.270 and 30-06

[fishinjosh98]

I know they are basiccly the same but there has do be some differences?

[leechlake]

More bullet weight options with 06.

270 shoots a bit flatter.

In common...both will miss if the shooter doesn't practice, have a good rest and have scope mounted properly.

270 has a 7mm bullet. 06 is 7.62 mm so less drag bullet wise with smaller diameter bullet.

[harvey lee]

I believe they still used the 06 in Viet Nam as a sniper rifle caliber.

[fishinjosh98]

what of these two calibers would you buy

[Gordie]

I have an 30-06 and the biggest reason I bought it was the range of bullet weights for this gun yea a 270 is way more flat shooting but I was looking for versatility and the 30-06 is just that.

I have been told that the 30-06 is the most versital gun you can buy and I belive it to be true

[harvey lee]

Seems when stores have ammo on sale, the 06 ammo is almost always the least spendy.

With ammo prices the way they are today, the 06 prices are attractive. Fleet Farm had a sale on ammo this fall and I noticed most ammo like my 300mag and my 7mm for a couple dollars off. The 06 ammo was under $13 a box of 20. My 7mm and 300 mag was all over $25.

[troutned]

FishinJosh: which one to buy would depend on where I usually hunt. If primarily in open country with potentially long shots, the .270. If mostly in wooded areas, the .30-06. If it's a mix of the two, either one will be fine. The points others have made are valid. Ammo selection and price will be a bit more attractive for the .30-06. The .270 is flatter shooting because it is smaller and faster (it is actually a little smaller than 7mm), and still plenty of energy for most north american big game. Another thing to consider is that a .270 will have a little less recoil. If you're at all recoil-sensitive, it might be a factor.

If you're looking to buy a new rifle, consider all of the above information, from myself and others, and choose one. If you're looking for a used rifle, take either one. And don't worry too much about what people tell you about the accuracy of one cartridge versus the other. They're both plenty accurate for all but the serious target competitor. Accuracy is affected much more by the attributes of the rifle than the cartridge.

In short, they're both fine cartridges and their "niches" overlap more than they differ.

[fishinjosh98]

thanks that was very helpful

[monstermoose78]

if you ever plan on trying for a moose tag in minnesota just remember you need a 30 cal or larger. That is why I went with the 06. I have browning a bolt with the boss and the gun has very little felt recoil. You can always get lighter grain bullet for the 06 for almost affects as the 270. I shoot 180 grain nosler partitions zero in at 200 yards and at 300 yards its about 8 inchs low. I have seen 06 shells contain bullets as light as 110 grain up to 220 grains. (The .30-06 cartridge was designed when shots of 1,000 yards (900 m) were expected. In 1906, the original M1906 .30-06 cartridge consisted of a 150 grains (9.7 g), flat-base cupronickel-jacketed-bullet.was from wikipedia.)

[Gordie]

I have seen 06 shells contain bullets as light as 110 grain up to 220 grains.

They make the bullets even lighter than that along with nozzler jacketed .22 cal bullets if your into that kind of thing also

[DooWap]

if you ever plan on trying for a moose tag in minnesota just remember you need a 30 cal or larger. That is why I went with the 06.

I don't know all the rules for the moose hunt but I have to question this statement. Why would I not be able to use my 7mm Rem Mag to hunt moose when it has more energy than a .30-06? Heck, according to that rule I could even use a .30-30 and not use my 7mm? That doesn't make sense.

Sorry if I strayed from the topic.

[monstermoose78]

Sorry I see they changed that to .220 but when I got my 06 it had to be a 30 cal or larger.

[fishattacker]

One thing you might want to do on a windy nasty day is just check out some of the ammo manufacture's websites and see what they offer for both calibers. Finding muzzle velocity, bullet type, weight and ballistic coefficient you can type that info a ballistic calculator (just google it and some will pop up) and see bullet drop and how wind affects it at different ranges.

I would pick a 30.06. Lots of bullet types and weight. Plus the 30.06 has been putting stuff down since 1906. Quoting a writing for a shooting mag "The .30 caliber bullet makes a bigger hole".

[cbrooks]

I had the same decision a couple years ago. I went with the 30-06. It covers just about any big game in North America. Great first gun to have. Any brands inparticular your looking at?

[fishinjosh98]

ammo brands? I heard federal fusion is a good brand for .270 and 30-06

[monstermoose78]

depends what kind of game you are going to hunt? Also each gun seems to like one kind of bullets better. Buy some and see how they group with your gun. If they dont group to your liking try different grains or different bullets. Example 165 grain nosler partition 180 grain nosler partition. My rifle likes the 180 grain nosler partition. My uncle has a brown a bolt left handed with out the boss and his got like remmington 180 grain core loks. Federal spent alot of money making the fusion just for deer and it is a great deer round.

[paul pachowicz]

Quoting the Sierra reloading manual; "To try to compare the .270 Win with the .30-'06 is a fruitless venture". It boils down to preference, research and testimonials. Flip a coin, neither will disappoint you.

[Musky Buck]

Go with the 30.06 if you hunt and sight in with guys who have 1 like my uncle at the gun range, I put 0 into my first round of the year at the range so I grabbed a couple of my uncles 30.06 bullets, fired them then said oh sorry, those 150's aren't my 180 grains, get 2 free shots off lol feel the recoil snicker at him and then bared down with what I really sight in with and use haha. Dog gone weasel is his words to me and no I can't pull that on him again unless we ride together I can snag a shell or two from him and mainly just to bug him.

[klecker]

280

[BEEFEATER]

Ever consider going with a .308, I think most .308s out perform .270 or .30-06, But all great calibers. >308 is much more mild tho

[remington 300]

no offense beefeater, the .308 is a fine deer rifle but in know way does it out PERFORM a .270 or a 30-06, check ballistics on any ammo makers charts,

per your comment, "much more mild" ballistically speaking IT IS!

just saying,

mike,

[hunter991]

the 308 out performs the 270 IMO. It can do just about anything the 30.06 can with less recoil and greater accuracy.

[BEEFEATER]

Exactly. Shoots much flatter then the .30-06. Ive always been an. 06 guy but switched to 308 last 3 years. Don't think ill ever go Back for deer. Cheap ammo too

[Walleye Guy]

They are both good choices. However the .30-06 is slightly ballastically better and has more options for bullet weights.

A .30-06 with larger casing capacity can be loaded with slower burning powders and reach higher velocitys and flatter trajectory and utilize heavier bullets with high ballistic coeficient giving it a great advantage over the .308win. The .308 cannot use heavy bullets without taking up powder space causing the use of faster burning powders that push the chamber and working pressures up without increasing fps-drop table significantly. Generally speaking a .308 has about 35yds less range than a .30-06 using factory loads of similar construction. When reloading, the .30-06 has the advantage by a fairly good margin.

The .30-06 will have more recoil which in itself may cause some shooters to shoot it less accurately.

[shedzbo]

The case length of a 30-06 is 2.494 inches (63.3 mm) while the case length of a .270 is 2.540 inches (64.5 mm), the same as a .30-03 Springfield. Not seeing how the o6 is larger?

Look up 270,30-06 or 308 articles by Chuck Hawks. He has a lot of good information and seems to know what he's talking about.