Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 100 yr. .270 birthday- lots of .270 stories?

Well.... The experienced and well seasoned .270 Win is one year from it's 100 yr. date of introduction. Will we have one heck of a birthday celebration in all the media from magazines to the internet? In 2006 the 30-06 received a lot of attention. Will the .270 Win. receive a lot of attention and praise? I look forward to seeing if it happens. I also love the 06 as I do the .270.

Most of the 270 guys will be too busy to celebrate, likley trying to stack some more bucks and bulls onto their meatpoles

Post of the year. :-)

Yes. I agree. The .270 has been one of the great working rifles for 99 years. May it have another 101 years to reach age 200. Some of these new calibers will not be around in 10-20 years. The .270 will be here. Even the 7mm Rem Mag didn't bury it when it was all the rage back in the 60s-90s. Time will tell how all this plays out in the future. There are so many 30-06 & .270 rifles in homes across the nation, the gun makers need to kill off the two so they can sell other guns. Will .25 to .50 inch more accuracy make that much difference in the future? NO! We have returned to a nation of target shooters as we were 100 yrs ago. We've even reverted to long, heavy bullets as we were shooting 100 yrs ago. These new bullets have totally superior BC abilities. Hunting has become so expensive that I quit a few years ago.
We've back to where only the rich can afford to hunt.

It was brought out the same year my mom and dad were born. 1925 was a hell of a year. I plan on using the 270 for whatever hunts I go on next year.

I killed my first deer, elk, pronghorn, and bear with 270’s, and it’s very likely I’ll kill my last ones with a 270……

I no longer have one, & really don't rifle hunt much anymore anyway. BUT;

My first Mule Deer & Whitetail with a rifle was with a .270/130 Speer. No complaints from me.

Maybe, besides being the very best .270, it is also the very best 7mm. It is a 7 mm. . The .270 wcf.
Look it up.
It justs gets better and better.

My favorite .270 story took place in 1989, when Eileen drew a Montana bull moose tag the first time she applied--five years after she took her first big game animal.

She used the .257 Roberts on deer and antelope for several years , but eventually got a .270 because she wanted to hunt elk too. (She's taken elk with the .257 since then, quite handily, but....) She got a spike elk her first year with the .270, which died promptly, but when she drew the moose tag "everybody" said it wasn't enough.

She shot my .30-06, and didn't like the recoil, so stuck to the .270. On opening morning a medium-sized bull showed up at about 125 yards, quartering away. At the shot the bull took a step-and-a-half and folded. The bullet had entered the middle of the left ribs and ended up in the right shoulder. It's still the quickest-deadest I've seen a bull moose drop from a heart-lung shot....

[quote=beretzs]Most of the 270 guys will be too busy to celebrate, likley trying to stack some more bucks and bulls onto their meatpoles [/quote

Well stated Scotty!

I really like this story. This is telling the world the .270 is very capable. It is a 7mm. I learned this when I purchased my first Lee Collet Neck Sizing Dies in .270 many, many moons ago. I've never forgotten that .277 translates to 7.04mm in the metric system. This info was on the front page of the directions. After all these many decades I am still using that Lee set of dies. The 140gr Hornady boat tail bullet has given me 1/2 moa when I've cooperated with my rifle and done my part. The dies were purchased through my gun smith who died approx. four years ago. He was a very nice man who is very much missed by everyone who knew him.

honorary 7mm...

Just a week or two ago, a Finn Aagaard article was posted here so we could read about Finn's experiences with the .270. He told us a .277 bullet cannot freely be dropped through a .284(7mm)bore. Well, this just shows me how close the two are and almost identical except in the twist rates. With proper twist rates the .277 bullet can better, equal weighted bullets, the .284 bullets for SD and BC. It is tit for tat.

Had to think about a story as I have had so many good stories with the 270 between family, friends, and myself.

My favorite has to be unbeknownst to my Dad and I the day after 9/11. We were hunting the Mulchatna caribou herd in Alaska. Dad had filled one tag with his old Remington 760 Gamemaster pump topped with a Leupold Vari-X IIc, 4-12 AO scope.

We spotted a dandy bull and he lead us on a merry chase. I know you can not catch up to a moving caribou, but he stopped for a reason only know to him. There was no way I was going to get close enough for my longbow, so Dad laid down on the tundra. This before we had rangefinder, but I knew it was a good poke. He was questioning the distance and the wind. I told him to hold on the back line right where the neck started to curve up. He was still waffling, and said "put a bullet in him.

The shot rang, and could see the bull was hit, he stood there and I said hit him again, second shot broke and the bull was hit again. This time the bull did a complete circle and stopped facing the same direction. I told him to hit him again, but this time at the bullet impact, the bull started to spin. In the binoculars, I could see the blood spraying out both sides as he twirled.

We stepped it off at 425 paces, you could cover all three shots with your hand. 150gr Speer grand Slam. With the bullet drop it had to be in the 375-400 yard range. A distance in this day and age is no big deal, but it was a fair poke 23 years ago.

It would be nice if on its 100th year birthday, 8 twist became the standard twist rate for the .270 Win. and the large bullet manufacturers made some medium weight bullets (130,140 and 150 grain) with b.c.'s over .600. The current bullets used would still work ok in an 8 twist barrel. However, I think the problem is, and I'm happy to be corrected, the SAAMI throat length is too long. There would be too much of a jump to the lands for many of the high bc bullets to be accurate (some might be accurate) at the current maximum cartridge length. If they seated the high bc bullets out further, magazine length would become a problem. They can't shorten the throat as pressure with the lower bc bullets that are currently used would be too high at their current C.O.A.L.

Riflehunter,

I am with you. I hunted with a 1:8 twist 270 WCF last fall and took a spike elk, antelope, and WT doe. Used 155gr Barnes LRX at a touch under 3000fps. I am sold. Worked great on the elk, and did not wreck a bunch of meat on the antelope or WT doe.

That's great CRS, the copper bullets often like a large jump and can work with a long throat and fast twist in a .270 Win.

Wonder, will we see a 100th anniversary model 70 270 win shot show special. Chances are..

