270?
 

Gotta question for the 270 users.......First off this is not meant to offend anyone.

Do you guys have trouble with deer running after the shot?.... I know that a 50 to 100 yd run is no big deal, but i hunt with several people that use the 270 and almost always when they shoot it' s time to put your tennis shoes on cause they almost always run. Is it the bullet there using or what?

Most use 130gr bullets and have seen em shoot deer in the lung, heart. front shoulder ,and neck.......all of em' run!

Just courious if its just the bullet..........or all the deer they shoot just that darn tough. The others i hunt with very seldom if at all have deer run anywhere or die within sight?.................WHAT' S THE DEAL?

RE: 270?
 

It is VERY unusual for any deer to take a solid hit in the front shoulder or neck to run a long ways. I have never had a deer go more than 10 yards with a .270 Winchester.

Lung shots I can understand. A lung shot deer can cover a pretty good bit of ground before it dies.

It' s possible they are using bullets that fragment excessively and are not reaching the vitals, but that' s really a stretch on deer sized game with a cartridge in that power class.

I do have one friend I used to hunt with that used a 7mm RM and we always had to track each deer he shot. However, that is because he was a lousy shot and often gut shot them or clipped the lungs, shoulder, neck, or even hams.

RE: 270?
 

Sometimes even with the best of shots the will to live takes over and a deer will run. I have seen it with 270 Win, 7mm Rem Mag (used to be notorious for that) 30-30 Win, and I am sure it has happened with other cartridges. Often the bullet breaks up in the animal. I have witnessed this with CoreLokts out of a 270 and 7mm Mag. As a matter of fact I thought the 270 was worthless until I discovered Sierra GameKings. I really don' t think that deer run any more after a shot from a 270 than anything else.

RE: 270?
 

Maybe that' s the answer ........the CoreLokt i mean.....that' s what most of them are using.

Some reload though, not sure of Manf. but they are using 130gr boatails.



Not doubting the 270 i just think there using wrong bullet or something. It gets old walking 200 or so yds. through a 4yr old cutover only to find a deer shot in the vitals. Leaves ya wondering ya know. Every now and again you run into a deer that would take a 50.cal and run, but there' s is just too much.

Thx for the info.........

RE: 270?
 

I use a 130 gr Core-Lokt and I' ve had both ends of the spectrum:

a 100 lb doe ran 100 yards on me (double lung hit)

a 150 lb 9pt fell in his tracks (double lung hit)

No science at all to it. ;) Oh, btw, it' s great that I finally
<-----grew some horns. :D

RE: 270?
 

It' s been my experience that the .25-06, .257 Rob, .243 class of rifle is far better for deer than the .270, .30-06, 7mm mag class.....they' re just too much gun with too heavy constructed bullets.

RE: 270?
 

It' s not the bullet or the cartrige. It' s the deer!!;)

I shot a spike once wth a 30-06 through the right side base of the neck / shoulder and took his shoulder and half of the ribs on the exit side and he ran for about 600 yards all the while leaving a blood trail a blind man could have followed. I have also shot elk with my 270 that dropped within 5 steps. It really depends on the individual animal.

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RE: 270?
 

i couldn' t picture why i deer would run more than 50yds with both lungs taken out. i would think they would have no air left since every deer ( especially last years ) every time the deer took a step after shot. there was a ton of blood fromt he deer exhailing.

RE: 270?
 

My vote: it' s the bullet. Bullet perfomance IMO is the key to quick kills. Doesn' t matter if you' re shooting a .243 or a .300. You need a quality bullet.
I had problems a long time ago with the deer running after the shot (with my .280). I switched to handloads using Hornady spire point interlocks....problem solved. Occasionally I' ll get one that runs some distance, but 90% drop on the spot or within a few steps. I would suggest trying a different bullet. Most of the folks I know use either Hornady or Nosler and have great success. There are many choices of ammo with premium bullets available over the counter now. They tend to be more expensive, but IMO they are worth it. The .270 is a fine caliber, and once you find the right bullet to shoot our of it, you' ll be very happy. :)

RE: 270?
 

Agree with WV Hunter that bullet performance is one of the keys. Shot placement and the state of the animal when shot are also important.

RE: 270?
 

My vote is the animal. Very unpredictable. You could fill a railroad car with the deer shot with my 270win 7400. 90% have been hit broadsided less than 100 yards and out of that 60% with coreloks, 30% with gamekings, and 10% with nosler partitions and misc bullets. Some have hit the ground right where they stood. They were relaxed when shot and maybe off balance taking a step. Some took off running, even though I busted the heart. And made it 50 yards. I even seen one, I didn' t do this, but a freind make a bad shot and ripped the lower adomen open and the guts fell out and when we found it 80 yards away, gut job was almost complete. Pretty wild. Point is when people say they drop where they stand, I see they only shoot 1 or 2 deer a year. And probably with only a gun. You really can' t predict what these animals are going to do. They are fascinating at thier will to live. If someone thinks that there is a magic bullet out there that won' t make them run. Then they probably believe in the magic bullet theory with the Warren Commitee too.

