I have looked at reloading manuals till I am blue in the face, trying to convince myself that "this one is the one for me". My wife is ready to move me to the back porch!! I am just gonna buy a bolt action 270 Winchester with a 24 inch barrel and be done with it. The dadgum 270 will do anything I need done in the lower 48 both near and far. Factory loads can be bought anywhere and there are tons of choices. And reloading should be a snap. And recoil won't knock me into West Virginia. And I can tell stories about Jack O'Connor way into the night. OK, descending back into the madness...

[ 08-29-2002, 21:22: Message edited by: Dogger ]

Good choice....

Dogger:

Nice choice!! Is there a factory rifle available w/24" bbl. or are you going to go custom??

JimF

Can't imagine anyone being undergunned anywhere in the lower 48 with a 270. Jack O'C would be proud.

R-WEST

[ 08-30-2002, 01:38: Message edited by: R-WEST ]

Not a bad choice of caliber at all considering the area..... But if you do happen to opt for a bigger gun and land in W.V. look me up, we'll do some huntin.

Dogger, you made a good choice. Now don't look back...just put your energy into going forward and doing great things with this gun. VERY FEW of us on this web site can shoot up to the full potential of this rifle. Trust me.

I never knew what I was missing until a few years ago when I got a Winchester Classic Stainless. I love it.

I am only going to say this once:

the .30-06 is better!



George

Aagghh! There it is!! A not so subtle hint to choose the 30-06 over the 270, and after only 6 posts!

"There ain't much a man can't fix, with 180 grain Noslers and a 30-06"...

I have to agree that the 30-06 is a little more versitile than the 270 but I can't fault your choice of the 270 either. It's a great gun for deer, antelope and even elk. Get the one you like more and enjoy.

I have shot a lot game with both .270 & 30/06 and I like the 30/06 much better. Not a lot of difference but a little. If your going to buy 1 rifle get the 06 all the advatages of the .270 and can shoot heavier bullets if needed.

The 270 is considered by some a little light for moose. (It works, believe it) The '06 is not too light to the same guys.
We'll have you pulling your hair out yet!

Don't quit yet...should look at the 280 Remington before you leap to the 270 Winchester!

You should also consider the .375 H&H can be loaded down or up and can take any shot from any angle bar the really big stuff

I've got a 3.5 inch rocket launcher that I really like. It turns "butt shots" into heart shots 'cuz when ya hit them up the pipe, it turns 'em inside out.

Effective range 1500yds with a fragmentation warhead.

"G.I." JimF

Fine choice in the 270.

I've got two Rem M700's, one ADL, one BDL, both in 30-06, that I'd trade tomorrow for the same in a 270. Anyone living near west TN that's interested (FFL charges are a killer around here), let me know.

Yeah, the 30-06 is "more versatile", but the same could be said for the 300 WM over the 30-06, etc. Oh, never mind, this has all been gone over before hasn't it?

The .270 is a great choice, I've got a .270 and a 30-06 (with a .308 inthe middle). I use 130 gr. bullets in the 270, 150 in the 308 and 180gr.'s in the '06. Normally I carry the .270 for antelope and the like but with the 130 gr. powerpoints or Hornady sst's it's worked fine on a couple of Texas whitetails. One of my hunting buddies uses a .270 for everything, he settled ont he 150gr. Nosler Partition and really likes that load for everything.
JeffM
Houston, TX

A bunch of clients show up in Africa with .270s each year and shoot just as much game as the guys carrying .338s. It may not be the best caliber for everything, but is sure is effective with the right bullet.

Great choice Dogger. Now pair that 270 with another M-70 in 338 and you'll be ready for anything on this continent and few others too!

Hmmmm! The .270 is fine, as long as you can later include the following:

.22LR
.338
.416

The .270 Winchester:

"A damn fine coyote rifle that will work for deer in a pinch"

Just thought I would stir the pot a little.

Tim

Why do you like short barrels, 24"?
uke:

s

Although I'm not a fan of the 270 Win, it sounds like you really want it, so go ahead. People told me I should get a .300 mag of some sort or that a 270Win is what I needed, but I went with what I wanted, got the .338WM and couldn't be happier. Rifles are to enjoy so as long as it is enough gun, get what YOU want.

Up for air! Well shucks, I want them all!! That is one way to get out of this dilemma: buy each caliber over time... Looking at reloading manuals, I can talk myself into anything. I hope to get my hands on a factory rifle with 24 inch barrel, perhaps the Winchester Model 70 Stainless or the Remington M700 BDL SS. Then again, it would be more fun to go semi custom; buy an action and ship it off to a custom barrel maker to fit his barrel to the action, then drop it into an aftermarket laminated stock. The 270 is holding a slight lead on the 30-06, but the 280 Ackley keeps butting his head in... At least I have decided to go with Nosler Partitions... descending back into the madness...

"I am just gonna buy a bolt action 270 Winchester with a 24 inch barrel and be done with it."

One of the smartest decisions you will ever make.

It shoots real flat and hits hard enough for anything on 4 legs in the Western Hemisphere, while being real polite on the shooter's end of the rifle.

Yes, you could substitute a .30-06 or a .280 or something similar and be just as effective but there is a real simple reason the .270 has been so popular for what, about 77 years now? It flat works.

Thought some more on this and also your going back and forth on this caliber or that. Oh, how I can empathize on that!

Oversimplified, there are two kinds of folks in this world. The first kind just picks a decent caliber, learns to shoot and goes forth to slay anything and everything reasonably (or even unreasonably) within the limitations of that caliber.

