Possible new rifle, Talk to me about the 270wsm

[Lrdchaos]

Looking to build a all around rifle, that can be used for a little of everything. I started out thinking about the 7mm rm since I don’t reload. I currently have a custom 223 and custom 308, the 308 is doable but a little heavy to trek around with. I’m considering a Proof carbon barrel to help keep the weight down on whatever rifle I choose.

In my search I keep reading about the 270wsm and how good a round it is. Does anyone have feedback? Looking for something for deer, hogs and possibly a mulie/elk in the future.

 

[b6graham]

so you dont reload...and are looking at a 270WSM?

6.5 PRC

 

[Lrdchaos]

Yes, there seems to be some decent options on factory Ammo.

I’ll look at the prc, I’m open to most ideas right now.

 

[XLR308]

so you dont reload...and are looking at a 270WSM?

6.5 PRC

The 6.5 PRC is a very capable round and I would not be surprised to start seeing more fac5ory rifles chambered in it as it gets more popular.
Given the uses you listed and dont reload I would really recommend the boring old do all 270win since I may be a little biased and it's one of my favorites.
You can find ammo for it anywhere and has plenty of power for just about anything in North America you may want to hunt.

 

[b6graham]

Yes, there seems to be some decent options on factory Ammo.

I’ll look at the prc, I’m open to most ideas right now.

There are, online. I can't say i've ever seen it on shelves, not do i expect it to grow in popularity. especially compared to regular 270

I have seen 6.5PRC at two VERY small shops, and it's brand new. I only expect factory options for rifles and ammo to grow

 

[CJS-6.5]

Wsm ammo is more money than regular. 270. Less fits in the mag. More recoil. Not enough more power to be worthwhile. Only way I would use .270 wsm is to neck it up to 7mm and run it in a long action. Load high bc bullets way out.

 

[Areeves08]

I've got a Browning X-Bolt Hells Canyon in 270WSM. Like you, I looked first at 7mm Rem Mag, but was quickly drawn to the 270WSM. With factory loads, you can send a smaller, faster and flatter 6.8mm bullet with similar energy to 7mm. I've taken Whitetail and Axis along with some Antelope and haven't had an issue. My round of choice is the Federal Premium Trophy Bonded Tip in 130gr.

 

[redneckbmxer24]

I wouldn't buy a 270WSM even if you did load. An all around rifle, specifically one that will be used as a hunting rifle IMO needs to be chambered in a round that you can pick up a box of ammo from at least somewhere like Cabelas in a pinch. Ideally something that you can find on a shelf at any sporting goods store or Walmart. IMO you were on a better path with the 7mm RM. It's a great all around hunting round and has a huge selection of factory ammo unlike 270WSM which i extremely limited and you might even have trouble finding it on the shelf of a specialty store like Cabelas.

6.5 PRC is in the same boat as 270WSM but even worse since ammo choices are even more slim.

6.5 Creedmoor is perfect for what you're looking for. It will kill anything on your hit list out to 600 yards and you can find ammo everywhere. I went through this debate myself and I ended up with a Q Fix and ordered a 20" 6.5mm Proof blank that I sent off to have done in 6.5 Creedmoor. I'm hoping the Barnes 127gr LRX load will shoot well so I can just use it and not load, but if it doesn't then I'll be loading those bullets anyway and I have no doubt that it will kill anything in the lower 48 states.

 

[davsco]

what redneck said above. but for a truly all-around caliber i'd go 300wsm. a little more 'girth' vs the 270 never hurts. used to say 300 winmag but the wsm has really caught on. with a brake it's no big deal (wear hearing protection). pretty much only one hunting ammo option for 6.5prc. look on ammoseek.com (and walmart) for the various calibers to see what sort of selection you have out there. now if you're just talking whitetails and smaller, then yeah 6.5 creed, 270win or wsm are fine.

 

[XLR308]

The 270win will anchor anything in North America the only animal that wouldn't be advisable is shooting a Brown bear with it. Not that it wouldn't kill it but anything that could kill you before it bleeds out go bigger than necessary.
I would be shocked if you could actually find a store that didn't have 270win on the shelf and any you do find will be geared towards hunting, the 65 Creedmoor is a great round but atleast half of all the ammo I usually see for it is match ammo.
It can also be shot comfortably in a light weight hunting rifle without the need for a noisy ass muzzle break or the muzzle blast associated with overbore magnum cartridges.
There is a reason it's been around since 1925 and is still one of the most popular hunting rounds sold and has nothing to do with advertising or the new shiny it just works.

 

[Lrdchaos]

Thanks for the replies, I grew up hunting with a 270 and still have it. It’s a Ruger Mk2 stainless with the paddle stock, looks like it might be time to grab it from dads house and put it back into the rotation.