RE: 270?
 

I' m going to agree that it' s the bullets, I do extensive testing on all bullets, factory or otherwise, before I load them during a hunt, and the core-lokts are crap, good for coyote, but to volitile for deer. I was going to blame it on poor shot placement, but you claimed that they were good shots, if they were, then it has to be the bullet performance. If you' ve noticed this on a regular basis with these guys, it can' t just be the deer, yes, if it was only one guy' s deer and it ran a long ways, I would attribute it to the deer, but since EVERY one you' ve seen shot with a .270 runs a long ways, then it can' t be the individual animal EVERY TIME. Have those guys try on a new pair of shoes, core-locts are crap, at ranges over 150yrds, if you can get them on the page, the bullets are slowed down enough that they don' t shatter, but at close ranges, in a 270win they' re still over 2750fps, they just blow up.

RE: 270?
 

I' ve noticed this situation with, terminal ballistics being the answer. That is how the bullets performs upon impact. I' ve seen two different outcomes, bullets that poke holes thru deer and bullets that expand.

Nosler Partion get excellent results, next to no tracking. But, I had some cheaper tips loaded for target practice that I watched deer take off after being shot. I couldn' t believe what I saw, deer being hit hard and going a distance. Upon inspection they had a small hole in and out.

You get what you pay for, performance is the goal. Terminal ballistics is the reason.

Deer do act amazing when fired up on adrenaline, as well. So both can answer the question. Different deer and bullet composition adds up.

RE: 270?
 

I have to disagree with some of you. Although there are many bullets that are better than core-lokts, the fact that the core lokt bullets take more game every year than all other bullets combined must mean something. I have never had a deer go more than 25 yards with my .270 with 130 grain core-lokts. But I had some deer go 100 yards with a 30-30 with core lokts, and some fall imediately.

RE: 270?
 

I have killed a couple of deer with my .270, using 130 gr. core lokts. Some were perfect double lung hits, some were a little higher than what I wanted, but they all died quickly. The furthest a deer ran with a " perfect" shot was less than 50 yards. The shots that ended up a little higher than the lungs made the deer drop in their tracks. I think core lokts work great, I also think the .270 works even better. I just think deer react differently to being shot.

RE: 270?
 

Sure it means something. It means some people are too cheap to buy good bullets. I have yet to see a CoreLokt hold together out of a 270, 7mm, or a 243. I have seen them all nice and mushroomed out of a 30-30 but let' s face it, I can throw a brick about as fast as a 30-30 can launch a bullet.

Amen to that.

RE: 270?
 

What i' m saying is two people i hunt with on a regular basis, they shoot well, all the deer were hit in the kill zone (heart/lung) and i promise you they ran.......In 5 yrs only two dropped dead. One was a head shot the other in the spine, the rest ran like they weren' t even touched according to my two friends. I understand alot of factors determine whether they drop or run but , I mean every deer they shot..........I' m going with the bullet now that i hear other stories about the Core-lockt. ......They never switched bullets they completely changed calibers.One now shoots a 25-06 the other a 7mm.



I shot a deer last year with my 30-06,.........200yd shot through the lungs,165gr boatail. It knocked him down, he got up and ran almost 300yds! I found blood really good for about 40yds, then a big pile where he apparently laid down. In that pile a piece of lung the size of a fifty cent piece! Then not another drop of blood. I had three different people look ...........NOTHING...Finally three days later with the help of some buzzards we found him!.....So i know some just have a very strong will to live , but everyone ya shoot running 100yds or more after being shot through the heart or lungs is piteful.

P.S. By the way i have never had a deer other than that one run that far with my 30-06 and it always knocks em' down, most of the time they never get up.

RE: 270?
 

Years ago some guy did some raw research in Kentucky. He interviewed over 1000 hunters at " check in" stations and asked them questions about their kill. The questions had to do with how many times they shot/hit the deer, what ranges, what caliber, what bullet weight, wish I could remember all the statistics collected.

This guy did a lot of footwork collecting raw data. He was successful in getting his data published in a national hunting magazine. (keep in mind now....this is Kentucky and not Wyoming!!)

Overwhelmingly the calibers that was the most successful was the big bores.....and these come to mind: 12 GA Slug, .44 magnum....then the most popular guns that rated high: all 30 Cals with bullets over 150 grain.....sorry I cant remember a lot of data but the calibers that wasn' t well liked in this study was : .357 Magnum and (yes) the .270

Wish I could find the article to give more data. Wish I could find the same data from a state like Wyoming. I think the results would be a lot different. I remember that my impression was that range is critical to performance. (DUH!!!)

