Last year I had my .270 rebarreled with a 24" Shilen, 1-10 twist, and what I'm assuming to be a "standard" throat. I've broken it in very carefully; it has 40 rounds of factory WW 150 gr. PP down the tube. It's shooting well under moa at 200 yards.

I'd like to choose a "one bullet does everything" load. By "everything", I mean Elk, Moose, Deer, Antelope.

I don't intend to shoot further than 400 yards. The rifle has a Leupy VX-2 with the long range dots (one for 300, 400, and the top of the bottom post for 500). That set-up worked very well with the old barrel before I burned it out, and I'll be sticking with it.

My goal is to work up a load for moa with good velocity. I don't want to be shooting a 7x57 (good as that is), but moa is my first requirement.

I'm optimistic I can achieve this, and want to load up 500 rounds & leave well-enough alone. I'm 42 years old, and intend this to be a primary hunting rifle for the rest of my lifetime (and perhaps part of my kids', too.).

Thanks for the help!

friar

Question:
With those parameters, please help me decide on the following:

Choices:
140 gr. Accubond (standard)
150 gr. Partition
150 gr. A-Frame
150 gr. LR Accubond

 

Over the past 30 years I've used mostly three different bullets in several different 270s. My "go-to" bullet for mule deer and pronghorn has been the Hornady 130 Interlock which almost always groups under 1" and kills very nicely. For elk hunting I have used the 150 Nosler Partition which has usually grouped half a hair over 1" and performed outstandingly. Some of my 270s haven't liked it it, but the ones that do perform really well with the Hornady 140 BTSP. I have enjoyed that my 270s have performed with more than one bullet. If I were forced to limit it to only one I supposed it would have to be the 150 Partition, but why limit myself?

If you're really set on only 1 bullet, then I'd say the 150 partition or maybe the 140 partition, just because you might use it for elk. But if you're like most of us, you do a lot more deer/antelope than elk. So why not load up a bunch of 130s, and then load a few 150 PTs for the occasional elk.

150 grains partition then if it s not working i will try the a-frame.

Interesting - I was just going to ask a semi related question in 270 bullets too.

Having several 270s, and having had quite a few, I can say that I have had best luck with the heavier bullets like the 150s. But the 140s weren't around so much then either.

I had gotten a new Extreme Weather M-70 and it really likes the 140 AccuBond. But it didn't shoot anything this year as I got it later.

I would say the 150 Partition if your rifle shoots them well and if you are going for bigger animals. Some rifles don't shoot them as well.

I am curious if anyone has an opinion of the Nosler 150 Partition versus the Winchester factory loaded round of the 150 XP3?

The XP3 would be a factory load , and the Partition could be either a handload or the factory loaded round. Of course the factory loaded rounds can be 150fps slower than the stated velocity is a factor too.

And here's one CRAZY thought: What about a 150 gr. Sierra Game King?

quote:

Originally posted by friarmeier:
And here's one CRAZY thought: What about a 150 gr. Sierra Game King?

Well, they blow up on stuff, right?

For deer or other soft skinned game the Sierras do a great job. They are precise bullet and accurate too. They will knock Nebraska whitetails down right there I can say for a fact.

For hunting something bigger is where the other bullets come in to play. For a wildebeest or a moose you might want the Nosler or Barnes or similar.

Before you decide you might want to see what it likes.

I voted Partition because upclose it will blow the nose and penetrate deep with that blunt cylinder effect. It also has a better BC than the AFrame.

However, for my wife's 270 we have the 129 LRX (Barnes). It is flatter, will work up close, and has a good BC against the wind. I would trust it over the Partition. Expansion is no problem out to 700 yards. At 400 yards and 3100fps it drops 14.6" and drifts 9.7" in a 10mph wind, 4000ft elev. Even less at higher elevations.

No flies on Barnes. I'm surprised you are not considering them.

quote:

Originally posted by 416Tanzan:
I voted Partition because upclose it will blow the nose and penetrate deep with that blunt cylinder effect. It also has a better BC than the AFrame.

However, for my wife's 270 we have the 129 LRX (Barnes). It is flatter, will work up close, and has a good BC against the wind. I would trust it over the Partition. Expansion is no problem out to 700 yards. At 400 yards and 3100fps it drops 14.6" and drifts 9.7" in a 10mph wind, 4000ft elev. Even less at higher elevations.

+1 I've shot 150g Partitions out of my Rem BDL in 270 with a 22" barrel for 40 years. I've killed everything from javelin, deer, elk, and bears with it. A 150g Partition at 2900 fps out of a 270 is a lethal combination.

I like the Sierra 90g HPBTs at 3400 fps for varmints too.

I'd forgotten about the Barnes, but not intentionally!

One concern of mine is stability - but I'll never know til I try. My other worry may have already been solved: the LRX is supposed to open at a much lower velocity than the standard X bullets (and TTSX too). Can anyone speak to this?

My reason for wanting 1 bullet is just simplicity. I have too many other irons in the fire, and looks to be that way for some time yet. But I'm excited to develop a good load.

