I have very good white tail hunting right out my back door, but for the most part it is close range shooting inside 100 yards. I am looking for some reduced load recipes for the .270 and '06 that better suit these conditions. I have cup and core .270 bullets in 130 and 150 grains, and 150 - 165s for the ought-six. All replies are appreciated.

You'll get several answers on this but you are well armed for the task at hand. Use those cup & cores in your 270 with great confidence. Placement, placement, placement.
My first 270 was a custom job on an FN Mauser action, 26" medium heavy barrel and a very fancy piece of Myrtle wood, topped with a 3X9 Refield. Only problem was, I was in Idaho'l Selway country. I was 23 years old & backpacking, I had a heavy pack on, a model 29 smith under my left arm & the heavy 270 slung over my pack.
When I got into the elk it was a huge bull & I popped him at the long range distance of 40 yds! My little featherweight 358 would have been a better fit for the country I was in.

Dick

i have shot the 140gr nosler accubond with good success in the 270. All the deer i have shot either drt or bled good with the one running about 100yrds max.

the 30 06 i have shot the 165 gr nosler bt with good success. some may tell you that the bt is not a good woods bullet but i have hunted with the in most all my guns for many years and never had a problem with them. i dont have load data with me now but if interested pm me and ill get them for you

I used H335 (43 grains I THINK) and Hornady 150 spires points in my son's 30-06 to roughly duplicate the 300 Savage. That was a step up from the load with Reloder 7 that duplicated the 30-30.

In the 270, I just run the same load no matter where I am. 130 grain bullet and 60 grains of H4831SC. I ran 53 grains of IMR 4350 for a long time, it's not full speed but gave great accuracy.

Dale

For all critters near and far I like a full house load of Reloder-22 and a 150 Partition. Ain't hunted an '06 in 20 years but 180's are king.

Woods load?

.270 H4381 59 grns under 130 grain Accubond
30-06 I4350 58 grns under 150 grain Accubond

For every thing I hunt.....Missouri to Colorado

I use reduced loads for practice in the '06 all of the time.
My "under study" load for my 760 which is sighted in for 220 gr. NP's is a 180 gr. RN Hornady at about 2400-2500 fps with either 43 grs. of H4895 or 41-43 grs. of Ramshot TAC and federal cases. The H4895 load shoots one inch left of my mauser's elk load with 200 gr. NP's at 2684 fps.
Accuracy runs about .9 w/ the H4895 load and down to .76 w/ 41 grs. of TAC. Both loads kick alot less.
I'd bet real money these loads, which duplicate the old .300 Savage loads, will work fine. E

All of them will work for deer.

I like the 165gr in the 30-06, though it's overkill.

For the 270 - 49 grs - IMR 4064 130 HSP @ 2900 fps, personally proven.


For the 06 - 52, 52.5 grs IMR 4064 150 HSP @ 2850 fps, personally proven.

I used both these loads EARLY in my loading career, TILL I read Mr. Hagel

edited to add:

As always work up, don't ASSUME. There might be something different.
Jerry

I hunt in Maine and my longest shot on the last 10 deer I shot was 75 yards with most around 35-50 yards. I use regular old Federal Blue Box Powershok 150's. They work outstanding out of my '06 and every deer I shot with them went down at the shot. That is using a high shoulder shot whenever they give it to me. I also shot a few using a 165gr Speer Grand Slam but couldn't see spending the extra money, dead is dead.

Eremicus thanks for this. Just what I am looking for. Mild loads that will do the thing inside 200 yards. I know I can use full loads, but for my shooting, unnecessary. Anyone have a similar 2500-2600 fps load for the .270, 130-150s?

Most of my home deer are going to be yearling bucks and does weighing 80-150 pounds. Most of my stands are fifty yards or less and I use handguns, muzzleloaders or .22 centerfires. I have one field stand where a 100 yard shot is possible and two where I might stretch to 200 yards. Since 1982 I have used the .257 Roberts with excellent results, but on occasion want to break some other rifles out of the safe. The .30-06 load should be great out of my Winchester 1895 Carbine (if it shoots), and I need a 200 yard load for a model 70. Think of a training load for kids or ladies.

