Thread: ruger american .270 best round to shoot weight/brand type

hey guys, im new to long range shooting and planning a trip into the ruahines and looking at potential shots between 200m-500m. ive been looking at normal Winchester super x rounds (130g and 150g) and also the deer season 130 grain rounds that have more energy and FFP at extended ranges, also been looking at the hornady 145 grain ELD-x and the 130 grain ssts so im wondering if anyone has fired these out of a ruger american and which one this specific rifle liked best in terms of grouping and or what peoples experiences you've had with dropping game out at those ranges with these particular rounds and what you would recommend. cheers

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I'd give a vote for Hornady 145gr ELD-X... I have my Christensen Arms sighted in out to a 1000 yards with it and very impressed. I took a meat buck in Wyoming this past season at almost 200 yards free handed and he went about 10 yards.. Jumped and died where he landed and rolled down the hill. It pretty much exploded his heart. Found the mushroomed bucket right under the skin on his outer front shoulder on exit. Shooting up hill with him quartering away.

Sorry I forgot to say that's with a 6.5 PRC. I'm shooting a 143gr ELD-X

New to long range shooting,ruger American.270-sounds like a clusterFK waiting to happen.Just do plenty of practice mate before gut shooting some poor long necks.but the precision hunter will be the best long range bullet if your gun likes them.

the winchester 130grn is a good all purpose load...wouldnt consider it an ideal long distance load at all..the 150grn winchester is AWESOME..simply AWESOME for spook n shoot or bush ranges...130grn sst has reputation for blowing up so good for pest control/varmits....personally wouldnt trust them on big reds but if it was all I had would slip one in the crease or neck or not shoot at all. the longer range fellas are now pretty much all using the 145grn hornady loading and the factory stuff seems to be consistant enough SOME folks are just using that as it is for longer range shots.
POSSIBLY use that for that job...and one of the other cheaper winchester loads for run of the mill shooting,with luck your rifle will shoot the two loads close enough together it wont matter.
agree with the sentiment of the above..unless you can consistantly pop a 3ltr milk bottle at any given range(6"x6"...you shouldnt be attempting to kill animal at same range

Agree with Micky on everything. Feel like I need to mention I shoot at a 1000 yards on a range and with a controlled rest. Energy wise I don't won't to shoot a whitetail farther than 700 and honestly wouldn't consider shooting one, while hunting, over 500.. Have to know your limits and doesn't hurt to think about the ethical portion. I'm a bow hunter mostly so up and personal is what I like so if I see one at 500 and know I can probably stalk in to 100-200, best believe I'm going to get stalking haha Really our west is the only place I ever use a rifle in the states. Not many trees and wide open country.

awesome thank you for your imput, ill probably go with the 145 eld-x as it seams to have more confidence from hunters than the sst shots on impact. as i said boys im at the planning stage and wanted some insight on what people believe the best rounds are for optimizing long range effectiveness, so i can go to the range and get some hours in with that round. im not planning heading out tomorrow with a 3x9 to wiff shots across the valley and hope for the best haha ive got a scope thats more than capable to get me out there and going to put some hours of practice in at those ranges before i head off. im not new to hunting and know the importance of hitting a well placed shot in the engine room, hence the question posted in here to gain some knowledge as ive only shot out to 300m currently, i know its not all about the type of bullet but i want to optimize the caliber as much as possible a long side a well placed shot. i also know that the ruger american is a entry level rifle, i have invested the money into a very expensive scope for now and plan to upgrade the rifle to a tikka in either .270 or 300wsm in the future.

"New to long range shooting,ruger American.270-sounds like a clusterFK waiting to happen" would you care to explain this abit further? the research ive done one ballistics of the .270 show that its more than a capable killer at that range unless im missing something? and the ruger american although its a cheaper entree level rifle doesn't seam to have too much hate on he internet accurately sending lead out that far with practice at a range? i plan on leaving the sore gutted long necks to 1080 not a poorly placed sot haha

Watch some tahr hunting on utube,lot of guys use 270s.

Originally Posted by farmdeerhunter69

"New to long range shooting,ruger American.270-sounds like a clusterFK waiting to happen" would you care to explain this abit further? the research ive done one ballistics of the .270 show that its more than a capable killer at that range unless im missing something? and the ruger american although its a cheaper entree level rifle doesn't seam to have too much hate on he internet accurately sending lead out that far with practice at a range? i plan on leaving the sore gutted long necks to 1080 not a poorly placed sot haha

Nothing against Ruger Americans,i have 2 of them.1 in prc which shoots good but I have never come across at 6.5 prc that won't shoot well,its a forgiving calibre..270 not a great calibre for long range wind bucking ability.Long range hunting(not shooting) at any level of experience is tricky, get the .270 onto a range with wind and you'll understand what I mean.practice on long necks usually ends with guts hanging out.

Originally Posted by farmdeerhunter69

"New to long range shooting,ruger American.270-sounds like a clusterFK waiting to happen" would you care to explain this abit further? the research ive done one ballistics of the .270 show that its more than a capable killer at that range unless im missing something? and the ruger american although its a cheaper entree level rifle doesn't seam to have too much hate on he internet accurately sending lead out that far with practice at a range? i plan on leaving the sore gutted long necks to 1080 not a poorly placed sot haha

That Ruger American is a heck of a gun. I know several people personally that use them in .308, 243 and .270. It's one of the better budget guns out there that's pretty good out of the box.. If you were wanting something I'd trust a little more in longer range shots , and still not break the bank, the Tikka T3's are a very good option as well. The .270 is awesome out to 300 but if you were wanting farther I'd maybe reconsider the caliber if you're not stuck on it. I personally know 2 guys shooting 7mm mags In the T3's out to 700 with great grouping. The 6.5 PRC is a great option as well, I'm not sure what your ammo selections are like here though so that could be a deciding factor as well.