The barrels wearing out faster was something the gun writers of the time came out with to critize the .264 magnum. It wasn't true but when a bunch of geezers that know more about typewriters than guns print something in outdoor life it's often taken for fact by the public. Also, the original M70 westerner the .264 was offered in came with a 24" barrel which severely limited velocity in an overbore round like this. It's a great flat shooting deer round but in my opinion I'd like to have something in a bigger caliber for elk. It's essentially a .338 win mag necked down to .264 (6.5mm). It could just as easily be made from 7mm rem mag brass necked to .264.