Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game .270win ammo

Hi everyone, just bought a marlin xl7 in .270win, to complement my 30-06 as a milder and longer range caliber. Love the rifle in camo with the accu-trigger, and so far I've broke in the barrel and sighted in 2.5" @ 100yds.
Used some cheaper 130gr. power points and averaged under 1"
at the bench, this rifle is amazing so far, now I'm trying to
decide on one bullet and weight for all shooting from varmints
to deer and occasional in a pinch elk and moose, though we
would use the 30-06 with 180gr. partitions.
I want to stick with 130's and realize if I was using the 270 as my only gun, would probably have 150's for elk and moose, but that would defeat the purpose of achieving the flattest round and having 2 rifles.
I was considering the 130gr partition for all hunting, as they
open up well and still hold together in that untimely heavy bone shot, but at $50.00 per box, looking for something at
half the price in addition to the normal soft points.
Read some good field reviews with the fusion, and would like
to hear some actual hunting/tests on expansion vs penetration
for deer and possible bigger beasts?

sounds like you're shooting factory ammo ?

I like 140s in the .270 (TSX) -- which I'm pretty sure you can get in factory form.

FWIW, I've killed elk with the 130 Hornady no problemo.

I'd still prefer the TSX to the NP, but both at 130gr will work all around.

Yeah, I stopped reloading about 5 years ago only due to the
amount I shoot each year, not worth the investment.
Use to shoot 165gr interlock's in my 06 and are accurate and
perform well on broadside shoots, just trying to find somewhere
between standard cup and premium. Heard that the fusions could
be the ticket, but need to hear some results first.
May still go with 130 partitions even with the cost since once
I sight in, I won't be wasting rounds unless I'm hunting or
re-sighting each year.

I have been shooting the 140 grain fusion out of my 7mm-08 and they have done very well. Have not recovered any. Using them for whitetail. Very accurate out of my tikka.

I used a 270 for almost 30 years. After years of messing around reloading everything on the shelf, I settled on 150 gr Speer Hot Cores. The 270 will shoot almost to the same point with 130's or 150's. Very few calibers will do that. I'm told it has something to do with the BC and weight balance. That being the case, I went with the heavier bullets for elk and just used them for everything with great success. I killed plenty of large critters with both Partitions and Hot Cores and really couldn't tell much difference.

What's wrong with the Power Points?

Cheap, kills stuff and seems to like your rifle.
You don't need premium to kill deer with the .270 and the last elk I shot with a rifle fell to my .270 with green box 150 Core Loks.

Just sayin....

My dad guided hunters in the 1940's and never had any use for the .270. Every elk shot with the .270, he would have to track down and kill with his 30-06.

I grew up using the 30-06 with no use for the worthless .270. When I started looking at buying some pre-64 model 70 Winchesters, I decided the classic rifle would be a late 40's, low combed model 70 in a .270.

I got some 130 grain Winchester Supreme ammunition and went shooting. They shot well and then I went hunting. I found the 130 grain Nosler Ballistic Silvertip to be the right combination in the .270.

What once was a worthless cartridge before I shot it, has now become my favorite deer/antelope cartridge. The Noslet Ballistic Silvertip is a great bullet, shoots well and kills reliably.

This is what happens to a heart when shot with this bullet. I never saw a reason to shoot any game animal in the shoulder, so why have a partition or bonded bullet to shoot the chest cavity?

My Tikka T3 in 270 Winchester is now my favorite hunting rig.

It shoots most loads well but really likes 130 gr Nosler eTips, took a CA mule deer with it this year and the bullet worked great.

The 130gr Rem Core-Lokt and Fed Power-Shok are both cheap and both shoot very well in my 270s. They're great for deer and make plinking a much more affordable option.

wow...never dreamed the 270 winchester could be so efficient...thought one had to have a magnum!!!

130gr Win Power Points

colonelkeen;
Welcome to the Fire from southern BC.

I've been helping a couple friends load for their .270's for the last while, I suppose one now for a couple decades and one about a decade.

