.270 Win enough for...opinions & recommedations

[kmrcstintn]

a little background...started out with a used Win M70 Black Shadow in .270 Win; added a Sightron SII 3-12 x 42 scope; ?stock too long or scope too far forward?; wanted to eventually have a custom stock made---met half way and had a Bell & Carlson ploymer thumbhole stock bedded, floated, and fitted to rifle; just need to move scope back with new extension bases (the scope has an unforgiving eye relief...didn't know that before I bought it)

basically...this has become a $1000 + project so I want to get the most out of it...

now my ??? .270 Win enough for PA whitetail deer, PA black bear, larger deer like Red Stag, elk, and moose...

what loads for which application to get best combo of penetration & expansion...thank you

 

[Grumulkin]

Jack O'Connor would be proud of you. All of the animals you mentioned have been taken with lesser cartridges than the 270 Win. so your gun should be sufficient for all. For the uses you mentioned, I'd probably go for 140 to 150 grain Barnes TSX bullets.

Rather than work up loads with the expensive Barnes bullets, I work them up with Sierra Matchkings or Remington Core-Lokts. At least in the cartridges I've done this with, the pressures generated with a given charge of powder are simlar.

 

[aubie515]

The 270 is plenty of power for any hunting you will do in PA. I've taken deer with the 243 using a 100 gr bullet. My personal preference would be to go with Hornady products. Their interbond or SST bullets would do the trick.

 

[koja48]

Jack O'Connor would be proud of you.

Amen. 'Nuff said . . .

 

[DogBonz]

.270 Win enough for...

Every thing on this continent except big bears...

 

[eliphalet]

I'd recommend a 130 grain bullet and proper shot placement with a 270, thats what I shoot in mine. You can hunt with confidence any of the game you mentioned. I will probably get jumped here for "not a heavy enough bullet" which is their opinion, well I have shot several dozen such animals with a 150 grain bullet in 30 caliber. If shots are placed as they should be 130 is plenty, and 20 grains less will make no noticeable difference.

 

[obxned]

If you hit them properly, it is one damned fine cartridge!

 

[koja48]

My former father-in-law harvested 35 elk in 35 years with 130 grainers out of his .270 . . . never lost a one & damn few took more than a few steps. The man could both hunt & shoot, however.

 

[MDHunter]

It's Enough If You Shoot it Well

Just fine with 130 grains for deer and stag - I'd use 168 grain bullets for bear, elk, and moose. You want the heavier bullet for deeper penetration through much tougher animals! Until you've seen a moose on the ground, it's hard to realize they're like 5-6 deer rolled up into one.

Michael

 

[Pumpkinheaver]

A good 150 gr bullet will take any of the game mentioned. If I where using it on deer sized game only then I would use a 130gr bullet.

 

[uk roe hunter]

the .270 is a proven game getter. The 130 gr bullet combination is a classic. You were recomended the barnes in an earlier comment. I am affraid i would disagree unless you were going for really big stuff. They have more limitted expansion so ok when you are shooting bigger stuff and you will need more penetration. In that case my choice might be a bear claw or Partition. for most other application i would go with a 130 or 150 grain psp like a speer hot core or a sierra gameking / prohunter. the 150 goes out at 2900 (according to my speer book) it has high sectional density. it would penetrate well and hit hard with a good bullet, and the bullets are cheaper.

uk-roe

 

[LeonCarr]

Use 150 Nosler Partitions in the .270 and never look back.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

 

[sumpnz]

roe-hunter - I'm not sure where you're getting your data on Barnes expansion, but they have video on their website showing a .30 cal bullet exiting a 2" thick piece of gelatine fully expanded. IIRC it was fired at a velocity intended to simulate a 500 yard impact from a .300 WinMag. They also showed holes in thin sheet aluminum of various bullet brands after exiting that 2" gel block and the Barnes had amoung (if not the highest) expansion compared to such bullets as Sierra Gameking, Nosler Partition and others.

 

[uk roe hunter]

I am going on some information i saw on the nosler website. It maybe that nosler showed the worst and barnes showed the best? I would like to see some gel block experiments using the popular bullets for comparison.

 

[sumpnz]

I'm usually wary of manufacturer claims of the superiority of their own product, but when they're willing to post video and still photo documentation it does omprove the credibility of the claims. Of course, it's still possible that they rigged the tests in favor of their own bullets, but the chances are reduced.

Bottom line is, from all I can tell Barnes has a bullet with the best combination of penetration and expansion.

 

[Charles S]

I have followed this thread with much interest. While I have not personally hunted the large bears I would not choose a 270 for that task. I however would be more than happy to use a properly loaded 270 for the rest of the game in North America.

I am a big fan of Barnes (if they will shoot - some guns just don't like them), on the other hand with the velocities, energies, and sectional densities of most 270 loads Barnes are not necessary for any but the largest of game you will hunt in North America. Barnes bullets are great bullets with great performance, but IMHO the 270 can take most game without resorting to super premium bullets. There is nothing wrong with the choice if that is what you like.

I know that the Nosler Ballistic Tip has gone through several evolutions, I must say that I was less than pleased with the original Nosler Ballistic Tip's performance on game. I have not tried them recently.

 

[kmrcstintn]

thanks all...I don't plan on tromping into brown bear/grizzly bear country; there is a large game preserve in my state that imports some larger animals like red stag deer that might be a probable consideration for me in the future; the only bears that I would see on the preserve would be PA black bear and PA has a set season for bears; the only animals larger than the red stag might be bison; i don't have a desire to shoot buffalo/bison

 

[Sunray]

"...this has become a..." It's kind of like remodelling your house. You run into a lot of "might as wells". If you're changing the stock you might as well glass bed it too. Since you've got the stock off, you might as well do the trigger job it needs.
"...scope has an unforgiving eye relief..." Most of 'em do. Usually 3", but if it's not mounted correctly, you'll lose the proper sight picture.
Your .270 might be a bit light for buffalo, but it'll kill everything else with no fuss.
"...don't have a desire to..." Lots of tasty meat on a buffalo. You can buy some in specialty butcher shops. Very, very lean. You'll get a great big hide that makes fabulous leather too.