There is also the new school of thought, well - maybe not that new, that barrel life has a lot to do with powder burn rate. Cartridges like the 6mm Competition Match and the 6.5 SAUM are proving long barrel life by using lots of slower burning powder such as H1000 with a long barrel. Doing this is supposed to yield cooler burning by spreading out the process through more of the barrel so the heat isn't as concentrated at the throat. I don't know if the 26 Nosler uses this approach, the way to tell is how short they make the barrel as you need more length to let all of the powder burn. Anyway, I been researching this a little bit following he GA Precision work on the 6.5 SAUM as well as looking into the 6mm CM. my next project is likely to be a .243 30deg which is very similar the the 6mm CM.