05 Oct 270 WSM
The little ‘Matador’.
Great success achieved in Spain with the 270 WSM cartridge.
Although the venerable and venerable 270Win is currently gaining more prominence than ever since the days when Jack O’Connor popularised it, largely due to the ballistic comparisons it is undergoing with the most current and avant-garde designs, its most updated predecessor, the successful ‘botijo’ (also called this in Spain because of its thickness and roundness, similar to a ‘botijo’ or clay pot) is unrivalled even among the most recent cartridges in the PCR family or the super-modernised and competing 6.8 Western.
The reason is a .277 calibre (practically a 7mm) with excellent sectional density, high velocity and flat trajectory, bringing it closer to the external ballistic performance of a 270 Weatherby and far surpassing the most current 6.5 cartridges or even the now forgotten but no less interesting 264 Winchester Magnum or 6.5×68 Schüler.
This cartridge, which has not achieved the same popularity in other countries as it has in Spain, has conquered the Spanish market, particularly among mountain hunters, where the largest game to be hunted does not exceed 100 kg, with the exception of mountain deer, which weigh around 190 kg, also perfectly huntable with this cartridge at medium ranges.
Ethical hunting range – Long range shoots
It is therefore an ‘ideal’ compromise for hunting with ‘long-range’ shoots, understood as those committed within an ethical range, no further than about 350 metres.
Despite its great success, at least in the Spanish market, ammunition brands are limiting the production of this type of cartridge to just a few brands which, although they once offered a wide variety of projectiles in a range of weights and designs, they have now been forced to offer only two or perhaps three types of tips. Furthermore, these latest projectile designs, which focus more on marketing factors than on actual terminal ballistics data, generally lack the previous sensational performance of tips such as the Barnes TTSX, Ballistic Tip or Soft Point, among others.
A mountain hunting cartridge
Does this mean that this great mountain hunting cartridge will disappear in the future?
The truth is that I cannot speculate on such a thing, however, the emergence of a multitude of new designs that attempt to emulate the magnificent performance of their ‘progenitor’, the 270win, or those of this ‘matador’ itself, combined with the limited variety of commercial brands that develop this cartridge and the deficiencies of the tips currently fitted (very hard and with very low expansion for animals weighing less than 100 kg, as already mentioned), give me considerable doubts.
The 270 WSM is capable of cleanly taking down (again, with an appropriate expansion tip) a Gredos Ibex at 350 metres or even further, delivering ballistic energy at that distance with the nominal tips for this calibre (130 grains) of approximately 2,040 joules, more than enough, as I said, even for heavier game.
Currently, some commercial brands are opting to use heavier bullets, between 140 grains and 145 grains, delivering more energy in shots up to 200 metres, which is similar to that of a 30 06 with 180-grain bullets over the same distance. This has allowed this cartridge to evolve from a very specific specialisation, such as long-range ethical hunting of mountain animals, to being used with equal success in ‘spanish monteria’ driven hunts and battues, although in my opinion, for the latter type of hunting, a traditional 270 Win with 150-grain lead bullets can be equally effective, or even more so, as it releases more energy within the channel precisely because it develops less velocity. This is a concept that is difficult to understand in Spain due to the existing ‘magnum mania’, as hunters confuse high velocity with the expansion of the projectile and the damage caused to tissue by moderate energy released within the channel, as opposed to excessive velocity, which does not allow for such terminal effects on tissue.
I have tested this ‘botijo’ on multiple occasions at distances ranging from 200 metres to 350 metres, which, in my opinion, is where it achieves its best terminal ballistics results. However, as with all high-velocity cartridges, the choice of projectiles is critical.
Conclusions.
We find ourselves at a possible ‘crossroads’ where this cartridge could disappear from commercial ammunition manufacturers, as has been happening, with few models available among the most prestigious brands or other less important ones that have already stopped producing it despite its excellent results when using the right projectiles. This could affect many hunters who at the time decided to opt for this option, using a shortened bolt action in their weapons, limiting the total weight of the rifle, which is a determining factor in high mountains.
Although manual reloading is always an option for maintaining weapons chambered for this cartridge, in Spain the chances of acquiring identical reloading material each season are very slim, if not non-existent, thus reducing the chances of maintaining uniform ballistics over time.
I think that to reload is always an option for keeping ammunition chambered for this cartridge, in Spain the chances of acquiring identical reloading material each season are very slim, if not non-existent, thus reducing the chances of maintaining uniform ballistics over time.
Despite the high cost of ammunition, due to the fact that it is a cartridge known as a ‘magnum’, it will be difficult to find a substitute that achieves this level of popularity among mountain hunters, or perhaps we can always resort to the old and almost ‘obsolete’ but more relevant than ever 270 Winchester, which with the right powder is capable of coming very close to the performance of the little ‘killer’. Or maybe not! Only time will tell!
On the feature image, from left to right:
270Win with 110-grain Barnex TTSX tip (excellent performance due to its high velocity in shots up to 250 metres with similar energy to a WSM with 130-grain tips at 350 metres).
270 WSM Federal with 130-grain tip (unsatisfactory results, room for improvement)
270 WSM Geco Express 130-grain tip (unsatisfactory results, room for improvement)
270WSM Norma with 130-grain Soft Point tip (excellent results)
270 WSM Norma with 130-grain Ballistic Tip (good results)
270 WSM Hornady with 145-grain ELD X tip (pending testing in hunting action)