Our family is pretty 270 oriented since we mostly have deer and bear at home, and I like the 270, so when our younger cousins and brothers came up, that is what we got them. My little brother wanted to elk hunt when he turned 18, so he applied and got a cow/calf tag. Same year I gifted him a reloading kit so he could learn to make his own ammo. Well, he was able to get into a great buy from Rocky Mountain Reloading, he scored about 1000 of the Tipped Trophy Bonded bullets Federal had begun loading. 140's and plain old H4831SC worked. We worked up a load and ended up around 58-59 grains for about 2950. Anyhow, we shot all Summer out to 500 with it.

That Fall in Wyoming him and I crept on a small herd of about 25-30 animals. We were laid out prone and I ranged his cow at 275. I said you shoot first and I'll take another after you shoot. Well, being a younger hunter, first time looking at an elk through the scope made him get a touch of the elk fever cause he was aiming for what felt like forever and I could see them starting to get a little nervous. Well, finally he broke the trigger and instead of elk just meandering off the small meadow, they acted like whitetails and hauled butt out of there leaving me with no decent shot. Well, didn't matter as he smacked that cow stone dead.







Quite a few other good elk and deer hunts, but needless to say, the 270 has been great to us.

My first serious center fire (after the 30-30 that is) was a R77 in 270 win in mid 1970s.
Still have it. Bedded action and skin bedded rest of fore end. Shoots 130 and 150 Nosler
bullets to same poi, holds zero forever and is one heck of a killer.
I have killed animals from red squirrels, fox and porkies to white tails, mulies and several bull
and cow elk. It is the gun to bury with me. It has iron sights and a Leupy in tip off weaver
rings. Love this gun.

I have a couple, really like them, good performance, little recoil at all.

Load up some 110 or 130 with low to middle powder charges and it becomes a pussycat. Started nephews and sons with reduced to moderate loads and they worked great.

Can always do it with smaller cartridges too, but I am so far entrenched in 270 rifles and reloading supplies...

Have some .270 brass in the tumbler as I write this. One load is 130 grain Balistic Tip that I've been using for many years and the other is going to be .150 grain Nosler Partition, might go elk hunting this fall with it. Like some on you, I bought my .270 several years ago, 1979. It has served me well as my deer rifle since with the exception of maybe 5 seasons when I used something else.

My .270 story starts as a twelve years old.
My Dad had a Husqvarna, it was kept in the open and I had already been shooting positions for a couple of years with a .22 at the local armory and plinking around.
Well, it given to me as a birthday gift, this was amazing! Luckily, my Uncle drew me into his reloading room and so it began.
I carried that rifle for years, but as I got a little older , decide to buy a lightweight version. It was easier to carry, barrel was shorter. Another .270 wcf.
Now, I have 4
Model 700, Browning B78 and a takedown BLR.
Of course I tried other chamberings and always prefered the .270 wcf.
It suits me and I know what the capabilities are.
On bigger ,tougher Game, use a tougher bullet.
It is the bullet, not the bullet diameter that makes the difference, imo.

I have a couple of 270's as well. It's usually the first one I grab out of the safe when I head to camp. They just get the job done with excellent results.

I bought some 90 gr Speer Gold Dots (bonded) from Midway cheap-cheap, that were made for the 6.8 SPC. The run out of the .270 Win at 3700 fps.

Shot my first elk with a 270win.. Not much of a story. Someone kicked him out of his bed. He ran along an old cow trail straight to me. I shot him in the chest with a factory Rem 150gr core lock.
Rag horn bull. Only bull I ever got. It's also the only elk I've shot where the bullet impact was loud enough to echo.He didn't fall down dead, but he fell exactly where he was hit and died some minutes after. Rifle was an old M700 ADL with a jeweled bolt and safety that locked the bolt closed. Stock warped. I restocked with a B&C.. When I took it to the range, RO thought I had some kind of custom rifle. Those stocks were kind of new on the market. Rifle's a laser. My Dad still has it. I traded it to him for Granddad's old rifle.

I've just joined the 270 club. Had an H&R 35 Whelen I was trying to sell with no success so I added I'd trade. Straight traded for a JM stamped Marlin XL7C in 270. It's blued and wears a camo synthetic stock. The adjustable trigger feels like it's about 3 lbs. Looking forward to sighting her in and taking her deer hunting this upcoming season.

I've owned many 270s over the years, used one to take my only Mule Deer and a Saskatchewan Whitetail (my biggest until recently) and many GA deer over the years. I have one now that doesn't get used much, a Win 70 with a Shilen barrel in a McM FWT stock with Leupold VXIII in 3.5x10-50. The rifle is plain,simple and perfect, I could say myself lots of trouble by using it but life is not that simple so I have many rifles that I really don't need but they keep me entertained. In my limited experience with GA deer, I've never seen a cartridge more effective in killing than the 270, it just works really, really well.

My long time friend who has extensive hunting experience spends a fortune on hunting, guides and travel but won't buy a rifle to say his life, he has a 1980 vintage Rem 700 BDL in 270 that was given to him as a gift from his father, using 150 Nosler Partitions, has killed well over 100 (could be much higher) deer and counting. He can't imaging using anything but a 270 and I don't blame him.

I think the 270 is as good today as anything it's class and better than some. Rifles/cartridges really haven't change much since the '98 (be that 1898) Mauser and the 30-06, consider that compared to planes, automobiles and the rest of the advances in the world.

Well said 257.. Well said...

My experience with the .270 started back in 1973. it was a commercial FN with 24" barrel. Never used it all that much. I used it on a deer hunt the year I bought it but maybe only once of twice since I got it. Never figured out why that was. I've since picked up a few more .270s over the years as prices just happened to have been low enough to gain my interest.

I've told the story before but that first .270 was used on a deer hunt the same year I bought it. It was sighted in with IIRC, Winchester 130 gr. bullets and sighted three inches high at 100 yards. Accuracy was decent but not spectacular. I took my next door neighbor who incidentally was from New York City as he wanted to hunt but at the time had no rifle so he got to use my loaner. Opening day we were in my favorite area to hunt and worked diligently to find a deer. Just one of those days when they were not cooperating.

