If you're a deer hunter looking for the best scope for Browning 270 rifle, we have created this guide for you.
The Vortex Diamondback 4 - 12X40 SFP scope and Nikon Buckmasters II 3-9X40 are great affordable optics with plenty of magnification for hunting & tactical shooting applications.
The next up we recommend is the Leupold VX-R 3-9X40mm and Vortex Viper HS 2.5-10X44mm for being a rock solid scope for hunters who are looking for a great optic system for fast moving game hunting.
Also there are other options available, so let's get check them out.
Best Riflescope for Browning 270 X Bolt Series Rifles
Mount one of these optics on your Browning 270 X-Bolt series bolt action rifles. These rifle models are made with custom precision rifle features on a factory production rifle.
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Vortex Optics Diamondback 4-12X40
- Magnification - 4-12x
- Objective Lens Diameter - 40 mm
- Adjustment Graduation - 1/4 MOA
- Eye Relief - 3.1 - 3.4 inches
- Tube Size - 30 mm
- Focal Plane - Second
- Length - 11.9 inches
- Weight - 14.6 oz
Vortex Diamondback is an value for the money option. The Diamondback 4-12X40 SFP scope comes with dead-hold BDC reticle, which is simple to use for hunting.
This 1" tube size scope is made from solid one-piece aircraft-grade aluminum alloy construction, and it makes the Diamondback riflescope virtually indestructible and highly resistant to magnum recoil.
The 12X magnification is plenty for shooting long range and hunting, and contains Vortex's Precision-Glide Erector System that ensures the components in the zoom lens mechanism glide smoothly and cleanly through all magnification ranges.
The turrets for elevation and adjustments are capped for outdoor protection, and they are easy to operate without any tools in the field.
The Diamondback just like another Vortex products, which offer unlimited lifetime warranty, which also makes the consumer feel confident about using the product and get it replaced at no cost if something happened to it.
- Magnification - 5-25x
- Objective Lens Diameter - 50 mm
- Adjustment Graduation - 1/4 MOA
- Eye Relief - 3.4 inches
- Tube Size - 30 mm
- Focal Plane - Second
- Length - 15.79 inches
- Weight - 31.2 oz
Why people love Vortex Optics - By now, everyone in the industry knows the Vortex brand. They make a large selection of optics for shooters.
The Vortex Viper PST 5-25X50 is a second focal plane scope with a sharp glass quality, no noticeable distortion of any colors, and it has great light transmission than other scopes.
Vortex Optics Viper PST Gen II 5-25x50 is a second-generation with significant improvements to Gen I. the scope is more durable and comes with better glass, larger eye box and eye relief.
The Gen 2 version also finally upgraded the turret adjustment similar to their high-end Razor line, which means no more shims for adjusting your zero stop.
The Viper PST EBR 7C reticle is versatile for hunting with .270 caliber, competition and shooting tactical. So you can do more with this scope besides hunting.
- Magnification - 4-16x
- Objective Lens Diameter - 50 mm
- Adjustment Graduation - 1/4 MOA
- Eye Relief - 3.4 inches
- Tube Size - 30 mm
- Focal Plane - Second
- Length - 13.6 inches
- Weight - 20.4 oz
What we like about the Vortex Viper HS - For a .270 deer rifle, we recommend the 4-16X with a Dead-Hold BDC reticle, which is ideal for hunting within 500 yards, and if you choose to take it to a rifle range for precision shooting, then you can increase the magnification up to 16X if need to.
The scope is well made with simple, capped windage and elevation turrets, which takes out a lot of weight of the scope that is ideal for hunters.
The 30mm main tube with 50mm objective lens capture enough light for low light applications such as hunting during the dawn.
The Viper series optics are people's favorite go-to for competition shooting, hunting, and long-range precision shooting. People who have it only have positive things to say about it and it doesn't drain your wallet for the quality you get.
Why should people give Viper HS a try? - First off, the Vortex Optics offer the industry's best customer service and warranty. If you don't like it or damaged it, get a free one shipped to you at no cost.