Thanks for the help!

friar

I would select the 140 gr accubond for an "everything" bullet. That said, I shoota lot of 130 gr Gamekings for local whitetails. The accubond does shoot 6 in, higher than the POI of the gameking in 2 different rifles using similar velocity.

My choice would be the 150 gr. Northfork or 160 gr. Nosler Partition. My 270 WSM's shoot them well. Good Shooting.

I voted the 140 grain accubond.
But i think the 130 grain ttsx would be the best choice , if your rifle likes it !...tj3006

I doubt all of them are going to shoot moa. How about trying them out and picking the one that shoots best in your rifle?

I'm off to Cabelas in a few minutes, and here's the direction I'm pointing: I'll try the 150 gr. Partitions and also the 129 gr. LRX.

Maybe I'll try the standard 130 gr. TTSX if I have to.

As to the LRX, I'm not concerned about long distance shooting (as mentioned at the top), but instead with a consistently reliable petal opening. I don't care if I have petals blow off, I just want that little bit of extra insurance they'll open, and the LRX seems to indicate that. I know Barneses sometimes leave very small exit holes, and I'm not concerned about that; and I certainly don't want to turn this thread into the qeustion of whether they expand at all.

Thanks for the input everyone!

friar

Shooting both the 150 Partitions and the 129LRX in your rifle should be a good test.

On small exit holes, the partitions, and Barnes, and GSC all have a tendency to have small exit holes. But internal damage is huge, and the bullets do exit.

I voted Accubond,but agree with the 130 Barnes as the best all around solution. I have had very good accuracy with them in 270 win and wby. and on game has been fantastic! Sierras would also be a great choice, but I would use the 140 HPBT Gameking. That is one tough bullet.

quote:

I am curious if anyone has an opinion of the Nosler 150 Partition versus the Winchester factory loaded round of the 150 XP3?

Anyone using the XP3's. ^^^^^ On something heavy like a wildebeest for my wife.

Not handloaded of course.

For an all around from your list.
150gr NP it is pretty much the gold standard.
150gr A-Frame will work also but they tend run higher pressures compared to the NP's and cannot be driven quite as fast.

With that being said, I am somewhat of a 270 fanatic.

I have played with 85gr TSX to 180gr Woodleigh's and most in between.

Anymore, I always have three loads ready to try in case any new 270's find their way home.
130gr GMX, TSX, & TTSX. All sitting on top of 60gr H4831sc.

I have no doubt that any of the three will work for antelope, deer, elk, & moose.

If I draw my WY moose tag this year, my goal is to use my longbow. If I have to go into the firearms season. I will take a 160gr NP load I have worked up or use my 9.3x64 Brenneke.

Its not a great trick to own a .270 that will shoot the great 150 gr. Nosler and a a 130 gr. Nosler, Hornady or whatever you like to the same POI,,Every 270 I have owned usually did that right out of the box, but a couple I had to play with on the loading bench to make the shoot to the same POI...that said the 150 Nosler Partition will work on everything you shoot with a .270 from Coues deer to Moose and I would shoot a Brown Bear with one if I had too and not feel too underguned/

quote:

Originally posted by medved:
150 grains partition then if it s not working i will try the a-frame.

While the A-frames are a tad spendy, they pale in comparison to the cost of an elk hunt.

If I was to use a .270 Winchester for everything, I'd even opt for the 130 A-Frame but that wasn't an option.

All those bullets on your list will easily do what you want them to. I think the final decision will be up to your rifle.

That said, maybe consider which of those bullets will be consistently available in your local area. It won't do any good to work up a great load, and then find the local store out of stock and the online places taking back orders.

Personally, I would try the 150 Nosler as the first choice and the 150 A-Frame second and hope the rifle will give you what you want.

Best of luck.

quote:

Originally posted by olarmy:
If you're really set on only 1 bullet, then I'd say the 150 partition or maybe the 140 partition, just because you might use it for elk. But if you're like most of us, you do a lot more deer/antelope than elk. So why not load up a bunch of 130s, and then load a few 150 PTs for the occasional elk.

I agree , I think the 130 gr. really make the 270 win perform like it was intended .

quote:

Originally posted by Bear Cat:

quote:

Originally posted by olarmy:
If you're really set on only 1 bullet, then I'd say the 150 partition or maybe the 140 partition, just because you might use it for elk. But if you're like most of us, you do a lot more deer/antelope than elk. So why not load up a bunch of 130s, and then load a few 150 PTs for the occasional elk.

I agree , I think the 130 gr. really make the 270 win perform like it was intended .

Yes, and . . .

There is a blunt cylinder effect on trauma that is rarely included in discussions about bullets. A blunt cylinder forces a trauma area to form outside of the actual cylinder diameter. The faster that the cylinder moves the greater the trauma area. One of the nice things about Nosler 130 grains and GSC bullets and Barnes TTSX bullets is that they typically "blow off" their nose at higher impact velocities and do tremendous damage through the blunt cylinder effect.

