Author Topic: 270 Limitations? (Read 6091 times)

bigchast1 · « **on:** September 17, 2004, 12:42:53 PM »

I am going to purchase a Ruger M77 in 270 caliber. I have read alot of comments on this caliber, but am looking for some real world expectations. I am wanting to know what is the largest game animal I can harvest with this caliber. I have read about elk, and mule deer is this the biggest I should try? What about bear, black or brown? I have found 110 grain bullets for p-dogs and ground hogs. Any and all input is greatly appreciated. Thanks for your advice in advance. Bigchast

huntsman · « **Reply #1 on:** September 17, 2004, 02:38:52 PM »

You CAN harvest an elephant with a .270, as folks have done it with much less than this. Whether you would feel confident with a .270 for such a task is a different story.

I have shot a .270 for many years, and with premium bullets in 150 grain I would not feel the least undergunned on anything in North America short of a grizzly or brown bear. It would kill them, but I would want something with more stopping power due to the dangerous nature of the work.

If my game was confined to black bear, moose, elk, and under, I wouldn't hesitate to carry the .270; in fact I might prefer it over the magnums due to the fact that it is so comfortable to carry and shoot by comparison. One shot placed perfectly beats a whole clip scattered over the target area.

For browns and grizzlies I would be a lot more comfortable with something that could sling 200+ grain bullets with authority. 1/2 ton or more of predator bearing down on me with an empty clip is not something I want to experience.

7magWoodsman · « **Reply #2 on:** September 17, 2004, 02:57:06 PM »

A world record Polar Bear was killed with a .270win. using Remington Factory loaded Bronze Points.....I am in no way telling you to book a hunt for dangerous game and tear out with the .270, but some folks depend on the .270win. year after year and will continue to do so for years to come. This includes small, medium, large, and dangerous game.

Black Bear and Elk will present no problems as long as you do your part and stay within your range...

In my opinion a well placed .277 diameter bullet retaining roughly 2000 ft.lbs. of energy beats a poorly placed .375 bullet with 4000 ft.lbs. of energy.....just because the big bear's guts is blowed out does not mean it can't rip your head clean off, along with you shoulders.

"Energy is the ability to do work but not a factor in a successful Coup de grace."

Oh yeah, I love the Ruger M77 Series....Good choice of rifle...I recommend buying you a Timney Trigger for it right away.

Stay Safe. Happy Hunting/Shooting.

Mikey · « **Reply #3 on:** September 18, 2004, 03:26:10 AM »

bigchast1: I didn't know the 270 had any limitations. Heck, I didn't know the 30-06 had any limitations either. I guess I'm happy here in la-la land (lol). Mikey.

oso45-70 · « **Reply #4 on:** September 18, 2004, 08:25:15 AM »

Gentlemen,
Jack O conner Lived in la-la land most of his life, He hunted on sevreal continents with a 270 and killed more large game than we will ever see.
My Hero.........Stay Safe..............Joe..............

brown-trout · « **Reply #5 on:** November 12, 2004, 02:22:56 AM »

..........no fan of the mega caliber here....
270 is enough gun for all but the big bears (ie, Canadian or Alaskan brown/grizzly )
Black Bear, Elk, Moose, Caribou and All deer.....270 Win handles them all.

bt

Buckeye · « **Reply #6 on:** November 12, 2004, 03:09:59 AM »

I had a Ruger 77 ina 270 .It liked 150 gr. Rn Cor-Lokts. My buddy borrowed it ,to go Boar hunting,he was unable to get his 7mm Mag. zeroed,(He always hunts with scoped guns ?) He shot a huge 280 + lb. hog in the Butt as it was running away ,the bullet exited the front shoulder and the hog just piled up.One of the guides ,who has seen many of hogs taken was totally Impressed with the 270 150gr RN Cor-Lokt combo.
I no longer have that gun. I swaped off,my buddy almost crapped on his self.
I was just thinking bout that gun couple of days ago while cleaning out my ammo box when I ran across a couple of boxes of 270 150 gr. RN Cor-Lokts.

