I want realistic velocities with a 270 win and a 22" barrel. I only shoot 130 grain bullets so please limit responses to 130grain bullets only. Also please list the type and powder charge you are using to get your specific speed.

with a 22" barrel and 60 grains of RL22 at 60,000 PSI (Saami max) and a 130 grain bullet you'll get 3,100'/sec. or there abouts.....

Polar Bears have been killed with the .22 Short too, but that doesn't mean it is ALWAYS up to the task...not if one includes the word "humanely" in the equation.



Alberta Canuck

win 70, 22" barrel, chronographed with 130 gr Barnes X over 59 gr of RL22, 3030 fps. - Dan

59-H4831SC-130 Hornady sp. (60 gr book max)
M700BDL 32 year old worn factory barrel 2732 fps
with new Pac-Nor barrel 2904
700 ADL 2877
all 22" barrels

Pac-Nor barrel with
59-RL22 same bullet 3025
54.5 IMR 4350 same bullet 2890
60-RL22-130 Interbond 3090
59-H4831-140 Accubond 2836
60-RL22-140 Accubond 3056 Too Hot!

I have only shot 5 bull elk, but all of them have been with a .338. I have seen a few die with things such as the .280 (close to the .270).

Both rounds killed the elk when they were hit, but the difference with the .338 is they don't move after being hit. they either fall immediately, or fall seconds later.

I've got an old tang saftey Ruger 77.

60grs. - RL-22 vel.-3060 fps w/130gr. Nos. Part.

58.5grs. - RL-22 vel.-2940fps w/150gr. Nos. Par.

At short ranges (up to 250 yards), I consider the .270 Win is pretty much always adequate. From 250-to-maybe-325 yards, I consider it marginally adequate. Beyond 325 yards, I have found it to still kill, but not always in a way I would consider humane. (Not including "lucky" shots here.)



I personally have found it to be lacking in bone-breaking and deep penetrating ability at longer ranges.



You must remember that in "control" hunting, the elk must be shot regardless what part of the elk is facing toward you. The object is to decimate that group of elk, not to "injun-up" on them and get a good, "sporting", shot. Likewise, you may have less than a minute to shoot half-a-dozen of them. That does not leave time for concentrating on and shooting one animal as many times as may be necessary with a cartridge which may be marginal for the angle, distance, and body weight of the animal targeted.



Because I do not like inhumane killing, I prefer cartridges with much more oomph than a .270 for this type of hunting. My first choice would be something along the line of a .340 Weatherby, with a minimum for all around use being something akin to a .300 Weatherby.



The .270 is okay in my eyes if you have mainly short range shots (250 yards or less), or can take the time to maneuver around for a nearly broadside shot, or if you can concentrate on that animal and put two or three shots in place in rapid succession.



I suspect my shooting is up to par with most anyone's, so hitting them around the edges is not the problem...lack of sufficient destruction of tissue to cause immediate demise is the problem as I see it.



At any rate, I was NOT saying no one else should use the .270 for elk. Am simply saying I consider it not ALWAYS adequate for the kind of elk hunting I have to do.



YMMV.



Alberta Canuck

Alberta Canuck:

I have never had the displeasure to go out on a "controlled hunt". Here in Arizona, where we have the biggest elk in the world, tags are at a premium. If you draw a tag you are one lucky critter. WE don't have the opportunity to "machine gun" elk here. The farthest shot I have had on an elk was 225 yards. Shot um with a 35 Whelen. All the other shots were less than 150 yards, and at that range the 270 hangs with about everything. Of course I admit, I won't take a 300 yd shot, unless the conditions are perfect, 4 & 500 yd shots, forget it. The chance of a non lethal hit is just to great for my hunting ethics.

Jerry

Jerry -



I agree the control shooting of elk is not a pleasure. It is not a "controlled hunt" by the meaning of that term here, BTW. A "controlled Hunt" here is one where the number of tags for an area is controlled, and thus tags are available only by draw.



A "control" hunt should, I guess, better be described as an "elk numbers control" hunt. They commonly occur here when several thousand elk begin congregating in winter on private land...usually in groups of about 200...and destroying a rancher's entire winter supply of hay for his cattle.



Then, a decision is made as to whether it is necessary to both reduce numbers of elk and scare the rest off, by shooting 10-to-20 from each 200 animal group, or to begin paying public funds to recompense the rancher's loss.



And, before you leap on me with full force, I know they are the Public's animals, but they are on private property, eating hay privately paid for (and often imported fairly long distances). If the public wanted to pay for fences to keep their animals off private land, then there would be no need to shoot any of them, and personally I wish that was the way it is done.



