Been playing around most of the summer with a Christensen Arms Ridgeline 270 win. (Warne Mnt Tac Rings, NF 3-10X42 scope, action professionally bedded)

I have approx. 200 rounds down it in the last couple months and what I have noticed is it doesn't like boat tail based bullets nearly as much as a standard base bullet? I first started with 140 accubonds and 145 ELD X bullets (h4831sc) and I could for the most part get 1.25-1.5" groups every range session (multiple seating depths and powder charges - 3 and 5 shot 100 yard groups) but that wasn't how expected this rifle to perform.

So I went old school and tested 130 partitions and 150 partitions - again with H4831sc. Just about every load thru workup and seating depth adjustments was under MOA and most in the .5-.75 moa at 100 yards. I worked up and have settled on 150 partition, 56.9 of H4831sc, Win Brass, CCI 200 primers for an average of 2990 FPS and on three separate range trips will put 5 in under 1" at 100 with velocity and BC checked/verified at both 400 and 600 yard gongs. (Should be a heck of a mule deer, antelope, elk load)

Have you ever ran into a rifle not liking boat tail bullets?

I haven’t seen that sorta difference myself in one gun just shooting FB bullets that much better but believe it’s possible.

With your 150 grain Partition load I cannot see any reason I’d mess with the other two either though. H4831 and 150 Partitions would have to be about as dependable as a good pair of boots. Ain’t much of anything I wouldn’t hunt with it.

I’m using the same gun but in 300 RUM and man alive does it shoot 220 Scenars. Just over 3000 and it shoots like it has eyes.

Maybe Mule Deer will chime in here but IIRC he had an article on boattails in one of the Gun Gacks. At any rate, boat tails are inherently not more accurate than FB bullets and in fact I believe the opposite is true. I believe they are more sensitive to any crown irregularity than FB bullets too.

Yes. Sample of one, don't normally use boattails anyway, but have a .308 Savage 99F that hates them.

Harder to make a boattail bullet that is as consistent as a flat based bullet. I had a 270 that was a 2-3" shooter with Gamekings and a 1/2" gun with factory or flat based bullets. My current 6mm is a 3/4"+ gun with boattails and 1/2" +/- with about any flatbase i feed it.

BT's are more finicky... however they have a LITTLE less drop at longer hunting ranges (300-500 yards)

Yes on sensitivity to crown issues. Little things like not protecting the muzzle from cleaning rods will affect BTs before flat base bullets.

One of the first things I checked was the crown and it appears just fine - even, no burrs....

I've never had a rifle not shoot BT's. But I can't afford Christiansen Arms.

It is a bit discouraging to see this out of a $1800 rifle with another $900 in optics and mounts - however this is my big game rifle for Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk, Bear so if I "have" to shoot 150 partitions - there are worse problems in the world. Also, I have the NF for a reason - if the partition is going to drop more over distance, then I'll just spin the turrets another couple clicks as needed...lol

Maybe an off the wall question for a 270, but what is the twist?

My 260 Montana hates boat tails, like 4-6” at 100 yards. It will shoot sierra flat base and hornady interlocks into 1.25” at 100 yards, so that is what I shoot.

I have a Ruger 77 MKII that doesn't like any of the boat tails I tried. My Weatherby Varmint Master 22-250 likes flat base bullets more but Weatherbys seem to have a long throat and that could be why.

Have you tried the Hornady 150 gr. Interlock flatbase? I’ve heard them called the “poor man’s” Partition. About half the price of the Partition. And yes, I have generally found it easier in my rifles to get flatbased bullets to shoot well. That said, Ballistic Tips and TTSX’s usually shoot satisfactorily.

Take a look at the popular benchrest bullets.
Those OCD dudes don't do anything without good reason.

When pure accuracy, and nothing but accuracy is the goal,
The bullets are only pointy on one end.

Have seen several rifles not "like" boattails over the years. It can be due to the crown, but suspect the cause is more often at the other end, as the bullet leaves the case, Lead-cored boattails don't "bump up" slightly in diameter when the powder gas kicks them in the butt, as many flat-base bullets do, and depending on the difference in diameter between bullet and throat, can also result in gas blow-by before they fully enter the rifling.

I had a Sako 270 that didn’t like boattail bullets. It liked 150 grain Pro Hunters best.

I've heard that before regarding better accuracy with flat base vs boat tail bullets. I have a Kimber Classic 325 WSM that doesn't like any boat tail I've tried but has shot 3 different flat base bullets very well. I think there's likely something to it...

Got a Ruger Mod. 77 Mk II Target Rifle in .25-06 that I acquired new in 1997. Did a lot of load development and noticed that my better loads all used flat base bullets. It'll shoot boat tails OK but flat base are consistently a little better. Finally settled on one load only in that gun and it uses a 117 gr. Sierra Pro-Hunter flat base. I've seen that phenomenon in other rifles as well. That's just the way it goes.

