic, which is kicking off 2026 with three loads: .308 Winchester (190gr), .360 Buckhammer (250gr) and .45/70 Govt (300gr.)
I’d like to casually remind readers that the gist of subsonic ammunition is simple. It’s about having slower-moving bullets that stay below the sound barrier’s threshold to avoid that supersonic “crack.” This helps with an overall quieter experience. Suppressor friendly loads also include components that work better around cans. Aspects like fully-enclosed bullets or cleaner-burning propellants that are less flashy come to mind, for example.
This year, Remington is offering more 7mm Backcountry options. 7mm Backcountry is Federal’s year-old Peak alloy-case, high-pressure, high-performance and flat-shooting 7mm rifle cartridge. Both Remington’s classic Core-Lokt and Core-Lokt Tipped lines will now have a 7 Backcountry 175gr option. Furthermore, Remington’s Premiere Long Range will also have a 7mm Backcountry SKU loaded with a 175gr Speer Impact projectile.
Speaking of product line extensions, it’s not just 7mm Backcountry that’s being added to Core-Lokt. 7 PRC (175gr), 6.5 PRC (140gr) and .300 BLK (125gr) are also joining the “deadliest mushroom in the woods” lineup.
Winchester
Winchester is entering 2026 with two new product lines, Supreme Long Range and American Lever Range. Supreme Long Range is Winchester’s product line in the rapid-growing high BC long-distance hunting cartridge category, while American Lever Range is the brand’s levergun optimized ammunition selection.
Supreme Long Range is loaded with Winchester’s own BC Max tipped projectiles. Compared to most other tipped bullet designs, the BC Max’s tip is larger-than-normal for positive terminal expansion. The bullet’s jackets are also thicker and precision-drawn, with extended boat-tails and heavy-for-caliber weights. Available cartridges include:
- 6.5 Creedmoor (140gr)
- 6.5 PRC (140gr)
- 6.8 Western (175gr)
- .30-06 Springfield (195gr)
- .300 Winchester Short Magnum (195gr)
- .300 Winchester Magnum (195gr)
Winchester’s American Lever Range consists of staple lever-action cartridges topped with various JSP, FP or FMJ bullets profiled for smooth feeding in lever-action firearms. Chamberings available are:
- .30-30 Winchester (150gr JHP)
- .357 Magnum (130gr FMJ)
- .44 Remington Magnum (240gr JSP)
- .45 Colt (250gr FP)
- .45-70 Government (300gr JHP)
Like many of the other brands in this list, Winchester Ammunition is similarly shipping some of its products in 250th Anniversary collectible packaging. All in, there are five unique packages that include a combination of boxes of all types of ammunition with nine different images that celebrate American labor. Style-wise, the art is very reminiscent of Norman Rockwell’s work.
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