School me on ammo
 

I know there are many different brands out and many different styles of ammo out there. I now use Winchester SuperX. I only shoot a max of about 80 yards where I am at now but I am going to be moving back to KS in a few months so next year I will be making much longer shots. I have a Savage .270 win for my deer rifle.
Could you all give me some advice as to what is best for different ranges and so on? Any advice is helpful. This is my first year with this gun so I have only tried this one brand through it as I really don't have a good place to practice and keep blasting off shells. In the past I used a Rem 7mm mag and had someone who reloaded ammo for me to use so I never had to try out a bunch of different styles. Thank you for the help.
Brandon

RE: School me on ammo
 

23 hits and no one knows anything about ammo? Seems funny that whenever I start a thread on here no one want to give advice (accept an occasional few and I appreciate that) Maybe if I changed my name it would help?

RE: School me on ammo
 

First of all, it's really NOT about how far your shooting... What's it's about is useing the right bullet for the job. This includes the type of bullet and it's weight in the caliber your useing.

For deer and a 270 Win. you will have good luck with 130 grain and for bigger annimials move on up to 150's. For really tough animials move on up to 150's but choose a premium bullet like Nosler partitions....

DM

RE: School me on ammo
 

There are books written on this subject so it is hard to give a brief summary for your question.

Different brands (companies) will sometimes shoot differently in any given gun, so you may have to try a few to find what your gun will shoot with some consistancy.

The BULLET loaded in a cartridge will shoot differently as well. And the weight and KIND of bullet (design) will have different effects on different game animals. Some bullets are light and fragile and will be good for shooting woodchucks and coyotes but very poor for shooting big deer. Some bullets are heavy and stout and are great for moose and elk but not so good for smaller deer.

Someone who uses a .270 will probably give you some specific loads that work well for them.

Robin down under

RE: School me on ammo
 

Thank you fellas.

RE: School me on ammo
 

This is what I would suggest. When you can get to a range that matches what you expect to shoot at, take along 6 or 7 diffent boxes of ammo and see which one shoots best. Every rifle is different, and what my gun likes, your may not. I would try the SST's, Federal Fusions, Barnes, and Nosler Ballistic tips and Partitions, etc. Good luck

RE: School me on ammo
 

I agree with DM! You've got to match the bullet to the game hunted! Whitetail's are not hard to bring down. For a .270, a good 130 gr. Soft Point or Nosler Partition will be perfect!

RE: School me on ammo
 

I like to to shoot the Winchester Powerpoints just because of the CXP ratings right on the box. It tells you what that bullet was designed to do. I'm afraid to tryother bullets because I fear I will shoot a moose with a bullet designed for coyote, or vice versa.
I've never had a problem with my "bullets for dummies" strategy.

RE: School me on ammo
 

And I thought I was the only person who uses the CXP guide.

RE: School me on ammo
 

try some federal or winchester 140 gr nosler accubonds. its a good mix of penitration and expansion. My friend took 4 deer this year with them and they worked flawlessly.

RE: School me on ammo
 

I only use one kind of ammo now. I recommend Winchester 140 gr. Supreme Fail Safe if your rifle will group well. I never have a problem with Fail Safe. MV out!

RE: School me on ammo
 

MontanaVet, do you use them for everything you hunt?

Accuracy is key, but you don't want a bullet to expand to quick, or not at all. I wish there was a standardized rating so I knew which bullets were suitable for which game, thats why I stick with the powerpoints.

RE: School me on ammo
 

For deer----I would use a 130 grain bullet----the plain jane Win, Rem or Fed would be just fine for whitetail. See which one you rifle likes & go hunting. CB

RE: School me on ammo
 

Thank you everyone, once I get an area to shoot on I will give the mentioned ammo a shot and see what works the best.
Brandon

RE: School me on ammo
 

270 and deer 130-150 will work just fine. Personally the 130gr NBT accounted for the majority of deer sized game I shot with the 270 win. I have never had a problem, though90% of my deer were shot where the ribs were thetoughest bone it would see and usually at ranges exceeding 100 yards. If you want something a little more robust that will be good for short or longer rangeshard to argue with the Nosler Partition provided it shoots acceptable. If not the Nosler Accubond or Hornady Inetrbond or interlock SP maybe worth atry.

When chasing bigger animals I went with either the 140 failsafe or 150 Nosler Partition in the 270 win. Sub in the Barnes TSX which is now available as well to this category if applicable!

RE: School me on ammo
 

this is why everyone was reluctant in giving this kinda advise. there are so many variations of bullets that everyone shoots something different out of preference. someone may not like one type because it had failed to do what it was designed to do for them or a friend. to each his own. the most important thing to consider is you want to match the bullet grains/weight to the game you are shooting. once you have the basic grain/weight you want in mind, then buy different kinds and manufacturers of it and see what shoots best in your gun.

i personally like the Ballistic Tips.

