25-06, 7mm08, or 270?

[Olympus]

Looking at picking up another hunting rifle for this fall and have just about settled on the Mossberg Patriot walnut version as it has a nice classic design and look while still being affordable enough to knock around in the deer woods and pulling up a tree from a rope. So my caliber choices are 25-06, 7mm08, and 270 in this gun. My current hunting rifle collections is limited to only 243 and 6.8SPC, so adding something a little larger would be nice to have.

That said, I had a 270 in the past and the recoil of factory ammo was really more than I wanted to shoot. I ended up don’t bug some reduced recoil reloads with 120gr ammo and it was very pleasant to shoot. But I ended up selling the rifle, probably by mistake. I do reload and would plan to work up a load for any caliber I pick. I haven’t bought a box of factory ammo in years.

I’m primarily a whitetail hunter and probably will be for a while. I used to go on a lot of hog hunting trips and still may at some point in the future. But I bought a large piece of hunting land nearby a couple years ago and I manage the property very well for deer and turkey, so hunting trips elsewhere may be a long way down the road. So a big whitetail deer is probably the biggest game animal this gun would be shooting for the foreseeable future.

Right now I’m leaning toward 25-06 because I just like the caliber and 270 because I already have reloading dies and brass. I think with my reduced recoil loads, I could have more versatility with the 270 than the 25-06. But I could be convinced either way. The 7mm08 in a short action would be a little shorter in overall length, but the Mossberg website shows both the short action and long action caliber with the same OAL, 42.75”. That leads me to think they’re using the long action for short action calibers as a cost saving measure. If so, I don’t really feel like the 7mm08 provides anything that the 270 doesn’t already do.

But love to hear thoughts and opinions on this matter!

 

[Ks5shooter]

My T/C Venture 7MM-08 150 yds .......

 

[someguy2800]

I didn't vote because they are all good calibers. I have a 270 and a 25-06. 7mm-08 and 270 are pretty much ballistic twins and will have very similar levels of recoil with full power loads. The 7mm-08 has the advantage of being able to use heavier bullets with higher BC's, but there are excellent bullets available in 25 and 27 caliber as well. 25-06 will recoil a bit less, mabey 10 or 15%. The difference is noticeable but its still a powerful caliber. Factory Federal fusion in 25-06 is an awesome whitetail load and extremely flat shooting with a BC of .485. 90 grain hollow points also make great little varmint bombs.

Food for thought a 6.5 creedmoor loaded with 120's will get within about 50-100 fps of a 25-06 with 120 grain bullet and will do so with 10 grains less powder and recoil. If I could go back in time I probably would have gotten a 270 instead, though 25-06 has served me well as a target/varmint/deer caliber.

 

[FL-NC]

Of what you listed, I would go for the 7-08 myself. I prefer milder calibers whenever they are practical for the task. 243 is my favorite traditional caliber for whitetail, but I have been using 223 for them and pigs for the past several years.

 

[Bull Nutria]

I also have a TC Venture in 7mm08. it shoots moa with my 140 g SP reloads. 7mm can be loaded with lighter or heavier bullets as needed. nothing wrong with the 25.06 or 270 but 270 will recoil more. You cant really go wrong with any of these. 6.5 creedmore is hot but the deer don't know it!!
I have heard those Mossberg Patriot rifles are very good???

Good luck with what ever you chose!

Bull

 

[Newtosavage]

IMO the 7mm-08 is the best all-around deer caliber ever designed. Plus it's a mild shooter for the ballistics it produces.

I'd be more on the 6.5 CM bandwagon if the recoil didn't seem so similar to me, as my 7mm-08. I literally could not tell the difference at the range the two times I had them both side-by side. The 6.5 CM was shooting 140 grain bullets and the 7mm-08 was shooting 139's. So since the 7mm-08 gives us the option to use heavier bullets if we want, then that's my preference.

7mm-08 also gives you the option to shoot heavier bullets than the .270, in a slightly lighter and more compact rifle, so that's two strikes against the classic .270 IMO.

I have yet to shoot a more consistently accurate (day in and day out) round than my 7mm-08 with 162-grain ELD-X bullets. And when I load the same powder charge under 139 SST's (also very accurate), I get almost identical points of impact out to 300 yards which is very convenient.

 

[joed]

Big fan of the 25-06 here, have been for 40 years. All are good for what you want but the .25 will not kick as much as a .270, and it is extremely versatile. I've used mine for hunting groundhogs, deer and bear.

 

[MachIVshooter]

Between those three, I would personally choose .25-06. In point of fact, I did choose it over those and many others, and have never regretted it. A bit on the light side as an elk rifle, but a better deer cartridge there really is not. Modest recoil, very flat trajectory, devastating performance on deer sized critters.

Of course the others will do fine, and plenty will tell you how many deer they've taken with their .270 or 7-08. In the end, you really can't go wrong with any of them, but the .25-06 will give you the best trajectory of the 3 with less recoil than .270 (it'll be about equal to the 7mm-08).

 

[LoonWulf]

I would go 7-08, but that's because I personally want one.

