Ruger 77 270 Win.

My wife's grandfather has M77 in 270, so very similar sans the stainless. In his work shop, the tops of three walls are covered with antler racks. I counted this past season while we were processing deer, and there are 37 sets... and that's just the bucks. I asked him how many of those were shot with his 270. "All of them." He said, "That's the only gun I've used for deer since 1974."

Now he is only a moderately avid hunter, so he hasn't killed hundreds and hundreds of deer with it. But he has killed a lot, and he really likes that rifle, it has never really failed him.

He had a friend do several boxes of hand loads for him a number of years ago. I don't know the powder or the bullet brand, but they are 130 grain soft points (I think they're Sierras - 130 grn Gamekings - 1820s but I can't be certain) in Hornady brass.

It's zeroed at 200 yds, and when one of tests it several weeks before season, it's spot on... year after year after year!

It has an older leupold 3-9x40, and it will probably be on there until the barrel is replaced, if not after.

Basically, I don't think you'll be disappointed, especially if you enjoy getting a finely tuned load for it!
 
The .270 is a great cartridge, one of the few I have wanted but haven't owned. I don't see how you can go wrong with it.
 
Picked up a 4.5-14X40 Leupold, and three different 130 gr. factory loads to try. Will get back after results.
 
I have a limited edition 77 in 35 whelen--you might call it a "necked up 270" :D Gorgeous rifle that shoots very well though I haven't taken it hunting yet. I bought a ruger American in 270 when they first came out--I've shot sub-MOA at 200yds with hornady's American whitetail ammo--I still can't quite figure out how they do it with an interloc bullet--their 300 win mag AW--same thing.:)
 
Still waiting for good weather, but got the Ruger m77 sighted in and enjoyed smacking some steel at 200 yds. The best three shots were pretty much touching at 100 yds with a custom load. Best factory group was Rem 130 gr. Core lokt . Winds were gusting to around 25 mph which did not help.
Rifle is impressive.
 
My 270 is in a pre-64 Winchester model 70, the 270 will do anything you want it to as a big game caliber it has it all, a great deer killer, bang flop work on elk just as good !!!
 
I've had my .270 for more than 40 years. It is a left-hand Rem. 700 BDL. I glass bedded the action and the barrel under the chamber and free-floated the rest of the barrel in a very light weight Brown Precision stock. I shortened the butt stock because I'm small and have short arms. I put a Leupold Vari-X III 2.5-8X scope on it. I've never shot factory made loads in it. It is amazingly accurate for its size and light weight. It has always been my favorite deer rifle and I regret not using it on my three elk hunts. I did, however, take a small 5 X 5 and large 5 X 5 on the last two elk hunts with my Browning A-Bolt .300 Win Mag also bearing a Leupold Vari-X III 2.5-8X scope.
 
The 270 Winchester is my favorite bolt-action centerfire caliber. There is a wider selection of bullets that are available for it than anyone will ever need. But for most users, the 270 is at its best with bullets of 130 to 150 grains. Mine seems to be most accurate with 150 grain bullets, especially the Nosler Partition. Individual rifles will vary, of course. 130 grain bullets tend to be instantly fatal on deer. I very seldom shoot factory ammo, but I have plinked off some Winchester Power-Point ammo that shot quite well on paper. During the worst ammo shortages, I have always seen 270 ammo available everywhere ammo is sold. It's simply a great caliber that has stood the test of time.
 
Ruger M77 mKII is an excellent rifle all the way around.
It's stupid simple, solid as any non-combat rifle ever made and an excellent exercise in weight vs strength.
The trigger is stupid simple to tune, and not much else needs work from the factory.

The .270 round has been around forever & has a BUNCH of options, many people consider it the finest large, non-dangerous game getter ever made.
It's an excellent whitetail round!

The .270 round is big enough to bust bone to get to vitals, and carry enough energy to finish the job when it gets there.
This is NOT a dangerous game round, it doesn't have the brute knock down power.
(That kind of power would blow through whitetail sized animals, no sense in tearing up the animal if you aren't hunting in grizzly country)

The only issue I have with Ruger is some of the wood they use is too good to beat around in the rocks!
Good thing there are reasonably priced synthetic stocks available so good wood doesn't meet 'Mr. Rocks'...

I hunt with .30-06 most times, my buddy is left handed and shoots .270 and he's not had to chase deer very often. With pinpoint accuracy & the knock down power of the .270 round it's pretty often a drop on the spot thing.
He also can get solid hits I won't try with .30-06, his ballistics are simply better.
(I'm not chasing, if I can't drop it I don't shoot)
 
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My opinion on the 270 is torn. I own a M77 in .270 with a short barrel and light weight. Great gun for around here because its handy in the woods and can still shoot across the fields. The drawback is it kicks disproportionate to the cartridge because of its light weight.

I cannot decide if it is a "Jack of all trades and master of none" where there are better choices for virtually everything that can be done or if it is the "ideal single cartridge for North American game." Maybe it can be both.
 
Lohman, it might be the short barrel limiting it's capability.
The .270 round was intended to use a full length ('Long' by today's standards) barrel.
I've seen the .270 outshoot .30-06 often, and sometimes even 7mm 'Magnums' on occasion, but none had short barrels.

Much of the accuracy depends on barrel harmonics on long, skinny barrels that maintain velocity.
In years preceding 'Black Rifles' & 'Heavy Barrels', barrel support/bedding was a big deal, and somewhat of an art in where & how much to contact the barrel to control harmonics.
Hunters that didn't have quad runners had to walk, often in the hills/mountains, so weight was a serious concern.

