James B

The 303 British has probable killed more game world wide than any other cartridge maybe rivaled only by the 30-06 and 7x57 mauser. It is however certainly not in the class with the 270. I have a couple 303 rifles. One made by Long Branch in Canada. The other made in America by Eddystone. The latter has a stronger action or at least the brass will last three or four times as many reloadings as the ones fired in the Bristh. They certainly are a very adequate deer cartridge. BUT IT AIN'T A 270.

eldeguello

The .303 British is a good deer round! It is also good for moose, elk, etc. Actually, any game that you can kill with a .30/40 Krag, .308 Winchester, or .30/'06 can be killed just as effectively with a .303.

However, anyone who tells you that a .270 Win. is "too small for deer" is so grossly ignorant and uninfomed as to be not worth listening to! The .270 Win. is excellent, with the right bullet, for all North American game except the very largest of coastal Alaskan brown bears! Despite the good qualities of the .303 British (as a CARTRIDGE) the .270 is a lot better!!

GATurkHunter

No question the guy in town doesnt have a clue as a 270 is a great deer round.
But like Plainsman I have a 1944 No.4 Mk1 and love it. It drops deer every year without a problem. I will say its not a long range cartridge though but where I hunt shots are typically 150 yards or less and the .303 does a fine job.
As for accuracy I'll shoot against anybody with anything modern with open or peep sights and 9 times out of 10 I walk away with their lunch money.

m2fin

Both will fit the requirement. Agree 100% the .303 is a proven all around take it down round, not a pretty firearm. No need to be concerned about dragging it thru the woods or getting 'use marks'. The .270 shoots flat and has excellent ballistics with moderate bullet weight.

I used a 30.06 for many years (model 70 win.), recently started shooting a .243 Ruger m77 (used purchase I might ad) that is consistent shooting 1" groups at 100 meters.

Never considered a .303 until a buddy told be the story of his Dad dropping a moose with a surplus one while guiding a group using 'latest and greatest magnum rifles' that could not hit it standing broadside. I would get a .303 carbine if I could find a good one!

As always, user choice............

TREEDOG

My friend shoots a 303 british and recoil is light shooting 180grainers. However my 270 wsm kicks easy also and will cleanly take any game I would be hunting. I wouldnt grab a 303 over a 270 anyday, theres also more factory loading for the 270 winchester than for the 303 brit so ur more likely to find a load your rifle shoots well. (if your considering a 270). If i got a .30 cal it would be the 30-06, cheap to shoot and tons of loads.

seadog

Took my moose and my deer this year using a 1942 Longbranch. Never knew they were that popular in the US.

eldeguello

Seadog, back in the '50's and 60's, tons of SMLE's of various configurations were sold here. The dealers who sold them bought them from Britain at scrap-irons prices, like so many cents per pound, then sold them here for a couple hundred times what they'd paid for 'em. A lot of them were in good condition, and I found that some were very accurate, including some of the No. 5's!

I had a beat-up, totally in-the-white No. 4 Longbranch that I carried in the trunk of my car the whole 3 years I was stationed in Fairbanks, AK. With Rem 180-grain factory ammo it made a good moose getter! Economical, too! I paid a guy $5.00 for it when he was leaving the area.

Rick Teal

There is no way that a .270 could ever be considered to be inadequate for whitetailed deer. If you have one, its more than able to do the job.

That being said, the most effective and devastating round I've ever used for eastern whitetails is the .303 British. I started hunting with a No 1 Mk III SMLE, using 180 grain CPE bullets (no longer made), and had bang/flop performance on my first 4 deer and my first moose. This may have been as much to the credit of the bullet as the cartridge, but I've spent much of my life trying to get a cartridge/bullet/load combination to equal its performance.

Admittedly, many of the old guns themselves leave something to be desired, but I've recently acquired a Winchester 1895 and a Globco 555 in .303 that I hope to give a try in one of the upcoming seasons.

8mm/06

.303 British will definitely handle deer. It is not a .270 but will do the job nicley. And the guy that told you a .270 is not enough for deer.......I'm not sure I'd trust anything he'd tell me......

pharaoh2

Now my two cents, (Which are actually worth about 0.0075 cents U.S.), my best friend will not use anything but a .303. He has owned a .300, and still has a .243 for varmints. But he loves that old clunker. We swaped on a synthetic RamLine stock, mounted a nice 3-9X scope, and it will clover leaf three shots at a hundred yards! His rifle weighs in less than my sweety, a .338. But, one of my all time favorite cartridges is the .270, it holds a sweet spot in my heart. The last one I've owned was a FN that was a pig to carry, but the old friend I bought it off of used it on everything from Coyotes to Grizzly and everything in between. It will, as the .303, kill anything that walks crawls or swims. For deer, either one would work great if you keep it within range of your rifle. Bear in mind, most guns will shoot fairly accuratly out to stupid range, but your bullets are specilized tools. By this I mean the .303 is a lower velocity, limited range rifle in classifacation. .311 & .312 dia. bullets are designed to expand at certain velocities. While you may hit your target at 400 yards your bullets may or may not expand properly, thus not assuring a clean kill. People do it, but I wouldn't advise it. As for my choice in guns, I feel that a fellow should shoot as big a gun as he (or she) can comfortably handle. I hunt in the rockies, and bears are the wild card there. Thats why I use a .338. I just feel more comfortable carrying a little extra insurance. I hope this helps a little.