270 win 130gr vs 140gr vs 150gr

[marksman1941]

To pile on here…

Energy is a handy metric but by itself doesn't mean anything when the bullet construction is not taken into account. A soft frangible bullet with 4,000 ftlbs of energy won't get you the result you want, and increasing energy still won't get you there.

Bullets have an operational window for optimal terminal performance. Some can open up low (like the nosler LRAB or the Barnes LRX) but will splash if impacting at too high of velocity. Some bullets are tougher (any of the bonded, like Scirocco II, trophy bond, woodleigh, etc) and will hold together at any attainable velocity but won't open as low as others.

A bullet with a terminal window of 1800-3000 fps that impacts at 3200 (like most ballistic tips) will grenade and cause more meat damage and less internal damage because the penetration wasn't there. So energy, and more of it, isn't always the answer. Energy is simply mass times velocity squared, and is a handy way to compare loads and get a baseline.

I've found it to be much more beneficial to ignore energy and look at
1) what is my self imposed range limitation
2) what velocity will each load be going between the muzzle and the outer limit of my range limitation
3) what bullets have published terminal windows that fall into those velocity ranges.

The bullet weight is inconsequential by itself; the bullet construction and velocity matter more. So look at each bullet you're interested in, regardless of weight, and see if it falls within operational parameters given your expected velocity and your range limits.

 

[emp1953]

130s are great for 300 yards and in. Past 400 they really start to lose steam

According to the Hornady ballistic calculator the 130gr with a BC of .416 and M/V of 3000fps shows slightly over 1800fps at 600yds. Kinda Low on energy but should still do the job. It will certainly be more subject to wind deflection than the heavier, longer and better BC 150gr. I always try to shoot heavy for caliber bullets anyway. 165gr in my 30-06, 140gr in my 6.5CM and 150gr in my .270win. My .270 shoots bug holes at 100yds with the 130gr partitions and 51gr h4350 chronied at 2884fps To my amazement the 150gr shoots bug holes as well using 51.1gr h4350.

 

[Netz]

What is your guys opinion on the 270 and what grain too use im always back and forth 130gr is most available but least ft/lbs of energy at longer ranges. What are you guys getting for ft/lbs of energy at long ranges between the 3? Also ive been always toying with the idea of a 270 wsm but factory ammunition is very slim too find. Than

What is your guys opinion on the 270 and what grain too use im always back and forth 130gr is most available but least ft/lbs of energy at longer ranges. What are you guys getting for ft/lbs of energy at long ranges between the 3? Also ive been always toying with the idea of a 270 wsm but factory ammunition is very slim too find. Thanks.

I've had excellent results with my .270 Win shooting 130 Berger Hybrid bullets at an average 3027 fps (cold bore is 2976 fps). My longest one-shot kill has been 547 yards. I've never worried about ft/lbs of energy when hunting, preferring to focus on shot placement.

 

[skipglo]

270 WSM...150gr. was my choice... perfect little gun
..

 

[emp1953]

Amazing to me is that virtually every load I've put through my 270win shoots 1.5" groups and less at 200yds. Its a Sig 970SHR. My buddy handed me 20 rounds of competition rounds he made up for shooting 800yd steel chickens, nosler 140gr competition and that load shot a bug hole at 200yds. Too bad the bullets are no good on game. Must be a 1 in a 10,000 rifle I guess, but it is a bit heavy.

 

[Idaho Lefty]

For the .270 WSM, the 140 gr. Classic Hunt. Bergers or, 145 gr ELD-X's ARE about, Perfect,.. IMO
The Best BC's vs GOOD Velocity, in the 10 twist,.. .270's !
I Have First Hand Knowledge of, the Penetration and Killing Power of, the 140 grain, Classic Hunt's Bergers, on Elk and Antelope.
The 140 gr. Bullets, HAVE PASSED completely Thru, Both Shoulder Blades, Hides, a Ton of, Meat and the Upper Organs,.. Jello !
DRT with, NO, Movement except, DOWN with, Upper Shoulder ( Just Below Spine ),. Shots, on All animals !
My grandsons Antelope Kill, last Friday with, my Old .270 WSM, proves "What" I've seen,.. on Elk !
Pass Thru's and,. DRT !

 

[cvixx]

I want to thank everyone here for the info. I will stay out of the energy discussion, though. I hit 80 in a few months and have found that anything that I own that has MAGNUM in its name is a bit too rough for my shoulder, but the .270 is still usable. Wanted to post pics of my favorite.270. Made by Pederson in the 50s on a 03 action. Accurate as I am, mounts a Simmons Whitetail Expedition. Yeah I know, cheap glass but it works, least for me.

 

[Taj]

Animals are killed by turning off the brain, either via blood loss or physical destruction of the brain itself (or by destroying the circulatory system's ability to support the heart through nerve damage). Arrows cause this by blood loss. Bullets do so too, but by either tissue destruction through direct physical contact (as with arrows), or by tissue destruction through the explosive effects of kinetic energy. If you've ever seen the results of a 150gr Corelokt in the form of a whitetail buck's shredded lungs, you understand. Yes, the buck might have made it 40 yards, spewing blood all the way. The moment that bullet hit and the lungs were destroyed, only the residual oxygen in the blood kept it alive.

