270 Wsm or 270 Wby

[BoarHog375]

Looking buying one of these in the near future. What's your honest opinions? Also if theres something that would be better than these two im open to suggestions. TIA

 

[Finprof]

6.8 Western. It is a 270 WSM tweaked to take higher BC bullets. You might have a problem with 270 WSM ammo availability in the future. It never caught on. The 270 WBY is also one if the least popular WBY calibers.

 

[Hififile324]

I have both, and a regular .270 Winchester. .270 WSM Brass and factory ammo is very hit and miss for availability. Forget about finding it in South Africa. .270 WBY is sometimes found there.

Now the reality, I load for all 3. You burn more powder, get more recoil, shorter barrel life (if you shoot a lot), for a whopping 100 to 150 fps over the .270 Winchester. In the grand scheme of things it means very little. You also gain an extra round or two in the magazine with the original .270.

Most folks have read the advertising of 200+ fps over the .270 Win. Those numbers are in a test lab, test barrel, controlled conditions. In the real world you can expect maybe 100 fps. gain which does not mean much at hunting distances.

One benefit I have gained with the .270 WBY over the .270 WIN is the ability to move the 160 grain Nosler Partition at 2900 fps. That puts it right there with a 7mm rem mag. I do like the WBY over the WSM.

Finprof's advice on the 6.8 Western is sound. You can shoot heavy long bullets with the 1:8" twist.

Maybe you should just get one of each!

 

[Bob Reed]

Hello,

Since you're open to suggestions, I also recommend the original .270 Winchester Cartridge, especially if cost and (more importantly) being readily available are a concern.

 

[deewayne2003]

I have both, and a regular .270 Winchester. .270 WSM Brass and factory ammo is very hit and miss for availability. Forget about finding it in South Africa. .270 WBY is sometimes found there.

Now the reality, I load for all 3. You burn more powder, get more recoil, shorter barrel life (if you shoot a lot), for a whopping 100 to 150 fps over the .270 Winchester. In the grand scheme of things it means very little. You also gain an extra round or two in the magazine with the original .270.

Most folks have read the advertising of 200+ fps over the .270 Win. Those numbers are in a test lab, test barrel, controlled conditions. In the real world you can expect maybe 100 fps. gain which does not mean much at hunting distances.

One benefit I have gained with the .270 WBY over the .270 WIN is the ability to move the 160 grain Nosler Partition at 2900 fps. That puts it right there with a 7mm rem mag. I do like the WBY over the WSM.

Finprof's advice on the 6.8 Western is sound. You can shoot heavy long bullets with the 1:8" twist.

Maybe you should just get one of each!

I have owned all three but stuck with the original .270Win for the same reasons listed above.

FYI I have found the 140gr Accubond to be the best all around .270 bullet and the 140gr Hornady BTSP is a great practice, hog and whitetail round.

 

[BoarHog375]

What about the 7mag as an option?

 

[deewayne2003]

What about the 7mag as an option?

Certainly a capable round but if your going to deal with the recoil, why not just go with a .300win and have infinitely more bullet options?

 

[Ndczerwinski]

I was a big 270 win guy that also had a 270 WSM but moved to the 6.5 PRC.

Ammo is easy to find and ballistically it’s very similar at normal range and once you get to long range it’s superior due to higher BC bullets and the ability to shoot heavier bullets.

 

[Bob Reed]

What about the 7mag as an option?

Hello,

If you're wanting to stay with a .270 or 7mm chambering with more readily available ammo and you need (or simply just want) 150gr. 7mm bullets flying at 130gr. .270 Winchester velocities & trajectories - then the 7mm Rem Mag would be an excellent choice. Then of course, you also have the heavier 7mm Rem Mag loads as well, which might be a big plus depending upon your plans...

 

[Red Leg]

I do not own one, but have used a .270 WSM a good bit in Spain. The longest shot I have made with it was an ibex at 300 yards. It was absolutely lethal. However, at the same distance, any of the four .270 Win's I own would have accomplished exactly the same thing.