Explain this: 270 wins the poll

[roklok]

I no longer own a .270, I re-barreled mine to a .280 Ackley, which I prefer. However the 270 is an excellent cartridge and has been for 100 years. I am puzzled by the premise of this thread. Maybe the .270 isn't as popular in the African Hunting context, but it is and has been an extremely popular cartridge in the USA and for good reason. I killed my first Dall ram with my .270 handloaded with 130 grain SST at a lasered 584 yards, then a week later loaned it to a buddy who killed a 62 inch bull moose with my 150 Grain Grand Slam handloads. One of these days maybe I will pick another up, I still have dies, brass, and bullets.

 

[MS 9x56]

A 280 is a great caliber, it’s pretty much a 7x64 brenneke. The only reason my son shoots the latter? Prettier guns.

Not just prettier,better.

 

[BFaucett]

Yep. In those days in France .30/06 and .308 Win were classified "Category 1: Military Weapon" and it was simply impossible to buy them.

As to the .300 Mag, I remember it as being considered in those days generally as an "African caliber" too powerful for France, and very expensive to feed.

I am surprised that you do not mention the 7x64 in your reply, it really was dominant in the 1980's and 1990's in France, and I would have expected that dominance to continue, as it is a VERY useful caliber due to its ability to use heavier bullets (the perceived Achilles' heel of the .270 Win).

The .280 Rem: Remington's other market mis-read (beside the 6 mm Rem)

The .280 Rem (.28/06) tried in 1957 to replicate in the US the 7x64 european success, and I am not sure that the .270 Win was too solidly anchored in the market that it could not have worked. After all, the .280 was positioned as being able to fire .30/06 class bullets at .270 Win (.27/06) class velocity. However, Remington introduced the .280 Rem in the Model 740 semi-automatic rifle and the Model 760 pump-action rifle. That put the two calibers in two different markets. And to add insult to injury, Remington also initially offered lower pressure, hence lower velocity, ammo (compared to .270 Win) that would function well in these actions. This was another market mis-read, after the 1955 abortive launch of the .244 Rem. And when Remington introduced the 7 mm Rem Mag in 1962, it killed the .280 Rem, notwithstanding the fact that the 7 mm Rem Mag is nothing but a loud .280 Rem, when the .280 Rem fires ammo loaded at the full 60,000 PSI SAAMI spec. Try as they might to rename the .280 Rem the "7mm Express", as they renamed the .244 Rem the 6 mm Rem, the perception damages were done. As they say, "you never get a second chance to make a first impression", and both 6 mm Rem and .280 Rem retain "also ran" status to this day, never mind that technically both 6 mm Rem and .280 Rem are technically better cartridges than the run-away commercial successes .243 Win and .270 Win.

A few years ago I would have said that the .280 Rem is probably a more versatile safari cartridge than the .270 Win with loads in the 140 gr to 165 gr range, but the advances in bullet technology have really changed the paradigm, and I am not thinking about the .270 150 gr slug here, but about the 130 gr. In particular I find the 130 gr TTSX absolutely deadly, all the way to large, tough PG and although I did consider both 7x64 and .280 Rem for my wife PG rifle, the .270 Win won easily: where do you find 7x64 ammo in the US, and where do you find .280 Rem ammo in Africa? Or even the US !?!?

I think the .270 Win is hard to beat for a large variety game but I've never owned or used one. The .270 certainly has a proven track record. I just never warmed up to the .270 Win for some reason. I probably read too much Elmer Keith and not enough Jack O'Connor back in the day.

I'm a fan of the classic cartridges that were (and are) used in Africa. For me, they just add a little romance and nostalgia. After reading some articles by Finn Aagaard years ago about using a 7x64 Brenneke in Africa, I really wanted a 7x64. I knew Ruger once made a small run of M77 rifles (the push feed version; pre Mk II) in 7x64 but I gave up trying to find one. This was back in the pre-Internet days.

So, back in the 2000s, I stumbled across a new Ruger M77 Mk II in .280 Remington at my local gun store. I figured that would be a good substitute for the 7x64 in my little rifle collection so I grabbed it. I also figured that Ruger probably wouldn't continue to chamber the M77 in .280 Rem.

I really like the rifle and the .280 cartridge but I freely admit that I've never hunted anything with it. Too many rifles and not enough hunting opportunities for this city boy. Maybe one of these days I'll poke a feral hog with it here in Texas.

And besides, this thread gives me the opportunity to post a few pics of the rifle. Don't most of us like to see pics of each other's rifles?

Cheers! Bob F.


Stainless Ruger M77 Mk II in .280 Remington customized by Lone Star Armory (Todd Johnson; deceased) of Pearland, Texas. Action, barrel, and bottom metal have been vapor honed to a matte finish. Pillar bedded in factory synthetic stock. Bolt and extractor jeweled. Bolt lugs lapped; action polished; extractor tuned. Trigger tuned and adjusted to 3.5 lb pull. It's not fancy but I like it.

Classic Cartridge: .280 Remington
by Craig Boddington
https://www.craigboddington.com/hunting-tips/classic-cartridge-280-remington

Behind the Bullet: .280 Remington
by Philip Massaro posted on August 25, 2017
https://www.americanhunter.org/content/behind-the-bullet-280-remington/

Head to Head: .280 Remington vs. .280 Ackley Improved
by Philip Massaro posted on June 17, 2020
https://www.americanhunter.org/content/head-to-head-280-remington-vs-280-ackley-improved/