In order to be effective with kinetic energy, the bullet must fravel through tissue that has less elastic strength than what would contain the energy of the bullet. For example, when you explode a prairie dog with a varmint bullet, the kinetic energy is greater than what the carcass can contain. With a deer, the lungs and liver are fragile and will be structurally destroyed with an expanding high power rifle bullet's kinetic energy... the temporary cavity, if large enough, stretches the tissues until they either fail or rebound.

So, bullets have to destroy enough tissue to cause sufficient blood loss, either by the damage caused from the cavitation of a tempory cavity or from the tissue damage caused by damage from the bullet's passage. And, the lungs of even the largest critters are very fragile and inelastic. A bullet, or an arrow, in the right place doesn't need a lot of energy.

Brother, you are pretty much right on. I shoot gelatin and teach wound ballistics for a living and many folks get enamored by energy figures when that is probably the least important mechanism in the terminal ballistics equation. High velocity (rifle velocity) energy transfer can definitely play a part in the equation due to temporary cavitation. At high velocity the TC can exceed the ability for tissue to stretch and that can cause additional hemorrhaging. Ultimately, however, it is the blood loss or destruction of vital central nervous system structures that put them down. All you have to do is watch a video of a cape buff get hit by something like a .416, .505, etc. Many times they barely flinch.

 

[Idaho Lefty]

IF, you have, Shoulder / Recoil "issues", I'd stay with, the 130's But, keep the Range,.. "Reasonable" !
I shoot, the 130 gr. ELD-M's, in my 24", BRAKED,. 6.5 Creedmoor Rifle at, 2,800 FPS and it's,. QUITE,. Pleasant / Fun to shoot and,..
VERY, Accurate.

 

[emp1953]

I want to thank everyone here for the info. I will stay out of the energy discussion, though. I hit 80 in a few months and have found that anything that I own that has MAGNUM in its name is a bit too rough for my shoulder, but the .270 is still usable. Wanted to post pics of my favorite.270. Made by Pederson in the 50s on a 03 action. Accurate as I am, mounts a Simmons Whitetail Expedition. Yeah I know, cheap glass but it works, least for me.View attachment 610872View attachment 610873View attachment 610874

That is a pretty rifle.

 

[Crockett12]

If you're going to use heavy, longer bullets, you need to know they'll lose stability at longer range if your twist rate isn't fast enough -- unless you have enough velocity because higher velocity helps overcome a twist rate that's too slow! When you lose stability your MOA will suffer as well as how the bullet performs on the game animal. This is why the 6.8 Western was introduced with a faster twist. The 270 Winchester and 270 WSM both use the 1:10″ twist that's good for bullets in the 130gr-150gr weight range while the 6.8 Western uses 1:8″ twist rate that's better for the longer bullets up to 165gr and 175gr that retain velocity and energy better at longer ranges!

 

[choprzrul]

As much as I like the 270 wsm it really doesn't do much over the old 270win. More money for ammo and components and will only get maybe 3 loading out of brass if pushed hard before primer pockets open up. The old 270 win isn't much further behind the 7 rem mag.
If you're wanting a light recoiling rifle with enough poop to put down elk at 500 yards the old 270 with 140-150 gr bullet would be pretty hard to argue with considering it's been doing it since the 1920's

Nosler load data shows a 236 fps advantage for the WSM using 130gr bullets. Not earth shattering, but certainly nice to have that extra velocity IMHO.

A 130gr Accubond, using the above, would have 1533 ft lbs of energy at 500 yards in the WSM vs an even 1300 ft lbs with the 270 Winchester.

 

[Rotten]

That's about my experience with the wsm is around 200 to 300 fps faster than the 270 win.
It is more but not earth shattering that the gun writer's would leave you to believe when it first came out.
My favorite load for the old 270 win is 60.0 grains of H 4831sc with either 130 gr accubonds or the ttsx both going around 3100 fps +- 15
In the 270 wsm it was a 140 gr
Interlock with either 68 or 73 grains of magpro depending on how fast I wanted to push it. Never had a bullet not pass thru a elk or deer and if it wasn't passed 200 yrs and hit in the shoulder you could forget about getting any meat of the front shoulders and some of the neck.

 

[choprzrul]

I want to thank everyone here for the info. I will stay out of the energy discussion, though. I hit 80 in a few months and have found that anything that I own that has MAGNUM in its name is a bit too rough for my shoulder, but the .270 is still usable. Wanted to post pics of my favorite.270. Made by Pederson in the 50s on a 03 action. Accurate as I am, mounts a Simmons Whitetail Expedition. Yeah I know, cheap glass but it works, least for me.View attachment 610872View attachment 610873View attachment 610874

If recoil is an issue, take a look at the 116gr Absolute Hammer. Light, fast Hammers hit WAY above their weight and the lighter bullet will be easier on your shoulder. Looking at their load data, it appears the 270 Winchester can easily hit 3450 fps using H4350. That leaves 2173 fps and 1216 ft lbs at 500 yards.