What's so Special about the 270 Win?

[lhsako]

Never owned a 270 Winchester. Started with a 30-06 and also had a 280 Remington. I've taken WT deer, Black Bear, Antelope, Caribou and has both of these rifles as back up rifles on various hunts, they work.
Jack O'Connor praised the 270 Win with his writings, I studied them as a kid growing up. The 270 is capable of taking any game in NA with the right bullet. I favored the 7mm and 308 calibers because of the vast range of bullets. Much better than the 277 offerings. Higher BC bullets in these offerings can shoot reasonably flat and carry more energy way out there.
Brinky72 brought his 270 Win over and we water jugged a 130 gr Power Point and a 150 gr PT.
Both were perfect mushrooms and the 150 gr I almost penetrated into tomorrow.
So why the 270 Winchester?

JD338

I've taken all the game you listed with the.270 and more. I soon went to the .338WM for moose, elk .bear ,etc . The .270 shines for deer sized game. Very flat shooting, hard hitting and mild recoil as we heard before...... the cartridge that all flat shooting cartridges were compared to since 1923.

 

[Aussie Wanderer]

The 270 was the natural progression for one of my sons. In centrefires, he started with a 223, graduated to a 243 and now shoots the 270. His first proper red stag was taken at 181 yards, took three steps and fell over. The rifle and cartridge inspire a lot of confidence in him which is half the battle as far as I am concerned. I suspect that rifle and him will have many many years of adventures in front of him. For Australia, it is probably close on being considered one of the best all round cartridges excluding buffalo, banteng and camels where a little more projectile weight is an advantage. To the original question, what's so special about a 270win...well nothing if you own a 280ai

 

[IdahoCTD]

I think the .270 punches above it's grade because most bullets made were specifically for it's velocity range and performed exceptionally well. Most other calibers had several choices and velocity ranges. Not all bullets work well when you try to fit a myriad of velocity ranges.

 

[Joec7651]

I think the .270 punches above it's grade because most bullets made were specifically for it's velocity range and performed exceptionally well. Most other calibers had several choices and velocity ranges. Not all bullets work well when you try to fit a myriad of velocity ranges.

It most certainly punches above it weight class. Even with c&c bullets. Throw monos, bonded, and Partition bullets into that mix and it will shoot through a moose.
It doesn’t do anything other ‘06 based rounds won’t do. They all work extremely well.
Haters complaints of the 270 utterly failing is mostly shooter error or ability. There is not an animal walking North America that can take a .277 bullet through the lungs and survive. None, zero, period. If the bullet goes in the boiler room it dies. Shooter error or ability. Not the 270 Win.
However those that put it head and shoulders above the rest I dare say are completely biased as well. Blind faith in a round is foolhardy to no lesser degree. It’s a high quality tool for certain jobs. Not all jobs. It’s like a crescent wrench. It only fits a certain range of nut and bolt sizes. Not all. You pick the wrench that works best for your nuts and bolts.

 

[KellerBull]

Cactus Jack’s writings had a lot to do with the .270’s success, no doubt, as others here have observed. JOC also noted that the old 130 gr. Western Silvertip was one of the first successfully designed bullets for truly high velocity as it penetrated and killed very well. That was undoubtedly a significant factor. Trajectory-wise, the .270 hangs very close to the larger magnums with less recoil (and the .270’s recoil remains light even in the light rifles that JOC favored), which makes good shooting at longish ranges easier. A good bullet in the the right place is really what it is all about, and the .270 allows that with plenty of hydrostatic shock. While I don’t personally use the .270 for elk-size game (I love the .338 Win. Mag.), I have seen the .270 kill a lot of tough animals like elk, hartebeest, and gemsbok very dead with one shot. Some of the best hunters I knew while growing up in Idaho used the .270. I think the aggregate of observations like these have contributed to the .270’s success over time.

 

[KinleyWater]

Not to mention, you can bore it out to 35 Whelen. Real flexibility in the 270.

