This round is affordable which is an important consideration when you plan burning through quite a few out on the range. By the time the rounds reach the 300 yard mark, there is only 4lb/ft.s of momentum difference between the rounds of the different cartridges. 11 Answers. If you know the hunting you want to take part in, this article will make your decision easier. .308 Win. For several years, the .270 did not have a significant following of users. This is especially true for the .308 vs .270. With 26 inches of difference at the 700 yard mark and 54 inches of difference at a 1,000 yards, the .270 has the advantage in trajectory. With a leap in bullet technology, the .270 is much better suited for taking larger game such as elk. If you really want lazer-like trajectory that completely outperforms the 308, but with similar recoil, there are better options than the 260 Rem. Sully2 said: Overshadow is where one cartridge kills like lightening and the other is noted to … For more experienced hunters, most hunting cartridges, including the .270 and .308, the recoil is going to be manageable. While the .30-06 was meant for rifles with a long action, the .308 was meant for short action rifles. “We are not abdicating for one or the other…” These two cartridges are the .308 and .270. The more pronounced this bullet drop, the more difficult it is to make adjustments to shot placement. Anything within that yard mark is no issue. The .270 came from the .30-03 which saw very brief use in the United States in the early 1900’s. i’ve used the 7.62×51 during 2 tours in NAM 1969-1970 great caliber and have been using the same deer hunting for 47 years with great success all things aside the 308 has not let me down regardless weather a big game animal or viet cong you don’t have the right to ask a question as to why anyone would want a 308 it’s a great killing bullet in the right hands, I totally agree all I have ever used was a 270 caliber rifle!! At this distance, the average drop of the .270 rounds is 11.6 inches while the average drop of the .308 rounds is 14.68 inches. While we might give the edge to some of the .270 rounds for velocity, especially muzzle velocity, we will see that this similarity doesn’t always translate to other ballistic characteristics and we will look at those stats and discuss the reasoning in the next several sections. Best 22 Pistols: Top 5 Handguns For The Range, https://press.hornady.com/assets/pcthumbs/tmp/1410994454-2017-Standard-Ballistics-Chart.pdf, Remington Core-Lokt (Available in 150 and 180 grain), Winchester Super-X Power Point ( Available in 150 and 180 grain), Nosler Ballistic Tip (Available in 125 and 165 grain), Black Hills (Available in 168 and 175 grain), Federal Premium (Available in 168 and 175 grain), Remington Core-Lokt (Available in 130 and 150 grain), Winchester Super-X Power Point ( Available in 130 and 150 grain), Federal Premium (Available in 130 and 140 grain). More like the .308 Win rounds are losing ground. In our eyes, both of these cartridges would be more than effective at 300 yards. Two of the most well-known cartridges go head-to-head in this detailed article. If you can, it will drop game, but for all but the best marksman, you are more than likely only going to wound the animal and never find it. Contact Us. NTX® 83176 2050 1450 1070 —145 72 39 -1 5 0 -156 There is a little overlap between the two cartridges here, and the averages of the both show a difference of one inch. Both of these calibers are going to have the stopping power to bring down just about any game you are hunting in North America besides maybe larger bears. This is a common question many hunters have, especially when considering a hunting rifle for younger hunters. We are going to mention a lot of numbers in this section. With a 35˚ shoulder, and a 2.100″ case—the same as the .308 Winchester—the .270 WSM performs as advertised, giving a 200-250 fps advantage over its older sibling. Both of these cartridges are pretty popular in the United States. Though we will look at each of these categories separate from the other, in reality, all of them influence and play off of one another. When we look at these numbers, we are addressing how well a bullet is able to stay in motion when faced with resistance. 02-28-2018, 12:44 AM. Hunters are very loyal to their particular cartridge. The theories and physics behind the ballistic coefficient can get a little out there, so we are going to simplify it in this article. Relevance. There are several .308 Win rounds that break the 1000 yard mark, but much less often when compared to the .270 Win. Overall, the heavier bullet weights of the .308 rounds are what give the .308 cartridge a slightly higher average when it comes to the sectional density. That paired with bullet energy greater than 1,500ft.lbs at 400 yards give this round excellent stopping power. Some might consider the .270 130 grain a bit too light for elk or moose, especially if you are taking shots over 400 yards. You might have a little better selection of .270 rounds when searching around a retail store than the .308, but generally, you are not going to have an issue finding these rounds and finding various types of ammunition for each. Finally, we will compare the energy (Feet/Pound) of the bullets at several yard intervals. Unfortunately, we are limited in our available space and decided to cut the samples off at ten. For the .308 Win, we like the Nosler Ballistic Tip 165gr. Measurements were taken out to the 300-yard mark (Graph 6). We could honestly take any two calibers common to hunting and find hunters who will debate which of the two are the best cartridge until the day they die with neither party being swayed. The big reason why the .308 is not