.270wcf vs 6.8 Western & 270 WSM

Eric Alexander

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I've been reading about this 6.8 W and the 270wsm and .270 wcf. ... and came across an interesting comment. The issue was about the new high BC .277 bullets and mentioned the 165ablr and 175vld needing 1:8.5 or 1:8 twist. OK, fine. Then the article tossed in this tidbit:

"The ole .270 WCF can't push these new, heavier bullets fast enough to make them useful, regardless of twist."

Fast enough? A .270 should have no problem pushing these out at 2600-2700 fps. What gives?

At best the 6.8 & 270 wsm add 200 fps over a .270wcf.
Is the author high? According to him, rebarreling my .270 with a 1:8 twist barrel is a waste of time. Doesn't ring true with me.
Comments?
 
Most gun authors say things to sell things, and a lot of them don't know as much as half the people on this forum. The standard 270 with a 26" 1-8 twist barrel would do 2800-2850 with RL26 and 165-170gr bullets. It would be a good rifle and would basically duplicate the standard .280 Remington. If I was going to rebarrel a .270, then I'd do a .280 Ackley or .284 Win with a long throat. I rebarreled my .270 a couple years ago to .284 Norma Match and push 175 Berger's @ 2840-2850fps. The standard .270 would be very similar ballistically when using the 170 Berger @ 2800-2850fps.
 
Agree, 2700 fps is no problem with 170s and a 24" barrel. I have loaded barned original 180 gr to 2700 fps using data from barnes manual. A 30-06 with 180s can do over 2800 fps with 180s and it is same powder capacity. You lose some with smaller caliber but it is also a lighter bullet
 
The 270 win wouldn't be nearly as "cool" as the other but doesn't mean I can't shoot the 160-175's at pretty decent speeds! The other option would be to do a 270. AI to up another 100-150fps. I'm sure a fast twist 270 win would be able to push the 170's at 2700-2800 range.

the 270. Wsm and 6.8 western will definitely be faster. The 270. Wsm with the heavies would do better with a long action. The 6.8 western should be a true short action variation!
 
Most gun authors say things to sell things, and a lot of them don't know as much as half the people on this forum. The standard 270 with a 26" 1-8 twist barrel would do 2800-2850 with RL26 and 165-170gr bullets. It would be a good rifle and would basically duplicate the standard .280 Remington. If I was going to rebarrel a .270, then I'd do a .280 Ackley or .284 Win with a long throat. I rebarreled my .270 a couple years ago to .284 Norma Match and push 175 Berger's @ 2840-2850fps. The standard .270 would be very similar ballistically when using the 170 Berger @ 2800-2850fps.
my point of my question was:Why is this being said.? Won't these bullets perform at 270 wcf speeds? That seems to be his assertion.
 
my point of my question was:Why is this being said.? Won't these bullets perform at 270 wcf speeds? That seems to be his assertion.
It's being said out of ignorance. The gun writer is either trying to sell something or convince people who don't know any better. You have to be careful with these guys. They're the same ones who say the 6.5 equals a 300 Win Mag but when they compare them they use a max effort 6.5 load against some dinky 300 WM load and try and sell it and it works for a lot of people. Some of them are good, but the majority of them don't impress me.
 
my point of my question was:Why is this being said.? Won't these bullets perform at 270 wcf speeds? That seems to be his assertion.
Run the ballistics and you'll answer your own question.
There's certainly a significant gain running those bullets 200 fps faster, but depending on the ranges you plan on hunting they'll be ok in a 270 win
 
my point of my question was:Why is this being said.? Won't these bullets perform at 270 wcf speeds? That seems to be his assertion.
They would most definitely perform! Problem is, they are trying to sell the 6.8 western by down grading the 270 Winchester. It's also not the latest greatest thing being heavy high bc at super fast speeds which seems to be the thing these days. If your goal is the 170gr range of bullets then personally I'd look for a more efficient or larger case then the stsndardn270 as well but I wouldn't say the 270 couldn't donit
 
"At best the 6.8 & 270 wsm add 200 fps over a .270wcf."

270Win is a great cartridge, but, nonetheless, bumping up speed by 200fps is a significant gain.

And, if you put a long heavy bullet in a 270Win SAAMI-spec chamber, your gonna lose some powder capacity. Maybe this is what the author was referring to when he said a 270Win just ain't ever gonna get you there?
 
I'm not a fad guy but I also understand that some improvements have merit, in this case though I think the 270 Win is very capable in it's current state for any real world practical hunting application. If you want to shoot the heavier bullets which will require a faster twist, hence rebarrel anyway, I would look at 280AI or even a straight up 280 unless you want to stick with 270 bullets, then I would consider a 270 AI which will close enough to the new stuff, give you another round or two in the gun, no feeding issues to work out and you already have everything you need for that package except for dies and the new barrel. Simple
 
"At best the 6.8 & 270 wsm add 200 fps over a .270wcf."

270Win is a great cartridge, but, nonetheless, bumping up speed by 200fps is a significant gain.

And, if you put a long heavy bullet in a 270Win SAAMI-spec chamber, your gonna lose some powder capacity. Maybe this is what the author was referring to when he said a 270Win just ain't ever gonna get you there?
What about a .270 ai to get the extra speed?
 
"At best the 6.8 & 270 wsm add 200 fps over a .270wcf."

270Win is a great cartridge, but, nonetheless, bumping up speed by 200fps is a significant gain.

And, if you put a long heavy bullet in a 270Win SAAMI-spec chamber, your gonna lose some powder capacity. Maybe this is what the author was referring to when he said a 270Win just ain't ever gonna get you there?
What about a .270 ai to get the extra speed
 
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