 

[filmjunkie4ever]

I’m kinda late to the party where the .270 is concerned. Where I have both a .25-06 and .30-06 with which I have had excellent performances, I saw little need for a .270 or a .280 for that matter.

I inherited my uncle’s Browning BBR .270 a few years back. With it I had only shot a couple of coyotes until using it it take my damage control cow elk in January. The 130 grain Sierra Gamekings (which worked perfectly on the elk) on top of H4831 is definitely a great load and yes inspired by JOC. Someday I may see the need to try something heavier but I doubt it. The .270 made it’s reputation shooting 130 grain bullets and they are certainly a classic and effective combo.

Is the .270 my favorite? No but it’s definitely a great cartridge! One I plan to use more in the future.

 

[35 Whelen]

The .270 is the cornerstone of deer calibers, about a perfect blend for that body weight. And of course J.O'C. helped it along with his writings. However others tryed to discourage high speed small caliber cartridges!
Old Elmer Keith said when asked about the .270............ " Ar it's an OK eagle rifle I guess"......lol.
From what I have observed over 50 years of guiding all over North America, he couldn't have been more wrong.
E

 

[hunter24605]

The first rifle I bought with my own money was a Ruger 77 270 back in 1989. I chose it because it was so revered with writers and Joe Schmo hunters who told me how great the 270 is. Loved the rifle, and over 3 years it killed plenty of deer and bear with authority. Then the “gotta shoot a magnum” craze started and I sold it and bought a 300 win. Since then I’ve gone back the other direction preferring the light kickers like the 7-08 and ventured into other -06 based cartridges like 280, 280 AI, and the 30-06. Never owned another 270, even though I really liked that Ruger, a lot.

 

[lhsako]

.The .270 is the cornerstone of deer calibers, about a perfect blend for that body weight. And of course J.O'C. helped it along with his writings. However others tryed to discourage high speed small caliber cartridges!
Old Elmer Keith said when asked about the .270............ " Ar it's an OK eagle rifle I guess"......lol.
From what I have observed over 50 years of guiding all over North America, he couldn't have been more wrong.
E

So true! But Elmer was right about larger game and the .338. Their back and forth writings were always enjoyable to read

 

[salmonchaser]

My experience with the 270 is limited as I never owned one and until I was old enough to have disposable income, used an 06 for everything. I have a good friend who happens to be my youngest brothers best buddy since kindergarten. The both of them still hunt with me and are 10 years younger. Will call him Brian, was always a good hunter, could see the tail or ear twitching at long range, find deer and elk anyplace we hunted. Arrowheads as well. Hunted with a 270 since he was 12. Still has it about 45 years later. Mediocre rifle man most of his life wich resulted in countless deer and elk tracked after the shot. He never missed just always a little back, tough angle, a little high kind of thing. We did find most if not all of them, but it happened with regularity Until about 20 years ago. He bought a 7mm Remington. Same skill set as a rifleman. Still works at getting close when most of us would take a 300 yard shot. He has killed a lot of deer and elk with the 7 in 20 years all pretty much DRT. He’s really not shooting better, it’s just that the round angling forward from the last rib does more damage kind of thing.

 

[JD338]

Good stuff fellas.
If I were to get a 270 Winchester, it would be a M70 Featherweight or Super Grade. I can't think of a better American Classic.
Depending on the game hunted, I would run a 130 gr or 150 gr bullet. A 130 gr PT would cover anything I would hunt.
My powder choice would be either RL22 ( I have plenty) or the time proven classic, IMR/H 4831 which I also have several pounds of.
Keep the comments coming, it's all good.

JD338

 

[noslerpartition]

So: what's special about 30-06?
There is a 308 with less recoil and some mags with more power.
What's special about 300 win mag? Apart from the belt...
There are cartridges with less recoil and there are some with more power.
Or bigger diameter
Talking.338 for example.

I honestly lost track of the number of cartridges.

Though some of the new ones might be more efficient, that doesn't make the old ones bad.

Can you do better than .270 win? Yeah.
Depending on how you defiine betterment of.