After a few hours we hiked back to where my truck was parked and were sitting upon the top of the back of the cut out for road and could look down as see the truck, We were eating our lunch and trying to figure out next where to try for the afternoon hunt when we heard shots farther down the canyon. I looked in that direction just in time to see a nice buck top over the saddle running like mad straight for us. No way could I turn around enough to shoot normally so I set up to shoot as best I could left handed. My neighbor and stepson were leisurely eating when I took the shot. neighbor hollers out that I should be careful with that gun. I said something like why? I just shot a deer. He didn't believe me. In fact, he didn't think there were any deer anywhere in the fairly wide open of the northern Nevada desert. Well, there it lay, one very dead deer and the only bullet hole in him was mine. Nice 4x4 BTW. I wish I'd had a camera as the look on that city slicked from NYC was priceless. I took him out the again the next day and we got him a nice fat eating sized spike.

I wasn't too pleased with the meat damage though but when the shot was only about 35 or so yards, that bullet would still have been move awfully damn fast. After a few more deer with that rifle and ammo I switched to a 150 gr. bullet and load using that same rifle and the 150 gr. Sierra Game King. Much happier with the end results; dead deer and not much mangled meat.

Last game I took with a .270 was a Pronghorn Antelope in New Mexico on a guided ranch hunt. Took a Winchester M70 XTR I picked up on a whim at a gun show that proved to be a great shooter. From the holes in and out it looks like the bullet didn't open up much which was good as the stalk got me to about 75 yards from him. Bullet in both hunts mentioned were the Sierra 150 gr. Game King. Powder was the now long gone Winchester WMR, standard WLR primer and Winchester brass.
PJ

270? Factory Core loks? Elk? Leupold? 2 full pages - not one derogatory comment?



Scared guys. What's going on? I got something terminal??? Tell me.

Another .270 fan here. My first centerfire was a Ruger 77 tanger in .270, and it's the first rifle I reloaded for.

I don't understand all the haters, but don't really care. I like it, still have it, still hunt with it.

Furthermore, everything I ever kilt with it is still dead.

GFY...........

Long Live the 270

All the ballyhoo can be said of about two dozen other cartridges too. Ain't no magic in any one of them. The magic takes place between the ears of the hunter.

And the hunter's trigger finger....

There’s a lot to like about a good .270.....or any other good tool that gives confidence day in, day out year after year.

I don't have any particularly good 270 Win stories, but I can say for a period of about 10 years it was my first and only choice for whitetail deer. I had great results with handloaded 150 grain Nosler Solid Base bullets. Shots were always under 100 yards and always 1 shot per deer. 52 grains of H 4350 was the best performer in my Remington 700. I've since moved away from the 270 Win, but it was and is all anyone would ever need.

The .270 is like a 5 iron in golf. Not perfect for every shot, but nevertheless versatile. I had 4 of them before the boating accident.

I have a 2 270 Win. One was my first rifle. I have used it for most of my game. My other 270 Win I have not had it on a hunt yet. I have been well please with the result of the 270 Win.

I;ll relate to you guys a good 270 story. My uncle did two safaris in the late 60s to Angola and Mozambique. Took two rifles, both model 70s, a 458 and a 270. He took his elephant with the 458 and Winchester factory solids, everything else, to include two lion and leopard he used his 270 with old fashioned 130gr Silvertips....

I went to buy my first bolt action centerfire rifle, and wanted a 25-06 as I had a new place to hunt that shots could be out to 300 yards (this bas back about 1983) Up till then, I hunted with either a lever action 30-30 or 444 Marlin and wanted something flatter. I went to the local gun store and they did not have a 25-06 but the guy said "we do have a 270, which is better anyway due to more ammo being easier to get". I did not know anything about a 270 at the time but I bought one and went hunting. First deer I shot dropped right where it stood, as well as the second and third deer. I have been sold ever since.

I wasn't there when this shot/kill took place, but 2 men that hunted with Dad were and both have told me the same story.

Dad had eyesight like and eagle and was from all the stories I've heard, an exceptional shooter. I only saw him 'show out' 2 times, but the stories from my Granddad, uncles, and friends that hunted with him when he was a young man, make the shot I'm about to tell, rather tame.

Anyway, Dad mule deer hunted in Co. back in the mid to late '50's. At that time, lots of hunters were still using 30-30's and Dad had to borrow one the first year he went there. After the first year, Dad was hooked on the hunting up there and some how scrounged enough money in 1955 to buy a Win. model 70 .270. Why a .270, I dont know. He hunted one year with open sights and the next year Mom surprised him on Father's Day with a Weaver K-4 Scope. I remember being mesmerized, just looking at that rifle and scope.

Back to the story.... From what I was told, the men would still hunt for a few days and if that wasn't working, they would make drives. One day, after a drive had been made, Dad and one of the men were talking, when they saw a good deer standing on the side of the mountain, 'a long ways off'. Another of the men in the group walked up and they stood there for a minute or two, just wishing they were close enough to take a shot. Dad said he'd shoot the deer and they all laughed. Dad stepped up to a rock for a rest and shot the deer. I knew both of the men that were with Dad that day. One said the shot was at least 1/4 mile (440 yds) and the other guessed it a little further, maybe approaching 500 yds.

As CRS stated, these distances are common these days for target shooting, and some hunters can make this kind of a shot, but 65ish years ago, this was quite a feat.