Buckeye

Lawdog · « **Reply #7 on:** November 12, 2004, 07:57:38 AM »

bigchast1,

The .270 Win. when properly loaded will handle most anything you will likely come across. Only a fool or show off would use a .270 for the larger bears( and that includes the larger Black Bears - over 450 lbs. say). Besides if your booking a hunt of big bears they will tell you what is or is not allowed. Lawdog

Coal River Rat · « **Reply #8 on:** November 12, 2004, 06:54:39 PM »

I would tend to agree with Brown Trout and a few others. The 270 with the proper bullet will do just fine for about anything you would want to hunt in North America with the exception of Grizzly or Brown Bears, you could do it of course, but why would you want to try. Too many other calibers would be perfect for that job and that would give you an excuse to buy another gun. :grin:

leverfan · « **Reply #9 on:** November 12, 2004, 07:10:21 PM »

I'd use the 270 for everything in North America short of brown/polar bears. I'm a big fan of the 260, so I've got no business bad-mouthing the 270, that's for sure!

A good bullet will work, even on bison, musk ox, and moose, but you'd better put it right where it belongs. The big bears, IMO, shouldn't be hunted with guns that have less than an 8mm hole in the muzzle, although plenty have been taken with smaller guns.

msorenso · « **Reply #10 on:** December 04, 2004, 08:47:03 AM »

I would agree with all above. I have shot many whitetail deer with my 270 (150gr) from 150 to 450 yards on the run and standing. Everytime I would have to say it slams them down without a question.

razmuz · « **Reply #11 on:** December 12, 2004, 06:44:42 AM »

I would hunt anything in the world with a 270. A problem with the 270 is that's way to much gun foe White Tail.

magnum308 · « **Reply #12 on:** January 14, 2005, 03:03:33 PM »

bigchast1,

iamb with os45-70, I too am a great fan of the late, great Jack o'connor. He was a great fan of the .270 Win. Get a copy of his book "the Hunting Rifle" (Winchester Press 1970). He has a chapter devoted to the .270, .280 and .284 calibres. He speaks with great conviction about the strengths of the .270 Win. He also talks of a number of shots on Elk, Moose and Grizzly with the .270 with outstanding results.

The great strength of the .270 Win ( and this applies to the new .270WSM) is that it has good power, flat shooting and is mild enough to be had in a light mountain rifle. As far as Jack O'Connor was concerned the .270 Win is the King of the mountain rifles.

Cheers,
Magnum308.

oso45-70 · « **Reply #13 on:** January 14, 2005, 04:15:13 PM »

Magnum308,

I had the opportunity to spend some time with Mr. Jack Oconnor in 1954
in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I was already a fan of his but after talking to the man i became more in awe of his character. He was a none assuming person, Very quite and soft spoken. He will be my hero untill i die. Have a good day down under........Joe....

magnum308 · « **Reply #14 on:** January 14, 2005, 05:03:13 PM »

oso45-70,

I'm envious of you. I have to be content to get his character out of his writings, which I read quite often. His book the Hunting Rifle resides permanently by my bed and is often bedtime reading for me.

By the way and speaking of the .270 Win, which Jack O'Connor loved so much. I fell in love with this great cartridge over 20 + years ago, my second centrefire was a 270. The first one was a 303-25 but that's another story. I been without a 270 for quite a few years, got rid of mine (and have regretted ever since) when I built (or rather had built) a custom FN M98 .308 Norma Mag. The reason for this was that it gave about the tradjectory of the .270 but gained the advantage of the range and variety of .30 bullets. I've since learned that both can happly co-habitate in my gun cabinet and I am in the process at present of importing a Winchester pre 64 M70 featherweight in .270 Win from the US. Of course, Jack's fondness for the pre 64 M70s as well is infamous. I think I recall reading that his favorite (ideal) mountain (sheep) was a light weight pre 64 M70 in .270 Win.

I some how like to think that jack would approve of my latest acquisition. You never know one day I might get to the US to do some sheep hunting and you can guess what rifle I'll be taking. I might even be able to imagine that the spirit of Jack O'Connor might even be right there too.

