The .270 Weatherby Magnum was the first
belted magnum based on the
.300 H&H Magnum to be developed by
Roy Weatherby in 1943.
The cartridge is short enough to function in standard-length long actions with a brass length of 2.549" or 64.74mm and an overall length of about 3.295".
History and Design
The development of the .270 Weatherby Magnum led to the characteristic double-radius shoulders belted magnum case, proprietary of the Weatherby Magnum line of cartridges. Particularly, the .270 Wby Mag the result of necked down to accommodate the .277 in bullets and bringing down the case to fit a standard length action. Like most Weatherby cartridges, the .270 Weatherby was standardized by the Small Arms and Ammunitions Manufacturers Institute in 1994, and it has a SAAMI maximum pressure limit of 62,500 psi. The first Weatherby cartridge to be used in Africa was the .270 Weatherby on a
jackal
Jackals are medium-sized canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word "jackal" has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-backed ...
on June 8, 1948.
Performance
Given its higher pressure and larger case which holds more powder than the
.270 Winchester, the .270 Weatherby has about 200 ft/s faster performance with any particular bullet weight. It also outperforms newer cartidge designs such as the
.270 WSM
The 270 Winchester Short Magnum or 270 WSM is a short, unbelted, magnum cartridge created by necking down the .300 Winchester Short Magnum and fitting it with a .277 caliber bullet. The correct name for the cartridge, as listed by the Sporting A ...
and the
6.8 Western. This performance comes at the cost of more
recoil
Recoil (often called knockback, kickback or simply kick) is the rearward thrust generated when a gun is being discharged. In technical terms, the recoil is a result of conservation of momentum, as according to Newton's third law the force r ...
and barrel heat. In addition, a long barrel is necessary to take advantage of extra powder to gain maximum velocity. The cartridge is excellent at long-range hunting, but is not well suited to high-volume shooting such as
varmint hunting
Varmint hunting or varminting is the practice of hunting vermin — generally small/medium-sized wild mammals or birds — as a means of pest control, rather than as games for food or trophy. The targeted animals are culled because they are cons ...
.
For those
handloading
Handloading, or reloading, is the practice of making firearm cartridges by assembling the individual components (case, primer, propellant, and projectile), rather than purchasing mass-assembled, factory-loaded ammunition.
The term ''handlo ...
their own
cartridges, this is an easy round to load. It does best with full-power loads and is not well-suited for reduced loads.
Ed Weatherby, son of Roy Weatherby says that the .270 Weatherby is his favorite
caliber
In guns, particularly firearms, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel bore – regardless of how or where the bore is measured and whether the finished bore ma ...
. As he puts it, ''there just isn't a better long-range
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the rein ...
caliber.'' He goes on to mention that it is also quite effective for
elk
The elk (''Cervus canadensis''), also known as the wapiti, is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The commo ...
, and
pronghorn.
Sporting Use
Due to its flat trajectory result of a combination of a high muzzle velocity and ballistic coefficient, the .270 Wby Mag makes an excellent cartridge option for mid sized big game out to considerable ranges and the fact of being chambered in standard length actions allows the possibility of manufacturing a light mountain rifle.
See also
*
List of rifle cartridges
List of rifle cartridges, by primer type, calibre and name.
File:Cartridge Sample 2.jpg, 350px, From left to right: 1 .17 HM2,2 .17 HMR, 2.5 .17 wsm, 3 .22LR, 4 .22 WMR, 5 .17/23 SMc, 6 5mm/35 SMc, 7 .22 Hornet, 8 .223 Remington, 9 .223 ...
*
Table of handgun and rifle cartridges
This is a table of selected pistol/ submachine gun and rifle/machine gun cartridges by common name. Data values are the highest found for the cartridge, and might not occur in the same load (e.g. the highest muzzle energy might not be in the sam ...
*
6.8 mm caliber
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:270 Weatherby Magnum
Weatherby Magnum rifle cartridges
Pistol and rifle cartridges
Magnum rifle cartridges