Old chambering, old powder and old bullet still getting it done.

I hear you there but the difference between the bullets you mention probably doesn’t amount to even a couple of clicks really. All good and honestly the 150 Partition is a beast in a 270. That’s a great combo, probably packs excellent as well.

What happened to the Tikka 6.5 you were crushing stuff with?

Are the Accubond and the ELD-X the only 2 boattails you have tried?

Never experienced the FB vs BT phenomenon. However, this dog ^^^^^^ will hunt...

I also wonder what happened to the tikka 6.5. Hairing, it doesnt sound like this new rifle shoots half as good as that tikka. Whats up?

I've had several rifles in different calibers, through the years, that preferred flat based bullets. No big deal. Go for it with what it likes.

I have experienced the flat base bullets being better in one of my rifles.

The only conclusion I could come to was the twist. The longer boattail bullet of the same wt as the flat base didn't fly as well.

right or wrong that was my basic conclusion.

140TSX's are an exceptional "all-around" bullet for the 270. Mule-Deer, Whitetail, elk (bull and cow), caribou, coyotes, and pronghorn off the top of my head.

The 6.5 tikka sets in the safe....I know at anytime I can take it out and put 139 scenars into little clusters - its actually kind of so consistent its boring...lol (It does wear a 6x SS now)

The 270 came about in a round about way...My 11 year old son was going through the photo album and was looking at the last Elk I killed (5 point back in 2008 in Idahos Selway Country) I had killed it with a 270 I grew up hunting with since I was 12 (was 23 in 2008) anyways it is the last Elk I killed. (Im on a long dryspell that has forced me to kill big mule deer) He ask what I shot it with and I told him a 270. He then asks what I hunt with now and I said lately a 6.5 creedmoor. Looks at me like a kid does and says, well if you want to kill another elk, probably should use a 270???? Make sense right??? So that lead me on the search - I had "retired" the Win 70 270 I had all those years, and really wanted a nice, ltwt, carbon rifle....Long story short - here we are.

I see said the blind man. Sounds like you need to un-retire your lucky 270 and sell the expensive one... Scotty and I both know what those model 70's are capable of... Especially when you have a good one..

Thats been my experience..some rifles just don't "like" them as much as others, and like one brand over another. The difference in BC and trajectory over normal hunting distances( under 300 yards) is literally not noticeable in field conditions...

Can't argue with that logic!! I was on a few-year elk drought until I took a 270 into the woods last year. Was it a factor? Who can say?

But there's no handicap in shooting Partitions that well at the distances you were shooting them. I've certainly got stockpiles of bullets that I wanted to get to shoot in certain guns, but could never make them work. Take your Magical 270 into the woods and prove your son right.

Find me a 600/1K Benchrest shooter running flat base bullets.......

Longer range shooters generally shoot the boattails because of wind drift. Difference in drop means nothing but a couple more clicks of elevation. Short range shooters use flat base because they are more accurate and the wind at short range does not affect them to much. That being said I have a couple rifles that prefer flat base. A friend of mine that shot national competition for years said he believes that it’s because of more bearing surface on most of the flat base bullets. Ed k

I’ve never had a rifle that likes boat tails better than plain base bullets.

I'm wonder if bullet length has anything to do with it. A BT will be longer than the same weight FB. The same theory might apply to RN bullets as well and they have a reputation of good accuracy.

Old wife's tale?? ...... Yes/No/Maybe??

If you are referring to Sierra, the 150 grain has always been a boattail.

Or a round nose.

That's what stuck out to me in the OP too - with only trying 2 different boat tail bullets and one flat base (Partitions), it's a pretty loose connection to say the rifle doesn't like boat tail bullets. It may not like the particular bullets you tried, but don't assume all boat tails will shoot poorly in it. If you want to find good accuracy with a more streamlined bullet, it would be worth trying a few others, but keep in mind bullet length vs twist rate, as SuperCub pointed out.

Nothing wrong with Partitions at normal hunting ranges for sure, my objection is just to the general conclusion drawn from very limited information. Remember, correlation does not mean causation.

This...

Sierra 150 Pro Hunters are flat base, same with all PH bullets. My old 1917 Enfield (with a Traister trigger/speedlock) would just wad the 150s/180 PHs into bug holes with IMR 4350! It did shoot the sierra 200 SBT (boat tail) just fine. I must have shot a "gazillion" boat tail bullets out of 105mm, 155mm, 8" Howtizers, M60s and M16s! I like them a lot, but I myself just don't need them out to 300-400yds, ha. If I shot a lot at 700-1200yds, well yeah.

Yes, JB hit on some of the reasons for this. I thought it was common knowledge though.

Some of my guns won't shoot them. Specifically my 338-378 Bee hated all of them. I settled on the 225 TSX at 3189 fps. It shoots an average of 1.06" at 200 yards with them and RL 25

My son’s 308 rem 722 doesn’t like them. Likes FB 150s and NPTs just fine.