RE: 270?
 

I have been hunting with a Win 270 in a Browning A Bolt the last six years and the only cartridge I ever used was a Remington 140 grain BST. The farthest I had a deer run after he was hit was about fifty yards and that was blowing out both lungs. I have been very happy with the performance of these bullets. This year I just bought a 270WSM and hope for more of the same results with the Winchester BSTs.

RE: 270?
 

Well, vapordog, from a native Kentuckian, I believe that. Those guys, all my family has magnutitus bad. They are the most competitive people you will ever meet. If the neighbor gets a F250, you can bet the other neighbor will have a F350 with a deisel next week. They are my people. And I love them to death. But they constantly worry about what the guy next to them is using. Drives me nuts. When at my families for Thanksgiving, some guy was saying he don' t go hunting unless its with a 7mmRUM or bigger. I laughed. But I don' t care, his gun, not mine. Just thought it was comical, since his brother said he missed two deer a week before.

RE: 270?
 

Remington,
I have shot lots of deer with these calibers 243 25-06 270 280 7mm 300 win.
I have used a variety of bullets, never had a well hit in the heart lung area go more than 50 yards. I have shot does, spikes, and big four points over 250 lbs.
The faster a bullet expands, generally the faster the deer drops.
Ballistic tips drop them like a hammer but lots of tissue damage.
Nosler partitions drop them like a hammer as well with less tissue damage.
x bullets they will normally go a little ways.
Of the calibers and bullets mentioned above, the most consistent drop them in their tracks load for me has been the 280 with 150gr Nosler Partitions. Never had a well hit deer take more than two steps after being hit with this combination.

RE: 270?
 

" It gets old walking 200 or so yds. through a 4yr old cutover only to find a deer shot in the vitals"

200 yards is mentioned like it is a long distance for a deer to run. Just how long does it take for a deer to run 200 yds (not very long even in an old cutover)

I had a buck hit with a .222 in the chest that trotted about 25 yds, while a buddy hit a buck in the chest with a 12gauge slug that walked 75 yds as if nothing happened. His buck was so worked up rutting that his hormones were more important than blood or oxygen (for a minute anyhow).

Let' s see you all put your body where your mouth is. Anyone who doesn' t think that the .270 is adequate can go hold my targets at the range. I' ll even use core-lokt. Now all you 150-250lb people keep telling me the round won' t work on a 200lb deer.

RE: 270?
 

What it means, I' m afraid, is that on average hunters are very penny pinching, just get by, short cutting individuals that cannot or chose not to match the " tools of the trade" to the task at hand. Typical.

Never Go Undergunned,
EKM

RE: 270?
 

Or maybe it means, that its good enough to get the job done. And anyone else, unfortunatly including myself, are anal retentive people that like to " pick pepper out of ant $hit" , and over analyze everything when it comes to their passion on hunting.

I admit, I am guilty of this. I was thinking of the all the animals I have killed with Coreloks when I was 12 up to I was 24, and all the animals I have killed since getting into this crazieness of quality bullets in the last decade. Can' t see any difference. I recover the animals either way. Never really see this huge difference in the way they fall. I learned a good lesson last year moose hunting.

I worked for months finding just the right bullet. Picked a 200gr Swift A-Frame and paid a fortune for those things. Got just the velocity and accuracy I needed for my 300RUM. Then I took a bad fall in the morning last day of the hunt. A few hours later shot at a decent bull last day of the hunt, and the gun was way off do to the fall I believe. Upset, and bothered, I went back to camp, and borrowed the cooks 30-06. Went out and got myself a cow next morning. With a stupid corelok. Didn' t penetrate all the way thru. Didn' t make a huge bunch of damage, but stayed to together for the most part. And she fell.
Life lesson learned. Before that, I would have been definately on the side of the proper bullet argument.

RE: 270?
 

I' ve lost a deer or two with my 270. Then I' ve shot some out about 200 yards and they dropped right there.Yes I have and do in some rifles use CoreLokts and have had good luck with them. Last year I shot a nice little buck using a 7mm Rem Mag using 150 gr CoreLokts.The bullet mushroomed well and held most of it' s weight.At the angle he was standing I caught his Left Shoulder and the bullet traveled all the way through him stopping by the right ham.I agree that it depends on the animal.I' ve shot a few deer that made jelly out of the lungs.Lung matter everywhere.They still managed to run 50-75 yards before dropping.In my 270' s I use 150 gr bullets.I bought some 130 gr and haven' t tried them out.
Ruger Redhawk

RE: 270?
 

I' ll tell you that I can afford more expensive bullets, but don' t need to waste the money when the Core-Lokt does the job in my hunting experiences. If you can throw a brick as fast as a 30-30 then maybe you should try a new method of hunting.

RE: 270?
 

