I'm looking to buy a Sako Finnlight for elk and deer hunting out west and I'm torn between the 7mm RM and the 270 WSM, what are your thoughts? Recoil is a factor. Please don't suggest a 30-06 as I have several. Thanks.

7mm Rem..heavier bullets and brass is everywhere, usually!!!!!!!!

Imo, I don`t think it will make all that much of a difference for deer and elk.

You do get the heavier bullet choices with the 7. But in all reality, I can`t see where a good quality 150 gr hunting bullet fired from a 270 WSM could not accomplish the same as a 175-180 gr 7mm bullet.

Bull elk have been taken with the 264 Win and with even lesser powered 6.5s like the Creedmoor beyond 500 yards. No reason why a 270 WSM cannot do the same.

Either is an excellent choice.

Easy 7 Remington .Too many reasons to list.

.007" difference in bullet diameter. I don't see too much difference between the two. 277 bullets are available up to 180 grains, I believe.
I shoot a 270 wsm and like it. I wouldn't fell bad if it was a 7RM.

Ernie

270 WSM

I shoot a 7mm RM and a 270,not the WSM version.I can't see a significiant difference in recoil with 150's in both.Long range sessions yes,but a few rounds,no.

I would go 7mm RM for versitility and availability.

My vote is for the 270 WSM
Hits like "THOR's hammer" with very manageable recoil. My 10 year old son even
shoots it without any complaints, 130 gr. loads mind you! This round has earned a permanent place in my gun safe!

Either will work shot placement is the key I prefer the 7RM but have killed elk with the 270 win and wsm I think ammo availability is better for the 7RM

Thanks guys keep it coming!

7/08... I just handled an 85 finlite ST this afternoon and it was niiiice.

I like the S action better than the L action for some strange reason so I would probably buy both...

I have a Sako 75 in 270 WSM. It's probably the slickest feeding Sako I own. It averages .566 for three shot groups @ a 100. My only complaint is I can't reach 3300 fps with published load data and 130 grain bullets.

Dink

I've got one of each. As has been said, the 270 WSM shoots bullets about 10 grains lighter, but no animal is going to know the difference.

The only practical difference here is long action vs short action as ballistically these two are too close to call, so do like like a long action rifle better or do you prefer a short action? I tend to lean toward a long action rifle as I am 6'2" 225 lbs I prefer a full size rifle, another plus for the 7 Mag in this case is that ammo should be easier to come by at any Wally World, as for recoil the 7 Mag will have a little more recoil than the .270 WSM but will still be very manageable and unless you are super recoil sensitive it should not be an issue(no more than your 30-06's)....Either cartridge will easily do what you want.....Good luck...................Hb

I would go with the 7mmRem Mag, just cuz anything .270 is....



Gay!



The Poobah made me say it.

Easy, .270 WSM. If it works here in the "Yuke", it'll work anywhere else in North America. I'd tackle a grizzly or a moose with mine with no second thoughts. Besides, I never could understand them thar Youropean chamberings. Wot's a mm, anyway? (Sorry, couldn't resist)
Bear in Fairbanks

I love the 7's, but never warmed up to the Remington Magnum. The .270 WSM we have is a ball of fun and a death ray on Deer.

I recently traded into a .257 Weatherby Magnum, but after getting set up to load for it, and searching the manuals, I am beginning to believe that 110 class bullets, the 270 WSM is as good as the Weatherby.

270 WSM is good, but the 270 Win. is the best.

Try one and see.

Have you thought about the 270 Roy at all.Ballistics are pretty impressive.

About a year ago I was trying to decide on what I should do for rifle that would be good for both deer and elk. I had a 270 WSM and a 300 Win Mag. Both Kimbers. I sold both and had a 7mm RM built and could be happier. I don't feel over gunned for the deer and I don't think I am under gunned for elk.

Another thing about the WSM is brass last forever. I think you might be able to burn the barrel with 50 or 100 pieces of brass if you don't loose them.

Dink

Agree,brass lasts a very long time even when loaded to top tier pressures .

Ernie

.270 WSM
lighter weight short action
better handling
less recoil
comparable performance on game indicated
NO BELT on case cases last much longer
and IME, more accurate

Just get a 30-06 and be done with it.

LOL---I doubt the deer and elk would ever know the difference.

you have a 30-06 so why something so close to the same? I would get a 25-06....my wife had a finnlight 25-06 in a McMillan Edge and it was sweet...biggest mistake I made, was selling it. Wish I could have it back...

finnlight in 25-06 would be a fine choice if it had the 24" tube of the wsm or 7mmRM. Between 270wsm or 7mmRM in a finnlight I'd rather have the shorter action for a lightweight rig. Even though Sako has 5 action sizes, the 7mmRM is the shortest cartridge in the "L" action size. It's plenty big for a 7mmRM. No flies on the big 7 though. My favorite Sako in the stable is a 85 Classic in 7mmRM.

Though I am a fan of the 7RM, if I were getting a Finnlight I'd probably get the 270wsm for the above reasons. In a perfect world they would just offer a 7wsm.

7mm RM fan here. I have used it for everything from Sitka Blacktails to Moose. You have better choices in 7mm bullets for reloading - especially if you like heavier bullets.

