I only hunt on private land that has sections I hunt only,and no one is supposed to be there but me.....We check out at our camp.

 

During rifle season the bucks in my area simply do not move during the day. They move in the very early morning and at dusk. You have maybe a half an hour to get your shots at the really elusive big bucks. During that legal shooting time you can sometimes see deer especially in timber but when you bring your rifle up the cross hairs simply disappear or with some lesser quality scopes you lose the animal all together.

I started using illuminated reticle scopes and found they worked great in these situations. Better quality scopes also made a big difference because they gathered that last bit of light which allowed you to spend that last 10 or 20minutes in the timber. Those last few minutes is when the big bucks leave their hiding spots.

For does it isn't quite as critical. They're not as wary. The bigger bucks here on my place are a totally different beast. That's the reason why they've lived as long as they have I suppose.

 

I understand your attraction to the .270, it is a great round for most applications.

For the best value in an all-around big-game rifle, I would choose a bolt action from Ruger, Savage, or Remington, chambered in the ultimate all-around cartridge, the .30-06, and top it with a Leupold Vari-x II or III in 3x9x40 or better. No big-game on this continent can't be hunted with this set-up.

just my .02

 

TK
i have a winchester model 70 in 270 its a fine gun i just don't like the top feed on it . i just got a browning bar in 30-06 i think i will like it to. as for scopes i looked through a swaroski, leupold, nikon, zess, and the clearest one was a browning 3x9 its made by bushnell elite. that what i put one it. it groupes 1-1/2 at 100 yds with 180gr winchesters i will fine tune it with 168gr bst for deer hunting.(always wanted a browning bar)

 

I guess I'll wade in here.

Tencubed, you say you spend your time in the eastern part of the state. Whereabouts? I grew up north of Spokane, my parents still have the old ranch out there.

I bought a Reminton 700 BDL in .270 some years ago. I really don't need any other rifle. With a small bit of fiddling and settling on a couple of loads, and a Leupold VX1 4-12, I can hit a pop can at 300 yards all day. It's put deer and elk in my freezer and is comfortable to shoot.

I also bought a Ruger 77 in .260 Remington for my boys. I had to float the barrel to get it to shoot but once things were dialed in it shoots under an inch now. Very good value in a rifle there.

One of my friends just bought a Rem 700 the cheapest one they make with the black stock in 204 Ruger. It shot like 2" groups but he relieved the stock where it touched the barrel, had a cheap bedding job and trigger done, worked up a good load, and now he has some spectacular one hole 100 yard groups.

So the long and short of it, just about any decent rifle can be made to shoot more than accurate enough to be a very good deer rifle, and the 270 cartridge will never let you down.

 

.270 isn't my pick for a rifle but it is a decent caliber. I just prefer 30 cal. A .270 is only barely flatter shooting than a 30.06 yet doesn't have the bullet selection available to make it as versatile. You can load from 110-220 gr bullets in the 30.06.

My rifle experiences have been mostly with Winchester, Remington, and Ruger.

I never did like the Ruger. It was built solid as a rock but didn't have the smoothness of the others and was no where near accurate enough for me. I installed a Timney trigger to correct the horrible factory trigger, cryo treated the barrel and reciever, tried free floating and then bedding the barrel, tried several different kinds of premium ammo, and still could never get better than 1.5 MOA. Better than the 2.5 MOA it started with but not the kind of accuracy I expect.

My Winchester is a M70 Classic w/BOSS in 30.06. Extremely accurate and the factory trigger can be adjusted to a very crisp letoff. It's a consistant sub-MOA gun with the right ammo and if I do my part.

My Remington is a 700BDL in 300 WM. It is 15 yrs old now and is still my favorite all around gun for deer, antelope, and elk. Accurate? My best so far was a 5/8 inch group at 200 yards with a 180 gr Barnes X handload. My longest shot was with a Nosler 150 gr BT at 612 yards on an antelope.

I have considered getting a good .308 and will look at Browning A-bolt, Steyr Pro Hunter, Tikka T3, Weatherby, Savage, and Sig 200 along with the Winchester and Remington offerings.

Don't scrimp on the scope. The VXl may be OK for close shots in good light. But in low light or distance shots, you will want the better glass. I have a VXll 4x12 on the 30.06 and a VXlll 4.5x14 on the 300 WM. At equal power settings, the VXlll is much better.
I also have a Burris Signature 3x9 and it is brighter in low light than the VXll and comparable to the VXlll.

Back to your original post- if you still want a .270, get the Remington and as good of glass as you can afford. A Remington 710 will shoot as well as a BDL for less money. It's just not as fancy or slick of an action. But it will smooth up with use. Spend the money on better optics.

Craig

 

I,will post my thoughts later! I love the ballastics of Weatherby...

 

Man of few words. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img] [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img] [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

Glad it just wasn't me that noticed that. I though my computer went crazy for a moment.
[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-shocked.gif[/img]

Craig

 

pwillie sometimes don't say much but he's worth listening too. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-cool.gif[/img]