It's great to meet up with others who appreciated Jack's writings and wisdom. These days most of the up and coming shooter/hunters don't know of him, since he died in 1978.

Cheers,
magnum308

anthony passero · « **Reply #15 on:** January 15, 2005, 06:11:36 AM »

I love the 270 Mr. O'Connor was not the only gunscribe to call the 270 his favourite. Colonel Whelen, Russell Anabell,John Jobson and Ted Trueblood are others to name a few. For deer and antelope hunting I cannot think of a better cartridge. Although I never drew a tag, it also would have been my cartridge of choice for bighorn sheep or mountain goat. Flat shooting, light recoil, good penetration and exspansion on 200 lb. or so critters. That said I do not feel the 270 is an all around elk or moose gun. In the timber where one is unsure of which end of an animal will be fired on, there are much better calibers. Also for longer shots at elk sized animals there are better choices. If I had only a 270 I would not hesitate to hunt elk with one and some 150 grain partitions or 160s for timber hunting.Afterall, the State record of Montana was killed with a 270 Weatherby. But I would much rather have something larger like a 35 Whelen,338 Winchester magnum or even an 06. Remember Elmer knew something too. Anthony

lgm270 · « **Reply #16 on:** January 15, 2005, 09:27:42 AM »

Under modern hunting conditions, the .270 is best limited to mule deer sized game. It's not a reliable elk gun today. When there were teeming herds of game and you could pick your shot, any gun might be ok. But you may get just one shot at an elk/moose sized animal and it may be at long range or quartering away from you. The 270 does not have the ability to reliably kill large animals like elk on quartering shots.

I have used the .270 for hunting deer, wild boar sized game since 1966 and it's never let me down either with 130 or 150 grain Nosler Partition bullets.

For serious elk hunting, however, I use a .338 Win Mag with 250 grain Nosler Partitions. In addition to better killing power, you get a reliable exit would that bleeds like a garden hose with the larger, more powerful caliber.

Yes the .270 will "kill" them, but it's a lot nice to walk up on a dead animal killed with a larger more powerful round, than to chase an animal wounded by a small bore and to find it dead and soured days after you shot it.

Ron T. · « **Reply #17 on:** January 15, 2005, 04:06:16 PM »

The .270 Wincheser cartridge is undoubtedly one of the finest big game cartridges ever conceived. If the hunter does his/her job and places a proper weight bullet in the proper place within a reasonable range, I have no doubt that a .270 is entirely adequate for any non-dangerous big game animal in new world including big moose.

Will it kill the "big bears" or a jaguar? Yes, without a doubt, it will... but I wouldn't recommend it for dangerous game simply because a larger caliber throwing a heavier bullet is extra "insurance" when one's life might be at stake.

One of the most convincing "bang/flop" kills I ever made was with a Model 70 in .270 Win. (130 gr. bullet) on a big buck.

That said, I hunted elk and moose with a pre-'64 Model 70 in .338 Win. Magnum because I had one. However, if I had only a .270... and was going on an elk or moose hunt, I don't feel it would be necessary to buy a larger caliber rifle.

Conversely, a hard-hitting magnum caliber bullet is no substitute for good marksmanship. Poor bullet placement, even with a very powerful caliber like the .338 Winchester Magnum, isn't as effective as good bullet placement with a considerably smaller caliber like the .270 Winchester.

Strength & Honor...

Ron T.

RaySendero · « **Reply #18 on:** January 17, 2005, 05:27:04 PM »

Quote from: Ron T.

.....
One of the most convincing "bang/flop" kills I ever made was with a Model 70 in .270 Win. .....
.....
Ron T.