I don't use my .270 Win. anymore. I bought a compact .243 Win. now. However, the gun store bought a whole bunch of bullets from a guy who died. I saw 50 .270 Hornady 140 gr. an old box of .270 150 gr. round nose still un opened. Also some Speer 150 gr. .308. All for 10 cents a piece or less. One box was 5 bucks for 57 .270 bullets . or a dime a piece I bough them.. If I never use them , so be it. Cant go wrong though. We only use the .270 Win. for bear now days.

i've used and killed many deer with '06, but i like the 270. i bought the secondhand Savage m110 in 270 Win. i bought some 130gr Hornady SP and IMR4320. i killed several deer but i had to sell for a divorce lawyer (i sold a pile of guns). one day, when my dad (RIP) and i were coming home from camp, there was a sign that said gun show and we decided to go in. i wanted a Ruger no1 in 7x57 in the worst way. i dreamed about that rifle. we go inside and i go thru the tables looking for the 7x57. at the last isle there was rows of Ruger no1 rifles. i looked thru hem and they didn't have a 7x57. but they had a beautifully stock 280 Remington. while i was going over it, a voice says "that one is sold, would you like something else?" i said, yes i would, do you happen to have a 7x57? "no.....but there is a 270 Winchester." we took a few steps and then he hands me the Ruger no1 in 270. it was a plain stock (compared to the 280) and it was topped with 4 - 16x Bushnell. while i was looking at it, he goes he will take off $100 if i purchased it. i looked at the tag and it said $400 and i was reaching for my wallet. i bought the rifle in 2005 and it has a place in my safe till i die.

the first thing i did was to clean it and take 4-16x off and put on an old 3-9x Swift (over the counter warranty, not mail it in and then charge me to fix it and send it back warranty now). i have 270 Winchester brass and reloading dies and powders. the next step is to buy 130gr Nosler BT (100 pieces, not 50 pieces). i then loaded them up with IMR4320 and i shoot bug holes with it. i took her out hunting and i killed many deer with it.

[img]https://i.imgur.com/FP1RbOG.jpg?1[/img]

left group, 4 shots at 100 yards, 130gr Nosler BT and IMR4320
[img]https://i.imgur.com/iHeWUMa.jpg?1[/img]



[img]https://i.imgur.com/gOJ9dF3.jpg?1[/img]

'06 cases necked down to .277"

The old 270 is still my favorite. No idea why but from a young age latched on to it. Shot my first deer - a fat old doe with 150 gr corelokts. I have drank the koolaid and went through all the different phases and trends including current fast twist high bc hooplah. I truly like and enjoy hunting with them all. However the old 270 still strikes a balance for hunting that appeals to me and still not found anything better for that purpose

Lou

I really like the 85 TSX loaded down to around 243 speeds and comparative powder charges for teaching new shooters.

My first rifle was a Remington BDL 270 Win. Purchased it when I was 18.With it I learned to hand load. Shot it for years and killed a pile of deer with it. The rifle has now retired and I haven’t replaced it with another. These days it’s 25’s or 7’s. Whether an old school one or a newer twist one a hunter is at no handicap with a 270.

GreggH

I gave my oldest son an ‘03 30-06 and a newer Mossberg 270 when he started hunting. I gave him a 308 700 Remington earlier, but it was stolen soon after he got it (he did kill a pronghorn with that 308). I don’t recall seeing him shoot the 30-06. He claims it’s because the stock is too nice on the 30-06 - doesn’t want to scratch it. When we hunt together I carry a 270 also. We shoot the same loads.

Only one time was I disappointed with the 270. I had worked up a load that shot accurately in both rifles. It was an early mono bullet. We killed our deer that season, but the bullet performance wasn’t good in my opinion, no expansion. I almost wrote off mono bullets due to that hunt. But have come around. No fault of the 270, BTW.

I think that it is tough to beat a 270 for an all around (pronghorn to moose) cartridge. Though I’ve killed more game with the 30-06 & the 280.

If I had to have only one high power rifle, I think a 270 would be fine. But I’m not likely to ever shoot anything big - a bison maybe.

I’d also be satisfied with a 7x57, a 280, a 30-06, a 7mm RM and so forth.

Who wants only one rifle?

My first big game rifle was a Remington 760 in .270. Killed my first deer and first moose with it. Went on and killed numerous moose with it and other makes of rifles I ended up trying. Early on I tried reloading 130 grain bullets but couldn't find a suitably accurate load for any of them. Switched to 150 grain Partitions and used them exclusively for my moose hunts. Eventually I started trying various other calibers (out of curiosity). My last .270 I ended up giving to a young son of a friend when he started his career. I understand he has taken a few deer with it since. I can't recall ever losing a moose
shot with the cartridge.

Jim

My wife took her Dall ram with my M98 270 at about 30 yards. Highly accurate. It was the back-up rifle.

She was supposed to use her .45 Seneca, but some dumb-ass forgot the Pyrodex, which I noticed at the truck before the 18 mile hike into the sheep mountain, but after a 300 mile drive from town.

A few years later I loaned it to my brother, who shot a deer at about 200 yards with it. All that was "deer" showing above the ridge was from the eyes up.

23 years later he gave it back to me after it "quit shooting". I should have done a bit more in remediation with that barrel (De- coppering, seting it back, rebore? - I did do everything else I could think of) before replacing it with a heavy 30-06 bbl, which puts them into an inch or so at 300 yards.

The 270 was lighter tho.

My 270 Win experience illustrates my 90/10 rule:

You kill 90% of the critters you hunt over a lifetime with your first big game rifle ('cause it's all you can afford), and the other 10% with the 10-15 expensive whiz-bang equipped super slayers that you bought to replace your old antiquated weapon.

My first rifle was a Ruger M77 tang safely 270 Win. I bought it new with the $325 that I was awarded by Utah Game and Fish when I turned in an elk poacher. I scraped up an additional amount for a fixed Leupold 6x scope (second hand). That I did not have to pony up for the rings was a big deal for me back then. At the time I had discovered Jack O'Connor and was heavily influenced in my caliber choice by his writings.

I have lost track of the number of deer, elk, and antelope I killed with that rifle. I still have it. It is scarred and scratched, but occupies a place of honor in my gun safe.

Happy 100th anniversary!!

I just saw the new Christensen Arms Evoke is chambered in 270 Win with 1-7.5”. Now there is another factory fast twist option besides Browning. The old 270 Win is getting modern in it’s old age

Lou

Had one for 5 years or so, collateral on a loan.
Sold it cheap to a young kid.


So now I can say I owned one,
but have never fired one.

Used to dislike them due to so much chatter and a equating the 270 to a few
drunken, city cousins who used it.


