.270 vs .280

I have both 7mm Remington magnum and 7 x 57 rifles. And I like them both, so I guess I would lean towards the 280 if I was shopping for a medium game rifle and did not have one already. That said, the .270 is a great cartridge and very useable on most medium NA game. In my opinion it is a bit light for elk and the big bears.
 
I've owned a Rem BDL in 270 Win for over 40 years killed many many head of game with it including 9 black bears, 20 plus elk, many deer and javelinas. Never found it wanting. I've been loading 150g Partitions to 3000 fps (chrono'd) in it since the mid 70s. I use that load for everything except varmins. I'm sure the 280 Rem is just as good.
 
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colorado said:
I've owned a Rem BDL in 270 Win for over 40 years killed many many head of game with it including 9 black bears, 20 plus elk, many deer and javelinas. Never found it wanting. I've been loading 150g Partitions to 3000 fps (chrono'd) in it since the mid 70s. I use that load for everything except varmins. I'm sure the 280 Rem is just as good.
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I own the same only left handed. I had originally bought the rifle to rechamber but couldn't bring myself to do it after shooting it. It groups more accurately then I'm capable of. And that was before I started loading for it. The image above is a five round group at 100 yards.
 
I have several 270's and a couple of 280's . I grew up on Jack OConner so a 270 was my 1st big game rifle. My wife's rifle for everything is a 280. Both calibers work well. I am leaving in 2 days to the Eastern Cape. I am taking my 7x64 which is a European 280.
 
Graham Hunter said:
I have several 270's and a couple of 280's . I grew up on Jack OConner so a 270 was my 1st big game rifle. My wife's rifle for everything is a 280. Both calibers work well. I am leaving in 2 days to the Eastern Cape. I am taking my 7x64 which is a European 280.
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Been looking hard at the 7x64 and was surprised that ammo selection is much better than the 280 Rem. Ballistically pretty much identical but have decided to go with the 7x64 because of the wide selection of ammo from Norma and other manufactures. Can get 140 soft tips in bulk for around 60 cents a round which makes practicing fairly economical compared to 280 Rem ammo pricing at over a $1.05 a round.
 
Beware that Remington 175 gr. ammo uses 2 diameter bullets which, in my 7x64 resulted in patterns instead of groups. Tired of 6" being the best "group" for these 175s, I pulled the bullets and seated some 175 gr. Speer MagTips and the largest group I had was 1.5". It does a little better when I recharge the factory powder before seating the MagTips. Not bashing Remington but, stating my results.
 
7x57Joe said:
Beware that Remington 175 gr. ammo uses 2 diameter bullets which, in my 7x64 resulted in patterns instead of groups. Tired of 6" being the best "group" for these 175s, I pulled the bullets and seated some 175 gr. Speer MagTips and the largest group I had was 1.5". It does a little better when I recharge the factory powder before seating the MagTips. Not bashing Remington but, stating my results.
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If you give the Norma rounds a go, please post the results. They are grouping sub-MOA in 9.3x62 out of my Mauser M12.
 
Got both plus a 280AI and a 7x57AI just to try out lol
270win in a pre 64 win 70 rest are Remington 700 based rifles.
So far 270 win exceptionally accurate and a keeper.
But of the others the 7x57AI is becoming a favorite as far as accuracy and velocity
 
A 270 Win and 280 Rem with factory ammo are indistinguishable in performance except for the fact that the 280 is offered in 165g factory ammo. Maybe 175g too though I've never seen it. Both rounds in factory ammunition tend to be loaded to anemic velocities. I chrono'd some Federal 270g 150g Partitions at 2650 fps. Advertised is 2900 fps. Handloaded I get 3030 fps out of a 22" barreled BDL with zero high pressure symptoms. If you handload, both can safely be loaded up to 7mm Rem Magnum factory loads (not advertised velocities). Of course the 7mm Rem Magnum (which gets so little love) can be loaded to much higher performance than either the 270 or 280.
 
when I started shooting, 130 gn 270 factory ammo was advertised at 3150 fps.
I never bought any, but using ex ww11 4831, 3050 was a sensible max in 22 and 24 inch barrels.
incidentally I remember when the 7 mag came out, and 175 gn bullets were advertised at over 3000 fps.!
the secret powder, then unavailable was imr 7828, was developed specifically for the 7 mag factory ammo.
I my handloads using comparable bullets, 130 gn in 270 and 140 gn in 280, the 280 is a noticeably better killer of game suited to that class of bullet.
bruce.
 