As far as the quality of the scope for just under $1000, you can't beat the quality compared to others, so be sure to check out this scope and click on the link below:
What To Look For In A Hunting Riflescope
The .270 is an accurate hunting cartridge up to 500 to 1000 yards. So when we explore the scopes we need to pay attention to the specs that can help the shooter reach from 500 to 1000 yards with all the good qualities of a scope.
That include magnification, weight, eye relief, objective lens, reticle type and many more. So keep reading about them in the next few sections.
Check out: Best Long Range Rifle Scopes For 1000 Yards
Range & Accuracy Of A .270 Winchester
The accuracy and the range of a .270 are determined by multiple ballistic factors. Such as twist rate, power charge, ballistic coefficient, muzzle velocity, and many more.
Typical hunting distances are within 400 yards if the hunter is in a mixed wooded and open terrain, which means a 4X magnification will just do fine.
Besides picking the most accurate scope you also need to understand what .270 Winchester can do based on the rifle system you have.
.270 ranges from weighing just 90 gr and 180 gr depend on what game you're hunting that makes sense to your budget and shooting distances.
Cross Over Usage
Many hunters who use the Browning 270 for hunting and precision shooting. So picking a scope you feel comfortable using is important.
The .270's recoil is relatively moderate and you will definitely feel the kick, so you need a robust scope to hold zero after hundreds of shots.
For hunting purposes, you need a scope that can take a beating out in the bushes. Not only it must able to resist bumps and scrapes, but also moisture from the environment.
A scope with ballistic reticle is ideal for precision shooting and also hunting. The weight of the scope is important factor for hunters who are on his/her feet a lot in the woods, and not so much for stationary range shooting.
Related Content: Best Riflescopes For 308 & Other Hard Hitting Calibers
What Magnification Do You Need For Deer Hunting
Magnification is one main factor in the cost of a scope. If you understand your hunting perimeter, either long-range, short-range or mid-range, so there is no need to get a high magnification such as 12X or higher if there is no need to.
Magnification power is also important for target identification if you don't want to carry other binoculars to save weight and increase your mobility in the woods, which means you can use your scope as a spotting scope as well. In that case, you can pick something with more magnification levels.
Deer hunting is a challenging outdoor activity, which require you to be efficient and accurate with all of your gears including the scope.
Most hunting scenarios happen within 500 yards, so a 1-4X or 3-9X scope will be ideal for deer hunting and also great for cross over usage on the flat shooting range.
Taking a shot from 1000 yards might be a life goal a hunter want to achieve, but getting that kill is much easier within 200 - 400 yards.
Reduced Scope Weight
Scope weight is an important factor for hunters than for stationary long range shooters. The hunters move a lot, so letting go couple ounces means lot to save energy on a hunting trip.
The Browning 270 is about 7 lbs without a scope. If you can keep this entire set up for hunting under 9 lbs will be optimal. Everyone is different so pick accordingly.
For a stationary long range setup, the weight doesn't really matter as long as it doesn't bother you.
Sun Shade To Block Lens Glare
Most scope has objective lens threads to accept adapters, and some scope comes with sun shade adapter for shooting under the bright sun.
Depend on your hunting style out in the wild, sun shade is a great scope accessory to have.
Eye Relief - Protect From Scope Bite
Eye relief distance of 3.5 to 4" for a scope is a good amount to protect your eye from the scope bite, and also see clearly without any scope shadows.
When hunting it's very often that the shooter had to quickly pick up the sight picture and shoot a running target, so having a good eye relief provides you from getting hit by the scope when shooting an relatively strong recoil 270 Win.
Objective Lens - Larger Diameter For More Light
Besides magnification, you want a scope with clarity and brightness.
The bigger the lens diameter the better the light capturing ability. It's very practical for the hunter to be able to see through the scope with enough light under low light conditions in outdoors locations.
