Squirmin Wormin Posted August 22, 2014 Posted August 22, 2014 I think this caliber is good enough for mule deer and elk but what about black bear or mountain lion? Quote
Super User Lund Explorer Posted August 28, 2014 Super User Posted August 28, 2014 I think this caliber is good enough for mule deer and elk but what about black bear or mountain lion? Maybe a deer or a pronghorn, questionable on an elk. Okay on a lion, but a bear? Only if you are in a tree and your guide has a real gun! 1 Quote
Super User fishballer06 Posted August 28, 2014 Super User Posted August 28, 2014 Step up and get the .270 WSM. It will handle anything. ANY THING... Quote
ThatZX14Fella Posted August 28, 2014 Posted August 28, 2014 I'd prefer to hunt a bear with a 45-70. If it can kill me, I wanna make sure it doesn't have a chance. Lol then again, I don't hunt at all except the occasional squirrel and I try to hunt coyotes, I've just never got one. Quote
Super User Crestliner2008 Posted August 29, 2014 Super User Posted August 29, 2014 The .270 was Jack O'Connor's favorite rifle. You might want to google his writings and his thoughts on the advantages/disadvantages, before deciding what to do. He was a long time writer for Outdoor Life magazine and has written the classic book, Book of the Rifle (I believe that was the title). 1 Quote
Super User Hi Salenity Posted August 30, 2014 Super User Posted August 30, 2014 Neck it back up! 30-06 Quote
Heron Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 I find .270 to be inadequte for animals larger than Mule deer. But thats just me. I prefer a medium bore cartridge, with calibers in the .35, 9.3mm, or .375 range. But thats just me For for large animals across open country, I like a .338 Win Mag necked up to .375....But thats just me. For Bear, and other large predators, I prefer large bore cartridges...but thats just me. .45-70, .45-90, .50 Alaskan...but thats just me. Not gonna say it cant be done, because Ive seen Wayne Van Swoll take a nice bull elk, at 600 yards with a 6.5mm Creedmoor....but I have a liking for larger bullets on larger animals....But, you know....thats just me. Quote
Heron Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 The .270 was Jack O'Connor's favorite rifle. You might want to google his writings and his thoughts on the advantages/disadvantages, before deciding what to do. He was a long time writer for Outdoor Life magazine and has written the classic book, Book of the Rifle (I believe that was the title). Jack O' Connor was great....but when it comes to rifle cartridge selection, I personally dont find him to be a suitable example to follow. I found this article online some time ago, It has some points that do a fair job at summing my feelings on this topic. http://lifebeyondthegoodol30-06.blogspot.com/ Quote
cbass12 Posted September 26, 2014 Posted September 26, 2014 The .270 was Jack O'Connor's favorite rifle. You might want to google his writings and his thoughts on the advantages/disadvantages, before deciding what to do. He was a long time writer for Outdoor Life magazine and has written the classic book, Book of the Rifle (I believe that was the title). "The Hunting Rifle" was the name of it. I read it and really enjoyed it. I shoot a .270 for everything except varmint hunting. Granted all we have around here is whitetail but I would have no problem using it for Elk. And it would probably do a fine job on a mountain lion. I agree with the other posters though, for bear I would want something bigger for that SHTF moment. 1 Quote
Super User RoLo Posted December 21, 2014 Super User Posted December 21, 2014 I've owned a slew of different rifle calibers from the 22-250 Savage to the 200 H&H Magnum. Over time though, I pared it down to one caliber: a 270 Win for everything, from woodchucks (90 gr hollow-point) to big game (130 gr jacketed). Needless to say, a misplaced shot from ANY caliber will not fell big game. But a 270 placed high-in-the-lungs of a moose or elk, will either go down like a sack of potatoes or pile-up a short distance away. BTW: a 270 is a 30-06 case necked down to 27 caliber (flatter trajectory). For antelopes, you don't need anything bigger than a 243 Win) Roger Quote
desmobob Posted December 21, 2014 Posted December 21, 2014 I have a copy of Jim Carmichael's "Book of the Rifle" I think Crestliner2008 has it mixed up with O'Connor's book.... In any event, after years of hunting with different calibers, I settled on the .270 as my favorite caliber for eastern whitetails. I'd use something else on elk or bear (.300 WinMag, 9.3x62). I've killed a moose and a couple of caribou with the .300 and it was more than adequate. Never shot a bear or mountain lion.... Tight lines, Bob Quote
Super User Catt Posted December 21, 2014 Super User Posted December 21, 2014 Like Jack O'Conner said, "it's not the gun, it's the person behind it".. The two times I've been on bears hunts were we had to track & kill a wounded black bear, one was shot with a .300 Weatherby mag & the other a 7mm mag. I killed one with a .270 at 100 yds & my dad killed the other at 50 yds with a 30/30. Quote
