270w vs 30-06 vs 7mm Rem Mag

[Goshawk]

Hi all,

As a pure hunting rifle which would you choose 270w, 30-06 or 7mm Rem Mag?

This is for a rifle that will be used mainly for fallow deer, odd sambar and a trip in near future to South Island NZ after bull tahr.

My thoughts, the 7mm RM shoots flat like 270, kicks like a 3006 and hits harder than either. I will be reloading what ever cal I get.

[yoshie]

Either would be good.

I've fired a 7mm Rem Mag in a Tikka T3 lite and found it fairly unpleasant compared to my 30-06.

I think recoil is made up of 2 parts, velocity and volume. The 7 mm RM has lots velocity in my opinion (as well as volume) and is much more unpleasant to shoot than my 9.3x62 and 444 marlin which are move volume cartridges.

For a notice a would recommend 270, but the 30-06 is just as good and more flexible to the handloader. The 7mmRM (and 300WM) is more for the experienced shooter that can use the extra range and killing power and can tolerate the recoil.

Check out the price and availability of ammo around where you live before you make up your mind.

[Klem]

As you probably know, .270 win is a necked down 30-06, so they're reasonably comparable.

With the .270 you'd likely be shooting 130gr - 180gr pills.

With the 30-06 be using something between 150gr - 220gr bullets.

Light bullets = flatter shooting and less recoil.

With those bullet weights the .270 is plenty to do all you want. Have a light 130gr load for small game and you can always load up some 180's for Sambar if you're going out for them.

Since it will "be used mainly for fallow deer, odd sambar" that sounds right to me.

Nothing wrong with the other other two options, just sounds like overkill to me.

[Octane]

The narrower bullets in the .270 will have a better BC than the same weight in the 30-06 too.

Example...
150gr .270 BT has a BC of .496.
150gr .30 cal BT has a BC of .435.

I know that's being pedantic but it does mean that with the same energy the .270 will shoot the same weight bullet a bit faster and further than the .30-06.

The point is anyway if you're not going to be shooting the heavier 30-06 bullets then the .270 will do it a bit better IMO.

[Lorgar]

7mm RM is a fine cartridge. While you could justify it for a Sambar rifle, it's complete overkill for fallow.

Not essential for Sambar either TBH. Either of the smaller cartridges will do the job fine with the right load.

I shoot 140gr Accubonds in my 7mm-08, just shy of max powder charge for about 2800 fps.

It puts them down no problem at all.

[AlanK]

My thoughts, the 7mm RM shoots flat like 270, kicks like a 3006 and hits harder than either. I will be reloading what ever cal I get.

Sort of... As a general rule it shoots flatter, but that's because you're generally shooting lighter bullets in the .270 than you would in the 30-06.

Not fair to compare the trajectory of shooting a 150gr .270 to a 200gr 30-06.

[Joom]

Even at 250-300 metres, 7mm rem mag will be blowing huge chunks out of fallow.

You'll be wasting a lot of meat.

[Sender]

Even a big Tahr only ways 70-80kg right?

Not that much bigger than a fallow buck, well smaller than a Sambar.

I'm throwing in for the .270 or 30-06 as well.

[Norton]

There is certainly no 'need' for the 7mm Rem Mag here IMO.

Just depends if you really 'want' it

[yoshie]

The narrower bullets in the .270 will have a better BC than the same weight in the 30-06 too.

Example...
150gr .270 BT has a BC of .496.
150gr .30 cal BT has a BC of .435.

I know that's being pedantic but it does mean that with the same energy the .270 will shoot the same weight bullet a bit faster and further than the .30-06.

The point is anyway if you're not going to be shooting the heavier 30-06 bullets then the .270 will do it a bit better IMO.

The 30cal bullets have a larger baring area for the gasses to push against and less surface area against the rifling and therefore less friction down the barrel.

The larger 30cal bullets will be better down the barrel, but the 270 bullets will be better after they leave the barrel.

I think the 270 and 30-06 are equal when shooting same weight bullets.

What about 280 Remington? Now that's a classy round!

[Hardcast]

If you're a 'SERIOUS' reloader, that is, if you push the options to the max, any calibre can be DOWN LOADED to suit the application.

By that I mean... a .223 can be down loaded to 22 Magnum velocities, or a 30.06 can be down loaded to 30/30 velocities etc. Lots of old shooters do it, and enjoy their rifles full capacity. Others of course couldn't be bothered with the re-sighting, the different powders etc. involved in doing it and opt for a cupboard full of guns.

Reduced loads are a fun way of using the same rifle on many different types of game, and or just a bit of Target shooting without breaking your shoulder.
110 grainers in a 30.06 with a reduced load won't blow a fox to pieces. Reduced loads in a .204 will leave a rabbit with plenty of edible meat.

It's always nice to know you have the horsepower when you need it but you don't always need it.

[Goshawk]

Lol. I think I don't 'need' the extra power of a 7mm rem mag but it would be nice.

