Inaccurate .270

[msinc]

This might sound like it's too simple to amount to much, but one of the biggest problems I see hunters make when trying to establish how accurate their rifle will shoot is this; make sure you have a target that allows you to get the center of the reticle or aiming point in the scope on the exact same spot for each and every shot. Many people just shoot at a round dot sticky thing....but what exactly are they putting the crosshairs on to repeat???
Don't get me wrong, all of the above is excellent advice, but in addition to all of that there are a few simple stupid things that can make a big difference. Another one is to check the trigger pull weight. Many triggers for some reason will gain pull weight just from sitting and it doesn't necessarily take many years, it can happen in a few.
If the barrel was badly coppered and you don't have a borescope to confirm that it is copper free get some JB and clean it some more.

 

[nmkid]

Yes.

If you can get some IMR 4350 try to work up a load to 55 gr with Sierra 130 gr either the flat base Pro Hunter or boattail GameKing. That is the standard OCW for most 270 Win rifles. Also 60gr of H4831 with 130s was the other OCW load. Work up to that charge too. You very well may find an accuracy node below those charge weighs especially with the H4831 well below that charge.

As K22 said those are the two standard powders for the 270 Win. If you can't get it to shoot better than 2" groups at 100 yards with either one of those, then that's as good as it's gonna shoot.

Boy, that brings back old memories of my .270 with 55.0 grs of IMR 4350 pushing a Sierra 130 gr. bullet.

 

[seymour fish]

Hi folks,
thanks for all of your replies. I have cleaned the barrel with JB's cleaner and it was indeed a copper mine ! This improved things somewhat to the point that I can now get the 2" group at 100 yards I referred to earlier. I have tried loading the Sierra 130 grain SP Flat Base Gamekings at various powder charges from 52.5 grains up to 54.5 grains of Norma 204, and it was the 53.5 grain load that delivered the best group.

I have checked all of the fasteners, scope mounts etc and had the barrel professionally re-bedded and the muzzle re-crowned.

I guess my maximum range these days would be 200 yards and against mainly fallow deer so I guess your right JD, 2MOA is not a disaster. My hunting is mostly western & central North Island of New Zealand.

Admittedly the rifle has never been a tack driver but was usually pretty consistent at 1.5" 3 shot groups at 100 with Norma ammo or my equivalent hand loads. Would the 1:10 twist rate stabilize a longer flat based bullet?

Many thanks

Ian

Kiwi, if it never shot better than 1-1/2”, and now won’t shoot better than 2” with considerable effort and a couple of loads which almost always work, 2 questions come to mind: 1) have you ever shoot anything around a 1/2” or better ? If not, how are you shooting this rifle ? If so, 2) have you ordered a new barrel yet ?

 

[seymour fish]

Kiwi, if it never shot better than 1-1/2”, and now won’t shoot better than 2” with considerable effort and a couple of loads which almost always work, 2 questions come to mind: 1) have you ever shoot anything around a 1/2” or better ? If not, how are you shooting this rifle ? If so, 2) have you ordered a new barrel yet ?

And along the line of 1) has anyone else tested this rifle for you ?

 

[Kiwi222]

Hi Seymour, et al,
apologies for not responding, I have been away looking after grandchildren, then hunting (yes successfully) with my son.
When I had the barrel re-crowned, the gun smith took the rifle out and tested it, the best he could get was a 2" group like me, but with Winchester factory 130 grain cartridges. I believe its a reasonable assumption that hand loads "should" be more consistent than factory irrespective of manufacturer?

I use the shoot-n-see targets on a 100 yard range, bi-pod, and a sand bag under the butt to ensure a consistent aiming point.

My next step is to re-clean the barrel with JB, and load up some hand loads as suggested above, and mess with the seating depth to see how that works out.

I haven't ordered a new barrel as getting a new barrel fitted here in New Zealand is an expensive exercise that would cost more than a new rifle .

I will however persevere with the old girl and if I can't improve the accuracy I will certainly consider the re-barrel route.

Many thanks to all who have replied, your feedback is very much appreciated.

Cheers

Ian

 

[wholman]

not familiar with your gun, have you altered the pressure point in the front of stock.

 

[Kiwi222]

Hello,
no I have not.
CHeers

 

[Kiwi222]

not familiar with your gun, have you altered the pressure point in the front of stock.

I'm not sure I understand your question, perhaps you could elaborate please?
CHeers
Ian

 

['Freak]

Thinkin' @wholman wants to know is the barrel is fully floated ...?

 

[wholman]

recently I went through similar issues with my 270
Remington. I had the action out of the stock to oil. I noticed a lot of sealer
in the front of the stock sanded it till smouth. now the gun groups one, throws one.
The throws are out of the group from 3 to 9 o clock by 2 inches. The gun averaged
3/4" groups before. Now I wrap tape around barrel were the pressure point was.
Shoot it and groups are back to 3/4". Then I sand stock to free float barrel like all the rest of my guns.
This only took 10 days and a lot of bullets to figure out what was wrong.

 

[Kiwi222]

I recently had the rifle to a gunsmith, he re-crowned the barrel, de-fouled the barrel and re-bedded the barrel so I guess the answer is yes. The barrel was originally fully floating, and I am tempted to sand back some of the bedding to see how that works. I will pass a sheet of A4 printer paper between the barrel and stock first to identify if there are any tight spots.
Appreciate the responses folks.

Ian