Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 270 WSM vs 300 WSM

I got interested in the 300 WSM a couple years ago and have since owned a couple. I really like them, more so than my other .30 cals.

I'm thinking about giving the 270 WSM a try but am curious what peoples thoughts are, particularly those that have experience with both, as to whether there is much of a difference especially in recoil. The intended use for the 270 WSM would be deer and antelope, where the 300 WSM is for larger game, and the purpose of using the 270 WSM instead would be for something with lighter recoil.

I have a spare action that I could rebarrel to 270 WSM but before I drop a bunch of money into it... want to get a feel for whether the difference is worth it or if the difference is negligible.

I started with a 30-06 back in the 1970's because the guy who owned the hardware store where I bought the rifle said it was the best cartridge. It's hard to go wrong with my choice, but as I've gotten older I've discovered that there are other very good choices including 270. But I could never justify both a 30-06 AND a 270. They are just too close in performance and the difference between 300 WSM and 270 WSM is about the same.

I have and like the 300WSM.I personally would rather go with a 7WSM over the 270WSM,better bullet selection.

I have both, both Rem 700’s. They are both great! I load 140’s in the 270 and 150’s in the 300. I don’t think either one has much recoil. No more than a 7 mag. If I had to pick one, I’d pick the 270 WSM, with a good bullet it will kill anything in North America. I personally like a 7 mag better than either one of them.

For deer & antelope I’d drop down to the 7mm-08 or so, plenty for both. If smaller ‘Southern’ deer, the 6.5 Swede or Creedmore would be fine too, as would the 243.

He cant justify it but I can. I have the 270, 30-06, and 7mm mag. And my eyes are open for the right .300 Win.

How big (field dressed) is 4.5 + year old buck up there ? Just curious ....

Do it of that's what you're interested in. Who cares if there's overlap. Ive got so much overlap in my arsenal it's stupid. If it were me I'd probably look at the 6.5 PRC instead though.

I've had all WSM's but the 325 WSM at one time or another. I still have 2 -300 WSMs and a 270 WSM. I am not a .270 Win fan, but I like my .270 WSM over the 300 WSM. I can usually find 300 and 270 WSM ammo at any store here in SC AK, but I can't say the same thing about 7mm WSM.

How big (field dressed) is 4.5 + year old buck up there ? Just curious ....[/quote]


I have hunted MS & GA when I lived down South. Now it’s mostly QDM property in IL or public land in MI. In Illinois the majority of the bucks we shoot weigh right near #200 lbs(or more) dressed at the processor, no guessing. In my experience, the average deer down south averages a fair bit lighter.

Not trying to fuss over deer weight, I’ve gravitated to lighter recoiling rifles over the years.

I have a 270 WSM M70 in an edge stock a friend has a 300 WSM in a T3 light. The 300 is unpleasant to me and my friend eventually put a brake on it making kick less but more unpleasant to shoot. The M70 is a few ounces over 7Lbs say 7.5 all up with full magazine and I hardly notice the recoil with 140 grain bullets, with 110s it feels about like or just slightly more than a 25-06 or no significant recoil. I would say the 270 WSM would be a good pairing with the 300. The overlap is a good thing to me for a back up or pair of rifles. I am sure stock fit as well as weight played a part in the perceived recoil of the 300 WSM but I have no issues with a heavier 300 WM.

Your 270 WSM set up is similar to what mine will look like. My 300 WSM is a M70 action in a bansner stock and I'd do the same with the 270 WSM. I don't mind the overlap at all... but I've read other reports that the recoil on the 270 WSM is equal to the 300 WSM. It's not terrible but if it's the same or close to it, I don't want to spend the money on building a rifle. Based on what I'm hearing from you and others, the difference is enough. I think I'll go for it.

Case capacities are similar so your recoil reduction will primarily come from running lighter bullets. Good thing about rebarreling your action is you can spin the twist a lil faster than 1:10.

Yeah, I guess that's what I'm driving at. Case capacity being equal, is there that much of a difference in recoil with lighter bullets. I'd probably go with 130 grainers in the 270 WSM... maybe 140. At a minimum I use 180 Sierra GMKs out of my 300 WSM.

Rifle recoil is the result of the conservation of momentum, momentum is the product of velocity and mass. A 180gr bullet at 3,000 fps carries about 20% more momentum than a 140gr bullet at 3,200 fps, even using the same powder charge, the .300 is going to have significantly more recoil.

I thought my .270 WSM had pretty reasonable recoil given the velocity, very loud but not too punishing at the bench. The recoil of my 140gr load at 3,200 fps struck me as similar or sightly less than full power 180gr .30-06 handloads, and the calculators back that up.

I've had a couple of each. Last one was a Kimber Montana in 300 WSM that I killed several nice elk with. Usually shot 165 Barnes Triple Shocks in it. Also had a Kimber Classic (wood) 270 WSM that I shot 130 Triple Shocks or 150 Partitions in. I like the 270 WSM with the 130 Barnes Triple Shocks the best and have killed several nice mule deer and tipped over a 340 bull quartering toward me at 150 yards using that load.

I like the 270WSM

+1

the 270 WSM is a great round, best of the WSM’s in my opinion!

Two thoughts: don't go too short on the barrel or too slow on the twist rate. There are more and more high BC .277 bullets each season and the EOL 170s might be interesting for killing rocks way out there. I also think a recessed 11 degree target crown helps direct noise away from the shooter. Hammer bullets has some interesting 270 bullets that require a faster twist too.

My only reservations on the 270 WSM is the noise level and it doesn't feed quite as smoothly as the 270 Win. But I have never had an issue with feeding.

I like mine just fine but if I wanted another fast 270 I might go Weatherby or Nosler. But with 7 & 300 Magnums I will probably go the other direction to smaller cartridges instead.

Hard to find fault with near 270 Wby ballistics in a 3-inch action.