I know some of you deer hunters have defferent ideas about what a bullet should do. Some say to shoot a heavier, sturdier bullet that will exit the animal and some say to shoot a lighter, faster bullet that will stay inside, expend all its energy and in some cases, "over-expand" or basically tear up the insides of the deer. So I guess my question is, would a light weight Nosler Partition (130gr) out of my .270win do a good job on blacktail and mule deer? Here is my thinking, its light so it will fly fast, but it isnt like a heavy, slower Partition with more momentum behind it that will plow all the way through a deer and not expend to much energy on these relatively small deer that might weigh in at 120lbs.
Bullet question
- Thread starter andrew
- Start date
andrew
I think that is a great choice of bullet and wieght for deer or antelope in the 270 caliber. The 130 partition has worked for me in the past with no problems or failures.
MP
------------------
http://www.predatormasters.com
I think that is a great choice of bullet and wieght for deer or antelope in the 270 caliber. The 130 partition has worked for me in the past with no problems or failures.
------------------
JoeF
New member
Andrew, the 130 grain 270 is a deer mainstay and has to rank near the top as one of the all-time greats for effective choices.
Anything lighter is probably a varmint jacketed bullet not intended for deer - exclude from that comment anything like a Barnes X bullet that is an unusual critter.
FWIW, I'm a big fan of creating a leak on both sides of the deer and do not subscribe to the energy expenditure theory at all. I'm also not a fan of light for caliber bullets, which the 130 gr. 270 is not.
Off the shelf 130 grain softpoints like Remington Core-Lokts or winchester Power Points are adequate for most deer hunting. If you load, most bullet manufacturers offer something in a 130 spire point that does the trick - it just happens that my 270 likes the one offered by Speer. Almost all of these bullets will normally penetrate a broadside deer.
The Partition that you mentioned is a step up in that you get even more controlled expansion - not a bad thing on a close range quartering-on shot, or if you subscribe to the theory of taking out both shoulders. I load 95 Partitions for use in a 243 because of a desire to have a bullet that holds together at 243 velocities close range velocities and penetrates well. You would certainly get that; and more, out of a 130 270 Partition.
Another option may be something like a Nosler Ballistic Tip (the ones intended for deer sized game) if you want more expansion, perhaps someone with some first-hand experience with that type 277 bullet will chime in. I have not used them in 270 specifically, but what I have seen causes them to not strike me as a versatile any range, any reasonable angle bullet.
I've shot deer with Fed., Win., and Rem. factory 130's and 150 softpoints in 270 and honestly can't say that I could tell a nickles worth of difference in any of them from a performance on game standpoint. Same- same for 140 grain component bullets of simular construction.
FWIW, I shoot only whitetails. The does are commonly in the 120 lbs. range you mentioned, the bucks somewhat heavier. I've never weighed a deer of mine (I used to say that about coyotes,too...) but have recently taken some of the kid's bucks to the butcher shop and they have weighed in the 140 to 170 range after field dressing, none of these were "monsters" by local (Mo. hills) standards. I'd imagine that is bigger than the blacktails you mentioned, but smaller than the mulies.?
My take on the 270 for deer:
Softpoints jacketed with medium sized game(deer) jackets are adequate. If you want, step up to a more controlled expansion bullet such as the Partition, anything more exotic than that probably doesn't buy you anything from a practical standpoint.
Stick with something in the 130 to 150 weight range - performance and trajectory differences are not significant. Choose what your rifle shoots best in that weight range and learn where it hits. You'll wind up with a very adequate deer rifle.
Anything lighter is probably a varmint jacketed bullet not intended for deer - exclude from that comment anything like a Barnes X bullet that is an unusual critter.
FWIW, I'm a big fan of creating a leak on both sides of the deer and do not subscribe to the energy expenditure theory at all. I'm also not a fan of light for caliber bullets, which the 130 gr. 270 is not.
Off the shelf 130 grain softpoints like Remington Core-Lokts or winchester Power Points are adequate for most deer hunting. If you load, most bullet manufacturers offer something in a 130 spire point that does the trick - it just happens that my 270 likes the one offered by Speer. Almost all of these bullets will normally penetrate a broadside deer.
The Partition that you mentioned is a step up in that you get even more controlled expansion - not a bad thing on a close range quartering-on shot, or if you subscribe to the theory of taking out both shoulders. I load 95 Partitions for use in a 243 because of a desire to have a bullet that holds together at 243 velocities close range velocities and penetrates well. You would certainly get that; and more, out of a 130 270 Partition.
Another option may be something like a Nosler Ballistic Tip (the ones intended for deer sized game) if you want more expansion, perhaps someone with some first-hand experience with that type 277 bullet will chime in. I have not used them in 270 specifically, but what I have seen causes them to not strike me as a versatile any range, any reasonable angle bullet.
I've shot deer with Fed., Win., and Rem. factory 130's and 150 softpoints in 270 and honestly can't say that I could tell a nickles worth of difference in any of them from a performance on game standpoint. Same- same for 140 grain component bullets of simular construction.
FWIW, I shoot only whitetails. The does are commonly in the 120 lbs. range you mentioned, the bucks somewhat heavier. I've never weighed a deer of mine (I used to say that about coyotes,too...) but have recently taken some of the kid's bucks to the butcher shop and they have weighed in the 140 to 170 range after field dressing, none of these were "monsters" by local (Mo. hills) standards. I'd imagine that is bigger than the blacktails you mentioned, but smaller than the mulies.?
My take on the 270 for deer:
Softpoints jacketed with medium sized game(deer) jackets are adequate. If you want, step up to a more controlled expansion bullet such as the Partition, anything more exotic than that probably doesn't buy you anything from a practical standpoint.
Stick with something in the 130 to 150 weight range - performance and trajectory differences are not significant. Choose what your rifle shoots best in that weight range and learn where it hits. You'll wind up with a very adequate deer rifle.
coyote_220
New member
Hello Andrew in my opinion that bullet would be perfect for mule deer and black tail as well. A 130 grain bullet is plenty enough bullet to bring them down consistently in my opinion. I use 150-160 grainers for bull elk here in Montana and don't have any problems bringing them down. As long as you can place the bullet where you want it you can very easily kill a deer with a 50gr bullet.
Thanks
Shawn
Thanks
Shawn