Now, I keep an eye out for something interesting, cheap, in 270.
Just maybe, it could be The One!🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

I started this thread and will now add my story. My disabled Tennessee lumberjack uncle loaned to me, at age ten, a pre 64 model 70 Win in .270. It was in rough shape and kicked like a mule with a metal butt plate. While I was in the army, 1970-74, dad sold it to pay mom's medical bills and paid my uncle back. While still in the army, I hunted in the Yukon with a army buddy whose dad bought our hunting licenses for us. We all three got a moose, caribou plus a grizzly for me. I used a borrowed .270 Win shooting 130gr Nosler Partitions. Performance was flawless. I returned home after four years in the U.S. Army and started college on the G.I. Bill. A political science professor asked the guys after a class if someone had a rifle for him to hunt elk out west. He borrowed my model 70A two years in a row. He returned after the second season and told me he had some good news and bad news for me. The bad news was my .270 had decided to stay with him. The good news was he was going to buy me a new .270 Win model 70A. I said ok and we went to Howard Brothers Store near East Tennessee State University and bought me my new .270 and four power Weaver scope. I kept that rifle and it shot 80 whitetail deer.... seventy were killed by family and buddies who borrowed it. In the 90s I customized a new Mark X with a 26" barrel and hunted in Africa on two hunts. A lifetime with the .270 has left me with many cherished memories.My largest animal in Africa was a 2000-2500lbs eland, one shot, at ninety yards...140gr Barnes X, 3150 fps, 26" barrel. It ran about twenty yards and appeared to die in mid stride.

A 2000lb+ Eland is huuuge.

Yeah, the heaviest "officially" weighed eland (whether the "giant" subspecies or others) have weighed a little under 2100.

You've definitely gotten after it with a 270. Great story.

I agree!

My .270 story: Around 25 years ago I had a part time job as a trapper at an Orvis sporting clays course. One of my “clients” was a retired Winchester employee who mentioned he was selling off his collection of pre ‘64 Winchester rifles. I could afford just one of them and chose a ‘56 Model 70 Featherweight in .270. In the years since, I’ve shot more deer with that rifle than any other I’ve owned. Most spectacular kill: I was sitting on the edge of a 10 acre hayfield watching a group of 5 or 6 does. They were completely absorbed in grazing on the mowed grass, but every so often they all snapped their heads up to look at a spot in the far hedgerow, about 150 yards from me. Just as it was starting to get dark a nice sized buck emerged from that spot and took a couple of steps into the field. At my shot he jumped high in the air and landed on his back, legs churning the air for a couple of seconds before he died. I’ve never seen anything like it since.

My first centerfire rifle was a Browning Bar .270. I shot my first buck with that rifle - a ~ 300 yd. heart shot. Federal Premium Nosler Partition 150 gr worked like Thor's Hammer. Nary a step after the shot.

My first moose was with a 270. Currently I am building a lightweight 270 on another Defiance action. RinB knows a thing or two about 270s, I am waiting for his book to come out!

The first rifle I bought for myself was a Winchester Model 70 FWT in .270. This was right after they had announced that they were shutting down production in New Haven and the panic had set in. I had seen guys buying stacks at our most popular local shop. As luck would have it, this was also right after Oshman's had been bought by Sports Authority, so the local Oshman's had everything on sale, including Winchesters. They only had 3 FWTs left so I was able to grab this .270 on sale there when everywhere else shops were fanning the flames of panic that there would be no more Model 70s. I've shot a lot of deer over the years with this rifle, and taught my son to hunt with it too. He shot his first deer, first buck and first pig with it. The ranch we hunted at the time had a wide creek that ran through it. One afternoon, we were walking the creek looking for arrowheads and my son bent over and dropped that rifle right into a spot about a foot deep of water and filled with granite sand. To say I was unhappy with him at that moment would be an understatement. I had another rifle with us as I always do, so we were able to hunt the rest of the weekend. When we got home my son then learned how to deep clean a rifle including pulling it out of the stock and getting every grain of sand out of every corner of that rifle.Since then, I've killed my biggest buck and made some of my longest shots with that gun. My son has already asked that I never sell it so he can inherit it some day.

When I was a younger man I collected Pre64 M70's and had all them in both std and FWT except the 458 and 300 WM. A friend was going to the Tulsa gun show and I asked him to be on the lookout for M70's. He came back with an 06 and a 270 both FWT's. The 270 looked like someone had used a chain saw to free float the barrel. Eventually I had it restocked in a nice piece of Fiddleback. I used that rifle to take deer and antelope in Wyoming and of course WT's here at home.
When my little brother was wanting a deer rifle it was a tang safety Ruger M77 in 270. He shot his first and second deer with that rifle befor he left us early. I took his Ruger back to Wyoming several years ago and shot a nice antelope with it.
I have since sold off the Winchester collection with the exception of three a 7MM carbine and two FWT's a 358 and the 270. Of course I still have Joe's Ruger and from time to time It goes with me.

I shot exactly one doe with my .270 about 12 years ago. It ran 30 yards and keeled over. The end.

Your story brings sadness to my heart because I have two sons that have zero interest in hunting. I was divorced from their mothers(married twice & a son by each marriage) and the boys didn't grow up with me. They also didn't grow up in a rural Tennessee mountain community as I did. However, they are good guys and very settled down and have families. The older son is forty four, lives in the U.K., is in the U.S. Navy and married to a very nice English woman. Well...one cannot dictate to others what they prefer to do in life. I always dreamed of the three of us hunting together. You are a very lucky guy to have a son to hunt with. But..... I grew up in a different time and culture and a part of me understands??????

Inconclusive evidence is always welcomed on the Campfire. Caliber or rifle is suspect and nothing is sacred.

Enter the 270, the worst elk killer my father ever saw while guiding elk hunters in the 1940’s. I never had any use for a 270, grew up with the perfect all around cartridge, the 30-06.

I hunted exclusively with a 25-35 until I graduated to a 30-06, the first big game cartridge I bought after getting married. Still influenced by my father’s dislike for a 270, I spent the next few decades shooting mostly a 30-06.

I always wanted a pre 64 model 70 and decided I would get one in a Jack O’Connor caliber, against my better judgement, in 270.

Since then, I have grown to appreciate the versatility of the 270 and a 130 grain ballistic tip at nearly 3200 FPS. Killing multiple deer, antelope, elk and coyotes, I have come to a conclusion that the 270 may just be the perfect deer/antelope size game cartridge.

