Is this true?
 

well i heard a guy say today that he didnt like the .270 caliber because it didnt have the same knockdown power as a .308 or a 30-06? IS this true because ive seen 270's drop them in their tracks. Just wondering considering im buying a 270. As a side note i killed me a doe this weekend with the ol smokepole [8D]!! first with a muzzleloader!!!

RE: Is this true?
 

I doubt a deer could ever tell the difference.

RE: Is this true?
 

1. Longrifle is certainly correct.

2. The term "knockdown power" is hottly debated. Bullets do not literally "knockdown" game animals. They do/can instantly incapacite them.

If you've got a gun that's in 270 or are looking at one you shouldn't feel the need for a bigger bullet on deer. (The 270 is just a 30-06 that shoots a slightly smaller diameter bullet.)

RE: Is this true?
 

I shot a .270/130gr NP for years! I have shot deer at 200 to 300yds atPower Lines and they just dropped. Don't let anyone one tell you that a .270 is not sufficient!

RE: Is this true?
 

I agree with everything that Soilarch said. Before the big magnums and all of the gains that have been made with bullets and ballistics in the past 20 years the .270 was known for its flat shooting and bullet speed. The military still uses the .270 as its sniper round that is meant to kill. (The way that I understand it is the .223 is the snipers wound it round the .270 is the one where they mean bussiness). My great uncle used to win his fair share of competitions with his Winchester .270 back when everyone was hooked on the 30-06. The .06 has a bit more knockdown power and a bit wider range of bullet selection but the 270 kicks a bit less and still has the power to take down large game. Besides, its all about bullet placement in my book. It doesnt matter what gun you shoot if you cant put the bullet where its going to hit something vital.

RE: Is this true?
 

Also, My family and I ( gread grandad, grandad, dad) have shot the .270 for years and it has always brought in the meat for us. My .270 has claimed 2 deer so far this year. (One by my daughter and one by my son).

RE: Is this true?
 

The military has never used the 270, for anything. They have, and still use the 308 win in bolt action sniper rifles and the M14. Some sniper rifles were chambered in 30-06, and they were used up into the Vietnam era. FYI

RE: Is this true?
 

[/quote]
I agree with everything that Soilarch said. Before the big magnums and all of the gains that have been made with bullets and ballistics in the past 20 years the .270 was known for its flat shooting and bullet speed. The military still uses the .270 as its sniper round that is meant to kill. (The way that I understand it is the .223 is the snipers wound it round the .270 is the one where they mean bussiness). My great uncle used to win his fair share of competitions with his Winchester .270 back when everyone was hooked on the 30-06. The .06 has a bit more knockdown power and a bit wider range of bullet selection but the 270 kicks a bit less and still has the power to take down large game. Besides, its all about bullet placement in my book. It doesnt matter what gun you shoot if you cant put the bullet where its going to hit something vital.
[/quote]

They use the 308 round. Ive heard some talk of them using a 300 win mag as well. Never heard of them using a 270.

RE: Is this true?
 

i agree with bullet placement if you hit them in the right place it doesnt matter i have seen whitetails dropped in there tracks at 75yards with a 22lr in the head maybe notdead but down for the count i mean the 243 is one of the most used deer guns there is so a 270 is plenty probably until you step up to moose and big bears then i would opt for a 30 cal of some sort

RE: Is this true?
 

OMG another internet genius!

The military has never chambered a sniper rifle in 270. YOu got to be kidding me. Why do people feel the need to postcrap like this. The military sniper rifles shoot 7.62 NATO, otherwise known as the 308 win. The 1000 Yard rifle team shoots the M40 which is essentially a Remington Model 40X chambered in 300 win mag. Many of the sniper teams (ie seal teams) are going to the 50 bmg for the "strike the fear of god" effect. The only military cartridge shooting a 270 cal bullet, to my knowledge, is the new 6.8 SPC (thats 6.8mm Special Purpose Cartridge) which isgenerating mediocre reviews. It was designed to work on the M16 frame and bolt which is based on the 5.56 Nato otherwise known as the 223. So it is in essence a 223 necked up to 270.

RE: Is this true?
 

The .270 is more than enough power for deer. The .243 shooting 100 grain bullets is widely considered entirely satisfactory for taking deer if the shooter does his part and puts the bullet in the vitals. The .270 is a couple of steps up in power. Use the right bullets -- probably 130 grain bullets -- and put the bullet where it belongs in the vitals, and that deer is going down.

There are no guarantees that a deer is going to drop on the spot with any round. I shot a small doe (field dressed at 80 LBS) with a .30-06 using 180 grain bullets at 25 yards last year, and that doe ran about 20 yards before dropping. There was a quarter-sized hole on both sides of the inside rib cage of the deer, lined up with the vitals. I have NO idea how that deer was able to make that 20 yard flight. When I lifted up on the deer to try to move her there was a loud sucking sound through these holes in the chest. It was an awful and deadly wound. Game animals don't necessarily drop on the spot, no matter how hard hit they are.

RE: Is this true?
 

Yes, I agree. People always ask what gun can I shoot that will drop them in their tracks.

RE: Is this true?
 

Precisely. I have pollaxed deer with a .300 Wby at 10 yards, turning their insides to mush, and they still run another 30 or 40 yards. It never ceases to amaze me.

