270 winchester, Why not?

I'm glad match bullets aren't available for the .270. The beauty of the .270 Win. to my way of thinking is that it is first and foremost and always a hunting cartridge. Born and bred to do one thing; hunt.
 
Why isnt there more match bullets for the .270??????

I asked my self the same thing and the only thing I came up with is IT DOSNT NEED THEM.

I have a FN Model 70 Featherweight in .270 so I decided to play. I tried some match bergers and sierra MKs and ran them through my rilfe.

I couldnt see they shoot any better in my gun then the cheap hornady 130s and 150s. I just dont see the justification for the additional cost.

But then, this is my Elk Rifle.
 
Not saying 270 Win is not accurate, but it is not inheritantly accurate like a .308 Win or a 6mm PPC.

Issues:

Case design:
270 Win shoulder is not as sharp as an AI cartridge, PPC or 308 Win based cases. Short, fat cases with healthy shoulder area are the trend in case development for accuracy. See 260 AI, PPC, 6mmBR, and WSM cases.

Long Action:
270 Win is a "Long Action" cartridge. A short action receiver is more capable of being made stiff, as it is less subject to torsional twist. That's why the custom receivers(BAT, Hall, etc.) are so thick.

Primer Size:
Small rifle primers are a big hit. Even 308 Win can be had with small primer pockets. Not so with the 270 Win.

Bullet Support:
There may be a 135 SMK and Berger match bullets, but almost all manufacturers make .224, .244(6mm), .264(6.5mm), .284(7mm, okay 7.2mm), .308, and .338 caliber match bullets. See Lapua Scenar, Berger VLD match, Hornady BTHP and A-Max, Nosler CC, Sierra Match King, Norma Diamond Line and Speer BTHP. The 115gr bullet is for 6.8SPC. The 135gr .277 SMK is .488 BC over 2800fps, comparable to 168gr .284 or 168gr .308 SMK.

Brass:
No Lapua/Norma brass which is made to higher standard. This is less of an issue as Win/Rem/Fed and Hornady can be prepped to be pretty consistent.

Competition:
The 30-06 has won 1000 yard bench championships in open classes recently. For classes where 30-06 can compete, 270 Win is still behind in the bullet support arena.

What to do:
Nosler Ballistic Tip is relatively cheap and very accurate. Nosler Accubond is very accurate, but not cheap. A consistent bullet in a consistent load that is compatible with the firearm is key to accuracy. Along with the 135gr SMK, I would try the 130 and 140gr Nosler for testing.
 
bergerbullets make 130, 140 and 150 grain VLD match hunting bullets, that should fit the bill nicely for target shooters. They are match bullets first and as any hpbt match bullet, you can use it on game when quick expansion/high energy is desired.
 
I'm glad match bullets aren't available for the .270. The beauty of the .270 Win. to my way of thinking is that it is first and foremost and always a hunting cartridge. Born and bred to do one thing; hunt.
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Well there is a couple actually, but I like that. The 06 and 308 you could never say that about. The 270 has always been a hunting cartridge.
 
I just love reading all the "engineers" here try to prove the .270 isn't accurate, or is not as accurate as other calibers in it's class. Tens of thousands of deer, elk, moose and antelope would disagree though...lol!

I don't know about most of you, but my .270 is more accurate than I am and I'm sure that's the case for a lot of us.
 
The .270 Win is one of the worlds greatest hunting cartridges. Shhh, don't let those target shooters know how accurate it is; they'll spoil everything! My poor old Rem 700 only shoots 3 1/2" groups at 450 yards with my hot 130 ballistic tip hunting load, chronographing about 3,260 fps pushed by 60+ grains of Reloder 22. Poor me, but don't pity me too much; pity the poor deer!!!
 
The absence of match bullets is not due to anything but the lack of demand.

The .270 couldn't compete in benchrest against the common choices. It was not a military cartridge, so no usage there. And for 1,000-yard competition, such cartridges as the 7mm Rem Mag were superior. So, no interest in the .270 as a competition target-shooter.

But most anybody can work up good combos for any cartridge, without worrying about match bullets...

I hunted with a Sears .270 for a half-dozen years before getting back into the '06 game in 1970. I reliably got sub-MOA groups with the Remington 130-grain Bronze Point and 4831. Worked great...
 