Ron,
I too had an amazing one shot kill with a 270! I'll like to hear your story if you would?

rickt300 · « **Reply #19 on:** January 18, 2005, 06:39:25 AM »

The 270 works just fine on elk, modern or not. I have not had nor can I see any problem in the future killing elk with good bullets at ranges under 350 yards. It is a lot of gun for deer and antelope but quick lills are the norm. I wouldn't use it on the larger bears and there are better black timber cartridges but it generally works perfectly under normal hunting conditions.

kombi1976 · « **Reply #20 on:** January 18, 2005, 03:59:19 PM »

Limitations? What limitations?
The only reason I don't own one is 'cause I'm weird and quirky and like European cals.
In a good strong action with the right bullet a .270 is right on the heels of a 7mm Rem Mag.
And the 7mm Rem was O'Connor's other fave cartridge.

Ron T. · « **Reply #21 on:** January 25, 2005, 05:01:43 AM »

Quote

Ron,
I too had an amazing one shot kill with a 270! I'll like to hear your story if you would?[/quote][/quote]

Ray... here's the story.......

Back in the Autumn of 1965, we were hunting on a 640 acre (one square mile) farm homesteaded by my hunting buddyÂ’s (MarkÂ’s) Grandfather and still owned and farmed by MarkÂ’s Dad located out in the middle of Nebraska near Comstock. Mark had been raised out there and was well-known and well-liked by all the neighbors, so we could hunt anywhere we wished without a problem.

Early one afternoon, hunting about a half mile from the house, I walked around the edge of a circular-shaped Â“bowlÂ” dotted with a few bushy clumps of tangled, stunted trees and brush maybe 20 feet in diameter. As I passed one clump, I looked down the 15 feet into the semi- darkness and saw two pairs of eyes staring back at me.

I picked up a rock and threw it into the clump near the Â“eyesÂ”Â… and out popped two medium-sized mule-deer, a fork-horn buck and a doe.

The doe disappeared into another clump, but the fork-horn made a Â“bouncingÂ” bee-line for the edge of the Â“bowlÂ”, maybe 100 yards awayÂ… running the way mule-deer run when theyÂ’re not too frightened, but have decided to leave the area.

Noticing the not-too-fast departure of the little buck (maybe 125 lbs) and having hunted mule-deer in the past, I Â“gluedÂ” the 4x fixed-powerÂ’s cross-hairs on the bouncing deerÂ’s body and followed him alongÂ… and waited, finger on the 20 year old .270 Winchester Model 70Â’s trigger.

Sure enoughÂ… just as I had seen other mule-deer do & anticipated this one might do as wellÂ… as the fork-horn Â“bouncedÂ” up the side of the Â“bowlÂ” and made it over the top, he stopped just Â“leg-downÂ” on the far side of the rim and looked back at me with his legs below the rim, but his whole body still showing above the rim to find out if I was pursuing him.

THAT was what I was waiting onÂ… and I put the crosshairs on the center of his rib-cage just behind his shoulder and squeezed off a roundÂ… and heard a satisfying Â“WHACKÂ” as the bullet hit Â“homeÂ”.

Later, I realized that the shot was only about 100 yards and the rifle was sighted in about 2Â½ inches high at that rangeÂ… so the bullet hit a bit Â“highÂ”Â… taking out the tops of both lungs and breaking the spine resulting in a true Â“bang/flopÂ” shot.

The little buck fell where he stoodÂ… and 45 minutes later, we were cutting the steaks out of him for the eveningÂ’s supper. I want you to know that those steaks out of that corn-fed buck were DELICIOUSÂ… as good as any prime VEAL IÂ’ve ever tastedÂ… and the venison steaks had a surprising amount of pure white FAT surrounding them indicating this buck had eaten a generous amount of the corn in the fields surrounding MarkÂ’s old homestread.

As it turned out, that was the BEST venison IÂ’ve ever eatenÂ… bar NONE! And thatÂ’s the Â“storyÂ” behind the Â“bang/flopÂ” shot with the .270 WinchesterÂ… an excellent choice as a long range deer and antelope rifleÂ… and a reasonably decent elk and moose rifle with a well-placed shot using a 150 grain bullet at reasonable ranges. :-)

Strength & HonorÂ…

Ron T.

RaySendero · « **Reply #22 on:** January 29, 2005, 10:51:44 AM »

Good Story - Thanks for sharing it with us.