Chopping off weight is one way to do things, but let's face it, you loose velocity, you loose range...
 
Lohman, it might be the short barrel limiting it's capability.
Click to expand...

For my use, and my ability, the loss in velocity does not matter. I am not a 600 yard shooter. There is little doubt in my mind the little gun has far more ability than its shooter in my case :) . Let me swing back and see if I can articulate what I mean.

If I was going to pick two rifles to hunt "everything" in North America that is huntable with a rifle it would be something in the .243 "class" of rifle and another something in the .375 H+H "class" of rifle. There is little doubt the .243 is a more appropriate size rifle for whitetail on down than the .270 and little doubt that the .375 is more appropriate for Moose sized or dangerous game such as bear. Maybe the .270 might be the "perfect" Elk rifle but even there some people are going to consider it a touch light.

The .270 can do anything the .243 can, though not as well, and anything the .375 can in North America though again not as well. This is what I mean by "Jack of all trades and master of none." If I was forced to pick one? The .270 would get some consideration.

It should be noted, for my use, the .270 would do everything I need as I top out at hunting Whitetail deer and my longest shot is going to be 150 yards. I supplemented the .270 with a .243 because the recoil (again it is a light rifle) was simple punishing for range sessions. That is not just me either. I sent it with a friend because I had trouble sighting it in and sent three boxes of ammo. I got two and a half back after he changed the scope mounts, bore sighted it, then bench shot it to tune it and he noted that he could not believe how much the rifle kicked and it was not common to take a new rifle to the gun club and end up with any ammunition back.
 
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My experience with the .270 is somewhat long and a bit thin. I enjoy playing with various cartridges but over the years have done some work with the .270.
I got my first one, an FN commercial Mauser back in 1973. A friend got it in a trade deal and let me have it for $75. A Weatherby style stock and a 24" pencil thin barrel yet was surprisingly quite accurate. Well, that old .270 guru, the late Jack O'Connor touted the 130 gr. bullets so I tried some Sierra Pro-hunters and Nosler Partitions and both were accurate but a bit harsh on eating meat. My hunting partner's father suggested going to 150 gr. bullets so switched to the 150 gr. Sierra Game Kings and results were better regarding meat damage. I used the .270 off and on over the years and acquired a few more rifles in .270, another commercial FN, a Ruger #1 and last a Winchester M70 XTR. The two FN's are basically .75" average rifles, the Ruger a one inch gun but that M7u0 is good for .50" most of the time with my 150 gr. Sierra load that I now use. For spits and grins I tried the load with the 150 gr. Nosler Partition and it shoots to the same place as the Sierra load in the M70. Took a nice antelope with the Sierra bullet back in 2009 with the M70. It seems my .270's take to the 150 gr. bullets better than with the 130 gr. bullets for accuracy. The powder I use in my loads is Winchester's long discontinued WMR (Magnum Rifle Powder) of which I have an ample supply. Velocity is edging 2900 FPS and accuracy excellent in all four rifles. Maybe I should think about using the .270 more than I currently do. :rolleyes:
Paul B.
 
I think it's a bit much for ground hogs, but I know people that use .270 for everything from prairie dogs to elk.
I personally like a .270 but I've only owned a couple down through the years.

What my .223 won't do reliably, a .308 or .30-06 usually will.
I went .300 WinMag when hunting dangerous game, but the shots I took weren't crazy and a .270 or .30-06 would have done the job fine...
Just wanted 'A little bit more' when I was IN the food chain!

I'm always amazed how much flatter the .270 shoots compared to .30-06, it's one of those inherent balances between velocity, accuracy & energy at the target.
 
I think it's a bit much for ground hogs, but I know people that use .270 for everything from prairie dogs to elk.
Click to expand...
Aye.
Every .270 owner in my family has loads ranging from 90 or 100 gr to 150 gr (plus 160s or even 180s for a couple guys).
Pretty much none of us still use bullets at the extreme ends of the spectrum, but we keep the loads around, "just in case..."

I run nothing but my "One Load to Rule Them All" now; with the 140 gr Partition. It's good for everything up to Elk (and Moose, if I actually feel like plugging a swamp donkey).

My personal prairie rat favorite is a Speer 100 gr HP (the one now so popular with 6.8 SPC shooters), pushed to about 3,400 fps.
It skips "chunkification" and goes straight to
RED MIST!!

I haven't fired one in at least 10 years, though...
 
100 grain, 3,400 FPS, bet that works GREAT on coys & ground hogs.
I have admiration for an efficient poodle & pasture pig shooter!

Around here it's feral house cats, and either ground hogs or coyotes.
I live out in the river bottoms and people dump an endless supply of cats out here.
Lots of coys cut down on the pasture pigs (and my chickens), but cut down on the mange poodles and the pasture pig population explodes... (Usually in my yard & garden!)

Deer & turkeys loiter here during hunting season, they know I'm too lazy to clean game.
If game came in beef flavor I'd reconsider...

Nothing like the entire side yard covered in turkey crap while guys complain about not filling their tags.
A few years back, my wife let a couple friends shoot turkeys on the last day of the season, out the bathroom window, then complained because they had to take their boots off to stand in the bathtub!
Some people would complain if you hung them with a new rope...
 
I have the blued .270 M77 with the orange butt pad and the tang safety. I bought it new circa 1980 or so. It is one of the more accurate rifles I have owned, that said I am not expert on super accurate rifles. But this one seems fully capable of shooting gnats at 200 yards. Raised a few eyebrows from the gun range types more than once.
 
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