RE: School me on ammo
 

You didn't say if you were looking for a load to hunt or to just kill paper. If you're going to hunt, what will you be hunting?

As far as accuracy, you'll just have to buy different loads and try them in your rifle. As a general guidline, I've found Federal Premium and Hornady loads to average better groups than most other ammo. But there are always exceptions!

RE: School me on ammo
 

I reload and love 130grn Nos BT's in my 270 and 270WSM. If I were buying ammo though, I think Id start with the cheaper stuff then work my way up from there. Plenty of deer have been killed with a 270 before bonded--overpriced "Premium ammo" ever came out. If we are just talking Whitetails then the normal Rem Corlocks or Win PSP's do a fine job.

If you have the xtra bucks then maybe go for the expensive stuff but I just cant see dropping 30ish $ on each box just to see how they shoot. There's no way one can convince me you need a bonded or premium bullet to kill whitetail, thats just rediculous.

RE: School me on ammo
 

You'll have to test out a bunch. I think the Nosler Partitions are about the best all around hunting bullet but my buddy thinks they stink because he lost a deer with them. You'll get a different opinion from anyone you talk to.

These days I think the standard cheapo Winchester power point is just fine for deer. I had to buy a box in a pinch this year and it work flawlessly even with a terrible shot.

Tom

RE: School me on ammo
 

I can't count how many deer I've shot with a 270. Over the years I've used mainly handloads with 150 gr. speer bullets. Before the season I tried some remington 130 gr. core lokt factory loads. They hit at the same point of impact as my handloads. Also, the groups with the 130's were one ragged hole. You don't need premium bullets for deer, find a load that groups well and go to it.

RE: School me on ammo
 

I used the FederalPremium Vital-Shok and went by "the .270 was made for a 130 grain bullet" theory" and did well. My complaint was the bullets always passed through and the animal ran a good ways before going down.

I switched to the Winchester 140 gr. Supreme Fail Safe and most of the time I only had an entrance wound, and the animal either dropped or walked a few steps and fell dead.

Any of the quality hunting ammo is good. When I find something that works I will go buy as much as I can afford and find of the same lot number. Thus the later will be in my hunting rifles for several more years. MV out!

RE: School me on ammo
 

Sorry, I will be hunting deer. The reason I ask if I cannot afford to go and buya dozen differentboxes off ammo and spend $200 just to try and see what is the best. I figured if I had it narrowed down to a few different ones and then tried them out it would be alot easier on the wallet. You all have been very helpfull and I appreciate it. Sorry if I came off rude in the beginning of this post but like I said, I just seem to get very few replies when I need help. I do my best to help others when I can but I do not know everything. Actually very little as I never had no one to really show me much about hunting when I was a kid and learned on my own. Thanks again everyone for the help, this site has tought me alot over the past few months and I have actually now been able to give alot of advice to people I know from what I learned on here. (makes me look smart!)
Brandon

RE: School me on ammo
 

Well, I'm going to throw out just shooting the Rem Core Lokt. I had great performance in the 30'06 with that off the shelf for years. Now I have made hunting rifles, loads and optics unneccessarily complicated!

For the 130 or 150 grain load, it is $18.50 a box. That isn't too bad. The Federal Power Shot is only $12, but not sure if it is good enough.

Remember, with the 270, it is not fast enough to blow up any half way decent bullet up close and if you are only shooting Deer and maybe Elk out to 300 yards, anything much fancier maybe too much bullet as farr as performancee need goes. Now for animals that can eat you. . .We need to rethink this more!!!!!!!!!!!

RE: School me on ammo
 

I also love the .270 140 grain fail safe bullet.It makes me sad just thinking about how winchester abanded it.I think that someday they will find a way to cheapen the process of making it and come out with it again I hope.

RE: School me on ammo
 

Elk need a fancier bullet no matter what the range isthey are much tougher to topple then a deer and IME/HO tougher then a black bear and moose as well.

Also the 270 spits 130 grainers out of the muzzle at over 3000 fps so it can turn a bullet inside out on a close shot and is above the design envelope of some bullets. Granted hit a deer in the ribs up close, you'll probably get an exit and will for sure notch your tag but pull that shot to the front shoulder and you may be in for a touch more time chasing him down.

I personally think how you slim down your list of possible loads(to use a fly fishing term) is " "Match the Hatch". Basically do some research on various bullets onhow they are designed, intended use, etc and then make a list of those that match your hunting situation. Short list them by cost, availability, personal likes...whatever. While for just deer the list can be pretty long, I am sure you'll find ways to shorten it by digging a little below the surface.