.270 vs .308 | Outside Life

At first-glance, it doesn’t make a ton of sense to check the .270 vs .308. They’re, in any case, completely different calibers with completely different mother or father circumstances. Nonetheless they’re each basic big-game cartridges, many trendy rifles nonetheless come chambered in every, and each are identified for his or her manageable recoil. Plus, hunters and shooters love evaluating cartridges whether or not it is smart or not, so, right here we go. 

Hashing out the deserves and efficiency traits of the .270 Winchester in comparison with the .308 Winchester is to not decide a victor. That’d be like selecting which grandpa is your favourite. Somewhat, we’ll concentrate on the information and handle the cartridges’ strengths and weaknesses. Put very merely, the .270 shoots lighter bullets, delivers flatter trajectories, and brings extra power down vary. The .308 matches in brief actions and is able to capturing a greater diversity of bullet weights (together with bullets heavier than the .270 presents).

.270 Winchester Specs

• Bullet Diameter: .277 inches
• Case Size: 2.540 inches 
• General Size: 3.340 inches
• Father or mother Case:  .30/06 Springfield

.308 Winchester Specs

• Bullet Diameter: .308 inches
• Case Size: 2.015 inches 
• General Size: 2.8 inches
• Father or mother Case: .300 Savage

Relying in your searching fashion and capturing pursuits, considered one of these cartridges would possibly make extra sense than the opposite. Nonetheless, relaxation assured, each of those cartridges within the arms of a talented shooter are able to taking down any of the big-game in North America and most that lies past.

Historical past

.270 Winchester 

Following the success of the .30/06 Springfield within the early 1900’s, riflemen continued tinkering with the .30/06 case, necking it up or down, and quite a lot of wildcat cartridges emerged. Winchester engineers started tinkering too, necking down the .30/06 case to accommodate a .277 caliber projectile, and the .270 Winchester cartridge was born. Winchester formally launched the .270 Win. in 1925 with an marketed muzzle velocity simply north of three,100 fps capturing a 130-grain bullet.

The .270 Winchester was not instantly a beloved cartridge like a number of the different cartridges developed through the early 1900s but it surely slowly and certainly gained favor within the eyes of sportsmen and ladies over the course of the following a number of a long time. A lot of its success is owed to the legendary hunter and late Outside Life Capturing Editor, Jack O’Connor. He used the .270 Win. as his cartridge of alternative on searching excursions all world wide, sharing his tales with OL readers. 

After years of searching with and advocating for the .270, O’Connor wrote this in a 1954 OL column (word, this was printed nicely after the .308 was launched) : “On the time it was launched in 1925, the .270 was the flattest-shooting customary big-game cartridge on the planet. With the 130-gr. bullet, which has killed very useless all types of huge and ponderous animals, it nonetheless is. With the 100-gr. bullet within the manufacturing facility loading, which is designed for varmints·, the .270 has a trajectory virtually as flat as that of the .220 Swift. Due to this flat trajectory, excessive velocity, good accuracy, and gentle recoil, the .270 is the best customary cartridge to make well-placed hits on recreation with, at lengthy and unsure ranges, that I’ve ever used.” 

Quick ahead about 100 years from its inception and the .270 Win. continues to hold on its legacy as a revered big-game searching cartridge.

.308 Winchester

The 7.62x51mm NATO cartridge was developed within the Nineteen Fifties and adopted into army service shortly after. It made a splash, producing practically related ballistics to the .30/06 Springfield, however in a short-action configuration. In 1952, Winchester launched the .308 Winchester cartridge, which is the dual brother of the 7.62×51 NATO with two minor variations. O’Connor lined the launch of the .308, which was hand-in-hand with the introduction of the Winchester Mannequin 70 Featherweight.

The .308 Win. ammunition is loaded to a better strain than the 7.62×51 NATO ammo and the wall thickness of .308 Win. brass is barely thinner to accommodate the rise in strain. Rifles chambered in .308 Win can safely shoot 7.62×51 ammunition. Nonetheless, rifles chambered in 7.62×51 shouldn’t be fired .308 Win. ammunition. The .308’s mother or father case is the .300 Savage (not the .30/06 as some of us consider). 

