Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Factory 270 Recomendations

I just had a Hart barrel installed on a stainless Win. Model 70. I would like to hear any recomendations for accurate factory bullets for use on deer sized game.

Thanks,

Hunt2

When I had a .270 Model 70 I only ever shot 4 boxes of factory ammo.

They were the cheapest I could find, all 130gr and all very good in the accuracy department. I started reloading after that.

Federal Premium probably has the widest selection of loads with premium bullets in every caliber.

In .270 Win, there is a large number of factory loads that will perform well on deer. Any of the factory offerings in 130 to 150 grain bullets will do fine on deer. I mostly handload, but have used quite a few factory rounds from time to time in the .270 Win. A good place to start would be Hornaday's Custom line or Light Magnum line with any of the bullet weights (130-140-150) that they offer. In general, I have found the Custom line to shoot better than the Light Magnum line, but your findings might differ.

I have often found the cheaper factory offerings, such as Remington Express, Winchester Power Points and Federal Classics to outshoot the premium stuff and perform just fine on deer. If you were including larger animals in the mix, I would look at one of the premium offerings with Nosler Partitions, Barnes TSX or Trophy Bonded.

My guess is that if you bought 3 or 4 different types to try, you would find one (and probably all) that your Hart barrel likes. Good luck.

AEL

I would second the reccomendation of Federal Premiums. In particular I would try the Nosler Accubond loads. I had a 7 WSM that would shoot the 160gr Accubonds as fast and as Accurate as any handload I tried.
I also had luck with Winchester Silvertips in a 280 Remington, though I would prefer the Accubond for terminal performance the Silvertips will be just fine for deer Heart/lung shots............DJ

If you've gone to the trouble of twisting on a premuim tube, why not feed it with good handloads? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

badger

I like to experiment so I bought ~ 16 different types of factory ammo to try in my 270. After all that testing, I ended up with Rem 130 gr CL!! Not very sexy but they shoot..... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> I still have partial boxes for most of those so if you're looking to experiment yourself, let me know and I'll make ya a deal on the lot.

The 270Win and 130gr X/TSX is as good as it gets on deer.
A buddy of mine has killed deer out to 350yds and he claims
the bullet drop is minimal.His Remington likes the X alot!
I personally walked 280 paces to a fox that he shot.He said
that he "just put it on him" and the rest is history.

Nebraska,

I have found the same thing. Remington Core-Lokt bullets are as good as any of the Premium stuff I have used. Moreover, they give better than published velocity. With 150 7MM Rem Mag Core-Lokt, I get exceptional accuracy, a bullet that is well constructed, and better than 3200 FPS. With 150 grain Core-Lokts .308 Win I get the same with better than 2900 FPS. Whatta deal, they are premium bullets at bargain prices!


Good huntin',

Leon

I agree on the Rem and Hornady ammo, that is my choice. Consistent accuracy with good bullet selection.

Tried Federal and even a Winchester or two in .257 Rob, .270, .243, .25-06, 45/70, and 7mm-08, no where near the consistent results compared to Rem core-lokts and Hornady anything.

Very good results with the Georgia Arms loads in all the above cals.

Thanks for the helpful information. I will try 1 box of either the Hornady or Remington 130 gr for my "cheap" bullet.

I would also like to try a premium. Does anyone have any experience with the Federal Accubond or TSX loads?

Hunt2

My Ed Brown Damara in .270 loves the Federal Factory 140 grain accubond, and didn't like to TSX at all. I have one rifle that prints tiny groups with the Federal 130 gr Ballistic tips
Don

My advice would be similar to badgers--use handloads to get the full benefit of the custom barrel.

What I might do is go buy 5 boxes of cheap factory ammo of the same brand and lot number. I would shoot those up as sighting in/practice ammo over the summer. Then I would find a handloading friend and have him/her build you a handload that met your velocity/accuracy/bullet performance (realistic) goals. I did this for a non-handloading friend and his 243, and he shot my 100 handloads for several years. Another approach would be to buy 100 new brass and go from there. The economics can pencil out best if you are interested in using premium bullets--factory loads with high end bullets can get quite pricy.

