What kind of performance can I expect to get from the 7mm rum on a 26" barrell? Seems pretty stout for a deer rifle.

There's an understatement. Probably about 150 fps faster than the same bullet in a 7mm STW or 300 fps faster than the same bullet in a 7mm Rem mag.

I suppose it was inevitable that they come out with the 7mm RUM, and I'm sure that a lot of people will buy them. But it just stikes my as a bit too much of a good thing. I have a .300 RUM and it's pretty overbore, a bit over board and a handfull. I imagine the 7mm RUM will cook a bore in pretty short order.

Oddball, I would have to agree with Rust. I have a custom 7STW, 26.5" barrel I put together last year and about the only thing it's good for is hunting really wide open spaces. The problem with any of the super magnums is they need at least a 26" or 27" barrel for the higher velocities in which you hope to gain over the other magnums. I always "baby" my 7STW barrel at the range making sure not to overheat it. Barrel life can be short if you're not careful. Just my 2 cents. sure-shot

I'm having a Ruger #1 rechambered to 7mm RUM, can't wait til its done. I also expect barrel life to be short, but one has to sacrifice something for all that performance.

Hopefully others will soon post results from their RUM's.