Sorry to the OP for going off topic. I too have been playing with a new 06 this spring and summer and those Federal blue box loads are amazingly accurate in it. I haven't found a 180 load that it likes 1/2 as much.

What brand of bullets do you have?

for the 06,buy some 30-30 bullets and load them up to 200fps over what 30-30 velocity would be.

150 grain Corelocts and 130 BTs for the 270. For the .30, 150,165 H spire points, plus Sierra 170 FP, 180 and 220 RN.

Another vote for the 150gr core-lokt. (.270)

My old 130 gr Speer SP Bullet over 57.5 gr of IMR-4831 for the 270. Shoot them in the lungs or a neck shot. Bullet expands well, its cheap plenty accurate. I used this load for deer control on tree farms back in the 1980's and 1990's. Works well. You could even back off a couple of grains if you want.

For the .270, try the starting load listed on the Hogden website and load down if you wish. If it isn't accurate enough for you, try a magnum primer.
I've loaded my .280 with IMR 3031 and the SRA 120 gr. bullet for about 2700 fps. and gotten groups under .5 MOA using magnum primers. Actually, you can use any powder faster than IMR 4350. E

I'm a big fan of 180 gr. Hornady's and Speers at 2700 fps from my 30-06. Destruction isn't out of hand and kills are quick. Plus those bullets penetrate very well. For my 270 I shot 43.0 grains of IMR 3031 under both 130 and 150 grain bullets at a lot of Texas Whitetails. The Hornady 130 gr. Spire point was my favorite bullet.

Seafire usually has all the reduces loads and the data to back them up. Maybe he will show up soon.

I like the 180 Horns for about everything in the 06. Wouldnt own a 270. Kill em all.

Joseph

My first two deer were shot at woods range with an '06. The first with a 180 gr. Speer and the 2nd was with a 150 gr. Speer. Both were well under 75 yards. Both were hit in roughly the same spot and went down immediately. The 180 didnt mess up much meat but scrambled the lung/heart area. The 150 on the other hand shot up a fair amount of meat. For that reason I would use a heavier bullet If mostly hunting at woods ranges. I would also load up with normal loads instead of reduced in case you got a longish shot you hadnt anticipated.

I guess with the newer bullets though, meat loss isn't really an issue...

Shoot 130 partitions at 3100 in the 270. Waste of time to have a reduced brush load. If you insist then use H 4895 or RL 15 and move them at about 2950. Sell or trade your cup and core bullets. In brush you can't be as selective re shots so need the penetration.

I am pretty demanding about bullet behavior. I almost insist on a hole in-hole out EVERY time.....from ANY angle.

Because of that I normally tend to choose bullets that are a bit heavy-for-caliber. With the .30-06 I never had a problem with factory level loads and 150 grain bullets. However, once I started handloading and stepped the velosity up a tad.....I ran into problems.

When impact velosities went over 3000 fps (with standard cup-and-core bullets) I had 4 of the first 5 shots fail to exit. Not that they actually "failed"....but didn't preform as I wanted. The solution was to go to 165 grain bullets. This gave just enough drop in velosity and heavier weight to shoot through-and-through....every time.

With the .270, I found this same "problem" occuring with most 130 grain bullets. Moving up to a 150 grain bullet solved the problem.

The "key" was going to a bit heavier bullet that dropped velosity to something below the 3000-3100 fps level. I'm not sure the heavier bullet was as important as the velosity level. It seems to me that normal cup-and-core bullets just don't do as well once impact velosity goes above 3000 fps.....so I would choose bullets a bit heavier.

165 grain bullets in the .30-06 and 150 in the .270 would be my choice. As someone else mentioned, in a "perfect" world anything will work, but things aren't always "perfect". When things aren't quite as you'd wish....penetration is king.