Can you hit game in hunting situations past 300y in 95%?
I did not try yet.

So for me it basically doesn't make a difference if I use some of the 6,5, 7mm, 6,8, 308, ...
Just changes the clicks on the scope.
For larger game like elk, moose brown bear? Yeah. Would not use the Creedmoor. But would not fell underdressed with 30-06 for my distances. Or the 270, which I used for some years.

YouTube tells us that hunting begins past 500y. But I am sure that is not true for John Doe and he won't notice the difference between several cartridges over a hundred years old or the latest sh*, if he knows where to put a good bullet.
We have guys here using the latest long range stuff in the brush. You can't see mores than 200 y.
But it has to be a long range high BC bullet.
I wonder: why?
And keep my mouth shut.

But maybe I am spoiled, because we have lots of tracking dogs. So it doesn't make a difference if the game goes down right there or runs 100y


The gun dealers need business...
"Use enough gun" means enough for your intended pray.
And there are differences between 500y elk and brush mule deer considering what is enough.
At least I think so

 

[RL338]

Since then I’ve gone back the other direction preferring the light kickers like the 7-08

The first 4 rifles I purchased 2 308 Win , 1 30-378 Wby , and 1 7-08. If I hadn’t bought another rifle , the 7-08 would be worn out.

 

[1100 Remington Man]

The second rifle I bought was a .270 Win and hunted both Deer and Antelope with it enough to think nothing but highly of this Caliber. If the rifle would not of jammed on my Antelope hunt I would still be hunting with it, but I lost all confidence in that rifle and sold it.
Being young and with Magnum Fever bought a .264 Win Mag. To replace it. Today with 45 plus years of Big Game hunting I would be totally happy with a .270 Win .280 Rem or 30-06 for all my hunting. My advice if you Deer hunt more than Elk hunt get the .270 Win. If you are an Elk hunt more get a 30-06, If both equally both I would get a .280 Rem. and reload them to their full potential. As the days go by these three cartridges in a Bolt action standard weight rifle with 24-26 inch barrel can do It all In North America with out excessive recoil. I usually never shoot my 300 H&H Mag with a steel but plate more than 20 rounds in a day as the recoil and noise is enough for Me and I will never buy another Magnum Rifle and I do most of my hunting with Magnums because thats what I have. I guess I’m getting old.

 

[RL338]

Nice to see different opinions without confrontation

 

[ShadeTree]

I do not own, nor have ever owned a 270. No particular reason, just haven't. At this point with the 7mm-08 in the game or the 280 for that matter, if I was to get a 270 it would be because of the particular rifle, not the cartridge, but I wouldn't be mad if I purchased a rifle I was after and it was chambered in 270.

 

[AFG270]

To me it's the rifle more than the caliber. My first rifle in the early 70's was a 30-06 m70, I still have the rifle but now it's a 25-06. I bought a Browning A-bolt ss 270 in the early 80's when I was hunting and packing on horseback, harvested a lot of game with it but didn't care for the rifle and sold it. I now have a 280 Legendary Arms rifle and like it a lot. All 4 calibers are excellent IMO.

 

[Lazy Bushman]

I own both the 7mm-08 and a 270win. I wasn't really after the 270win but I wanted a BRNO ZKK 600 and it was the only calibre about at the time. I use my 7/08 way more than my 270win as it is a much lighter and nicer rifle to walk around in the bush with. The 270win is a very good calibre but there isn't daylight between it and the 270win. I would have preferred a 30-06 over the 270win but that's more do to with owning a 7/08 than thinking one cartridge is better than the other. I try to buy rifles that don't have a great practical overlap with each other if I can help it. In short, if simply purchasing based on calibre capability and given you own a 7/08 and a 30-06 then save your money and spend it one something else is my opinion. At the end of the day it's your money to enjoy as you see fit and that's all that matters......not what some redneck Aussie thinks

 

[204Gunner]

It just gave Jack something to write about and debate with Jim over for 55 years until the advent of the 7mm08 took the wind out of both of their sails.