I am assuming that the bullets in the 1940’s that my father’s clients were shooting, were not as good as the bullets we have today. I can also assume those same clients may not have been good shots either.

Regardless, I have come to appreciate the 270 for what it is and not what it wasn’t, and find it an exceptional hunting cartridge, capable of taking all sorts of game…

Decided to add a photo to my previous post on this thread:



Will also add a footnote:

The rifle is a first-year Browning A-Bolt, which I received as a "test rifle" for a magazine review in 1985. Before then Eileen hunted with my grandmother's Remington 722 .257 Roberts, but again "everybody" said the .257 was too small for elk. The .257 was (and is) relatively heavy, and she also wanted a lighter rifle.

The A-Bolt grouped very well, and with the 4x scope I mounted weighed 7-1/2 pounds, which was pretty light for a walnut-stocked rifle. The writer's price was the typical wholesale, so we bought it. I'd already tried two loads that shot to the same place at 100 yards, both with the old military-surplus H4831, one using the 130-grain Hornady Interlock Spire Point at 3050 fps, and the other the 150 Nosler Partition at 2850. She used the 130-grain load for antelope, deer and practice, and the 150s for hunting bigger game (though she also shot her first big mule deer buck with it).

The moose was in the middle of a dozen consecutive 1-shot kills she made with the rifle, which included her first elk, a spike bull, and a pronghorn buck at around 450 yards. The string only ended because in 1992 she acquired an Ultra Light Arms Model 24 .270, which was much lighter, which she used with similar success until 2003, using the 130-grain Nosler Partition for everything. (She then started getting recoil headaches from the ULA .270--so ordered an Ultra Light Arms .257 Roberts--which she also eventually used on elk, in 2014 dropping a medium-sized cow with a single 100-grain Barnes TTSX.)

Lot's of great stories here, a nice thread.

While I've only taken two elk with the 270 Win, I've seen quite a few elk taken with it, mostly with various factory 130's. Many years ago I pulled up to a piece of property we owned North of town, to find the local Game Warden washing his bloody hands off in the creek. In the back of his pickup were six dead cow elk. He'd culled them all with a 270 and factory 130 grainers. I asked him if that's what he typically used for elk, and he said "yep." I did take my first antelope with the 270 and a 130, which seems fitting - I don't think there's a more quintessential Western animal or cartridge. In fact, my non-hunting brother who lives in Chicago responded to me one time when I mentioned I would be heading out elk hunting the next morning; "you using a 270?" It's so ubiquitous even a big city Psychoanalyst knows what it is lol.

I used to correspond a bit with the late George Hoffman, father of the 416 Rem Mag, and African PH. He told me he had taken right a 50 elk, all with the 270 and 150 gr Partitions. He thought it was ideal. When I finally got around to using the 270 on a mountain elk hunt, that's the bullet I chose - it worked to perfection on an 11 year old 6 pt, as did a 150 gr Ballistic Tip on a cow.

Somewhere around the house I've got a bumper sticker Dober had made years ago. It reads, "If Ya Ain't Got A 270 Ya Ain't Got Sh*t." Really, a wonderful round... kicks a little and kills a lot.

It would nice to see this thread keep going.
I gotta agree" Brad" the 150 Partition on Elk is excellent.I have had good success on mature Bull Elk
I think it is a matter of being very familiar with the.270 wcf capabilities ,with your bullet of choice.
The 150 N.P. is an excellent choice. The 160 also.
In my dreamy early life, I couldn't imagine taking any other on a Sheep hunt....as I did.
Jack probably had something to do with this.

The .270 Win was the first game rifle I bought with my own money back in 1966. It was a model 700 ADL with a B&L scope. This rifle impressed me on first trip to the range it put first 3 shots touching into a 100 yd target with factory box of core lokts. I loved this rifle but it was stolen when I lived in an apartment building.

I have had several .270s since and have never been without one for longer than a few weeks.

Somewhere along the way, I caught rifle looneyism and have several favorite calibers in addition to .270, they are 25-06, short barreled 308 Win, and 7mm RM.
Happy Hunting

Here's another .270 story, told to me by an Alaskan outfitter who guided a group of five hunters for moose. One was a high school kid, as son of one of the other hunters, who brought a .270 with Federal factory ammo featuring their version of the Trophy Bonded Bearclaw bullet. The "adults" all brought rifles chambered for various "magnums," none smaller than .30 caliber. The kid was the only one who killed his moose with one shot....

My first big game rifle I bought was a Winchester 70 in .270. Had a synthetic stock, came with a cheap scope and came from Walmart. Was a broke college student. Over the 4 years of college replaced the scope. That rifle has accounted for many whitetail deer. Worked a load up for it with a 130 grain seirra Spitzer boat tail that shoot amazing. Have since acquired many more rifles but still hang on to it. Barrel is long, rifle is heavy, safety in wrong spot than I grew up with. But it still an accurate rifle

My first rifle was a Remington 511 22 rimfire when I was 12. I became a Remington fan, owned a bunch of Remington rifles, tried to like the 280 Remington, but always had better accuracy with a 270. I have owned 10 or 12, and loaded for several others. All shot acceptably or better. I currently own three, a Tikka, a Model 70 FWT, and a Stevens 200. All shoot very accurately.

When my group of hunters was entering federal property to hunt elk in 1989 we encountered four hunters coming out with four bull elk. One used a 300 Win. Magnum, one used a 280 Remington, and two used 270s.

I do have a few rifles chambered to the .270 Win. I'll comment on two. One is apparently a cigarette rifle that was rebarreled by none other than P.O.Ackley. No idea on just how accurate it might be as it was set up for some kind of European mounting system and I'll be damned if I can find what it was. Huge holes in the top of the receiver and metric screw holes, My gunsmith said it would be close to $1K to close those holes, full the screw hole and redrill and tap for an American mount. I have test fired the rifle and it seems to like my pet load. Accuracy was about 1.5" using the iron sights on the rifle. Surprised hell out of me as old old eyeballs just aren't up to precision accuracy with that type of sight. The rifle is very light for a Mauser with weight somewhere around an estimated 6 pounds and might be a bit less.

