.270 Winchester

The .270 Winchester (or 6.9x64mm) was developed by Winchester Repeating Arms Company in 1923 and unveiled in 1925 as a chambering for their bolt-action Model 54. The cartridge is based upon the .30-03. When loaded with a bullet that expands rapidly or fragments in tissue, this cartridge delivers devastating terminal performance.

The .270 Winchester became a very popular deer and elk cartridge due to the widespread praises of gunwriter Jack O'Connor who used the cartridge for 40 years and espoused its praise in the pages of Outdoor Life. Driving a 130 gr bullet at approximately 3140 ft/s (957 m/s), (later reduced to 3060 ft/s (933 m/s)) the cartridge demonstrated high performance at the time of its introduction and was marketed as being suitable for long range shooting (400-1000 yards) on most big game. Two additional bullet weights were soon introduced: a 100 gr hollow-point bullet for varmint shooting, and a 150 gr bullet for larger deer, elk and moose in big-game hunting.

While not an immediate success, over the succeeding decades and especially in the post-World War II period, the .270 Winchester attained great popularity among gun owners and hunters, ranking it among the most popular and widely used cartridges worldwide. Internationally, firearms manufacturers now offer this chambering in all firearm varieties: bolt-actions, single-shots, lever-actions (such as Browning BLR), pump-actions (such as Remington 7600), autoloaders (such as Remington 7400) and even a few double rifles.

Loads
Factory bullets are commonly available in 100, 110, 130, 140, 150 and 160 gr sizes with 130 and 150 gr loads being by far the most popular. Handloaders have a larger range of options with the availability of bullets in a number of weights from 90 to 180 gr. Common bullet weight recommendations for shooting different game are as follows:
 * 90-110 grain bullets: animals smaller than antelope.
 * 130 grain bullets: antelope or other animals up to the size of mule deer.
 * 140-160 grain bullets: deer, elk, moose and some larger animals.

While it is true that a .270 Winchester case can be formed from a 30-06 Springfield case, the case length of a 30-06 is 2.494 in while the case length of a .270 is 2.540 in, the same as a .30-03 Springfield. It is recommended that .270 Winchester brass be formed from .35 Whelen or .280 Remington cases.