270 Win

[toothfangclaw]

Is it possible to hunt elk with a 270 with maybe a 150 grain+ bullet? Or is it too small?

[high country]

I am the luckiest SOB alive, I have killed 6 with 130 gr speer hot cors. the beauty of the 270win is that EVERY bullet ever made was made to expand at it's velocity. the "cheap" bullets are somewhat overdriven on up close shots from the wby and wsm, but the win is perfect.

I have a better rifle collection then most people who are even gun nuts, and I reach for my 270win loaded with 57.5 gr of 4831 and 130gr speer hot cors 99.9% of the time......it is light accurate and has been killing every thing I point it at for a very long time.

[ICEMAN]

We have killed a dozen elk with a .270, shooting 130grain Sierra's....nothing fancy, aim well, works great.

[Wazukie]

a 270. is plenty for elk.  Anyone who says different has 1) never hunted with one, or 2) doesnt know how to shoot!! Plain and simple.  Heck, a .223 will take down elk every time with the correct load and shot placement. Just my 

[KimberRich]

For Sure.  My old Model 722 Remington .270 has killed 18 elk between my grandpa, dad, and I over the years.

[grundy53]

The .270 is an elk killing machine!

[elk311]

The .270 is an elk killing machine!

Absolutley! I don't own one but if they ever stopped producing 30-06 I'd by a 270 in a heart beat!!! Flat shooter no doubt!

If it was good enough for Jack O'Connor... http://www.spokesmanreview.com/pf.asp?date=063002&ID=s1173642&cat=section.sports

[300UltraMagShooter]

I think everyone agrees that "smaller" calibres will bring down any elk.

The question I wonder, do you think there is a difference in how quickly they go down?  Also, do larger cals. make better blood trails?

[high country]

I think everyone agrees that "smaller" calibres will bring down any elk.

The question I wonder, do you think there is a difference in how quickly they go down?  Also, do larger cals. make better blood trails?

I did some informal testing on cull hunts the last few years. I took 2 elk with a 257roy, 100gr tsx @ 350yds, 2 with a 6.5-06, 142smk and 2 with my 300rum. consensus was that they all hit the dirt equally fast, hard yada yada. the 257 was the most impressive, I was ready for a quick follow up, as I had little faith in the small bullet, but it was as close to a bang flop as you can have on a 2x lung pass through.

bottom line, magnums are neat for canyon crosser rifles, but I now would rather have super accurate rifes wearing scopes that let me take advantage of the rifle.

the elk I have killed do not seem to be able to tell that the bullet I sent after them were 51 thousandths of an inch too small (300 vs 257)

[carpsniperg2]

270 is way good enough. with all guns the shot placement has to be good still. there has been A TON! of elk killed with a 270.

[Hornseeker]

Google "Jack O'Connor 270 elk" and see what you come up with... hehehehe

Hell Yeah

[carpsniperg2]

i loved jack'ss book! but there are a few stories in there

[Dadbear]

Absolutely. Just killed another one this year with my pre '64 Model 70. There are lots of folks out there that will tell you no, but how can they argue with all of the elk killed by this caliber?

[BlackRidge]

I'd feel pretty confident using a 243, so a 270, oh h*ll yea!

[toothfangclaw]

Awesome info guys! So, where is the limits of the 270 win? Animal wise? 

[Curly]

Anything in the lower 48......

[h20hunter]

Anything in the lower 48......

 

[Bofire]

and 99.9 % of Alaskan

[bighorns2bushytails]

Anything in the lower 48......

 

--bh2bt

[Three_Oh_Eight]

Just choose your bullet wisely and you'll have no problem taking any animal up to around 1000 pounds.  Beyond that, and I'd still use it but only broadside, no quarting-to shots and only slight angle quartering away.

As far as questions about blood trails and such, the 270 Winchester does as much internal damage as I've ever seen.  It seems like more so than the bigger 30 calibers and 33 calibers.  With today's bullets, its a great combination of lighter recoil, flat trajectory and good on-game performance. 

AND....You can find ammo anywhere just in case for super-reasonable prices compared to the other stuff out there today.

[SpotandStalk]

My 270 (Ruger Mark II) has rewarded me with 4 bulls, one of which was 345" (all in Washington).  I would really prefer to load my own ammo, but just haven't had the time to get into it yet.  So, my question is: what factory load do others like/had success with?  I have been using Fusion 150g and have liked what I have seen.  Most of all, my Ruger just really seems to shoot Fusions tighter than any other factory load. 

[Bofire]

Fusions are a pretty new bullet..
I like Barnes.

[Three_Oh_Eight]

I shot a grouse at 50 yards with a 140gr Accubond.  Through-and-through with small exit hole but lots of internal damage (neck shot).  Didn't recover the bullet.  As of yet, this is my favorite factory load (Federal Premium).

On a serious note, the same load worked great on a couple of deer and the rifle shot great with the load.  I'm sure it would do the job on elk.

[Tony 270]

Nah, think that little 270 would just bounce off an elk 

Hope to use mine on a good deer this year. Still not sure about those 140 SSTs

[high country]

I dont sweat any of the bullets in the 270 win......they are all built for its velocity range, were it a wby or wsm I would be more picky.

[C-Money]

I sure like the 270win! I use mine for elk. The only Elk I have killed took my 30-06 out hunting that day.