They've had great success with Hornady's 140gr. BTSP on local whitetail and mule deer as well as black bears. I believe that bullet is available in loaded ammunition from Hornady as well.

Sometime back I had a .270 barrel installed on a 98 action and started to play with the cartridge myself. As we've been having fine results from the Barnes TSX/TTSX line, I shot one whitetail deer with a 140gr. TSX and was impressed enough with the results that one of the above mentioned friends is now loading them in his .270 as well and has taken one mule deer with them so far.

This year to try something new, I gave Hornady's monolithic offering, the GMX a try. I'm shooting 130gr. GMX and although I've only tested them on one 2nd rack mule deer thus far, was sufficiently happy with the result that I'd have no qualms continuing to test them and carried - and continue to carry- that rifle with confidence during our moose season.

If you are interested, I do have a graphic photo of the entry hole on the left scapula of the mule deer. The bullet then broke 2 ribs, traversed the lungs, broke 2 more ribs and exited with a hole about 1�".

Anyway, hopefully that was some use to you. Good luck on your upcoming hunts.

Regards,
Dwayne

My wife uses a 270 and 130's, and has never had a complaint from an elk. Straight on brisket shots have been found behind the liver, and side on shots have all made it through. She is quite picky about her shot placement though.

There are lots of good bullets out there for the 270,especially today.While I know I don't need it for deer-sized stuff, I continue to load the 130 gr Partition,and one reason I like it is that it takes the same load,and gives the same POI and trajectory,as the 130 gr Sierra.

So, I load the Sierra with 61-H4831 for sighting and practice,and the Partitions to hunt.I never know what might pop up for a hunt,and the flexibility of the Partition allows it to work back here for me at "woods" ranges,as well as more open country in the West. I might not need it, but it works really well in both places and kills large bucks very nicely,and frequently without chewing them up badly on shoulder hits,etc..

I like your choice of gun.

I have shot the 130 Fusions for a couple years now on deer and pigs. They work great. Best shot was a complete pass through on two pigs. Very accurate.
Read several reviews. They worked great on plains game in Africa up to a size limit. I would hesitate to run them on moose and elk based on that review.
Blue Box Federals are very accurate and lethal in my .243's for deer/hogs, but never tried them in the .270.

stumpy

The Power points sound like they are working fine for you. If you want something a little tougher try the Winchester PowerMax Bonded they are really tough and shot well for me last season.

The .270 has been my To go rifle for longer than I want to admit.I have tried about every available ammunition there is along with reloading..

The very best store bought ammunition I have used was Federals 140 grain Trophy Bonded..Good stuff..The very worst I have tried was Winchesters 140 grain Fail Safe...

My favorite is the 130 grain Nosler Partition..Works dandy for Deer and does a great job on Elk...

Jayco

130 grain Federal Fusions and Sierra Game Kings usually group well and work on deer. But the Federal Power Shock (blue box) shells are very accurate and more affordable than most. They also work well on deer and the like.

For bigger elk or larger critters, I'd recommend Nosler Partition or Barnes triple shocks.

For what it's worth, you'll probably be hard pressed to see much, if any, difference in killing power between a 150 grain Nosler Partition from a .270 and a 180 grain Partition from a 30-06. And the 270's trajectory with 130 grain bullets isn't a lot better than the 30-06 with 150's. The 270 and '06 are peas in a pod.

Remington Core-Lokt always worked well in my .270.

There are so many good 270Win. bullets it's hard to go wrong. When a bullet maker sells a .30 cal. bullet it might get used in a 300 Savage or one of the 300 super mags.and bullet makers must construct bullets with that in mind. The 270 is different, almost all bullets will be used in the standard Winchester version. Still I hedge my bet by using the Nos. Partition and I've never been sorry. I'll let my rifle decide what weight Partition I use. Right now I have custom job that really likes the 150gr., so that's what I feed her. Like Bob, I also use the 150gr. Sierra as a cheaper companion load for targets and general practice.