I find the 25-06 interesting, but since I already have a pretty spiffy .250AI, it's a ways down the list....perhaps I should raise it's position a bit tho, my safe is cluttered with 140-160 class bullet launching apparati....

 

[Stevenvalleyky]

I would choose the 7mm-08 based simply on the fact that there is a much better selection of .284 projectiles especially with good BCs than .277 or .257. But all will do a good job killing deer.

 

[Dr T]

IF you are sensitive to the 270 with 130's, I think you should go with the 25-06 (if only because you can't find a 257 Roberts or 250 Savage...).

 

[Garandimal]

Well...

For "deer woods?" Would rule out the .25-06.

While a great Western plains round, it's not what I would consider an ideal woods cartridge.

As for the 7mm-08? You can shoe-horn a long 160 gr. bullet into it, but it will be kinda pokey. That really leaves you with the 140-150 gr., which are very useful loads, but not anything special. A good woods/mountain cartridge.

The 150 gr. .270 WIN, on the other hand, is big enough to do what the heavy 7mm-08's will do with better Sectional Density, Ballistic Coefficients, and 100-200 fps more on the clock. So a moderate recoiling Plains/Woods cartridge. As for recoil, I went to the .270 WIN/150 gr. in a sporter rifle because its performance is similar to that of the .30-06/180 gr. I was shooting... and kickin' the hell out of me. The .270 WIN I can shoot accurately all day long.

So, IF:
- Recoil is the issue and you hunt the woods? 7mm-08.
- Recoil is not a big issue or you plan on improving your shooting field positions? .270 WIN.
- Recoil is the issue and you hunt the plains and woods? 6.5mm Swede/6.5 CM.




GR

 

[js8588]

6.5 Creedmoor. Specifically, this one https://www.mossberg.com/category/series/mossberg-patriot/mossberg-patriot-revere/

Of what you listed? Eh...7mm-08.

You already know you don't like 270.

25-06 is a nifty round, but ballistics suffer a bit from lack of readily available high bc bullets.

 

[Newtosavage]

As for the 7mm-08? You can shoe-horn a long 160 gr. bullet into it, but it will be kinda pokey.

Funny, since my 162 ELD-X's are my go-to bullet for my 7mm-08. My 168 Barnes are even "pokier"

Other than that, I agree with your summary.

 

[rbernie]

I don’t know much of anything in the thin skinned game class that can’t be dropped at any reasonable hunting range with a 115 grain to 120 grain .257 bullet. I also know that 75 grain to 90 grain .257 varmint bullets make excellent low recoil range fodder as well as bad medicine for coyotes and such.

If the 25-06 isn’t enough, then it’s time for a 30-06.

 

[Olympus]

Well I already have and love several 243 rifles and my reloads with 95gr SST bullets are simply devastating on deer. I was just looking for something with a bit more punch, but not factory 270 load kinda punch. Everything I’ve read about the 7mm08 is that inside 300 yards, there’s no difference between it and the 270 and recoil is almost the same when shooting similar weight bullets. Don’t know if that’s true, but has me leaning more toward the 25-06.

Even if I did get a 270 or 7mm08, I definitely wouldn’t be shooting any bullets over 130gr for the foreseeable future.

 

[jmr40]

The 25-06 simply has zero options for modern bullets With modern high BC bullets your 243 surpasses 25-06 performance at about 200 yards and isn't far behind at closer ranges. The 270 isn't much better. Both will work, that isn't in doubt, but there are better options today that work better. If I had a 25-06 or 270 and liked it then I can understand not wanting to change. But if buying new I'd pass on either in 2018. Modern bullets are game changers and neither the 25-06 or 270 are designed to work with them.

Of your options 7-08 would be the clear winner for me. But the 6.5 CM is a contender for sure and would be my personal pick. The 6.5 will shoot 140 gr bullets to about the same speed as a 7-08 will shoot 160's. The SD's and BC's are almost identical and out to 600ish yards so is trajectory. They both give virtually identical penetration on game. But the 6.5 does it with about 20-25% less recoil and beyond 600 yards has the advantage.

If you are recoil shy, and want to shoot 130 or lighter bullets then 6.5 CM is your answer. It shoots 130's about 200 fps slower at the muzzle than 270 with recoil virtually the same as 243. But the much more aerodynamic 6.5mm bullets will almost catch up to the 270 bullets at about the 200 yard mark. No game animal will ever know the difference between a 6.5/130 and a 6.8/130 bullet hitting within 50-100 fps of the same speed.

 

[rbernie]

The 25-06 simply has zero options for modern bullets

Tell that to Hornady or Berger - both make respectable ELD/VLD hunting bullets. I’ve done the trajectory maps, and the difference between a 6.5 and a 257 ELD inside of 300 yards isn’t worth arguing about.

If you’re looking to reduce recoil, being able to go all the way down to 75 grains and still have a reasonable trajectory inside of 300 yards is not a bad capability, and one that the 6.5 cannot duplicate. The 243 can, but most 243 rifles are going to need a faster twist barrel than they shipped with to shoot the 120 grain and heavier bullets (and do it more slowly than the 25–06).

