270 WSM pros and cons

[4IDARCHER]

Looking for some pros and cons of the .270 WSM for those that have spent some time with this round. I was thinking with the newer 145gr ELD-X factory load it could be a pretty flat shooting, wind bucking mid-range round that doesn’t come with the kick that stepping up to the .300mags come with.

 

[Elkfitness]

Robby denning has a couple blog posts or articles on the 270wsm here somewhere. I'm on Tapatalk but if you go to the main rokslide page and not the forum you should be able to find them.


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[Mw01313]

I worked up a load for one my dad used last year. I really like the round. It was much faster than I realized. Speaking of that, I don't know the velocities on the 145 gr. Eldx loads you mentioned, but be careful if they are very fast. A high velocity Eldx at close range could turn into a grenade pretty easily. As for the round, I have no complaints.

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[Longshot]

130 grain hornady sst is lights out on whitetail...

 

[wind gypsy]

Pros: Efficient and flat shooting cartridge with bullet weights that aren't terrible on the shoulder.
Con: .270 projectile options suck compared to the 6.5's and 7's on either side of it. This is a deal breaker for me as a hand loader. There are too many good 7 and 6.5 options.

 

[Idaho Lefty]

I like mine, it's a Tikka T3, stainless Lite at 7.5 pounds with, a 4.5X14 Burris on top. I'm loading 140 Grain Nosler AccuBonds with, 65 Grs IMR 7828 going 3,140 FPS in Rem brass and they are still going 2,000 FPS at, 700 yards (all the distance I, need !) and the Accu's are rated to expand at 2K FPS. The .270 WSM is a very accurate round, has a thick tough casing, modern Ackley type 35 degree shoulder, 130 and 140 grainer's fly like a Lazer beam. My 140 gr load drops 33 inches at 500 Yards with, a 200 yd zero and is producing 1.25 inch, 200 yard groups for me. The Tikka replaces, 2 heavier rifles, a Custom .338 Win Mag and a Rem model 700 7MM Mag ( both rifles weighed about, 9 pounds each). I look forward, to trying it on Elk in Ariz in 2018 ! Good luck!

 

[Idaho Lefty]

Yup, the BC's aren't real high but, I doubt if it effects the bullets performance at,.. "reasonable Ranges"! The .270 WSM ain't, a 1,000 yard rifle unless, you Custom build one with a 1-8 twist and shoot the new Berger 170 grain bullets. I figure mine gets me, to 750 yards,.. if I do my part!
I'll just have to walk a little farther and get,.. closer !

 

[wannakillabigbull]

One of the biggest issues with the 270 and 270 WSM is their twist rate. Of the popular western hunting cartridges they’re one of the only ones that are commercially sold with a twist rate far lower than required to get the most out of the cartridge. With only a 1:10 twist and a relatively small bullet diameter (.277) they won’t stabilize high BC bullets like 7mms do and 6.5s do with their faster twist rates. Because of the slow twist rate, ammo makers by and large don’t make as many bullets that require a faster twist, so you end up with worse ammo selection as far as high BC bullet that fly flatter and buck the wind better. For people that want every ounce of energy to be maintained down range or really care about wind drift, then 270s kind of fall short.

All that said I’ve used a 270 win to kill all but two of my big game animals. Great cartridge and still my favorite rifle.

 

[HuntHarder]

I load the 145 ELD-x in my 270wsm. I am @3180 fps using H4831sc. I have only shot steel with this gun so far, but it seems to be a real laser. Cons to the 270wsm are: not a bunch of bullet offerings ( its getting better) and COAL limits

 

[Mw01313]

I had good luck with 130 gr GMXs. They shot best when I pushed them pretty fast. RL 26 pushed them much faster than I would have imagined with minimal pressure. Performance on game was exactly what we wanted.

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[hodgeman]

The. 270WSM is a nice hunting round. Good reach and good killing power.

 

[belly-deep]

Twist rates and B.C. are faaaarrrrrr overrated by today’s hunting world. They look good on paper, but if the field very few shots require their advantages.

Animals have been dying by .277 bullets for a long time. Adding a little more zip to the .270 Win is only a good thing.

 

[Middleofnowhere]

Con: it’s not a .308 cal...

 

[backcountry_hunter]

Twist rates and B.C. are faaaarrrrrr overrated by today’s hunting world. They look good on paper, but if the field very few shots require their advantages.

Animals have been dying by .277 bullets for a long time. Adding a little more zip to the .270 Win is only a good thing.

Very accurate statement.... In my younger years I got hung up and geeked out on BC, twist rates, etc.... Until I came to the realization that they just don't matter all that much in most hunting situations. Shooting @ camp perry is one thing, shooting inside of 400 in the mtns... not so much.

There isn't much a .277 heavy partition won't do well in the lower 48.

 

[mcr-85]

I love my .270 WSM. I shoot the 170 Berger at 3050. It will shoot as far as I'm comfortable with and knocks em off their feet near and far. As long as you are accurate with your gun and load, I don't see any cons. I don't think any of the deer or elk that I've killed knew or cared that it was a .277 bullet vs a 6.5mm or 7mm bullet.

Well one con I can think of in factory guns is its hard to shoot the 170 berger as a repeater in a short action with the slower twist that will come on a factory gun. You just don't have the mag box room to work with or the twist to stabilize the bullet. I built my gun on a long action with a 1-9 twist to fix that issue. For shooting the 145 eld you should have no problems.

 

[WSM LONG RANGE]

Looking for some pros and cons of the .270 WSM for those that have spent some time with this round. I was thinking with the newer 145gr ELD-X factory load it could be a pretty flat shooting, wind bucking mid-range round that doesn’t come with the kick that stepping up to the .300mags come with.

I have been using a 270WSM in Sako 85 for 12 years now. I reload all of my ammunition. The best powder suited to this cartridge for me is IMR 7828 SSC. 70.5 GRAINS GIVES 3290 FPS AVERAGE WITH THE 145 ELDX. Red stags shot in the boiler room just collapse on the spot when shot at 325 metres. I have dispatched chamois at 725 meters and bull thar at 570 meters. with 71.5 grains I GOT 3380 FPS but extraction was difficult.
The accuracy of the sako in this caliber is amazing . at 200 meters on the range a 4 shot group has bullets overlapping on the target. You cant go past IMR 7828 ssc if your looking for the best powder for the 270 or 7 mm WSMs with this weight bullet. Admittedly i have not tried reloader 26 ,but i dont need to improve the results 7828 gives. Also barrel temps are lower than any other powder i have tried. Hope this is useful for any one else but start off at least 4 grains lower and only work up if safe. After 700 odd rounds its still shoots better than when it was new.

 

[mighteywhitehunter]

.270WSM is a great round. It will still have a good kick in a light mountain hunting rifle with no muzzle brake. I have 7 or 8 bucks with it out to 450yds with the Barnes 110TTSX @ 3500fps. I switched this year to the Hammer Hunter 117 to give em a try and stoned my buck @ 200yds. I think at reasonable ranges it is an awesome round even with the standard 1/10 twist. It is my go to rifle in here in Cali due to the laws, I keep it setup with copper bullets.

 

[alexanderg23]

I think in a single stack like a Tikka the WSM’s can feed fine. I had a Tikka 270 WSM and 300. Both fed fine. The 300 grouped like shit with all ammo.