Why is the .270 dying?

Driven by marketing. Marketers caught on to the increasing trend by the persona that fits the .264 crowd.

Had the same been done for the .277, it would be an entirely different discussion...
Pretty sure 142 SMK’s were around a long long time prior to heavy 6.5mm marketing.
 
Can you define a "target cartridge" please. Every cartridge I've ever seen was just an engine for launching a projectile. It provides the horsepower to give a projectile velocity, nothing more or less. Every cartridge should be loaded to the best precision possible. Why would they change the way they load ammo based on the stamp on the case? Maybe, just maybe, some cartridge designs just are easier to load for higher precision because the bullets for that caliber are of new design with better external ballistics for use in faster twist barrels than those classic designs commonly used in cartridges like the 270 Winchester with slow twist barrels. If the appropriate twist for accuracy in a 243, 264, and 284 is 1/8", then why is the 277 a 1/10"?

Jay
So it being born into the world as a target cartridge and being loaded with various bullets designed as long range target bullets doesn't count? Hmmm Well it would be a heck of a metal silhouette cartridge for sure. As for being designed as a target cartridge chambers often have tighter throats, freebores are usually configured for match style bullets and shoulders are often sharper to extend case life and make for more consistant headspace. Does that sound like the 6.5 CM to you?
The reason the 270 has generally a 1-10 twist being that flat based spitzer bullets of a weight commonly found when it was designed were not all that long and round nose bullets were very popular at that time also. Optical sights were not especially common back then either and those that were available could be considered crude with generally low magnification.
I have 3 270 rifles, all three are fine shooters. My least accurate is an Encore, this from a tracking test of an old Bausch and Lomb scope.



These two targets were shot with rifles that had match chambers.

 
Explain how it is a better choice unless I am mostly interested in target shooting? I can load a 270 down to equal Creedmoor ballistics if needed.
The number of people who are handloaders in the realm of total hunters/shooters is very small. Can you show me any factory loaded precision target loads for the 270? Right now on Midway USA, there are 75 offerings for the 6.5 Creedmoor that have "hunting" bullets loaded in them. There are 32 offerings with "match" or "target" bullets in them. Doesn't sound like just a target cartridge to me.

Jay
 
So it being born into the world as a target cartridge and being loaded with various bullets designed as long range target bullets doesn't count? Hmmm Well it would be a heck of a metal silhouette cartridge for sure. As for being designed as a target cartridge chambers often have tighter throats, freebores are usually configured for match style bullets and shoulders are often sharper to extend case life and make for more consistant headspace. Does that sound like the 6.5 CM to you?
The reason the 270 has generally a 1-10 twist being that flat based spitzer bullets of a weight commonly found when it was designed were not all that long and round nose bullets were very popular at that time also. Optical sights were not especially common back then either and those that were available could be considered crude with generally low magnification.
I have 3 270 rifles, all three are fine shooters. My least accurate is an Encore, this from a tracking test of an old Bausch and Lomb scope.



These two targets were shot with rifles that had match chambers.

Just sounds like a cartridge made with modern cartridge design for modern bullets, modern powders, and has the chamber and case design that every wildcatted cartridge tried to achieve! Hot Dog, we have progress in the air! Pretty soon they will be cutting every chamber to match spec's.

Jay

P.S. I killed everything (antelope, whitetail, mule deer, elk, bighorn sheep ewe, black bear, coyotes, fox and even ground squirrels) from the age of 12 to 26 with Winchester M70 Featherweight in 270 Winchester topped with a 4x Leupold that I got for Christmas in 1988. I have a long history with the 270 using both factory and handloaded ammo. That rifle is the reason I have no desire to shoot paper targets. Little tiny groups are boring. Fun starts at 500.
 
The number of people who are handloaders in the realm of total hunters/shooters is very small. Can you show me any factory loaded precision target loads for the 270? Right now on Midway USA, there are 75 offerings for the 6.5 Creedmoor that have "hunting" bullets loaded in them. There are 32 offerings with "match" or "target" bullets in them. Doesn't sound like just a target cartridge to me.

Jay
Can you show me any serious match shooters that run factory ammo other than to collect brass? And the number of said serious match rats that actually use Hornady brass? I didn't say it was just a target cartridge I said it was born to compete certain types of match shooting such as PRS. That was a while back and now it seems the 6CM has become their darling. The 30-06 has a long and rich history in matches but it was born a military round.
 
All new bullets in .277

Barnes has a heavy .277 bullet
Sierra has a 175g 277 bullet

Basically, Hornady is the only major hunting bullet maker without a heavy for caliber bullet because they want people to buy 6.5PRC ammo.

Change is coming. Right now, people can buy a factory x-bolt 270 with a 1/7.5 twist barrel.

Berger has a heavy .277 because they were making bullets for the Extreme Outer Limits guys who wanted the heaviest possible bullet for hunting in pretty much every caliber. They were also offering fast twist barrels on their to .270’s to use them.

Nosler has heavy .277 bullets because they came up with the 27 Nosler and needed heavy for caliber bullets to take advantage of the extra case capacity. Barnes and Sierra followed after the 27 Nosler and 6.8 Western came out.
 
Berger has a heavy .277 because they were making bullets for the Extreme Outer Limits guys who wanted the heaviest possible bullet for hunting in pretty much every caliber. They were also offering fast twist barrels on their to .270’s to use them.

Nosler has heavy .277 bullets because they came up with the 27 Nosler and needed heavy for caliber bullets to take advantage of the extra case capacity. Barnes and Sierra followed after the 27 Nosler and 6.8 Western came out.

You literally just proved my point. There are new .277 bullets coming out.
 
The number of people who are handloaders in the realm of total hunters/shooters is very small. Can you show me any factory loaded precision target loads for the 270? Right now on Midway USA, there are 75 offerings for the 6.5 Creedmoor that have "hunting" bullets loaded in them. There are 32 offerings with "match" or "target" bullets in them. Doesn't sound like just a target cartridge to me.

Jay

Why? The 270 is a hunting cartridge.

That's like pointing out my Tundra is not very fuel efficient.
 
Why? The 270 is a hunting cartridge.

That's like pointing out my Tundra is not very fuel efficient.
The 270 is just an engine to propell a bullet. The 277 bullets have not kept up with modern designs because of the 10 twist. This keeps the 270 from gaining new market shares and slowly losing the current market share it has. The 270 isn't a "target cartridge" because the bullet selection is best described as hunting bullets for short to mid range hunting and excessive recoil when compared to other cartridges with better bullet selection. The 270 Winchester will never go away but it will continue to lose market shares to other cartridges that are just simply easier to shoot and come with inherent performance gains due to the components used in their design and manufacture.

Jay
 
You literally just proved my point. There are new .277 bullets coming out.
The 170gr .277 Berger has been out for 10+ years. It's not new and wasn't made for the Extreme Outer Limits group. That bullet was made prior to Bob Beck having any influence on Berger making heavy for caliber bullets. Bob did have influence on the manufactur of the 156 6.5mm, the 195 7mm, and the 245 .308 bullets being built. The only new bullets in .277 came with the introduction of the 6.8 Western and those are far too long to be used in the 270 Winchester with the SAAMI approved 1/10" twist.

Jay
 
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