A good load for the 30-06 is the 170 gr. Hornady flat point 30-30 bullet over 47 gr. of R15. More than a 30-30 and less than a .308. The same load can be shot under 165 gr. bullets as well. Mild to shoot and accurate as well.

Jim

Jwall's exact loads works well for a hunting buddy who will have his casket lined with IMR 4064 when he dies.

Of the 30-some deer we've taken at camp over the past decade, most were taken with either a 150 grain Rem PSPCL or Hornady Interlock 165 grain over H4895 reduced 5% off max. That includes both 30-06 and 308 WIN loads. It has enough zing to flatten a deer at 175 yards-- my longest shot to date. However, it was gentle enough for a 9 year old to shoot out of a Garand.

Your situation is the best excuse I know for a new rifle......A Savage 99 in .300 Sav!!! You will get the performance you desire with all the killing power you will need. You get to look stylish in the bush and thoroughly enjoy your woods time toting a Ninety Nine!

The .300 Savage (or .308) with 150 grain loads is perfect for that bullet weight....and velosity. The "problem" with the .30-06 is that it CAN easily be driven too fast for normal cup-and-core bullets of 150 grains. A heavier bullet (and thus slightly lower velosity) or slightly less "agressive" chambering (.300 Savage or .308) ACCOMPLISH THE SAME GOAL.

ya don't need much velocity for a 100 yds... cast bullet loads substituting a jacketed bullet works well..

One can duplicate Remington's Managed Recoil Products with IMR 4198, H 4198 or Rl 7...Remington's powder of choice was IMR 4198...

in the 06, they use 36 grains of IMR 4198 and a 125 gr bullet....I load close to that for kids, using 30 to 35 grs of 4198, and a 150 gr ballistic tip or a 150 grain bullet for 30/30s.. a preferred one is a 150 grain FN from Speer or Hornady...

at lower velocities like this, you won't see meat damage..

in the 270 Remington is using a 115 gr bullet, meant for the 6.8 SPC.. again they are using IMR 4198...

good substitutes are Sierra's 110 gr SP, or a good old 130,140 or 150 grain Ballistic Tip can be used... if that is what is desired...

for IMR 4198 in the 270, try loads between 28 to 33 grains to find something you may like...

with both 4198s and RL 7, you should find accuracy across the board....H 4895 loads can be bullseye accuracy with one load and then change it one minor bit and you'll find it throwing them all over the place...

if you want consistency and want to use a 4895 speed powder, then substitute IMRs... it is a lot more consistent than H 4895...

I like either round nose bullets for these applications or Ballistic Tips.... both will open up well at slower speeds, yet will penetrate surprisingly deep...more than most folks expect...

I hunt woods ranges locally here, and an MV of about 2400 fps regardless of the caliber I am carrying, is more than adequate to get the job down, out to 250 yds..

and since 90% of all game is taken within 100 yds, and 95% within 200.. I really don't need much more than that..

I don't believe in foot lbs, I believe in matching the bullet and MV to the game and distance we are going to be taking it at...

I don't need a load capable of 500 yds if I am not shooting antelope in Wyoming or Montana..... while at the same time, you aren't going to find me hunting antelope with a 30/30 speed load...

I tried the reduced loads on 270 Win in a Weatherby ultra light with 20 bbl. Bullets were 130 gr Hornady interlock sp in front of 37 gr of IMR 4895 (2275fps) gave low recoil but very poor accuracy (6" @ 100 yds). The same rifle gave under 1" groups at 100 yds using 56 gr of IMR4350. The Weatherby wanted near max load for accuracy. In a Savage 110 the reduced load gave 2" grouping which would be very satisfactory for what you describe in your request.
I no longer load light rounds or keep reduced loads as it is too easy to mix rounds. Trajectory and point of impact varies too much.

My favorite load for the 270 is 130gr Speer Grand Slam, over 60gr of IMR 7828ssc, and a CCI 250 Primer.

55.0grs of IMR-4350 with 130gr bullets for the 270Win.
57.0grs of IMR-4350 with 165gr bullets for the 30-06.