Newboomer said:
Not familiar with 270 or 280 but from what I've read they are very close ballistically. I've used 7RM for pg from springbok to zebra with Barnes 160g TSX out to 268 yards. Deadly accurate and one shot kills. It's my go to pg gun for all except eland and buf.
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Skinnersblade said:
Thank you @Newboomer it is always good to hear from one with years of experience.

If you don't mind my asking what is you preferred cartridge for eland. Given the mass of the creature I would hazard a geuss that one would require a stout offering to humanely hunt them.
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I used a 375 HH Barnes 350g TSX with 58.5g 4064. One shot head on for buf. He went about 75 yds and was dead. Eland head on lung shot. He ran about half a mile and took another round to finish.
 
Just bought a very well preserved Rem BDL in 7 mm Rem Mag, to replace the BDL in 270 I gave my son. Bought a Leupold 3.5-10x50 scope to put on it. Should have it all set up by next month looking forward to it.

mmyTHO8.jpg
 
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bruce moulds said:
when I started shooting, 130 gn 270 factory ammo was advertised at 3150 fps.
I never bought any, but using ex ww11 4831, 3050 was a sensible max in 22 and 24 inch barrels.
incidentally I remember when the 7 mag came out, and 175 gn bullets were advertised at over 3000 fps.!
the secret powder, then unavailable was imr 7828, was developed specifically for the 7 mag factory ammo.
I my handloads using comparable bullets, 130 gn in 270 and 140 gn in 280, the 280 is a noticeably better killer of game suited to that class of bullet.
bruce.
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My .280a.i with 140gn Woodleigh projectiles shoots bug hole groups at 100 if I do my part.
I took some Fallow Deer with it in South Australia and a couple were headshot getting my mates attention since he wasn't shooting so well.
The same trip I called in on @jcinsa who gave me another 50 cases for my .280a.i.
I went into Victoria and took one more Fallow with Russ.
 
bruce moulds said:
when I started shooting, 130 gn 270 factory ammo was advertised at 3150 fps.
I never bought any, but using ex ww11 4831, 3050 was a sensible max in 22 and 24 inch barrels.
incidentally I remember when the 7 mag came out, and 175 gn bullets were advertised at over 3000 fps.!
the secret powder, then unavailable was imr 7828, was developed specifically for the 7 mag factory ammo.
I my handloads using comparable bullets, 130 gn in 270 and 140 gn in 280, the 280 is a noticeably better killer of game suited to that class of bullet.
bruce.
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Wonder if there is a 7 RM/AI? If not, why. not?
 
steve white said:
Wonder if there is a 7 RM/AI? If not, why. not?
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Not all cases show a viable gain from forming an Ackley improved shoulder/taper.
Maybe it's all been done you will never know of every experimental build that was tried
To create a wildcat you would need a reamer and suitable dies so there is a bit of expense for a one off, and then there is the fire forming of brass to then start load development.
There are several offerings for Hot 7mms that are standardised now so doing a 7mmRm A.I. now would hardly be worth the exercise unless someone just wanted to go through the motions to try something different.
 
My main hunting rifles are Model 70s in 25-06 and 7mm Rem Mag, so I don’t have a lot of use for a 270 or a 280. I have had a 270 for just a little while as well, which I bought mostly just to try, as I’d never fired one.

As a handloader, I can see that the range of 280/7mm bullets is a bit more versatile, especially for animals bigger than deer. The 280AI is interesting to me, but again, not really a need as I have a 7mm RM.

One of the biggest advantages of the 270 is that it is readily available in so many factory rifles. I like Model 70s. They have been made in 280, but it would be a lot harder to find one than a 270. For deer-size animals, I can’t imagine there would be much difference on their effect on game.
 
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