Originally Posted by
Blackelk
When I pull out my elk rifle every year I don't think about short range and slow and heavy. I think about what if that bull is standing 500 yds from me above timberline and there's not a bush big enough to hide a rabbit behind between him and me. That's what crosses my mind. So I prefer speed and trajectory and accuracy over heavy bullets. I guess that's what makes me different. I won't explain in detail just pull some numbers off remington's charts for example's. Then I'll list my hand load at the bottom.
270 win vs. 30-06 at 300yds and beyond.
130gr 270 Factory Ammo
Velocity 300-2425 400-2232 500-2048
Energy 300-1697 400-1438 500-1211
Trajectory 300-6.5 400-18.8 500-38.2
150gr 30-06 Factory Ammo
Velocity 300-2298 400-2111 500-1934
Energy 300-1758 400-1485 500-1246
Trajectory 300-7.3 400-21.1 500-42.3
180gr 30-06 Factory Ammo
Velocity 300-2186 400-2028 500-1878
Energy 300-1910 400-1644 500-1409
Trajectory 300-8.3 400-23.9 500-47.9
130gr 270 win My Hand Loads
Velocity 300-2604 400-2411 500-2227
Energy 300-1957 400-1678 500-1432
Trajectory 300-5.6 400-16.3 500-33.1
The 270's 130gr factory loads compete really well against the 30-06's factory loads in two heavier grain bullets. Of course this is 300yds and beyond. The 270win is a lot flatter and would be a lot easier to judge hold over or adjust clicks on a target scope. I put my data in the mix to show you at those ranges my hand loads are flying faster, hitting harder, and have a lot less room for error than of a standard factory load in a 30-06. I love the 30-06 round it's a great one. But it don't have what i'm looking for in my long range shooting and ballistic coefficient in down range shooting. If I were to only shoot 200yds and under sure why not load the ole 30-06 with 200gr bullets and get after it.
So to say I'll choose the 30-06 over the 270 win in my gun cabinet I'd have to say that ole model 70 30-06 has been collecting dust for a lot of years now.
Sorry for the charts the site wouldn't let me copy and paste the originals. I posted this to put a lot of myths to bed. They are both from the same case but different in bore size. Both can hold the same amount of powder but one can push a bullet a tad faster is all and the other can be loaded with a heavier bullet. That's about the size of it.
There will always be the argument between the smaller/faster crowd and the bigger/slower crowd. And you do make some pretty convincing arguments.
However, I wouldn't shoot an elk at 500 yards with either the 270 or the '06.
And ft/lbs is nothing more than a mathmatical formula that SQUARES the speed of the bullet ALWAYS giving a leg up to faster bullets. Taking this formula to an extreme, you could get a 50 gr bullet going fast enough to look as good as the 270 ON PAPER, but don't see anyone purporting this caliber for elk.
Bottom line is that there has to be a line below which the ft/lbs starts to give you bogus data. In my opinion, the 270 is close to that line. How close will continue to be debated long after I am gone.
However, if someday I had to make the choice between 1500 ft/lbs from a 130 gr bullet or 1500 ft/lbs from a 165 or 180 gr bullet, I am going to chose the bigger bullet for an elk.
There is more than one way to skin a cat, and there is more than one mathmatical formula to compare "knockdown power". Here is another one that I like to use:
http://www.loadammo.com/Topics/July02.htm
Stick your data in this formula and see how the two calibers fare. And out to reasonable distances, bullet drop between the two calibers is not that significant.