Djf3864 Posted December 23, 2014 Posted December 23, 2014 270 is good for black bear, wouldn't go after brown bear with it. Quote
ColdSVT Posted December 25, 2014 Posted December 25, 2014 My dad has killed whitetail, mulie, elk and black bear with his .270 My cousin killed four black bear with his 270.his daughter killed a black bear with her 7mm08. And my neighbor killed a maine moose with his .270 I have not been fortunate enough to shoot anything otherthan whitetails with my 270. Well placed shots are good things. And here in tje noretheast its rare to shoot over 150yds...rare Now would i take my 270 after anything out west? Yes i would. However i would prefer a 30cal round out there like a 300win mag for the longer shots of western hunting As for bear i hunt black bear with my bow only Quote
Super User RoLo Posted December 26, 2014 Super User Posted December 26, 2014 270 is good for black bear, wouldn't go after brown bear with it. If a 270 fails to knockdown a Kodiak brown bear, I'd put the blame on marksmanship, where the same shot with a 458 Win Mag would probably fail as well. Roger Quote
Super User Catt Posted December 26, 2014 Super User Posted December 26, 2014 If a 270 fails to knockdown a Kodiak brown bear, I'd put the blame on marksmanship, where the same shot with a 458 Win Mag would probably fail as well. Roger When I worked for the American Sportsman we had documented evidence of a large polar bear killed with a single shot from a 22 short. The bear had chased an eskimo woman into an igloo, she stuck the rifle barrel down the tunnel & fired leaving powder burns between the eyes. Quote
Super User RoLo Posted December 26, 2014 Super User Posted December 26, 2014 When I worked for the American Sportsman we had documented evidence of a large polar bear killed with a single shot from a 22 short. The bear had chased an eskimo woman into an igloo, she stuck the rifle barrel down the tunnel & fired leaving powder burns between the eyes. Good Grief, that's quite a story! You worked for American Sportsman? THEE 'American Sportsman' with Curt Gowdy? Roger Quote
Super User Catt Posted December 27, 2014 Super User Posted December 27, 2014 Yes the American Sportsman! But not the TV show, the American Sportsman Club, they owned or leased property all over the country and membership gave you access to all property. There was a group of us called "our riders", we rode the property on horse back checking for downed fences or vandalized cabins. Quote
Super User RoLo Posted December 27, 2014 Super User Posted December 27, 2014 Yes the American Sportsman! But not the TV show, the American Sportsman Club, they owned or leased property all over the country and membership gave you access to all property. There was a group of us called "our riders", we rode the property on horse back checking for downed fences or vandalized cabins. Very Kool, I'm sure that was even more interesting than the TV version Roger Quote
Super User S Hovanec Posted December 27, 2014 Super User Posted December 27, 2014 Load it up with a Barnes copper solid and you shouldn't have any issues. Quote
Super User Catt Posted December 28, 2014 Super User Posted December 28, 2014 Very Cool, that's even more interesting than the TV show Roger We hunted areas most people never heard of like South Edwards Plateau Val Verde, County Texas. Quote
Canyon explorer Posted May 30, 2015 Posted May 30, 2015 Black bear and Puma are no problem for a 270, I would use a Barnes bullet at 3000 f.p.s. bullet for elk. Quote
Canyon explorer Posted June 24, 2015 Posted June 24, 2015 I would not hesitate to use a .270 Winchester on all of the game you mention including Black bear (if you use a good bonded bullet or Barnes solid copper). Certainly not a brown bear. Quote
Super User retiredbosn Posted June 24, 2015 Super User Posted June 24, 2015 The 270 with the right shooter is more than adequate for all North American game. However when you step up to the Kodiak or Polar bear, you better know what you are doing with that gun, most guides will not allow a caliber less than 30 cal for the dangerous bears. The 270 will stop a charging black bear, the blackie just isn't as durable. Most people today suffer from magnumitis and are way over powered for North American game. Most of our game are thin skinned and not heavily boned, the exceptions being the Kodiak and Polar bears, and even those are thin skinned. Quote
diesel51 Posted June 24, 2015 Posted June 24, 2015 I agree. There isn't an animal that's native to the U.S. that can't be taken with a 30-06. Even when I went to Africa, most of the guides carried an 06 with one guy in the group carrying a 375 or 404 just in case something large and angry came Quote
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