The point is CoreLokts tend not to hold up at higher velocities but seem to be ok in the slower chamberings such as the 30-30. No need to get your panties in a knot about it.

RE: 270?
 

As great a cartrige the .270 is there is more controvery surrounding it that any other cartrige I have ever read anything about.

Sometimes the animals will run and sometimes they will drop like a stone. You just never know. I shot a buck once witha 50 cal. muzzleloader with Hornady XTP' s through the ribs and he just hunched up a little and kept walking and gave me enough time to reload and put another shot in him and then he droped right there. You never know how animal will react to a bullet hitting them.

RE: 270?
 

Having used a 270 on all types of game (deer, moose, elk and lopers) I have never had a problem dropping the animal and finding him. Most piling up in short order, some went further and in those cases it was the shooter not the bullet or gun. I however am a strong advocate of using premium bullets and the right bullet for the job. For deer and antelope I used 130 NBT' s, yes they are explosive but I had no reason to switch as they preformed exactly how I wanted them to or 130 Gr Seirra Boattails. For bigger tougher hide animals I used 140 grain Failsafes and Nosler parts., I also limited my shots to good shot angles and less than 200 yards. Never once did I pull the trigger and not find the animal in which I had hit. I practice shooting regularly and keep to the limits in which i have set for myself no matter what the situation was.

I would say your results are most likely the bullet choice and possibly the shot site or angle. Last fall my buddy using a 3006 had a doe travel 200 yards to what appeared to be a text book shot in the lungs, it had a poor specky blood trail and upon gutting the animal the rt lung was hit and the liver(BTW he was using corelokts). On the same hunt another party member shooting a 3006 with run of the mill 150 gr winchester bullets, hit his buck square in the lungs he travelled 150 yards or so. In this case the bullet exploded taking out both lungs but leaving no exit hole. As a result his deer travelled further and the blood trail wasn' t that great. Ok one more another buddy dropped a large buck using a 7 rem mag and 150 NBT' s, he punched through the lungs which put the spins on the big buck immmediately. Trashed the lungs completely and left an exit hole fist sized. You could say all three cases were explosive type bullets but the one that yielded the best results was a premium bullet.

If you want to use a certain type bullet that is fine, but I find it hard to put any merit in an arguement that it was because it came from a certain cartridge. Here is something to think about: as much as we spend each year on hunting is it really worth it to skimp when it comes to one of the most important factor in the hunting/harvesting process? I hardly think that is the place to be saying I can' t afford to shoot that b/c it cost me 50 cents more a shot....common[:o] If you do then please don' t blame the inadequatecies on the gun in which you used. More often than not it is a result of the shooter or bullet and in many cases both these factors can be thrown in the mix. You' ll notice I never included gun or scope, b/c I believe we should all know how this gear functions at the intended range we will be hunting...so range time is a very important part of hunting and success.

I hope your buddies have better success and maybe you can suggest them trying a premium bullet that is up to the task they ask of it:)

RE: 270?
 

I think i will put my .02 cents worth here. i used to hunt only with a 270 , i still hunt with it but have other guns that need love also, and will say it is a whitetail killing round.
but i shot core lokts when i first got it cause i didnt reload . the only time it torked me was a buck ran into a thick young pine plantation and i had to drag the sucker out about 6o yards.
now i shoot the cheapest bullet around . the speer hot cor in 130 gr. why ? cause it groups outstanding in the gun and i have had great luck with it. never has a deer ran over 20 yards and most hit the ground !
i know it' s not the most expensive bullet but i have had great luck with it. now i will add i like neck shots and almost always take them. but thats a testiment to how the bullet groups and how i shoot it.
is the core lokt a bad bullet? i say no.

several have mentioned each deer is different and this is true. a deer has a drive to live and can run when it seems impossible to have ran.
example i shot a good buck with a 7mmstw the thing ran about a 75 yards . it had a hole in it' s chest the size of a grapefruit. you could see the lungs or what was left of them. he had a drive to live!

The 270 though is great caliber and i as long as i am alive will hunt with one.

I think that was a nickels worth?:)

RE: 270?
 

Thx to everyone for the help with my question...................!

RE: 270?
 

When I hunted with my 270, I don' t recall a deer making it out of sight.

I used hot handloads with 130 gr Hornady, worked excellent.

I used 140 gr Ballistic tips, oh my lord like the hammer of Thor!

If you don' t reload, my favorite was the Federal Classic series 130 gr, I think they used Sierra bullets. Excellent results.

I have never had any problems with Corelokts though.

You say bullets in the vitals, but where in the vitals? I believe, (no scientist) that if you hit them high in the chest, it takes them longer to go down. Same with too far back.

I try (stress try) to hit them in the little " pocket" right above the elbow and tight behind the shoulder when I can. This usually wrecks major plumbing as well as lungs and they don' t go far.

Just my $.02

KC