The 270 seems to get a good rap. Does it shoot that much flatter than a 30-06? Does the 270 shoot as flat as my .243w 100gr?

Think I need to do more research.

[Octane]

The 30cal bullets have a larger baring area for the gasses to push against and less surface area against the rifling and therefore less friction down the barrel.

The larger 30cal bullets will be better down the barrel, but the 270 bullets will be better after they leave the barrel.

I think the 270 and 30-06 are equal when shooting same weight bullets.

Er, we're talking about different things now?

I didn't say anything about bearing surface or friction? Or what the bullet does in the barrel? Not sure what you mean by better down the barrel either, the bullet doesn't do you any good until it's out of the barrel...

Those number's I quoted are straight from the Nosler website and like it says, the .270 150gr bullet has a higher BC than the .30 150gr bullet due to being narrower. Better BC = more velocity and energy retained over distance (with same muzzle velocity of course). They're not the equal when shooting the same weight bulelts/velocity and I don't "think" that, it's just plain old math.

Repeating myself now but like I said, it's being fussy, but it's a piece of information to consider.

Bearing surface and friction are different issues which I didn't touch on in my reply, not sure how we got to that? If barrel life is improved by this or something compared to the .270 then that's another piece of info for OP to consider. I couldn't comment on barrel life between the two though.

[SendIt]

Does the 270 shoot as flat as my .243w 100gr?

Potentially, yes. But it all depends on your loads obviously. Light fast loads can shoot flatter, heavy slower loads will not. Some examples relevant to you.

All loads using max velocity based on ADI load data and AR2209 powder. All zeroed at 100y. Figured are inches of drop.

.243 100gr Partition | Muzzle velocity 2970 fps
100y - 0
200y - 3.2"
300y - 12"
400y - 27.7"

.270 130gr BT | Muzzle velocity 3010 fps
100y - 0
200y - 3"
300y - 11.2"
400y - 25.7"

.270 150gr BT | Muzzle velocity 2720 fps
100y - 0
200y - 3.9"
300y - 14"
400y - 31.5"

As you can see the 130gr shoot flatter, the 150gr lob more.

[Chronos]

The narrower bullets in the .270 will have a better BC than the same weight in the 30-06 too.

Example...
150gr .270 BT has a BC of .496.
150gr .30 cal BT has a BC of .435.

I know that's being pedantic but it does mean that with the same energy the .270 will shoot the same weight bullet a bit faster and further than the .30-06.

The point is anyway if you're not going to be shooting the heavier 30-06 bullets then the .270 will do it a bit better IMO.

Might be a bit pedantic as you say.

A 150gr pill is at the top end if bullet weights for the .270 but in the lower end for a 30-06

Apart from the fact that a bullets BC is totally irrelevant at hunting ranges, say under 300m it's also advantageous to use a larger caliber on large game because the larger wound channel can lead to better kills and less lost game post shot

If you're after a round for hunting heavier game like large deer I'd say go for the 30-06

Chronos

[Goshawk]

Looks like it's still a race between the 270 and 3006.

Ok. What about barrel life between the 3 cals?

And do any of them have issues when being reloaded?

[Octane]

Might be a bit pedantic as you say.

Yeah, it's not really a deal breaker.

Like I said, just a factor. If nothing else it's a little piece of mind that your shooting is the best it can be. That's the way I look at it anyway.

And that's all assuming that .270 is equally suited for the shooters purposes as a 30-06. If a shooter wants to shoot those heavier pills that the 30-06 offers then it doesn't mean anything.

Ah, the joys of choosing a calibre.

[SendIt]

And do any of them have issues when being reloaded?

.270 and 30-06 are both common as... You shouldn't have any problems with reloading supplies for either. In a pinch you could always neck brass up or down too from the other calibre if your LGS didn't have your calibre brass at the time.

7mm RM is a bit less common I guess you'd have to say, but it's far from rare. 7mm bullets are pretty plentiful and brass shouldn't be too tough to get either.

I don't think reloading is going to be much of a factor for you.

[VICHunter]

Ok. What about barrel life between the 3 cals?

Both the .270 and 30-06 have good barrel life (assuming you're not abusing them with hot loads).

Especially for hunting accuracy... with reasonable loads and maintenance I'd say you could comfortably get 5,000+ rounds. If not more...

The 7mm magnum will be burning a lot more powder obviously. Still, guestimate 3,500+ rounds? If not more...

How much loss of accuracy is acceptable is really up to you, those numbers are a conservative to me too. The guys who worry about 1,000 and 1,500 shots before a barrel is 'shot out' are almost exclusively target shooters where losing .1 or .2 MOA accuracy is a big deal (to them).

For hunting that doesn't mean anything. You could easily get a lot more depending on how fussy you are. A mate of mine has a 20 something year old 30-06 which would easily have 10,000 or 12,000 rounds through it or something. He's still taking deer with it, so he's still using it.