.270 noobie question

[harrydunn02]

Forgive the noob question, im new to this. I have a 700 in .270 win, and while the ballistics tables i've found and my experiences hunting speak well for it, it doesn't seem to have much of a following for long range competition, or anything. Why is this? Sorry if this has been covered already, just send me a link if it has.

Is it worth messing with this caliber, or should i consider a new barrel/rifle? Thanks a bunch in advance

 

[ghermitage]

You will be told:
,1) A greater range of quality bullets exists at 6.5mm and 7mm
,2) This cartridge requires a long action, and a short action is a good thing
,3) The cartridge is not of modern dimensions i.e. not short/fat, and the shoulder is a mere 17 degrees or thereabouts which isn't good for brass flow into the neck.

While I don't take issue with any of the foregoing, depending on the event this round could do just fine. I will be using one for club novelty field events next year.

The 270 was so talked up years ago that a bit of backlash exists against it now in some quarters.

 

[harrydunn02]

Thank you very much for the info. What is the benefit of a short/fat cartridge, beyond reloadability from the brass flow issue you cite? And what makes a short action better?

Correct me if Im wrong here, but it seems to me if you found a quality bullet that worked well with your setup and wern't terribly concerned with brass life you would be all set with a .270

I guess im curious too what all you can get out of a .270, or if there is a better long-action caliber to consider a rebarrel in.

 

[ghermitage]

Thank you very much for the info. What is the benefit of a short/fat cartridge,

There would be theories about uniformity of ignition, flame turbulence ... but it probably best rests with the observation that 6PPC, 6mmBR tend to group well and going from there that a cartridge with similar ratios of dimensions seems as good an idea as any. I notice a bit of a counter-argument about increased bolt thrust, but let's stay with what can be observed.

beyond reloadability from the brass flow issue you cite?

Thats more a shoulder angle/body taper thing. The 270 is not bad on body taper.

And what makes a short action better?

A short action is stiffer, and vibrations will have less amplitude. The more serious the action, the better it is at eliminating flexing,it will have other unrelated attributes such as be uniform on bearing surfaces).

Correct me if Im wrong here, but it seems to me if you found a quality bullet that worked well with your setup and wern't terribly concerned with brass life you would be all set with a .270

Quality of barrel and bullet have to head the list of what is important, but you are less likely to find the right bullet for your rifle if there are less bullets to try in that caliber.

I guess im curious too what all you can get out of a .270, or if there is a better long-action caliber to consider a rebarrel in.

I guess we haven't talked about usage. If you are talking hunting of an appropriately sized critter, the 270 is a great choice. You might have fun debating the merits of the various 7mms though. Might the 7mm-08 have a bit more accuracy potential than the 270? Possibly, but with good barrel right bullet ... Also, on this site, I see one guy shot about a 5" 10 shot group at 1000 yards from a bipod with a 7mmWSM, something that is worthy of a minute's contemplation.

 

[acloco]

I have the same rifle and would not hesitate to shoot deer sized game out to 500 yards. I used 150 gr bullets at a hair under 3000 fps.

Shoots 1.5" group at 300 yards,longest the range has available).

Taken wild rocks at 500 plus when shooting for fun in the canyons.

 

[ghermitage]

PS: The 7mm-08 and 7mmWSM are both short action cartridges.

If you are committed to a long action, then that is one reason less to move away from the 270,though I think some accuracy shooters use 6.5/284 in a long action so they can chamber long low-drag match bullets).

I am guessing finding the bullet,s) that your 270 likes best is all you really need to do. It is fun to consider all the cartridges though.

The quality of the barrel determines the potential of the rifle, the cartridge is down the list a way.

 

[harrydunn02]

Awesome, thanks for all the great info. Since right now my main use for this rifle is antelope and mulies in Wyo, it seems Id be best off keeping it the way it is and building another rifle in a short action later on. That article on the 1000yd 7mmWSM is very intriguing. Thanks again!

 

[harrydunn02]

acloco, how is your rifle set up?