I love firearms and all of the associated activities, but sometimes… sometimes a little preparation is required before doing something even as basic as shooting groups to record accuracy, or gathering chronograph data. In this case, two and one half feet of packed snow required hours of removal before I could kick back and fully enjoy shooting in 5°Fahrenheit weather. A pretty clear explanation of why 87.2% of the population of Maine snowbirds to Florida every winter… Really.
After poking around in the T/C Venture hardware and coming to the realization this isn’t just a run of the mill firearm, I wanted to get it out on the range to see how it shot. Some firearms look good, and seem to have all the right parts in all the right places, then print like a 12 gauge shot gun loaded with buckshot. The only way to know which ones are which is to put out some targets and shoot some groups from a solid shooting bench.
Just happened to have some handloads handy…
The .270 Winchester is one of my favorite rounds, although I didn’t come to that conclusion until just a few years ago. I was working up some handloads for the .270 WSM when I decided to baseline that cartridge’s performance with the traditional .270 Winchester. Both performed well and handled a wide range of bullets, both were accurate rounds and both had enough power and range for most anything in North America. The WSM is just more of the good things the 270 Winchester has to offer.
Bullet weight selection for the 270 Winchester begins at around 90 grains and carries on through 150 grains, which is a little odd as .264″ bullets typically top out at 160 grains. Still, 150 grains was enough for me to move up from the .25-06 Remington, a substantial cartridge in its own right.
During shooting and data collection, the Venture was slick in operation with no hiccups in feeding or ejecting regardless bullet weight or contour. The magazine is removed from the Venture for loading and it cannot be topped off while in place.
Listed down the table in the order they appear, L-R, above…
| .270 Winchester Handloads | ||||||||||
| Bullet Type | Bullet Weight |
# | Bullet Length “ |
Bullet Diameter “ |
C.O.L. | Powder Type |
Charge | Primer Type |
MV Actual |
Muzzle Energy |
| Sierra HP | 90 | 1800 | .851 | .277 | 3.200 | Re17 | 62.0 | CCI200 | 3694 | 2728 |
| GS Custom HV* | 110 | 270110HV | 1.170 | .277 | 3.340 | Re17 | 60.0* | CCI200 | 3425 | 2866 |
| Hornady HP | 110 | 2720 | 1.01 | .277 | 3.165 | Varget | 52.5 | CCI200 | 3333 | 2714 |
| Hornady SP | 130 | 2730 | 1.110 | .277 | 3.210 | Re22 | 61.5 | CCI200 | 3152 | 2869 |
| Sierra SPBT | 140 | 1845 | 1.187 | .277 | 3.300 | Re22 | 56.5 | CCI200 | 3115 | 3017 |
| Nosler Partition | 150 | 16323 | 1.255 | .277 | 3.330 | Re19 | 55.5 | CCI 200 | 2987 | 2972 |
| *Data applies to this bullet alone. It has positive thin driving bands and ultra low resistance start pressure | ||||||||||
Working with heavy loads, I didn’t quite see the velocity I expected with a 24″ barrel. Not a problem with the rifle, just a reflection of what happens to powder pressure production when the ambient temperature is 5° Fahrenheit. I backed off on charges a bit and generated velocity as noted on the table. Very respectable performance under any conditions.
Accuracy was well within the advertised MOA group size. The largest group size came with 90 grain bullets, nudging the 1″ mark with all examples of these rounds. Increasing and decreasing charges by small increments seemed not to influence accuracy. The 110 grain GS Custom loads shot a little over 1/2″, the Hornady 110 grain shot closer to 1″. The 130 grain Hornady shot 3/4″. The 140 grain Sierra shot 1/2″ pretty consistently. The 150 grain Partition loads shot just under an inch.
Overall…
The Venture’s trigger is crisp and consistent. Adjusted to 4 lbs of pull, the setting held throughout the live fire portion of the project. Recoil was very light, even for 270 Winchester 150 grain loads which I attribute to a good recoil pad and the recoil dampening effects of the stock’s composite material. The rifles proportions made the Venture feel balanced, fast handling and comfortable regardless the hold.
The Burris SixX scope was a good fit for the rifle and cartridge and the 2X-12X magnification range suited the capabilities of the combination. The fact that both the rifle and scope are an aesthetic match doesn’t hurt either. The Venture is an excellent hunting rifle with performance that makes it viable out to several hundred yards. The price makes this one of the best values I’ve encountered for some period of time and its build quality and design would make it second to none. Nice gun.
Thompson / Center’s Venture Part I
Thompson / Center’s Venture Part II
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