In my opinion, the 25–06 is a very good bridge between the 22cal varmint guns and the ‘30cal and up’ bigger game guns if the objective is hunting and not simply ringing steel at range.

 

[Olympus]

I was gonna say, I see plenty of premium options like Barnes TTSX, Hornady GMX, Nosler Accubond and venerable Nosler Partition in .257 diameter.

 

[WestKentucky]

20 years ago I was a teenager looking to buy my first deer rifle. I still have that 700bdl in .270win, and I love the rifle.

BUT

If I were buying a new rifle today I would be all over a 7-08. It’s one of those trade offs similar to a .270 that make it so great. Its lighter bullet weight typically means lighter recoil and faster bullet. This is a great combination, but like most good things it’s easy to go too far. So with long actions you start essentially everything with a comparison to 30-06. Drop down to .277 bore and you get a slightly lighter bullet with better aero profile and you gain some speed. Drop again to 25-06 and your on the verge of going too far. In short actions you start at .308 and move around. .308 is nice but you drop to 7mm and you haven’t lost hardly anything at all except a few grains of bullet weight. You gain velocity and are shooting a more aerodynamic bullet. Drop again to...wait where’d they go... the next real drop is way down to .243. A 25cal or a .277 would be nice but they never caught on enough to say they did.

If I were buying today I would be looking at bullet availability and brass supply. .308 is still a NATO round and with that you have a cheap supply of brass for your rifle if it’s a .308 based round. Of the .308 family I would be looking real hard at the 6.5mm and 7mm options. I think I would skip the .277 bore though because there aren’t as many nice bullets and there are no military surplus bullets to shoot in the off season. 7-08 ultimately gets the nod.

 

[Newtosavage]

Well I already have and love several 243 rifles and my reloads with 95gr SST bullets are simply devastating on deer. I was just looking for something with a bit more punch, but not factory 270 load kinda punch. Everything I’ve read about the 7mm08 is that inside 300 yards, there’s no difference between it and the 270 and recoil is almost the same when shooting similar weight bullets. Don’t know if that’s true, but has me leaning more toward the 25-06.

Even if I did get a 270 or 7mm08, I definitely wouldn’t be shooting any bullets over 130gr for the foreseeable future.

120 Sierra Pro Hunters are devastating on whitetails from a 7mm-08. Ask me how I know.

 

[2ndtimer]

I voted .270 Win. You already have experience loading it. You can load it down if the recoil bothers you, and if you get used to the recoil, it can be loaded up to higher performance levels than your other options. It also has the option of very affordable factory ammo availability ( I just picked up 2 boxes of Federal Blue Box for less than $9 a box after rebate), that would work just fine for any whitetail or mule deer you could possibly encounter.

 

[d2wing]

I am real happy with my T3 Tikka in 7-08. Great accuracy, great terminal performance, low recoil and plenty of power and range. Plenty gun for deer out to a 1/4 mile with correct bullets and proper placement. I don't think beyond that is very ethical. At least for most mortal men. Also has a good selection of bullets for any purpose and reputation for accuracy that the others do not have. I think the 7MM has an advantage in terminal ballistics as well depending on bullet construction. But all are great well proven cartridges and have plenty of range and are all good for deer. For bigger game the 7 MM has an advantage.
You may want to look at recoil charts and compare velocities for the loads you are apt to use. I doubt the deer would know the difference. Whatever makes you happy. 7-08 in my opinion but none are wrong at any reasonable range.

 

[Random 8]

I voted 7-08 as .280 rem wasn't on the list. It is a very fine caliber for deer sized game. The other 2 will do fantastic work as well, I just feel the 7 does it a tad more efficiently in terms of meat for eating. You can push a .270 slow and heavy and do the same, but I feel the 270 with 130 gr and the .25-06 are a bit hard on the edible parts of a deer. Get the 7, and try running a 145 speer at 7x57 speeds. Mild as a kitten. That's what I do with my .280 unless I'm overlooking some open country, then I hop it up to max and eat some recoil.

 

[BigBore44]

A couple things I don’t understand....

1. If the OP states his 243 is devastating on deer, why change? Dead is dead. If he just wants something new to play with, then I can’t fault him for that.

2. When did the 270 become so harsh on the shoulder? I must have skipped recoil school that day.

3. How many times have any of us shot at an animal and the first thing we thought after we pulled the trigger was “Dang my shoulder hurts”? I’ve NEVER thought that. Not one time. Get a good recoil pad if it’s that big of a concern.

4. What is the ratio for one shot kills to follow up shots? Long vs Short action today is pretty much null. Make your first shot count and it doesn’t matter. Screw up your first shot, you’re likely to screw up the hurried second one.

5. Isn’t proper bulletin selection more important than cartridge when we compare these rounds? Use a well constructed bullet and a round that’s good at 400 yards is going to be good at 100.

6. Aren’t we talking about killing deer? Like thin skinned Bambi that needs about 8” of penetration to obliterate the heart and exit the other side?

OP, go shoot the 7-08 and 25-06 and just choose. You won’t go wrong.

My nod goes to the 25-06 only to double as a truck gun when out looking for yotes.