But if handloading is not an option...
you will often find that cheap ammunition can shoot as accurately has some of the premium stuff (the simplest bullet constructions are often the most accurate). Regular bullets are typically more than adequate for most deer hunting, despite what rifle loonies like those on the site (myself among them) sometimes say and do. And several articles in recent years have concluded that it can be hard to beat factory ammunition with handloads (although the ability to create exactly the performance profile you want is still higher with handloads). Certainly the performance gap that existed in the 1960's and 70's has closed considerably. If you try several different brands of factory ammunition, you should be able to find something that will give better than 1" at 100 yds. But once you do, I suggest you go buy several boxes of the same lot number. In factory ammunition, they can change bullet shape, powder type and amount, and then you are back to square one.

I've also had good luck with the Hornady Custom stuff, 140-gr. InterLocks, to be exact. Rifle was a CRF Model 70 Classic Sporter.

RSY

No use spending money on premium stuff until you have broken in the barrel with 130-gr CoreLokts and PowerPoints.

By that time, you may have found that you don't need to look any further.

I suggest trying some 150-gr Round Nose CoreLokts.
Surprising accuracy, shoot right with the 130s out to 200 yards, and hit hard.

The old Remington 140 BTSP Extended Range was a super round. Glad I stocked up on 10 boxes at $6.00 when they discontinued them. For me, they shoot right in line vertically with the 130s, 1 inch higher at 100 yards, adding 75 yards range instead of holding over.

The new Accutip replaced it, and is supposed to shoot just as flat and even more accurately. It's a 140-gr SST.

The Extended Range line was gone long (years) before the arrival of the AccuTip. The AccuTip/SST actually replaced the Ballistic Tip in their line after Remington and Nosler decided to go their separate ways.

RSY

I never saw a Ballistic Tip on a Remington cartridge.
The Extended Range was hotter, like a Light Magnum. Mine shoot over 3,000 fps out of a 24-inch barrel.

I have not tried the Accutip load and I don't know if it is as fast as the old ER, but it high BC should make it float on out there.

I shoot mostly handloads in my 270, but for some deer hunting, the Remington Managed Recoil loads are worth considering. They are accurate in my rifle, have plenty of power for 200 yd deer, and gentle to shoot.

Other than that, I'd try the accubonds in the Fed premium, or the old standby, Remington Core-Lokt. You're shooting deer, which don't really require the premium bullets, but the accubond may have the same accuracy potential as the Ballistic Tip without the excessive expansion.

Lee:

The Extended Range line was introduced in 1991. Man, that sounds like a long time ago. As good as it was in both concept and execution, it didn't last through the '90s, IIRC.

Until a couple of years ago, Remington loaded both Ballistic Tips and Partitions, until suddenly everything Nosler disappeared from their catalog. With the Partitions, my guess is they decided they were redundant, in light of the Swift A-Frames in their Safari line.

The AccuTip (SST in disguise) is just another sign of their close relationship with Hornady. Good word on the street is that Hornady has been manufacturing the Core-Lokts for them for a number of years, now.

RSY

Any .270 factory load greater than 130 gr will be top notch for deer. I haven't tried them in a while, but used to get outstanding accuracy out of the Federal Premium 150 gr Sierra BTSP and they were devastating on whitetails. The 140 gr bstp light mag load from Hornady is wicked on the terminal side and is probably my favorite factory load. The most consistenly accurate hunting bullet I have tried is the 150 Hornady spire-point. I have not tried the factory loads, only handloads, but don't see why that should make a difference, so is worth a look as well. If you prefer 130s, the Winchester Ballistic SilverTip load tends to be very accurate. If you want to go non-premium, I would start with the 130 gr Remington CL.

-Lou