 

[Chili47]

Your not gaining anything by going to 270 wsm over win. if you want to try something new go 6.5 prc

 

[XLR308]

It's been quite awhile since I actually looked at the factory offerings for it but the Hornady Precision Hunter with the 145ELD-X at a .536bc and a claimed 2970fps from a 24" barrel seems pretty damn potent to me for an old fart like the 270win.
I have a big box full of 270 bullets ranging from 85tsx through 150 partitions but I think I need a box of those 145eldx to tinker with. That may end up being my Elk bullet if my rifle likes them.

 

[CJS-6.5]

It's been quite awhile since I actually looked at the factory offerings for it but the Hornady Precision Hunter with the 145ELD-X at a .536bc and a claimed 2970fps from a 24" barrel seems pretty damn potent to me for an old fart like the 270win.
I have a big box full of 270 bullets ranging from 85tsx through 150 partitions but I think I need a box of those 145eldx to tinker with. That may end up being my Elk bullet if my rifle likes them.

Exactly. I handload the 145eldx in my straight win to 3015 fps. Zero signs of pressure. H4895. .020 off lands. Run the numbers and its impressive. Also was very easy to find an accurate load.

 

[BurnOut]

I'm slowly collecting parts to do a fast twist 270 WSM with the intent of running the Berger 170s or JLK 165s around 3k FPS.

I was debating between the 6.5 PRC and the 270 WSM, and the ammo availability of the 270 WSM won me over. Additionally, I wasn't convinced that the PRC has the ass to get heavy-for-caliber projectiles up to ~3k in a 26" barrel.

 

[wade2big]

I dont know why everyone says that ammo needs to be on the shelf of a big box store. As long as its online its available. Dont be like most people and only have one box of ammo for each rifle. Im a bulk buyer.

If i went on that big hunt and forgot my ammo, i would just buy a savage axis combo or rem 700 combo at wal mart for 300 bucks and go do my thing. That wouldnt happen to me though because im not a dumbass.

 

[BurnOut]

I dont know why everyone says that ammo needs to be on the shelf of a big box store. As long as its online its available. Dont be like most people and only have one box of ammo for each rifle. Im a bulk buyer.

If i went on that big hunt and forgot my ammo, i would just buy a savage axis combo or rem 700 combo at wal mart for 300 bucks and go do my thing. That wouldnt happen to me though because im not a dumbass.

If that's the case, why run any factory chamberings at all? Since you're not a dumbass, why not run nothing but hotrodded wildcats?

I mean, since shit never happens, you'd never have cause to darken the doors of a sporting goods store in quest of ammo, right?

 

[ubettcha]

I did some ladder testing with my 270 win. The 140 accu bond 140 berger 140 game changer and 150 berger. The 140's I saw 3190 w/rl26 berger till a shiny ejector mark at 65 in the sun. I saw the same speed at 50 with the berger and the Sierria game changer with a very faint mark The accubond was more like the 150 berger 3150's to max pressure. The 140 berger and Sierria both had flatspots in the 3120-3150 range .6 off the max charge I felt in my rifle. I will work on both bullets in the next week or so to see what I can get out of it. Right now this rifle shoots 130 sierrias at 3180 into 1/2 moa out 300yds. They start to show how terrible in the wind they are after that hence the ladder testing.
If you do go the 270 route the superformance ammo and the other higher pressure ammo tends to shoot better in sammi chambers. The 140 sst superformance shoot to the same zero as my handloads. The sd's run a bit higher in the 18-25fps range but work fine for the ranges this cartridge works well at.

 

[wade2big]

If that's the case, why run any factory chamberings at all? Since you're not a dumbass, why not run nothing but hotrodded wildcats?

I mean, since shit never happens, you'd never have cause to darken the doors of a sporting goods store in quest of ammo, right?

I don’t reload.
Settle down. Apparently you’ve forgot your ammo before. Probably more than once.

 

[davsco]

I dont know why everyone says that ammo needs to be on the shelf of a big box store. As long as its online its available. Dont be like most people and only have one box of ammo for each rifle. Im a bulk buyer.

yeah me too. but crap happens, and given that most calibers in reality aren't drastically different from others, why not buy something that does have better ammo availability and/or cheaper prices.

 

[BurnOut]

I don’t reload.
Settle down. Apparently you’ve forgot your ammo before. Probably more than once.

Nope, but I sure like to have the option in case shit happens.

 

[wade2big]

yeah me too. but crap happens, and given that most calibers in reality aren't drastically different from others, why not buy something that does have better ammo availability and/or cheaper prices.

There is plenty of overlap for sure. I shoot common calibers myself except for my 5.45x39 my AK rifles are chambered in but I have more of that surplus Ammo than I could ever shoot. Things can happen and they do happen to everyone. They happen more often to some people than others though.

If I’m going hunting, my rifle and ammo are priority. They won’t be left behind. Now guys that travel by plane and hunt internationally I could see the importance of having the rifle chambered in something common to the area

 

[TheBigCountry]

I don’t know if anyone has mentioned it, but if you want to stay with a SA, and since you have a 308 already, take a hard look at the 7mm08. The one I had was fine medicine for hogs with 140 ABs and Federal Fusion.