270 not long range

Loneranger, you are certainly entitled to your opinion. I have a good friend that has taken several elk with his old .270. Most were one shot kills, and a couple were DRT. I shot an antelope fawn over 350 paces last fall....quit counting at 350. Right in the old gizzard. Held about 2 inches higher than it hit. 130 gr SST knocked it down. I thought that was pretty good for a blind old man

The ballistic calculator on JBM website shows almost a ton of energy at 300 yards with a .270 Nosler 140 Accubond leaving the muzzle at 3000 fps. That is almost identical to a 30-06 165 gr. Accubond at 2800 fps. That oughta do in any elk or moose, if you do your part.

Looks pretty darn competitive to me. Course, you should shoot what you like. I do.:D
 
I thought I could stay out of this one. The .270 Win is one of my favorite cartridges and the first rifle I ever bought to hunt elk with so I didn't have to keep borrowing a .30-06. IMO it was never intended as a bench rest competition round. It has accounted for 4 elk, six pronghorn, and two deer, I know that may not sound like much to a few of you guys but that is a lot of hunting in Colorado. My longest shots to date that have accounted for game are elk @ 250 yards, pronghorn @ 415 yards, mule deer @ 560 yards.

To quote Septemberf 2009 American Hunter Magazine article "America's Favorite All-Around Cartridges.
.270 Winchester
From the loins of the .30-06, the .270 Winchester first saw the light of day in 1925 in the form of the Winchester Model 54 bolt action. The government cartridge was still the most popular but "magnum mania" was begining to take hold, and this was Winchesters initial step into that arena. Not that anyone today would consider a .270 Win a magnum, but muzzle velocity of 3140 fps certainly turned heads in 1925.
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All the other cartridges listed in that article were .30-06 Springfield, 7mm Remignton Magnum, .300 Winchester Magnum, and .375 H&H Magnum. The two they listed as up and coming all-around cartridges was the .300 WSM and .300 RUM. The .22lr made it in there as well as the "Everyman's" cartridge.

However I think moosemike summed it up the best.
I'm glad match bullets aren't available for the .270. The beauty of the .270 Win. to my way of thinking is that it is first and foremost and always a hunting cartridge. Born and bred to do one thing; hunt.
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My stock Ruger M 77 in .270, an old tang safety model, shoots Berger 140 and 150's in sub half MOA at 100 yards. Sub MOA at 300 yards and hits an 18 inch round plate at 600 yards without fail. 90 grain Sierras, 1/4 inch at 100 yards. Does nearly as well with Sierra 130's; Hornady 140's; Nosler AB, Partitions, Ballistic Tips. 3-9 Vortex Viper scope.
Berger VLD Hunting Bullets are match quality and very effective on deer-sized game. Those who don't think the .270 is capable of target accuracy should shoot more and read less.
 
15 years ago, I had a smith build a custom Browning for my wife in 6.5mm but if I could do it all over again, I would've bought her a new 270 instead. The 270 has nearly identical recoil.

Jack
 
Old thread but not as old as my .270 Win. In the early 80's I traded for two left handed Remington 700 BDL rifles chambered in .270. I had already been reloading for a few years. I stupidly sold the less accurate rifle - a mistake I will regret forever. I glass bedded the more accurate rifle in a very light Brown Precision stock and developed loads for it. It shot sub MOA with Hornady, Speer, and Nosler 130 gr, bullets but was unacceptable with Sierra boattails. Eventually I was able to consistently get 1/2 MOA to MOA groups at 100 yards. I have taken deer in Missouri, Minnesota, and Wyoming, including my best Mule Deer (163 B&C) at 400 to 450 yards with one shot through the heart (the deer walked less than 10 yards before dropping.) I've also taken coyotes and Pronghorn with the rifle. That rifle remains my favorite. I wish I had taken it on some elk hunts (although my Browning A-Bolt SS .300 Win Mag accounted for two 5 X 5 bulls and one black bear.)
 
The new Accubond Long Range in .277 has a BC listed at .625, for the 150 grain bullet. Very impressive, if you ask me. It's plausible that it can be driven to 3000 ft/s. That could potentially make a very good long range round.
 
I have a Model 70(Walmart Special) in .270. Using Corelokt 130gr ammo, I sighted it in at 50 yards using a Buckmaster scope. At 100 yards the first 3 shot group showed 2 holes that were touching through my spotting scope. I thought I had a flyer. When I got out to the target, the 2nd shot had gone through the 1st shot hole as evidenced by a little widening of the hole on one side. The only round I reload for it is with a Barnes TSX 140gr for hogs. It too is very accurate...
 
