I am disappointed and relieved...
The Winchester I was thinking about appears, now that I've sent the infantry to scout ahead...
It's a Winchester Model 70 XTR Sporter and it's in .270 Weatherby Magnum, not .270 Winchester.
At $3.25 a shot, the great deal on the rifle is quickly lost in the increased price of ammo...
Still, there's an allure.
It'd be the third of four commercially viable .277 rounds in the stable with 6.8 SPC and .270 Win.
Prolly pass on it.
Weatherby Magnum? Really? Oh hell.
ReplyDeleteI see a road trip in my future.
I don't have one, but I've got nothing against the .270 Win. I've got 3 rifles in .30-06 Spr, a 1903A3, an M1 Garand and a Savage. But my attitude towards more cartridges is mostly "yes, please". I reload for over 40 different ones... I don't really have a pressing need for anything in .270 Wby Mag, but I'd never say never.
ReplyDeleteI have a Winchester Model 54 in .30-06, I'm not opposed to the round at all.
DeleteI'd like to get a replacement for my M1903A3 and perhaps a Win 70 in it.
Willard's M1917 has taken up residence here. He can have it back for the asking, he just doesn't ask.
I'd love to get an M1917 and a Krag for my collection, but good ones are always more spendy than I have these days. Most of what I have are the inexpensive milsurps (many which used to be inexpensive but some aren't so much these days). The ones that had already gotten expensive I mostly have lesser examples of (like that Blue Sky Garand I got from Geff, and my 1903A3 is a National Ordinance which is not particularly sought after). I don't have many vintage commercial rifles at all, mostly I suppose because I wasn't looking or the opportunity just never presented itself much.
DeleteI should never have sold the M1903A3 I had. It was in good shape and came with a good story. I "got out" of .30-06 when I sold the Garand. Shoulda known I'd come crawling back.
DeleteCurrent plan is to see if Willard will accept a different 1903A3 for the one with the story.
I run hot/cold with regards to the Rifle .30 Caliber M1. They're plenty neat, but I don't really click with it. I shoot it pretty decently, but it lacks a je nes sais quoi that'd make me love it. That said, the $750 CMP guns are pretty tempting and I have the proper credentials to grab a couple...
I like the 1903A3, but it isn't really that much different to me than a lot of other Mauser variants, and as I said the one I have is a solid shooter with low mileage, but nothing special really, since it is a post-war build from GI parts with a commercial receiver. You know the history of the Garand I have. It has performed flawlessly since Paul Jacobsen put a Wolfe spring kit in it, but the stock is still as ugly as it ever was. One thing I found about the 03A3 is it is not a good idea to shoot full power loads with Hornady V-Max bullets through one. The grooves in the rifling combined with the higher velocity are enough to cause some very interesting effects. I ended up pulling down a bunch of my loads and reloading the .30-06 with a conventional FMJ bullet and putting the V-Max into .308 Win loads. I think they really intended the V-Max to be used in .308s anyway. And of course Garands really don't like anything but FMJ, and are fairly particular about the powder and load. I run 150gr FMJ with 50gr of IMR-4895. That's pretty close to the original GI load and it makes the Garand happy.
DeleteBig difference between that sweet .270Winnie and a freaking shoulder breaking .270 Weatherby "I've just destroyed my right side" Magnum. :)
ReplyDeleteGlad the temptation was removed from you. Now you just get to save money for a Spells-n-Sabers field howitzer, very useful for all sorts of celebrations too!
My cousin uses a pair of Weatherbys, a .240 and .270 Magnums for all of his Montana hunting. From varmints to big game, the pair did it all and he required nothing else. He is a hand loader though - that does work in his favor.
ReplyDeleteI'd pass on that too, another round to purchase just doesn't fit my 'color wheel' at this time. Plain ol' .308 Winchester for me is just fine.
jrg