With loads of efficiency packed right into a short-action format, the .308 Win. was rapidly adopted by hunters and shooters throughout the nation as a particularly versatile, correct, and succesful cartridge. The advantage of it being a short-action providing, moderately than the usual lengthy motion {that a} .270 requires, is that .308 rifles could be lighter and handier.

Since its launch, the .308 Win. has grow to be probably the most common cartridges available on the market with practically each rifle producer nonetheless producing weapons chambered in .308 Winchester.

Ballistics

Right here’s a take a look at a pair methods to check ballistics of the .270 vs .308. There’s some crossover in bullet weight, so we’ll look at each cartridges when utilizing the identical bullet weight, then when utilizing a number of the most ballistically environment friendly slugs for every. 

150-Grain Nosler Partition

For the primary comparability, I pulled ballistics from two equally weighted projectiles. Understand that a 150-grain projectile is pushing the highest finish of bullet weight for the .270 Win., whereas a 150-grain bullet is the center of the pack for .308 Win. 

.270 Winchester

• Muzzle Velocity: 2,830 fps
• Power @300 yds: 1,709 ft-lb 
• Drop @300 yds: 12.8 inches

.308 Winchester

• Muzzle Velocity: 2,840 fps
• Power @300 yds: 1,565 ft-lb
• Drop @300 yds: 13.4 inches

As you may see the masses are practically an identical popping out of the muzzle. Nonetheless as distance will increase the .270 begins to tug away with its sleeker bullet retaining extra velocity. 

Heavier Bullets vs Lighter bullets

Now let’s take a look at one other instance with a drastic variation in bullet weight. Hornady’s ELD-X bullet, loaded of their Precision Hunter line is obtainable in 178 grains in .308 and 145 grains in .270.

.270 Win., 145 grains

• Muzzle Velocity: 2,970 fps
• Power @300 yds: 1,955 ft-lb
• Drop @300 yds: 6.5 inches

.308 Win, 178 grains

• Muzzle Velocity: 2,600 fps
• Power @300 yds: 1,792 ft-lb
• Drop @300 yds:  8.8 inches

It’d shock some .308 followers to see that the lighter .270 bullet nonetheless carries extra power down vary due to its larger velocity than the heavier .308 bullet (even out to 500 yards). the margins of velocity, drop, drift, and power solely widen when heavier bullets are used within the .308 when in comparison with the .270. 

Reality be instructed, ballistically, the 2 cartridges are fairly evenly matched. Would you moderately have the choice to shoot quite a lot of bigger bullets (select the .308) or do you favor a sooner, flatter trajectory with a slight improve in down-range power at typical searching distances (select the .270). 

READ NEXT: .270 Winchester vs 6.5 Creedmoor

Recoil

Each of those cartridges have been designed to cut back felt recoil in comparison with the .30/06 Springfield. There are various variables that go into figuring out the felt recoil of a cartridge together with the bullet weight, powder cost, weight of your rifle, and the usage of a suppressor or muzzle brake. Nonetheless, all issues being equal, the kick of the 2 cartridges is analogous with common felt recoil hovering round 20 foot-pounds in a 7-pound rifle. For comparability, the common felt recoil from a 6.5 Creedmoor is round 12 foot-pounds, whereas the recoil from a .300 Win. Magazine. is up about 27 to 29 foot-pounds. 

Neither the .270 Win. or the .308 Win. will knock you off your ft, however there are lighter-recoiling big-game cartridges on the market.

Accuracy

Although the .270 can definitely produce nice accuracy, it’s not an inherently correct cartridge. For many hunters, its efficiency will suffice, however the common manufacturing facility rifle with manufacturing facility ammo will shoot with a lot larger precision in .308 than it is going to in .270 Win. In our testing, we’ve discovered good high quality manufacturing facility rifles like Weatherby’s Mark V Hunter to common between 1.5- and 2-inch 5-shot teams. High quality .308 rifles just like the CZ 600 American have averaged between 1.2- and 1.5-inch 5-shot teams.

Terminal Efficiency

At regular searching ranges, no animal will have the ability to inform the distinction between the influence from a .270 Win. vs. .308 Win. 