The particular shoot referred to in my original post happened in the middle of 28,000 deeded acres (NO public land) of a private cattle ranch. That's approximately 6.5 miles in any direction to ANY other property, either public or private....in this case all the surrounding property is also private land, so it is really a great deal farther than that to any public land for these publicly owned animals. Additionally, none of the meat was wasted. It was all skinned out by the rancher and his hands, cut, wrapped and quick frozen at my personal expense, and delivered to local needy families by me personally for their winter's meat. I did not keep even one pound for myself, as I can afford to buy my meat and they could not.



Anyway, you do have great elk hunting in Northern AZ. I was born and raised 'til age 9 in AZ. I lived there again for most of the '80s, and shot the biggest elk I have ever taken, on a hunt in Sitgreaves NF at about 200 yards. (On a piece of Bruce Babbitt's land, actually.)



Could have used a .270 for that shot with perfect confidence, but as it happened, I was carrying a .300 WBY. loaded with Nosler 200 gr. Partitions, so that's what I used. That particular elk was first spotted at about 600 yards, but as it was NOT a "control hunt", but a sporting, trophy hunt paid for on my own nickel, I had the time to get closer. Had I only been able to get to 350 yards, I would have still taken the shot with the .300 WBY, but not with a .270. I know the .270 would probably have made the kill at 350 yards, but there would have been too much chance he could have run off into a square mile or so of dense Junipers which started only 8 feet from him. Unless he died rather quickly, he might never have been found, and I don't like to waste the life of an animal by shooting it then not recovering the meat.



Best wishes,



Alberta Canuck

I am interested in this post too. I am at the moment importing a Winchester pre 64 M70 featherweight (22" barrel) in 270 into Australia from the US.

We have a more restricted variety of powder in Oz, but ADI (Austalian Defence Industries) make a powder (AR2213SC) which is repackaged as Hodgdon H4831SC for the US market. I be intersted what loads of this powder work well with the 130gr bullets and the velocities you get put of a 22" barrel.

Regards,
Magnum

Starting at least 5% low, of course, you might end up with a load of 60 to as much as 62 grains of that stuff in a .270 Win. case behind a 130-grain bullet for up to as much as 3150 FPS OR MORE from a 22" barrel.

Good luck. The 270 Win. is one helluva good round.

First you will never know the real velocity until you shoot over a chrony. I load for a few .270 win. with the same load. 55 grains of IMR 4350 with WLR. 130 sierra B.T. all with 22 in. barrel. they shoot anywhere between 2975 to 3050 fps. it all depends on your rifle. FIND a chrony then U will know!!

I had a .270 win with a very long throat and 22" barrel. You actually couldn't seat a 130 grain bullet out far enough to get close to the lands. 60gr H-4831 and a 130 gave me 2950, 59 IMR-4831 gave me 3070 fps. I have seen other .270s where both of these loads gave well over 3100 fps given 22" of barrel. Incidentally, that IMR-4831 load is now backed down to 56-57 gr in most manuals, but used to be listed in Dupont's handout as max. Based on loading for several .270s, I expect you should be able to get 3100 fps +/- a few fps given 22" of barrel and 130 gr. bullets. 59-60 gr of H-4831SC is a good target to start for. This will typically give you over 3000 fps and is more temp stable than some other powders that may be faster when it's warm, but lose 50-100 fps when it gets cold.

-Lou

I have loaded as much as 60.5 gr. of H-4831SC with a 130 Hornandy and only get 2950 fps. out of a 24" bbl. Colt 270. Could I load more powder & get more velocity?, don't know haven't tried, this load shoots very good as it is. Just my experience-Nimrod 44

I had a go-to load for my 22" M70 Winlite that used 55.5 gr IMR 4350 with 130 sierra BT. Velocity was a disappointing 2850 f/s. I have tried 57 gr RL19 with an increase of 50f/s and 60 gr H4831, 2925f/s. I guess I have a slow barrel, to bad I now know it as the deer I took with that loading over 250-350 yds never knew I was 175 f/s below book values. I will try the RL 22 loadings when it warms up

BR

I knew a fellow who shot a pre 64 Mod 70 FWT. in 270Win, as did hid Dad and his Uncle.They all used the same load, 60 ish grains of H4831, and a Fed 215 with the venerable 130 Nosler Partition bullet. combined at my last knowledge, they had accounted for no less than 3 grizzlies, over 30 elk, 60+ moose, numerous deer (Alberta and BC), goats, sheep, antelope, and even a few caribou.
This goes to prove what I have said and seen for decades, all the gun in the world is useless if you can't hit where you want.