.270 WSM for moose?

Rich the Butcher

Rich the Butcher

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I'm wondering on what brand and weight of cartrige to use for a moose hunt this year. I have a Weatherby Vanguard .270 WSM. This will be my first moose hunt so I don't want to scrimp on ammunition.
My goal is to pick up 3 or so different brands in a given gr. and take them to the range and make my decision.
Any thoughts on what should be my 3 choices?
 
I like premium bullets. Many cheap old geezers argue that they're not necessary, and are expensive. They're right, but if an extra $30 or $40 is going to make it or break it for you, I think that hunting and firearms aren't the right hobby for you, and frankly, display a lack of respect for your game.

Personally, I'd go looking to try some Hornady GMX loads - I used some in 7mm last year with good success; they seem to open up really really quickly - they sound and act like soft lead points on deer with that meaty 'whop' sound that you just don't get with Barnes bullets. Yet I did get very impressive penetration with them, and look forward to further experimentation with these. At the moment, I'd say they're probably my overall favourite bullets.

Second choice would be a tie, between something loaded with Partitions, or Barnes TSX/TTSX.

Bullet weight is not terribly important with these sorts of premium projectiles; I'd go with 130's or 140's; whatever you can find.

Accuracy is likewise not a critical factor with hunting ammo; anything inside 2" (at a hundred yards) is quite satisfactory for shots out to 4 or 500 yards; far beyond what my typical 'long shots' are anyway. You should NOT be deciding on ammo based on 1/2" accuracy vs 1" accuracy; it's completely irrelevant under field conditions.
 
Here's a total Newbie question for you all:
will the same brand of cartrige but with different gr. weight shoot the same at 100yds?
Is the gr. weight only a indication of kinetic energy transfer?
 
maybe, maybe not. There's no guarantees one way or other. Heck, there's no guarantee that the same weight bullet between manufacturers will shoot to the same POI at a hundred yards, either.

Generally speaking, heavier bullets are more aerodynamic, but fly slower. This means they shoot flatter and drift less over LONG distances (like 1000 yards), and retain more energy at impact (at pretty much any distance). Heavier bullets also (generally speaking) penetrate deeper than lighter bullets, but there are a lot of exceptions.

As long as you're within the 'normal' range weight for the caliber (so, for a 270 that would be 130, 140 and 150 grainers), and are using a quality bullet (i.e. not just the cheapest whitebox ammo that you can find), you're probably good. If you want to go with the cheap ammo, it's far more preferable to get the heaviest one you can find. This will slow down the muzzle velocity enough to reduce the tendency of cheap bullets to fragment on impact, and ought to buy you a bit of wiggle room as the bullet sheds weight (i.e. even if it loses 50% of it's weight, it will probably still leave you with a big enough intact piece to penetrate deep enough to get the job done). With a premium bullet design such as a GMX, TSX or partition, this limitation is basically eliminated.
 
One of the best and most reliable moose bullet is Nolser's .277" 150gr Partition.
That what many 270 Win experienced hunters use and it works very well.
This bullet is loaded in Federal Premium 270 WSM 150gr Nolser Partition ammo and is a great medium range moose load.

If you reload, you could load some Nosler 160gr Partition semi-spitzer but this bullet is not loaded commercially.

Alex
 
The .270 WSM is a great cartridge - the best of the WSM's in my opinion. It offers plenty of power, so I would go with any of the controlled expansion 150 grainers. The Partition, TSX or Accubond would not let you down.
 
Ditto to the suggestions made, but more important then bullet type is shot placement. One person told me they take aluminum pie plates and put them at various distances and places between 50 and 250 yards. AS they walk they practice taking shots at the pie plates. The big thing is to spend enough time practicing. If you can find a cheaper bullet with similar ballistics use it to practice and then fine tune with the bullets you plan on using for the hunt.
 
To answer your second question reguarding different bullet weights.

In my experience if you change anything in the reciepe of the cartridge load, especially bullet weight and or style ( spitzer/round nose), powder charge and or type. You will change the impact point of where your rifle shoots. Will there be enough difference to miss a moose at 100yds? Probably only if you were aiming for his left eye. But maybe enough to make a good shot into a poor one.

Different brands of ammo even in the same bullet weights will print differently. Why because they all use slightly different powders and charge weights and the bullets are slighty different. Basically they are all very good cartridges and will do the job if placed properly.

But the only way to surely know is to head off to the range with different loads/brands and bullet types and weights and test them out. Then what ever you choose and finally sight your rifle in with. This should be the "only" cartridge" brand and type you take moose hunting.

Because the first time a moose presents itself to you you will get excited, there will be no sand bags to rest your rifle on, and you won't have all afternoon to make the shot, and it won't necessarily be 100 yds. There will not be little orange crosses on the vital areas, that you can place the cross hairs nicely on.
So you will need all the help you can get in the way of your rifle and cartridge selection being spot on.
Pay close attention to what Iam saying here as 90% of the fellas that head north moose hunting every fall, do so with a pocket full of different types and brands of ammo. Usually what ever is on sale at Canadian Tire the week before. Many moose get wounded needlessly and or missed due to this little fact. That and a cheap scope, which is whole other subject. But this won't happen to you because now you know better.
 
yes

Prosper...you are so right about a hunting bullet costing 30-40 bucks extra and moanin about it ....:confused:

prosper said:
I like premium bullets. Many cheap old geezers argue that they're not necessary, and are expensive. They're right, but if an extra $30 or $40 is going to make it or break it for you, I think that hunting and firearms aren't the right hobby for you, and frankly, display a lack of respect for your game.

Personally, I'd go looking to try some Hornady GMX loads - I used some in 7mm last year with good success; they seem to open up really really quickly - they sound and act like soft lead points on deer with that meaty 'whop' sound that you just don't get with Barnes bullets. Yet I did get very impressive penetration with them, and look forward to further experimentation with these. At the moment, I'd say they're probably my overall favourite bullets.

Second choice would be a tie, between something loaded with Partitions, or Barnes TSX/TTSX.

Bullet weight is not terribly important with these sorts of premium projectiles; I'd go with 130's or 140's; whatever you can find.

Accuracy is likewise not a critical factor with hunting ammo; anything inside 2" (at a hundred yards) is quite satisfactory for shots out to 4 or 500 yards; far beyond what my typical 'long shots' are anyway. You should NOT be deciding on ammo based on 1/2" accuracy vs 1" accuracy; it's completely irrelevant under field conditions.
Click to expand...
 
Based on 45 to 50 years (can't exactly remember it's been so long), and the majority of my moose having been taken with a .270 Win. use a loading consisting of a 150 grain Nosler Partition.

I've never found a reason to try anything else so cannot comment on how TTSX or other bullets work.

Jim
 
Alot of good replies, I can add to it based on my own experiences with this caliber.
I have never shot a moose with this caliber but have taken two nice Saskatchewan whitetails, both with the 140 Accubond,this caliber lacks nothing in killing power for whitetails but if I was to use it for moose I would shoot nothing lighter than this 140, preferably a 150 or 160 Partition since I feel that the extra weight might be a benefit in certain situations, of coarse a 130 can also do the job if you are a hunter that is disciplined enough to pass up an undesireable shot, it comes down to discipline.
bb
 
In the .277 caliber I have a liking for the 130gr TTSX, 140 Accubond and the Fusion brand factory ammo. I used the 130gr Fusion ammo last year in a good ol' .270 WInchester for my bull and it worked just fine.

That speedy cartridge, I would go with any of the premiums 130-150gr and not worry about it.
 
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