RE: Is this true?
 

This must be what my buddy was speaking of when he told me about using the .270 in the special forces. I wasnt trying to spead lies or "crap", only repeating to the best of my knowledge what was told to me. I am sorry if it sounded like I was trying to spread misinformation. Regardless of that though, the .270 is still an excellent deer rifle round.

RE: Is this true?
 

I love these broad statements people make.

Lets play a game.

What caliber belongs to this energy rating for a 130 grain bullet?

1) 2924 foot pounds

2) 2768 foot pounds

3) 2592 foot pounds

You see the argument can go a lot of different ways. What is the formula for "knock down"?

As someone else said the deer will never know the difference because dead is dead.

Weight and mass of bullet does make a difference and a 30 cal bullet is bigger and ranges in weights higher than a 270 does so from that aspect he could make that claim.

However, that is not all that is at play and don't let anyone spook you out of a 270 based on that statement. The 270 is and will continue to be one of the most loved and popular big game cartriges around.

The answer from above are 1) 270, 2) 30-06, 3) 308

Like Isaid that game can be played a lot of ways and if you were to look at energy that would be transfered from those real figures above which one would you say has the best "knock down" power?

RE: Is this true?
 

In a word........... NO.

In a sentence............ That guy is an idiot and obviously knows nothing to very little about terminal performance of bullets on game animals.

RE: Is this true?
 

You'd be surprised how many people make statements like that. They are usually followed by the following, "This one time I was hunting..... I know I made a perfect broadside shot.......I just know I did.....The deer just got back up and ran off......I think the bullet is too small and blew through it too fast to make any damage....I trailed it for miles......270 just sucks"

I have people in my family who are much better hunters than I am that say stuff like that.

I would prefer other cartridges over the .270 but it's just personal preference.

Tom

RE: Is this true?
 

I am sorry for turning this thread into a debate. Either my buddy that told me that he used .270 when he was in the military was misinformed or he just misunderstood what caliber of rifle he was shooting. The way that the topic even came up when I was talking to him was that we where discussing why we liked the .270 over some of the other calibers and that is when he told me that he fell in love with it in the military. It could be that I misunderstood what he was telling me too. I in no way was trying to spread lies of misinformation. I appoligize if I came accross that way. What I do know though is that I have shot .06 and .270 and I like the feel and the bit less of kick that the .270 gives me. I have owned both and have stuck with the .270.

RE: Is this true?
 

Don't worry about a thing you did not spread any misinformation. I own all three myself and actually several 30-06's. All three are tremendous cartridges and I think it was the generalization about knockdown power and the 270 your friend stated that was cause for debate.

My theroy is I love them all and thus should own at least one of each.

That is why it is called a forum, you will get plenty of opinions and there is nothing wrong with that. Keep posting!

RE: Is this true?
 

i agree totally i have seen a big doe shot with 12 gauge slug right i the boiler room at 20 yards and she ran over a 100 yards with a foot wide blood trail pretty much the whole way they are tough and have a natural instinct to survive the only way you might drop them in their tracks every time is if you are going to shoot them in the head and then there is a lot bigger margin for error just my opinion

RE: Is this true?
 

Thats cool. The last thing that I want to do is discredit myself.

RE: Is this true?
 

Last fall I killed nine mule deer with nine shots from the 270 with Federal Fusion 130 grain bullet. None went more than 20 yards most dropped in their tracks. I have done the same thing with the 308 and 6.5x55. No deer ever hit with my wifes 250 Savage ever got away either. Hit them where it counts with any decent caliber and they are going down. Hit them wrong with any caliber, even the biggest whiz bang magnum and you will loose them.

RE: Is this true?
 

I second that. Its all in the placement of the shot. The 2 deer that we got this year where with a .270 and last years was too and all 3 dropped dead in their tracks. Last years was a head shot, and the one my son shot was in the neck and broke it, and the one my daughter got was a rib shot that got the heart. The funny thing is that even though it was a rib shot, the deer didnt bleed much. Got lucky on that one and there was hardly any ruined meat.

RE: Is this true?
 

I third that, awell placed shot from a 6.5 Swede is more deadly than a butt shot from a .460 Weatherby

RE: Is this true?
 

Whether a given bullet will drop a game animal on the spot is influenced a LOT MORE by where the bullet hits, and the conddition of the animal, (ie, hopped-up on adrenalin or relaxed and unaware) than any factor related to the bullet's size or velocity. A near miss with a 106mm recoilless rifle will not kill a deer any faster than a near miss with a .30/30.

The .270 WIN has excellent killing power. I once knew a doctor's wife in Fairbanks Alaska who used her .270 WIN to kill things like 10-foot polar bears, with a handload using the 150-grain Nosler bullet.

RE: Is this true?
 

As was mentioned above, the military has NEVER OFFICIALLY ISSUED a sniper rifle that was chambered for the .270 WIN. cartridge. However, I do know of an instanceduring the Vietnam unpleasantness where a couple of Model 70 Winchester rifles in .270 were brought intocountry by individuals, and used in combat operations up in the 44th Special Tactical Zone (Parrot's Beak area). These rifles WERE NOTauthorized to be used, but were used, at least until someone up the chain of command made them stop using them!