JD0x0 said:
The new Accubond Long Range in .277 has a BC listed at .625, for the 150 grain bullet. Very impressive, if you ask me. It's plausible that it can be driven to 3000 ft/s. That could potentially make a very good long range round.
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Actually the bullet has a G7 BC or .317 which is the one you should be programming into your ballistic computers. Still this is a very good BC for LR bullets, but when available G7 is always more accurate for computations than G1. Which makes this bullet comparable in G7 BC to the target bullets offered by Berger in 140 grain 6.5mm VLD and 168 grain 7mm VLD. Plus in .30 caliber you have to run a Berger 200 grains or heavier to match the G7 numbers of the Accubond.

Berger offers a couple of decent bullets as well with decent G7 BC in the .280-.290 range. Then you have Matrix bullets which offer some very high G1 BC's in the .700+ range with their VLD bullets. The 165 grain bullet will stabilize in the standard 1:10 twist of the .270 Win but the 175 grain bullet will need a 1:9 or faster twist to work. I don't have any G7 data on these bullets but from what I've read, while not as good as published their BC's are still better than the LR Accubond 150 grain.

I've bought a box or the Accubond bullets to reload and run in my 24" barrel on my M70 Extreme Weather and will be very happy to get 2900 fps which I think is more realistic than 3000 fps out of the standard .270 Win. I do think 3000+ is attainable in a .270 WSM, .270 Weatherby, and .270 Allen Magnum. If you were to have Kirby Allen build you his .270 AM more than likely it would have a 30" barrel as well. That is just too much pipe IMO for a hunting rifle.

I'm all for these new bullets if it gets people excited about shooting the old .270 again. I've had a love affair with the round going back over 10 years now as my hands down favorite do everything western hunting rifle. While it will never be a popular target round it offers real potential to the person wanting to learn to shoot 600+ yards without having to invest a lot of money into a new rifle. Even with the older bullets 600+ yards was a realistic range to shoot paper and steel with, these new bullets just make it a little easier.
 
I have owned and hunted with many calibers over the years (30-06, 300Win Mag, 7mm Rem mag just to name a few). As primarily a deer/black bear hunter in the North East, I have been bombarded over the last 30 years by many old antiquated opinions on what caliber is best. It almost laughable now remembering what magnum calibers a lot of less experienced hunters swore they needed to give the best killing power for big whitetail deer.:rolleyes: After years of research, my own successful hunting and reading what professional big game hunters have used over the years, I kept seeing the 270 Winchester come up again and again especially by the real professional hunters. I read 3 books from the late Jack O'Connor that pretty much should be required reading for all big game hunters. Jack O'Connor is brilliant, educated and extremely experienced with game all over the world. He knows how to kill big game and he applies common sense. A good friend of Roy Weatherby, Jack knew all about what magnum calibers were capable of, providing they were shot out of a 26" barrel. Jack even shot several of Roy's calibers on a few hunts all to gain more experience in what was capable of the super magnums. The ballistic coefficient of the 270 was outstanding when Jack used it and with todays modern bullets have only raised the bar on the 270. When Jack used his then modern bullet of a 130gr jacketed soft point and has killed over 14 Grizzly Bears with the 270 and all have been from one shot kills. Several dozen Elk with 130 grain bullets with one shot kills some from over 290 yards, Rams,Moose, African game,etc... Its almost embarrassing to question the killing power of the 270 Winchester especially that we have better powder and bonded bullets that can do it all. Todays new hunters are bombarded by media that has to push the latest super magnum and talks these new hunters into believing they NEED this caliber or bullet hole size.:D
There will never be another hunter like Jack O'Connor simply because his experience and time in history gave him the opportunity to hunt like no other hunter will ever do in todays world. Its a shame the new hunters wont spend the time to research from the great ones before them like JOC. I wish I would have 25 years ago. If anything I have learned from reading the books from Jack O'Connor is that, not much has changed in the caliber wars since Jacks days.

FYI, Jack hunted with many other calibers like the 30-06, 375H&R, 7Rem Mag,etc just to name a few. He certainly could use the phrase "Been there, Done that" with about every caliber. He knew what all those calibers could do but the 270 Winchester was still his favorite so that should tell you something.

Here is a three shot group at 100 yards with Hornady factory loads.


It was a bit windy and I know I can get a better group at 300 yards than this.
 
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My first range session with one of my SIG SHR 970s in .270, I was getting groups of about 1.25"with Remington ammo-and I am FAR from being an experienced long range shooter. Recoil is subjective and at 5"10" and 200 more orless muscular pounds I am far from a shrimp, but I found it on the mild side.
 
Yea recoil is very close to my 30-06 in the same gun, perhaps a bit less. Its still not a novice friendly recoil but coming from a 300 Win Mag, the 270 is very comfortable. I can shoot 45 rounds of 270 and still feel good. One box of 300 Win Mag and my shoulder is sore.
 
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