I'm thinking of trying out the 110grain GSC and the new 117grain GSC for all "non-dangerous" animals (not brown bear, cape buffalo, hippo, or lion--leopard is good).

Use the 130 grain TTSX seated back a minimum of 0.050 from the lands over RL19 See Barnes Web site for data. I get 3150fps from my 270 but it is a Shilen #5 26 inch barrel 1-10 twist with a max load. The top load listed is quite hot be careful. DW

quote:

I don't intend to shoot further than 400 yards. The rifle has a Leupy VX-2 with the long range dots (one for 300, 400, and the top of the bottom post for 500). That set-up worked very well with the old barrel before I burned it out, and I'll be sticking with it.

What were using before?

I have found that a 130gr @3000fps is pretty much perfect for Leupold dots.

quote:

Originally posted by 35whelenman:
All those bullets on your list will easily do what you want them to. I think the final decision will be up to your rifle.

That said, maybe consider which of those bullets will be consistently available in your local area. It won't do any good to work up a great load, and then find the local store out of stock and the online places taking back orders.

Personally, I would try the 150 Nosler as the first choice and the 150 A-Frame second and hope the rifle will give you what you want.

Best of luck.

we are two thinking that ....+1

That is what I did for my wifes 270. I just went with the 150 Noisier Partition. I would still like to try the Winchester XP3s though.

130 or 140 A Frame will never disappoint you! Partition probably won't either, but I would choose either AF without a doubt. One bullet for life! Spend the small additional change and let'er rip!

Barnes ttsx in 130 would be high on my list also.

Just ordered 200 hornady 130gr. Interlock SST bullets . I'm not sure if the rifle will like them @ 3100fps , but they look nice !!

Friar...

I've got 181 150 gr. NPT 2nds that you can have first dibs on if that's the route you go.

$85/TYD

Bobby, I'll take em!

I'll send you a check in the morning!

Thanks!

SD, the Leupy dots are in their "standard" configuration, so 150gr. .270wcf or 180gr. 30-06 type trajectories. This translates to crosshairs = 200 yards, 1st dot down = 300, 2nd 400, top of the post = 500.

The same scope & dots with 130 gr. .270 (or 300WM 180 gr.) add an extra 100 yards to each increment.

I was shooting, before barrel burn-out, 150 gr. partitions; and boy were they shooting great! The dots, when paired with a rangefinder, were very easy to use. One of my best groups with that barrel was 1.5" at 271 yards! I just cried when it wouldn't shoot after that!

A friend & I loaded increments of RL-17, and the results from this last weekend were pretty unspectacular w/ 150 gr. Partitions. But I have both RL 22 & IMR 7828ssc on hand (and some others, also); and if those don't work I'm itchin to try RL's new 23 and/or 26.

If, through all that I can't get the Parts to shoot, then it will be the 129 gr. Barnes LR.

Thanks for the help everyone!

friar

In thinking about all the rounds I've shot through the old barrel in 24 seasons (since my Sr. year of High School), and at a minimum of 100 rounds/year (sometimes much, much more), and it being my only centerfire, I have a lot of heat, smoke, and even some light down the pipe.

Here's the bullets I've shot out of it; ordered only as memory allows:

Rem Core loct - 130* & 150
Rem Ultra Core loct bonded 140*
Win PP - 130* & 150
Win Ballistic Silvertip - 130*
Fed. Premium 130 Sierra*
Nitrex/Speer 150 GS*
Nosler BT 130
Hornady SP/Interlock 130
Horndady BTSP Interlock 140*
Swift Scirrocco 130*
Swift A-Frame 150 - shot my moose with this; super performance @ 240 yards.
Nosler Part. 150*
Nosler LRAB 150*
Nosler AB 140*
Fed. Prem TBBC (old style no tip, standard vel.) 140* - shot my biggest whitetail with this @ 25 yards double lung!
* = multiple whitetails shot

Of all the major companies, I think the only one I haven't tried is Barnes. Someday I'll remedy that!

quote:

Of all the major companies, I think the only one I haven't tried is Barnes. Someday I'll remedy that!

I've got 48 Barnes 129 LRX and 58 Barnes 110 TTSX if you're interested. Decided to hang up my size .277 boots for .284's..

I have used the 140's exclusively for years in my 270. I think it is the best all round bullet weight when one wants a one load for all bullet. I use 140 BTSP for deer and 140 Fail Safe for the big stuff. Point of impact with the two bullets is the same up to 250 yds. I think the 150gr bullets slightly handicap the 270 velocity wise. Still good but just not my cup of tea.

In my 270 I pretty much run the Nosler 140 AccuBonds now as a one bullet for everything.

In the past I have used the 150 Sierra GK for light skin and deer and the original 140 Trophy Bond of which I have some left too. I have had a 270, or more than one, now for 40 years but in only a few have I used the 130s.

But in her 270, and thinking she might get a shot for heavier game, I am trying the Nosler 150 Partitions first. Then I can look for others if it doesn't work out for some reason.

I loaded 50 150gr Partitions for my sister-in-law 5 years ago. This is her 3rd moose out of that batch!