Some would possibly scoff on the .270 Win., brushing it apart as a great deer and pronghorn rifle, however not able to taking greater recreation like elk or moose. They’re incorrect. Sure, it’s a implausible cartridge for mid-sized recreation. Nonetheless, given correct bullet choice and shot placement, the .270 Win. is greater than able to taking down the most important ungulates with authority, together with the enormous yukon moose of the North. Simply ask Mr. O’Connor, or OL’s Tyler Freel who lately included it in his roundup of the greatest moose cartridges. 

A number of years in the past, the .270 Win. was my cartridge of alternative on a safari in Southern Africa. Capturing 130-grain Nosler E-Tip bullets, I efficiently hunted southern-greater kudu, zebra, and black wildebeest. All three animals rapidly succumbed to the bullet and cartridge mixture with the kudu (an elk-sized animal) dropping in his tracks.

The .308 Win. has confirmed itself over many a long time within the discipline as a really competent and lethal cartridge on every part from dainty pronghorn on as much as large rut-crazed bull elk and moose. Irrespective of your cartridge of alternative, your bullet choice is of the utmost significance, particularly when searching elk-sized recreation and greater. Typically talking, heavier bonded bullets are a sensible alternative for the larger recreation. 

READ NEXT: 6.5 Creedmoor vs .308 Winchester

.270 vs .308, Which Has the Benefit?

.270 Winchester

• Quicker velocity
• Flatter trajectory

.308 Winchester

• Compact rifles
• Wider number of bullet weights
• Extra correct

Ammunition Availability and Choice

Even via the ammunition scarcity over the previous a number of years, shooters might usually discover each .308 Win. and .270 Win. ammunition. The identical couldn’t be mentioned for a lot of different cartridges. Fortunately, ammo has grow to be rather more considerable on retailer cabinets this 12 months with quite a lot of beneficial choices to select from for each these (and different) cartridges. 

The commonest bullet weights for the .270 Win. are 130- and 150-grain projectiles and practically each main ammo producer produces a number of choices. The price of a field of shells varies primarily based on model and bullet kind, costing anyplace between $25 and $65. Weapons.com presently has 15 completely different ammunition choices in inventory for the .270 Win. in a variety of bullet configurations.

Equally, the .308 Win has a plethora of ammunition choices presently out there. One benefit that the .308 Win. does have over the .270 Win. is a wider vary of bullet weight choices. Bullets weights for searching functions differ from Nosler’s 110-grain Varmageddon load all the way in which as much as Winchester’s 185-grain Tremendous-X Powerpoint. It’s price noting that there’s manufacturing facility ammunition loaded for the .308 Win. that goes all the way in which as much as 260-grains, however the majority of them are supposed for goal use. 

The price of .308 Win. ammunition varies between $25 and $70 per field. Nonetheless, the common value appears to hover round $35 to  $40. The .270 Win. ammunition is often available, however the choices for out there ammo for the .308 Win. greater than triple the .270 Win. Weapons.com presently reveals about 100 completely different ammunition SKUs in inventory for the .308 Win.

READ NEXT: Finest .308 Looking Ammo

FAQ

Closing Ideas on .270 vs .308 

I’ll in all probability offend each of those basic cartridges’ loyal fan bases by saying this, however, the battle between the .270 Win. and .308 Win. in my eyes is a wash. Sure, the .270 Win. does shoot sooner and flatter and, in some circumstances, generates barely larger downrange power than the .308 Win. In Mr. O’Connor’s day, earlier than laser rangefinders and uncovered adjustable riflescope turrets, a flat-shooting rifle was an actual profit. At present, ranging a goal and dialing for elevation has grow to be an ordinary observe for big-game hunters. 

Sure, the .308 Win. is able to capturing a wider vary of bullet weights and definitely has many extra ammunition choices available than the .270 Win. However for many big-game hunters, 145-grain to 180-grain bullets is all we’ll ever want. So select whichever cartridge matches your fashion and style. Or, even higher, purchase a couple of completely different rifles chambered in every. 
A number of flashy new cartridges have flooded the market in recent times that, prefer it or not, are ballistically superior to each of those choices. With that mentioned, educating an previous canine new methods is an arduous process and gun homeowners are not any completely different. The close to cult following of those two basic cartridges refuses to allow them to slip by the wayside. Each the .270 Win. and .308 Win. will proceed to be among the many hottest cartridges in North America for a few years to come back.