You couldn’t pick two more ubiquitous rifle cartridges than the 270 vs 30 06. These two rifle rounds have accounted for more game than probably any other two rifle calibers. That doesn’t even take into account the .30-06’s military heritage.
I believe writers have written an ocean of ink about both of these topics. My purpose here is not to re-invent the wheel. I want to gather information and explain how they compare.
To begin I will discuss their similarities and differences. I will also help you decide which one might be right for you.
First, a bit of history about each one.
The .270 Winchester was introduced in 1925, when Winchester engineers necked the .30-06 case down to accept a .277-caliber bullet.
Most other experimentation with the 30-06 involved necking the case up, and resulted in the .35 Whelen.
It fired a 130-grain bullet at (at that time) the blazing speed of 3140 fps. With testing completed, they chambered their popular Model 54 rifle in the caliber.
It’s a bit odd that Winchester used a .277 bullet in their new cartridge, as most other, popular 7mm cartridges at the time (7mm Mauser, 7mm-08, 7mm Remington Magnum) used .284 bullets.
To say it was a success is an understatement. Outdoor writer Jack O’Connor took just about every thin-skinned four-legged critter going with it, on more than one continent. He wrote a lot about the caliber in Outdoor Life magazine in the period just after WWII.
Needless to say, his writing spurred many hunters to adopt the caliber. Today, it is available in a variety of bullet weights and styles, suitable for animals from mink to moose.
Few rifle shooters don’t know about the legendary .30-06 Springfield. According to its military appellation, it was introduced in 1906 and fired a bullet of .308 caliber.
After the Spanish-American War, our military was impressed with the 7mm Mauser. Troops in Cuba were using this in 1898. They decided to set out to design a cartridge along those lines, resulting in the .30-03 Springfield.
After further development, three years later, the .30-06 came about. Sending a 150-grain bullet out the muzzle at around 2700 fps, it was the U.S.’s answer to Britain’s .303 and Germany’s 8mm Mauser.
The cartridge was extremely advanced for its time. Keep in mind that the military had not used smokeless powder for long when they released the "ought-six."
The thirty-caliber powerhouse came out before WWI. They used it in the 1903 Springfield rifle and the machine guns of that time. Later chambered in the M1 Garand, the .30-06 performed admirably during WWII and beyond.
It continued to go strong through Korea and only faced eclipsing by the 7.62x51 — the .308 in military dress — in the later 1950s.
Hunters sung its praises, but today it has fallen a bit out of favor as the .308 can pretty much reproduce its ballistics using more-efficient powders and fitting into a shorter action. But… it will still take any critter in North America and is no slouch on other shores. Although there are some areas where the old 30 ought 6 is still reigning champ.
Commonalities
There seems to be similarities between the 270 vs 3006.
For one thing, they’re both built around the .30-06 case, which in itself was descended from the .30-03 Springfield.
The only differences, to the best of my knowledge, is that the .270’s case neck is sized down to .277 inch and the case is about one millimeter longer.
Another similarity is that they are good for game animals from small deer up through moose, and both are good performers at range. Lastly, many rifles chamber for each cartridge, and a good selection of ammo is available for both.
Let’s look at a diagram of each.
270 Winchester
30-06
We see that, although they aren’t identical, these cartridges share some close dimensions. Up to the shoulder, the cases are the same. The .270’s case is just a touch longer.
Another thing they have in common is cartridge size and weight. Since they’re both based on the same case and shoot bullets that weigh about the same (nominally 130 and 150 grains). Meaning you won’t save much weight in terms of packing ammo if you go with the 270 vs 30-06.
Differences
A couple of differences exist between the two besides their bullet diameters and case lengths.
The most obvious is ballistics. Even though there isn’t a huge difference, there is some. The 270 Win is going to have a flatter trajectory, since it fires a lighter bullet.
It also has less felt recoil, ranging from 22% - 36% less free recoil when firing the following loads in a similar rifle. Felt recoil remains objective, but free recoil can be measured.
Here’s a table from thebiggamehuntingblog.com that shows trajectories of common 30.06 vs 270 loads. Note that the 270 Win is flatter-shooting, generally speaking.
This is not exactly apples-to-apples. The bullet weights are different, but it shows you the relative paths of the two cartridges.
Which Is Best?
Well… depends which is best for what? What are you wanting to do with a rifle?
If you are considering to fill your freezer with venison, either will get the job done. If you need to shoot a deer 400 to 500 yards away, the .270 has good energy and a flat trajectory making it the best option. Granted, there isn’t a whole great deal of difference, but every little bit helps.
What about versatility? Do you want to hunt coyotes and larger-sized critters with the same gun? Check out .270 Winchester again.
Its smaller bullet diameter means lighter bullet loads are usually easier to find. Many hunters do not consider the .30-06 as a varmint round, although it has fulfilled that role.
I have a good friend who competes in military rifle matches. He uses an M1 Garand that belonged to his dad, who was a military collector. Mitch wouldn’t think of using anything else, as the .30-06 is perfect for this role. This is one purpose for which the 30-6 is good at.
Back to the deer woods. For deer hunting at woods ranges, the availability of suitable 30.06 hunting loads at almost every rural mom-and-pop shop has you covered. No one questions the ought-six’s deer-harvesting prowess; since hunters have proven it over and over again for decades.
So, What Should You Buy?
I can honestly state that you can’t go wrong with either one of these.
Finding advantages of one over the other is difficult since they are pretty close. I mentioned a couple of advantages of each of them above, but it comes down to which rifle you like better. Ballistically, they are close.
If you are recoil-sensitive or plan to hunt in the mountains where a lighter rifle would help, the 270 Winchester might be your ticket.
Hunting larger game, like elk, moose, or eland? The 30 06’s heavier 180-grain bullet selection might tip the scale for you here.
If you want to add an AR-pattern rifle to your collection in either of these calibers, Bear Creek Arsenal has you covered.
Check out our .270 and .30-06 rifles and stayed tuned for upcoming 270 and 30-06 ammo!
Let’s hear about your adventures with these calibers below!