I'd choose the 7RM between those. I haven't shot a .270 WSM but own the .30-06 and 7RM. The RM has a quicker recoil and does kick more than an '06 does but not a lot. I have also shot the .300 Win Mag some and (to me) not a lot of diffrence to me over the 7 using 150's and 165's in the .300 vs 150's in the 7.

If you are worried about recoil, I'd stick with your .30-06 and go hunting. It's pleanty for any Deer or Elk out there. I'd try shooting rifles in both calibers to see what you like, using whatever weight bullets you are going to hunt with. If you reload, I'd consider throwing the .300 WSM in there also as you could work up loads to get used to it, although I don't think there is that much difference between it and the 7RM recoil wise.The .270 WSM, 7mm Rem Mag, .30-06 and any of the .300s have accounted for pleanty of Deer and Elk you'd be fine with either.

If I need/want anything other than a 270 Winchester,it's a 7 Rem Mag.

I wanted something smaller than my 1-rifle battery (Sako m75ss 300WM)and my wife could shoot back in 2005 so I bought a Tikka T3 LS 270WSM. She took it over so I bought another for me.

Long story short, sold of of then recently to my bro-in-law, I bought a mint Sako m75ss 270WSM.

LOVE THIS CALIBER with 140gr Accubonds. Over the years , elk, moose, bears, deer and odd coyote and wolf have been harvested.

Me, I am not a 7mmRM fan, so my vote is 270WSM.

...............In the OP`s original beginning post. Quote..."Please don`t suggest a 30-06 as I have several."....Un-quote.

270 short....the finnlite and short action is a good marriage. Plenty enough oomph for elk also.

I'm not surprised that Mighty Peace is rolling everything up there in Alberta with a 270WSM.

Me I am more of a cartridge lumper than I am inclined to dote on one thing or the other seperated by a few thousandths of an inch and a couple of grains of capacity.To me the two cartridges appear to have similar capacity,push bullets of roughly the same weight at about the same velocity, shoot with about the same trajectories,and kill in such a similar fashion you would have to shoot game numbering in the thousands with each to see a meaningful difference.

Even then,more would depend on the specific bullets being used in each than anything else.Touters of BC might find more 7mm bullets available over the counter than for 270 and this will show up mostly with the heaviest bullets...but thats old news now and a 270 user can get high BC bullets even if he has to pay a bit more for them.UNless you routinely look to shoot game at 700 plus yards I doubt much of this matters at all.

The 7mm does use 175 -180 gr bullets if that matters but most 7mm shooters use bullets in the 140-160 gr range.A guy may prefer one thing over another because of the rifle itself chambering the cartridge, but I doubt it matters a hill of beans when its all boiled down to killing stuff....hand me either one and I'm going hunting without a concern for whether one will work better than the other.

With the short barrel on the Finnlight, I'd go 7...but it would be the little one.

A 7-08 is just right for a Finnlight, IMHO - less recoil, muzzle blast, short action - just needs an Edge.

A 7 mag with that barrel would be a little too close to muzzle break blast level for my blood.

Plus, if you have a stable of '06's, you need a 7-08 more than a 7 Mag anyway...grin.

The 270WSM has never sparked enough excitement for me to deviate from the good ole 270Win for .277 projectiles.

DJ

I agree, I vote for the 7mm-08. I have a Tikka stainless lite in 7-08 and it is both a pleasure to shoot and very accurate, easy to carry too.

EAsy choice, .270 WSM and then go kill chit! My M70 loves 140 NAB's and has killed everything from Whitetails to Elk with great efficiency!

Yes several elk, moose, bears and deer have been taken with my 270WSM's. I havent used them too much over past couple seasons but my bro-in-law and father-in-law seemed to take over these rifles......lol.

Anyhow, nothing wrong with a 7mmRM, I just prefer the 300WM over the 7mmRM....maybe its b/c of a 7mmRM I tried to sight in for my father-in-law many many years ago.....the rifle recoiled harder shooting 160gr AB's than my Sako m75ss 300WM shooting 180's. The 7mmRM rifle was a like a "MULE".

Not that I wouldnt mind buying a used Sako m75ss 7mmSTW to add into my Sako m75 rifle collection.

MightyPeace,

Everyone knows those chitty 75's are only worth about $500 if they are new in the box. Quit blabbering about how good they are. Everyone knows they are heavy and don't shoot well. They aren't worth owning!

Dink

I'd pick neither & go with the 300 WSM.

28--I have two 300 WSM's, both Remington 700's, an LSS that is NIB and a 26" SS fluted laminate T-Hole stock that shoots lights out, kicks too much for me.

Only the short action finnlights have 20" tubes. Both the WSM and 7mmRM come with 24 3/8" barrels in the finnlight.

The 85 finnlights have 22 7/16 and 24 inch barrels.

Dink

Kinda. Short action finnlights have 20" barrels. "M" length actions(30-06) use 22 7/16. WSM and "L"(magnums) actions use 243/8" barrels.

Choose the 7mm Remington Magnum.

The recoil impulse is satisfying!
It FEELS good.

Sorry about that. We're the 75 Finnlights configured the same way? I've had a couple of Finnlight SA 75's over the years and a FL 270 Win, but thought I remembered wishing for a longer barrel on the 270. Didn't have it long, and don't remember for sure, though.

Thanks Horseman!