Other "270 Details" That Just Kinda Don’t Quite Add Up….

If the 270 is so great for elk, the best thing since sliced bread, all you ever ever need providing you know how to shoot, then a few things just don’t add up at all:

** Why Do The he “devout 270'ers” turn around and buy….. MAGNUMS?” We’ve had die hard 270 fans here announce all of a sudden that they are getting a new rifle. Hurray! What is it going to be? The response is usually either a “300WinMag” or a “300WSM.” What are you going to use it for? “Elk, …. well plus I just wanted one.” ---- “Hey, now wait a minute, given your tenacious, emotional, almost evangelical promotion of the 270 for elk and the fact you considered the 270 was the “end all caliber” --- What’s with that?. “Hey, I can get one if I want!” Now you’re going to use the 270 for elk right? No. Cool, then welcome to the “dark side.” True enough, but go figure!

** Ratchet Factor: Why, Why Why Do The "Magnum Fans" NOT Want To Go Back To The Good Old Days, Yet They Own 270's? We’ve had many folks discuss how the 270 was their “go to” gun but as the years passed, they either gradually or just recently increased their firepower and now all they want is their “magnum” and wouldn’t think of going back. The “heavy ones” are the ones that make the elk trip out west, sometimes the 270 goes along as a back up rifle. “I could use the 270 in a pinch but I just like the way the 338 lays the whack on them!” These folks are impartial --- they have the choice what they take afield. They could go up the scale, or they could go down it and they resoundingly favor the heavy end. Surely if the 270’s were so great and the “magnums” so bad, then there would be more (some? any?) first hand accounts of reversals that were NOT health driven.

** The Bias Factor: "As Time Goes On, Some Folks Just Can’t Handle "Magnums" Anymore!" Often seniors are the most devout 270 fans (promote them for ANYTHING!). On the other hand, "magnums" are nothing new and so there are some seniors out there that HAVE a wide background with the full range of calibers and now favor the “milder cartridges”. Interesting how the body can force the mind…. “Back in the days when I had “magnumitis” (before my health problems forced me to back off) I used to be crazy just like you guys are now and really liked them a lot, but you know as the years have went by I’ve found I can do everything I need to do with the old 270 (or whatever).

So, in looking back, does one “do as much” and “push the envelope as much” and “have the need” now as much as one may have “back then”? AND REALLY.... Which came first? (1) The realization that one had so called "magnumitis" (which you were apparently enjoying pretty well at the time). OR… (2) The change in health that mandated the use of low impact rifles and a retreat from the larger/more powerful calibers. ALSO ALONG THE WAY, the subsequent use of low impact hunting techniques, an increased reliance on knowledge, skill, and experience. ALL OF THESE THINGS ARE OKAY and normal and are issues we will all face one day. The relevant question is, "Does going through such a 'passage' taint one's CURRENT recommendation for an elk rifle, in present day?"
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Overall, my observation is when it comes to elk, the folks that have the "magnums" don’t want to given them up until they absolutely have to and wouldn’t think of going back unless forced to! I'm thinking there are pretty good reasons why!