One thing I've noticed about .270 cartridge. I've found it be one of the easiest to find an accurate load regardless of the rifle.
Every one I've tried using my pet load consisting of Winchester brass, standard primer and the 150 gr. Sierra Game King over WMR powder has given tight groups with one exception. The exception is a Ruger #1A that I got into fairly cheaply. Someone in the distant past hogged out the forearm to free float the barrel and it shot all over the place. I put a piece of an old credit card under the barrel at the tip of the forearm and got down to where it does 1.5" which will suffice for most of what hunting I'll ever do. I didn't give the charge for WMR as it has been discontinued for mny years. I just happen to have a large supply.

There are a few tricks I know to improve Ruger #1s but I never got around to doing them. Just too tied up with way too many projects.
PJ

I got mine in 1975. I was 15. I was $29 short on the final price. My Grandpa lent it to me. This is my favorite rifle. My Dad broke the stock at the pistol grip. I have a Remington synthetic stock on it now. I've shot deer from right at the muzzle, to a little over a
500 hundred yards with it. I almost exclusively use speer hot cor 150's in it.

Mule Deer I really, really enjoyed the story of Mrs Mule Deer and her hunts with the .270 Win. and the .257 Roberts. All of this, especially with the .257 Bob, just goes to show some of the nonsense folks are thinking that one has to have very large calibers to kill their game. You have just told us how effective the .257 Bob and .270 Win can be with good bullet placement. Even the larger calibers must be well placed to be really effective. Poor placement yields poor performance. Perhaps the .458 will allow a few seconds longer to correct matters when a client has muffed the first shot on a giant, angry brown bear. Phil Shoemaker is right to use the .458 Win as backup. I've shot the 25-06 but never the .257 Roberts. Please tell us of your opinion of the .257 and some experiences.

Mule Deer do you remember a story in a magazine many moons ago about a Alaskan bear guide that kept a detailed journal/diary of all his hunts? He kept details of all the calibers used. As expected, the magnums caused misses and wounded big bears. There was only one caliber that had a 100 per cent one shot kill history. This was by two women who killed their bear with one shot from their .270 Winchesters. Perhaps this was Phil Shoemaker. All of this occured over a long period of time. The story of the kid with one shot on his moose vs four adults with magnums...... needing more than one shot is a mighty and dandy story. I would have loved to see the expressions on the faces of the four magnum guys.

Not into band-wagon cartridges.

There is your meat & taters. Aint gotta be a 270 pushing it.

I bought my first 270win when I was a new 1LT in 1973 while assigned as an infantry officer on ft. Richardson Alaska. A new tang model ruger in which I shot factory 130 gr corelokts. Had the gunsmith who worked at the Muldoon Pawn shop full length bed the stock. That combo killed a couple moose, at least 9 caribou, a mtn goat, a dall sheep, and a few deer on kodiak island. That 270 was my primary big game rifle up until I retired in 1996. Sadly I sold the rifle in 1996 after I retired but replaced it with a mk2 also in 270. Switched to 150gr partitions and killed a couple elk with it in past years. Gave that rifle to a son in law and bought myself a South Carolina FN model 70 Super Grade also in 270 win. Used it on w

Whitetail in 2023 and will use it in 2024 for New Mexico elk. IMO the 270win is a superb hunting cartridge, easy to shoot, kills extremely well, and ammo available everywhere. Great “first big game” cartridge for anyone. What’s not to like?

What in heck is a band-wagon cartridge? I'm into cartridges that work, low recoil, flat trajectory, ammo everywhere here and internationally, reloading components very available, reasonable recoil, shoots fast, accurate, and punches well above its weight(.270 Win). Examples are .375 H&H, 9.3 x 62, 30-06, 7mm Rem Mag, .280 Rem, .270 Win, 6.5 x 55 SE, 7 x 57 Mauser. Bullet placement closes the gap between calibers. The most heavy game(non dangerous) I've killed is a big giant Eland that supposedly weighed over 2000lbs.(.270 Winchester). The 9.3 x 62 bagged a cape buffalo and elephant in Zimbabwe(one shot each). I've used the .270 Win., 30-06, 9.3 x 62 and .22 long rifle most of my life. I've killed ground hogs, deer, and black bear with the .22 long rifle. Jack O'Connor, Finn Aagaard, and today's John Barsnes..... All have told us shot placement is the most important feature of hunting. I agree because I have experienced good shot placement equalling good results. Of course I've screwed up a few shots with poor results. This is America. With favorite caliber in hand, go forth and hunt with confidence as I realize the .270 Win is not the only caliber that is excellent. I really love the 30-06. If forced by the govt to have only one rifle...i would choose the 30-06. I'm at the age where I know what I like and feel there isn't any new stuff that will change my life. There is just so much stuff out there that really works very well. Shoot straight and happy hunting!

First .270 I ever bought was one that I got for my son when he was around 10 or 11. He'd been pestering me for his own deer rifle and I'd given him a bunch of work to do to earn it, and he had. On a Saturday, we went to a gun show, and walking across the parking lot, I spotted a kid, about 20, toting a bolt action rifle all wrapped up in camouflage tape. I asked him what he had there and he said it was "just an old Sears rifle", but I'd already spotted the telltale flat, checkered bottom of the bolt handle knob, sure sign of an FN Mauser. I asked to see it, and got permission to peel off a little of the tape. I peeled enough off the barrel and forearm to see "J. C. Higgins" and ".270 Winchester", and could tell it hadn't been shot much and saw no rust or wear anywhere and bore and muzzle looked perfect. The kid only wanted 200 bucks for it, so it went home with us, along with a good scope, mounts, sling, dies, reloading supplies, and some factory ammo. We made it a father-son project getting all that blasted tape and then the adhesive off the rifle, cleaning it up, refinishing the stock, glass bedding it, cutting the stock down to mount a recoil pad, mounting the scope, and loading some reduced recoil ammo. Then I taught him how to sight it in. And I was amazed how well he could shoot it, from the very beginning. He quickly learned to appreciate the quality of FN Mausers. He's 36 now and it's the only big game rifle that he cares to hunt with, and he's deadly with it.

