Thread: Its just my humble opinion.

Hi team.
Im new to rifle hunting world. Im a bow hunter at heart.
Recently I received my firearms license, and im now on the "hunt".
I personally love a wood stock. Winchester model 70 cambered in .270 is my first choice.
I personally can't stand the feel of synthetic stocks.
Do I need to change with the times or stick to my personal preferences.
The rifle i have my eye on its the one mentioned about and it most likely an original. 1960 or 70 i think.
Looking forward to some feedback.
Cheers

Welcome mate.

I have pretty much the same rifle - Model 70 XTR Featherweight in .270. I also have a synthetic Rem 700 in .308. Despite them being ballistically pretty similar (wait for it...) the .270 was my first rifle, and much prefer carrying it round than the .308. Being light, mine has a bit of a boot, but there's just something about timber and blued steel. Don't think twice, buy it. You can always sell it if it's not your thing.

Prepare yourself for a large proportion of the advice you're about to receive to be that you MUST buy a synthetic + stainless Sako or Tikka in any number of chamberings other than the one you just said you wanted.

PS. When you say "change with the times", a .270 with a timber stock is hardly outdated.

Welcome to the forum

I think you should get what makes your heart happy and not worry too much about random internets strangers opinions

Oh you are aan of fine taste good sir....fine taste indeed. She will serve you faithfully for many years and if is like mine was...will poke all loads near enough together that at hundy or under it won't matter which load you using,it will hit where your aiming. I now have Howa 270 and it's in wooden stock.

"Do I need to change with the times or stick to my personal preferences."

Unless tupperware turns you on and you have a thing for girls wearing crocs then no, you don't need to change

In this Hyundai driving, Everyone-gets-a-prize world of flying bullshit that passes for a culture, you can be the one that stands apart

A man who stands by his word,with an honest calibre

The world can go to hell in a handbag and you'll still have your 270

A fine choice sir, shoot a 270 well and this country is yours

Just do you mate, rifle choice, like so much in life, is subjective. A good mate lives by the motto "Be yourself, everyone else it taken"
Wise words to live by imo. I shoot a .243 in synthetic n blue.....and a .270 is next on the list despite everyone around me saying I should get a .308 because blah blah blah

I felt the same. First 5 guns all wooden stocks. Main hunting rifle is walnut .270.
I went against my convictions and bought a synthetic stock 17hmr because it was cheap and light, and to my surprise I don't like it haha.
It does it's job. Maybe a high quality European gun with a synthetic stock might be better, but I'll likely always favor wood.

whatever rocks your boat, i have wood/steel and stainless/synths.
all of my guns are"workers", so while i do take care of them the occasional "ding" in the wood is nothing to cry about. if it was a $10,000 holland and holland i would be gutted

Originally Posted by ChchAndy

Hi team.
Im new to rifle hunting world. Im a bow hunter at heart.
Recently I received my firearms license, and im now on the "hunt".
I personally love a wood stock. Winchester model 70 cambered in .270 is my first choice.
I personally can't stand the feel of synthetic stocks.
Do I need to change with the times or stick to my personal preferences.
The rifle i have my eye on its the one mentioned about and it most likely an original. 1960 or 70 i think.
Looking forward to some feedback.
Cheers

Welcome...I always prefer wood/blued (or in some cases bare metal that was once blued..) If that is what floats your boat, then float on....You may like what these guys have to offer..I have never actually ended up buying from him, but man have I really enjoyed looking at them. https://cacnz.co.nz/ ...Mostly euro stuff and not a lot of American hence a lack of the 270....but he has a good range of 6.5x55.....which is one of my favourites...

Welcome to the Forum. I personally love wood/blued rifles and have owned quite a few over the years.

Currently I only own 1 wood/blued deer rifle, a Kimber 84M in.260 Remington. It has the most beautiful walnut stock. Because of this it has spent most of its life in the gun safe. I don't want to ding the stock or get it wet...it's just too pretty. I take it out hunting over Summer and shoot a few deer and put it away over winter.
In the winter months I use a Stainless Synthetic Kimber Hunter in 280 AI or my Browning X bolt Speed in 6.5 Creedmoor.

So just bear in mind that if you get a wood/blued rifle wet, you really should pull it apart and dry it out to prevent rust from developing. I know not everyone does this or feels it is necessary...I guess it just depends how much you want to look after your rifle.

One other thing. you say you are a bow hunter. Does that mean that you have not used/fired rifles? If you have not, then I am not sure that a .270 would be the best choice for your first rifle. Even with a suppressor the recoil may take a bit of getting used to.

wood blued proud of ya 270 cant go wrong enjoy your hunting- similar rifles to look at Tikka 690 in 270 wood blued- 60.s 70.s Remington 700 BDL or CDL all great rifles

Originally Posted by Kimber 84M

Welcome to the Forum. I personally love wood/blued rifles and have owned quite a few over the years.

Currently I only own 1 wood/blued deer rifle, a Kimber 84M in.260 Remington. It has the most beautiful walnut stock. Because of this it has spent most of its life in the gun safe. I don't want to ding the stock or get it wet...it's just too pretty. I take it out hunting over Summer and shoot a few deer and put it away over winter.
In the winter months I use a Stainless Synthetic Kimber Hunter in 280 AI or my Browning X bolt Speed in 6.5 Creedmoor.

So just bear in mind that if you get a wood/blued rifle wet, you really should pull it apart and dry it out to prevent rust from developing. I know not everyone does this or feels it is necessary...I guess it just depends how much you want to look after your rifle.

One other thing. you say you are a bow hunter. Does that mean that you have not used/fired rifles? If you have not, then I am not sure that a .270 would be the best choice for your first rifle. Even with a suppressor the recoil may take a bit of getting used to.

My first gun was an unsuppressed .270, definitely bearable but I know what you mean. A few goes at the range and i was set
.243 might be a better option though.

It's not about us mate, it's about you. Wants and needs... We often confuse and conflate the two. Comparison also is the thief of joy. If it ain't broke... Take the rifle you enjoy using and go for it.

Chch Andy, if you like old school, stay old school. Wood stocks work just fine. Some of them are works of art, and well worth having.

With the AR long gone there are two synthetic/aluminium stocked firearms in my safe, two stainless barreled. The rest are wooden stocked and that's how I like them. I've been down the synthetic stock route a couple of times but they generally piss me off at some stage and end up getting swapped out for wood. I just find wood nicer in hand and they take as much punishment as synthetic. Only ever broken one wooden stock but have also broken one carbon fiber piece of shit and damaged one fiber-glass one. If you like wood and blued, buy it and be happy. As for .270, it'll handle anything in this country and then some.