Ron T. · « **Reply #23 on:** January 29, 2005, 03:59:07 PM »

Yer welcome, Ray...

And thanx for asking for the "story"... it brought back some great memories for me in the telling.

Shot that fork-horn many years and a lota miles ago. And yet, the sight-picture, looking at that little buck through that old Weaver scope, is still very vivid in my mind.

I still go deer hunting... but I never shoot, I just watch... and marvel at how beautiful "Mother Nature" truly is.

It's quiet, sitting in the woods... in the snow... or even warmer weather. I listen to the wind moan through the bare, up-raised branches of the trees. They look almost like up-raised fingers on hands, begging Old Man Winter to "be kind".

I've had my scope's crosshairs on the shoulders of deer... but took my finger off the trigger and softly said to myself... "BANG!" I have a wall-full of "trophies"... in my mind's memory.

I go hunting for the camaraderie of deer camp with my 2 adult sons, my Godson, his Dad and my bestest hunting buddy who is also our host at his cozy cabin up among the mountain laurel on the High Plateau in the Moshannon State Forest in north-central Pennsylvania.

Deer hunting is NOT about the Â“killingÂ”Â… itÂ’s about the TRADITION and the ENJOYMENT of the huntÂ… itÂ’s about being in the woods and the CAMARADERIE of the men in your deer campÂ… itÂ’s about holding a half century old rifle (a 1953 Model 99 lever-action Savage) in your hands that was designed & first manufactured more than a 100 years ago (in 1899) in a caliber (the .300 Savage) that is 85 years old (introduced in 1920).

You seeÂ… Â“deer huntingÂ” isnÂ’t about DEATH, itÂ’s about LIVINGÂ… and TRADITIONÂ… and those things that are so very private and important to us allÂ… those things we rarely talk about, but honor so much.

Strength & HonorÂ…

Ron T.

James B · « **Reply #24 on:** January 29, 2005, 09:24:19 PM »

What can one say? Its killed everything in NA many times and most of the african species as well. Limitations placed on using the 270 are not limitatioms of the gun. :wink:

tuck2 · « **Reply #25 on:** January 30, 2005, 06:57:38 PM »

My first centerfire rifle was a Winchester Mdl. 70 270 Win. that I purchased back in 1952. I reloaded the 100, 110 ,130 ,150 and 160 Gr.bullets for it. I have shot prong horn, mule deer,elk,and any varmint that show up around the farm with it .I still have the rifle. Over the years I have collected various other rifles but I,ll not part with that old 270.

msorenso · « **Reply #26 on:** February 13, 2005, 03:44:21 AM »

I agree with anyone that states 270 is too much gun for deer. In my neck of the woods everybody and their dog uses either a 270, 30-06 or 30-30 for the whitetails. I guess as a kid I got started with a 270. My father used it, as well as his father. We have open country to take long shots and I guess it comes in handy for it. I love the round!

msorenso · « **Reply #27 on:** February 13, 2005, 03:46:10 AM »

I agree with anyone that states 270 is too much gun for deer. In my neck of the woods everybody and their dog uses either a 270, 30-06 or 30-30 for the whitetails. I guess as a kid I got started with a 270. My father used it, as well as his father. We have open country to take long shots and I guess it comes in handy for it. I love the round!

lowertroll · « **Reply #28 on:** February 19, 2005, 03:37:29 PM »

As stated above:
I like the Ruger 77s, mine are the older tang safety model.
Put a Timney trigger in it, and a little bedding usually is a good thing.
I also did not know that the 270 had any limits.

SingleShotShorty · « **Reply #29 on:** February 23, 2005, 05:14:40 AM »

The 270 win is one of the all time classic calibers and you can take anything in North America with it. Several years ago a young man in Africa took the Big Five with a 270 Win. If you buy a new MKII Ruger I highly recommend installing a Timney trigger I have installed them in all my MKII's and love them. The really neet thing about the 270 is that they are very accurate they shoot flat and have low recoil.