The second .270 I bought was when I asked my daughter what she wanted for her 21st birthday. And my jaw dropped when she said a .270, like her brother's, but it didn't have to be "fancy" like his, as long as it was accurate. We went gun shopping and the one she picked out was a new Stevens 200, which she liked better than the others we looked at because it's light and fits her well. I put a decent scope on it, gave it a trigger job, slicked up the action, worked on the stock, and she loves it. She's 38 now, married to a Major in the Army (as a Captain, he did two tours in Afghanistan as a company commander in the 101st Airborne), they have two sons, and she gives her husband a ration of crap because she, using her .270, can out-shoot him using his .30-06. He just looks down, grins, and shakes his head. And I laugh. They're raising their boys right. I've started the oldest one on a Browning Micro Medallion in .257 Roberts with reduced recoil handloads.

The the third .270 I've owned is a Ruger M77 MkII All Weather with the "boat paddle" stock, and lord have mercy is it ever a shooter. I reworked the trigger, stoning it lightly, replaced the trigger spring, and added an overtravel stop screw. It now breaks very cleanly at 2.5 lbs, which is as low as I want on a big game rifle. It just has a Nikon Prostaff scope with the BDC reticle on it, but it's proven deadly out to a little past 700 yds. In Missouri a few years ago, we had to cull 26 deer off of our farm and adjoining family farms because of CWD. And we helped some non-family neighbors fill their cull quota. Most of the farms were laid out in square 40 acre, or rectangular 80 acre fields. With that rifle, I killed so many deer all the way across (440 yds) and diagonally across (622 yds) those forty acre fields and further, with witnesses, that family and friends started calling me "Forty Acre Baker". I used two loads: one that I got from JB using H4350 and 130 gr BT's and the other that I worked up using Superformance and 150 gr Interbonds. That rifle is definitely one of my favorites and is for sure a keeper.

I have been inspired to dig my 270 from the dark recesses of the safe and get it ready for this season. It has languished far to long.

GSPfan, that's what I'm thinking too.

Cool write up. I got a Ruger 77 300 Win when I got to Pendleton in 97. Worked for a lot of hunting for a long time.

I’ve been pulling out my old faithful rifles to try Hammers this year for deer, elk and bear. The 270 P64 FWT, 7 Mashburn and 338 Alaskan have been getting a good workout. The ol 270 and H4831 ain’t doing too bad.

Well said!

I've had the pleasure today of reading this thread and extend gratitude to those who've contributed.

Many years ago my grandfather, a Win 70 30-06 user often suggested that the 270 WCF would be a good choice for me to move towards as a boy. However, back home it was considered more "cannon" than necessary, Dad, a confirmed 222 and 6mm Remington guy... Ended up with a 22-250 at 11, then a 7 RM at 14 (of my own choosing) never getting into a 270 until much later in life, although I read O'Connor and remembered what gramps said. I like many cartridges, finding fault in the 270 Winchester in preference of others is mostly in one's head I've concluded. It's a splendid hunting cartridge.

By gawd I don't think I've made a kill with one yet! I have a Kimber of Oregon Mod 89 BGR in 270 which is dear to me, of the vintage I was working in their stock shop about 1990. I've never really moved beyond tinkering with it, many here have provided assistance. I recall BobinNH helping me with loads more than once. RIP. Yet, I'm still getting around to it, probably best with 140gr bullets and moderate ranges. It's now wearing a simple longtube Leupold 4x, a Montana sling and needs to get out!

I had the pleasure of interacting with a man of means who spends a fair amount of time in Africa. Speaking of "what works" he said many 100s of culls were simply via the 270 and Privi 150 gr SPs. A very typical combination used by the locals.

More recently, just a few years ago, I put a dandy little parts rifle together, Rem 700 Mtn rifle in 270, BDL format and, uhhh, well, I went and toasted the barrel doing some lathe practice - threading the muzzle a couple of months ago, not attentive enough. No 270 SBR needed. Dohhhh. Soooo, I have now that action and another and have acquired two 7 twist 277 barrels. Hopefully I'll be able to get those running for the Centennial! It's really a cartridge that makes sense with the typical hunting opportunities in Montana and I plan to promote it despite all the others. Yes, 150 grain solids as mentioned previously in this thread definitely make sense with the fast twist and SAAMI chamber. Should be powerful medicine.

Thanks again for the stories.

I grew up reading JOC's accounts of hunting with a 270. Around the 1978 time period he wrote about the new Remington 700 Classic rifle and how good it looked. So, I bought one in 270 very shortly thereafter. In almost 60 years of hunting whitetails, I have never seen a better combo for them than the 270 Win. and a good 130 grain bullet. The fastest and quickest kills I have seen have been with that combo.

I have since moved on to other cartridges, not because they are better, but just because I like using different guns. But, if if I were to ever find myself in the position of having to kill a deer or else, or say going on the deer hunt of a lifetime, my 700 Classic 270 is the rifle I'd choose.

My great uncle talked about one of his friends buying a Winchester M54 in 270 WIN when they were kids. Everyone was envious of that rifle, as the rest of them used Winchester 94s that they borrowed from their fathers and nobody really had much money at the time to spend on the latest new rifles.

I am really late to this thread but would like to add my thoughts on the venueable 270. I purchased my first , a model 70 standard, because Otto Corbin of a Bottineau ND did not have a feather weight in stock , the summer of 1957, the year I graduated from high school. That model 70 represented many hours of picking rocks, humping 60 lb hay bales, milking cows, and cleaning stalls at 75 cents an hour. Now after over 65 years I still cherish that as much today as I did then Though, like many of you ,I’ve owned literally hundreds of other over the years. I can’t imagine how miles I packed that 9 1/2 lb rifle over forest and prairie up steep mountains and through the muskeg of Canada and Alaska. That ole rifle has bagged me the grand slam of sheep, mountain goat, elk , deer , antelope, caribou, black bear, a variety of African plains game, and 100’s of small game, along with a mind full of wonderful memories. Long live the 270 Winchester.