John,

The humble .308win is used reliably out to 1000m by the tactical crowd and even at that distance, i am sure it has a enough steam left to deal with a small bodied Coues deer.

Truth is, distance shouldn't really be too big a factor in this choice. With high BC bullets, both the .270win and the 300win mag are more than capable of reaching out to 800yards.

The problem at extended ranges is estimating the wind, and you can't "buy" that type of experience, it only comes with practice.

Again, high BC bullets help and help considerably, but reading the wind is still very tricky..

Assuming both rifles are accurate enough,unless you have a suitable scope already, and I'd look at getting a decent scope with turrets and a mil dot reticle of some sort to match, preferably one where the reticle is in the FFP, plus a range finder and a Kestral wind meter.

I would then set up steel gongs out to 800yards, and practice, practice, practice like crazy.

Take a note book and record all the conditions for each shot, ie wind strength direction, turret settings and the result, even (or especially) for misses. That record will be an invaluable learning tool as you progress.

Best of luck,

Peter

Last edited by Pete E; 06/26/12.

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