Combined with hunting color flashlight in dark environment, the scope has to give you the ability to capture enough light for you to see through. For night shooting we recommend using thermal scopes.
Parallax Adjustment
Having parallax adjustment on the scope is important for aligning the reticle plane to the target plane to avoid aiming error, which also gives the shooter a more flexible head movement.
Usually higher magnification scopes offer parallax setting adjustment, and the lower magnification scopes don't.
Reticle For Hunting - For Faster Target Acquisition
It's essential to find the right reticle for hunting and for the ballistics of the 270 bullet. Solid crosshair scopes are simple, but ones with has marks provides more aiming reference points, which are ideal for windage and elevation adjustment that add precision to the scope.
Hunters typically choose duplex reticle, mil-dot or BDC. It's not necessary to get a complicated reticle like the Tremor 3 for extreme long range shooting.
In hurried situations where the target is moving away, those harsh marked reticle can quickly give the shooter some range estimation and take a quick shot. That's a nice feature to have on a hunting scope.
Check out the new ACSS HUD DMR reticle as it features faster ranging capability and moving targets.
Tough Body Construction
Most scopes are built with aerospace-grade 6061 T6 aluminum, and they are shockproof, fog proof, waterproof and recoil proof.
They are all important specs to look for in a scope for durability
Another important factor is how tight you mount the scope on the rifle, please checkout the proper torque spec for common scope rings here.
Focal Plane
The shooter can pick between second focal plane or front focal plane. This is a very important spec to look at when buying a scope, which a lot of people miss out on at first.
Second focal plane doesn't change the scale of the reticle during magnification change, which means the reticle is only true at the highest magnification setting.
The first focal plane allows the reticle size to change relative to the change in magnification, aka the BDC reticle is true at any magnification settings.
Without adjusting anything, the shooter can be accurate on the target.
SFP scope is what we all grew up on whether we knew it or not. These will cover 95% of most hunting situations and are generally what I would recommend to most people.
In a nutshell, FFP scopes are not the best for timber hunting but work flawlessly when hunting country where longer shots can be expected or when shooting distances further than 500 yards.
Additionally, SFP scopes work great at close distances and can work excellent at longer distances when a few extra seconds can be taken to ensure you are on the correct power for which your reticle is optimized for.
Cost
The cost is based on the magnification, focal plane and the overall build quality. If a high quality scope is what you want and precision hunting is important to you, then have to pay that price.
Hunting scopes are simple in design, and lot of features that a tactical scope have a hunter doesn't really need it, which saves lot of money.
Reducing the magnification level for hunting within 500 yards will filter out so many great and affordable options without spending over $400.
How Far Can You Shoot A 270?
With the Browning 270 X-Bolt Bolt action rifle, the gun can reach at least 1000 yards. For hunting purposes, 300-500 yards are good practical distances for the rifle and the hunter.
Which is a good factor to look at when picking the right magnification level on your scope.
Depend on the bullet weight the ballistic performance of the .270 varies just like other rifle calibers.
A 150 gr .270 can reach 500 yards with about 1674 fps, 940 lbs energy with a -52" drop (4.3 feet).
A 130 gr .270 can reach 500 yards with 1904 fps, 1050 lbs ballistic energy with a -42" drop (3 feet).
Similar to a .30-06 round, picking the right 270 ammo and the right scope will get the job done for killing Whitetail deers, and you will be happy with the ammo cost, caliber performance and the scope you have.
Note: Learn and master your rifle system will make you a lethal hunter using any ammo type.
Round Up
The Browning 270 rifle is a classic, flat shooting hunting rifle. You can use it to hunt deers and also use it on the range for precision shooting.
For hunters, a variable power optic that has magnification settings between 4X and 12X are great for hunting big games, target identifications.
Most hunting distances happen within 500 yards, so getting a robust scope like the Vortex VX 3-9X that has the magnification you need, and it's durable.
As the content creator of badassoptic.com, My background in the firearms industry and shooting sports gives me the experience to recommend tried and true products and keep away subpar ones.