favored in long-range shooting is the heaviness of the bullets and the trajectory. It’s a new world out there. Legal Disclaimer. A .260 shooting a 140grn bullet with a .520 bc @ 2600 fps witha 200 yard 0 in a 10mph wind. This, then, extends the 270's MPBR and increases its long range drop advantage even more, as this next ballistics table shows.270 Winchester with 268-Yard Zero Here, then, is a real apples-to-apples ballistic comparison. In ballistics catalogs the point of maximum bullet rise is often called the mid-range trajectory, or sometimes the maximum ordinate. Stand by your gun and enjoy being in wilderness more than what kind of animal you bring back home. The short-range trajectory is always important to look at. September 04, 2019 By Brad Fitzpatrick. We see the .308 Win rounds carrying on average more momentum than the .270 but as they move downrange, we see the the .270 Win rounds gaining ground. recoil accuracy range Tags: None. From our research, the general trend of .270 rounds having higher ballistic coefficients on average holds up. You will need to hand load for real performance. We see that the averages of the two cartridges is still pretty close with less than 3ft.lb of force difference between the two. Even with these various variables, we have kept everything as constant as possible, and the trends that we see should hold up. Bullet momentum is another factor that goes into stopping power and is always involved in the arguments for the best indicator for stopping power. And while we don’t think ballistics can rectify user error, we do think that certain ballistic characteristics can help you be more accurate on a consistent basis. Complete .270 Winchester ammunition ballistics Chart. When going after bigger game with shots within 250 yards, the .308 is a fantastic choice. These numbers do corroborate the trends we saw in our graph. Another cartridge that comes from this parent case is the .30-06 which are very similar to the .270. This is just our opinion, and it doesn’t mean that we think our picks are the only option out there to take care of your business. Let’s see if the higher muzzle velocities of the .270 Win rounds holds up when we add more rounds to the group. Our tope range round for the .270 is the 130gr Winchester SST Superperformance. Besides, with that adrenaline pumping, you’re not going to feel it anyway. If we look at individual rounds, there are several .270 rounds that show two to three inches less bullet drop than some of the .308 rounds. Both have rounds with high enough BCs for some long-range action. There are smaller weights that are available for small game. With both cartridges excelling slightly at different categories, we don’t think there is really much of a difference in how well the two will penetrate from the standpoint of these numbers. Must see data comparison! It is more clear at this range where the rounds for each cartridge begin to group. Latest. vs. .300 Win. If it works out, it'll be 123gr at near 2900 fps MEL We will also take a look at other categories such as recoil, accuracy, and availability of the ammunition. TrekWarrior.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Testing rounds on ballistic gels are one method of testing the penetration between two cartridges though how well a gel simulates a bull elk is up for debate. It was deployed extensively in World War II and the Korean War. They can both take medium sized game at 500 yards without an issue in regards to energy. Thus, it feeds better in semi-auto rifles and machine guns. First, we will take a look at the bullet drop rates for each caliber that have been zeroed in at 100 yards and then at 250 yards to get some short and long-range trajectory information. While the .270 rounds might have a slightly higher BC on average than the .308, it seems to depend on the individual round. Of course, these are just averages and there are definitely .308 rounds that perform above the average. When comparing the .243 vs the .270, we are looking at two well-known and popular rounds that overlap in their shooting applications. Where calculations are made, we will be sure to make clear our variables. The length measurement fluctuates based on bullet’s design. They are hunting rifles of course. And if you go back and look at the differences in bullet drop at long ranges you will see that there are .308 rounds that are more than capable of 400 and 500-yard shots. These diameters play a role in the weight of the bullets that are used by the two cartridges and in other performance specs that we will look at later in the article. When we come to these situations we will make clear what is going on and the variables that we used. Guns and Shooting Online has compiled an extensive table comparing the recoil of many rifle cartridges and bullet weights in rifles of various weights Latest. The .270 is prone to having a much sharper kick than the .308. Am I narrow minded? With the larger data set of factory loads for each of these cartridges, we can be more confident that the conclusions drawn represent the full set of round options for each cartridge. Whether that is an obstacle in the flight path or the hide and bone of a game animal, momentum gives you an idea of how well the bullet can overcome these obstacles. If you are considering a new rifle to add to your arsenal, two of the more popular cartridges used in hunting include the .308 and .270 caliber. If you are going to need a little more distance, the .270 holds the advantage over the .308 caliber. The 270 has less recoil pending who you speak with than the 30-06 or 308. Anything that you can do with a 130-grain .270 can be done with a 140-grain .280. 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