I have recently purchased a Remington 700 in the caliber of 270. I am going to reload my own ammo to help increase the accuracy of my gun as well as to help me keep my shooting expenses to a minimum since I plan on shooting at least 500 rounds of ammo in a 6 month time period not including the hunting shots...
My first question is what bullet weight is appropiate for an almost all around hunting weight. I have talked to approximately 15-20 people who have repeatedly said they love the 130 grain boattail for the 270. I intend on hunting woodchucks, coyote, deer.
I do tend to prefer the 130 grain due to taking a box of cheap remington core lock ammo and shooting 3 shot groups with in the size of a quarter at 100 yds.
My next question is that I know shooting at woodchucks can be a long range affair out to 350 or more yards on shots will the 130 grain bullet be to heavy for shots closer than 100 yards on such a small critter? Will the 130 grain bullet just be to heavy for such long range shots since most of the hunters I talk to use 95 grain bullets or less.
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A lot of this will depend on the twist rate of your barrel. Most .270's are made to be more of a big game caliber and shoot larger bullets, which can limit their ability to launch smaller, faster bullets accurately. Unless you are planning on using the woodchuck for something, shoot whatever your rifle shoots accurately. I would experiment with different bullets and powders regardless. Shooting quarter-sized groups at 100 is one thing, but keep in mind the size of your quarry. Shooting at 350 yards means your groups are going to be 3.5x larger, which for small varmints can mean the difference between a hit and a miss.
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The 270 isn't a woodchuck round, but it will give you some "good" practise with your deer rifle.
I'd load 130 grain bullets sighting in at 200 yards. Then shoot that "one load" for everything from deer on down. You will learn where ithits at different ranges, and become a much "better" game shot!
Switching bullet weights just makes everything a lot more complicated than it needs to be.
One thing about .270's that is fairly common is the tendency for all bullet weights, in full power loads, to shoot to the same point of impact at 100 yards. Particularly in free floated barrels. I might, just for fun, try some 110 gr. V-Max's - probably would use IMR 4350 for this application - just to see if they shot the same as the 130 grain big game loads. They are great varmint bullets.
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The 130-grain bullet is an excellent choice for all-round use, including varmints and game up to cow elk in size and toughness. I know people who even use a 130-grain for all hunting, but change to a premium controlled-expansion type bullet, like a Nosler Partition, for big stuff.
I spent three years in Alaska, and did much of my hunting up there with a .270. My only bullet choice for Alaskan shooting was the 150-grain Nosler Partition which from my 20" barreled Mannlicher Schoenauer carbine had a MV of only 2800 FPS. Yet it handily killed all game in AK except for brown/grizzly bears with one shot, most of the time. This includes two large black bears of approx. 300 pounds with three shots. When I returned to the Lower 48, I switched to the 130-grain Nosler Partiton in this same rifle, and used that very successfully for all game including large mulies and elk. (My two best .270 loads = 130 grain Nosler Partition, 55.5 grains IMR 4350, Fed. 210 primers, WW brass. 150 grain Nosler Partition, 53.5 grains IMR 4350, Fed 210 primers, WW brass. I once also used the Sierra 110-grain with 58 grains of IMR 4350 for shooting porcupines and jackrabbits. This load spread them all over the Zuni Mountains in western New Mexico!!)
Good luck! The .270 is a great all-round cartridge. Just put your bullets in the right spot, and it will deliver! (The few varmints I've shot with a .270 were pretty much demolished-if you want to use a coyote hide, the .270 may do too much damage, regardless of the weight of bullet you hit it with!!)
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The 270 and the 130 grain bullet is just a unbeatable team. I would stay with that one bullet weight for all game or varmits. There appears to be little difference in POI. I would consider the Barnes tripple Shok for elk or moose although for me, the 130 Partition has worked well. My new favorite is the Federal 130 grain Fusions. I will never use anything else for deer again in my current rifle anyway.
Controlled expansion 130 grain .270 bullets have been used successfully on the largest antlered game all over the world for decades, from both standard and magnum caliber rifles.
The popular 130-150 grain slugs are useful for a wide variety of CXP2 and CXP3 game, depending on the individual bullet's design, in the standard .270 Winchester cartridge and the .270 Magnums. 130 grain bullets for all CXP2 game, the 140 grain bullets for mixed bag CXP2 and CXP3 hunts, and the 150 grain or heavier bullets primarily for CXP3 game.
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Appropiate Bullet Weight