The second kind, of which I became a member to my chagrin, ponders all of the imponderables and ends up with a safe full of specialized rigs, then still worries if maybe there is a situation for which one does not have just EXACTLY the perfect combination of bullet weight and muzzle velocity and scope power range and rifle weight and barrel length and shoulder angle of his cartridge and maybe this or that or the other or....AUUGGHHH! So often I long for the days of my innocent, pre-gun magazine educated youth when all I owned was a plain jane M700 .30-06 with a Leupold 4X scope in Weaver mounts, a 12 gauge Model 1100 shotgun my father had given me and a Ruger 10-22. Now I did not go after wild sheep in the remote Tibetan mountains or anything like that but there was nothing from South Florida to Upstate New York to Utah to the desert around El Centro California that I could not successfully hunt with one of that trio.

You have made the right decision. Get thee a .270 with a 24" barrel, a good scope (I'd personally recommend a Leupold 2.5X8), load it with WalMart Remchester factory ammo for practice then a box or two of Federal Premium for serious use, or if you handload just get Hornady or Speer 130 grainers and a can of H4831 or RL-22 for rabbits through deer, then maybe put some 150 grain Noslers or A-frames down the pipe for elk or moose and just go hunting!

--------

I have GOT to get a copy of that book where the fellow bought a M700 ADL about 30 years ago and has collected just about every species of big game huntable in the North American continent with that plain old rifle.

If your gut and your heart keeps coming back to the .270 then go for it. At this point, and with all the great calibers thrown at you, you might as well go with the one that tugs at your heart. I used to have a Model 70 in .270 that was stolen in a burglary. It was a really nice rifle. Get one because of Jack O'Conner - you'll beam every time you hold it in your hands. My particular rifle of choice is the .250 Savage Model 99, not because it's ballistics are superior, or even on par with modern 24's & 25's, but because my dad hungered after one as a kid after he saw Frank Buck use one to shoot pythons out of trees in Africa in the old newsreels of the 30's, which were obviously staged. Plus, the .250 was the first commerical cartridge to break 3000fps, which I'm sure was similar to Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier in the late 40's. Because of this it's a magical cartridge and rifle and is Big Medicine. With the history of the .270 and your inclination towards it, I would go with the .270. None of this makes any rational sense, I know, but that's what's so wonderful about this pastime.
Cliff
Seattle

HEY"
Just another pissin contest,to build up posts
1geejay
www.shooting-hunting.com

By all means get the .270. It's a wonderful cartridge, better than the .30/06 by a mile
(I had to do that just for the heck of it cause both do an exceptional job on all animals in the lower 48). If the .270 floats your boat, then anything else will be unacceptable. Might I suggest, however, that as far as rifle choice you look at the CZ 550 American. It has a 23.5 inch barrel, has a decent looking stock, good wood-to-metal fit, darn fine barrel and are exceedingly accurate. They also come with CZ rings in the CZ 550 American configuration. They are manufactured in the Chech Republic by Ceska Zbrojovka. I own two, one in the CZ 550 American in 7x57mm Mauser, the other in .223 in the CZ 527 Lux. You can pick up one brand new from Ton80 near Atlanta, Ga., for $429 plus $18 shipping and handling. These rifles are getting one heck of a reputation in the US lately, a reputation for dependability and shootability, and they are getting that reputation because they deserve it. By the way, if you got to GunBroker.com on the internet and on the search window, type in CZ 550 American, then hit the search button and that will take you to Ton80's site. All those CZs are his and he is a joy to work with. If you do go that route I would recommend that you ask for a .270 in CZ 550 American manufactured 2000 or 2001. The earlier models have a plastic floorplate (CZ-USA in Kansas City, Kan. will replace these with steel ones free of charge, but why go through the hassel, why not get one with a steel floor plate to begin with). Compared with the newer Rugers, Remington and Winchester, the CZ 550 American is, in my opinion, a lot better rifle. Again, that's my opinion, but look on this sight for CZ 550 Americans and I think you'll see that many others share the same viewpoint. Tom Purdom

OK:
YOu have a caliber you are intrested in. Go shopping, and see if you can find a deal on either a 270, 308, or 30-06, and buy the best dea.
s

Hey Salish! I ended up with a 99F from my step father for the same reason. I had never even heard of Frank buck until he told me about him. On the 270 thing, good round, pick a nice rifle, have fun. My favourite load in 270 Win is the Barnes 130 gr X flat base in front of 59 gr of RL22. 3000 fps and easy on your shoulder. - Dan

Jeffeso I like those Steyr .376 rifles, so many guns so little cash.

I am still to purchase a .375 H&H myself Jeffo. I have to get one though. I am torn between the cz 550 & M70 stainless classic.

Just face it - you will NEVER be free until you have both a 270 and a 30-06...oh, and maybe a .338 or at least a 300 magnum. Did I forget the 458 Lott for the really big stuff? And maybe a 233 for the other end of the spectrum and of course we haven't even touched the 7mms or 25s. Actually the 270 can do most of what needs doing in the lower 48. Good luck!

JIMF, the 106mm Recoiless Rifle is much more effective at extended ranges than your 3.5"....

the only good 270s are 270 grain bullets!

seriously though, enjoy what you can with what you got....

[ 09-04-2002, 00:01: Message edited by: Curtis_Lemay ]

OK, what's this 270 I keep hearing about? Somekind of new wildcat?
I'd just get the old faithful 30-06. It's got to be better, it has 4 numbers instead of 3.

I don't know. Personally I'd stick to the tried and true 404 Jeffery for the "light" work in the lower 48. Also the 30-378 has some merit for longer shots (you know, like a mile or two).

270? Sounds kind of, well, you know, boring?

After all, we don't just endeavor to kill the animal cleanly. We must do it with STYLE!

30-06......280.....270..... Toss a coin and be done with it. Can not go wrong with either.