I have shot a M70 featherweight in several calibers, including a 270. Currently only have a Featherweight in 7 mm WSM and there's nothing unpleasant it all when shooting it.

If you really want to test your shoulder I can provide the rifles.

I can’t explain it, but my uncle has a Sako 85 Grey Wolf in 270 WSM. With the laminated stock and all, it kicks harder than my brothers Model 700 SS in 300 WSM with synthetic stock. Neither one are a pleasure to shoot off the bench for multiple rounds, but that Sako rocks. My lone 270 Win is a BAR with no recoil pad, and it’s a daisy.

Killed my first deer with that one with my grandpa in '95 I believe.

Yes, it's definitely true that some gun designs kick harder than others. Stock shape and material is a big factor in addition to the weight of the rifle. I've got a custom wood stocked 300 win mag with a steel butt plate built on a M70 action. This stock is the slimmest stock I've ever handled and it's right at 8 lbs scoped and loaded. Sounds like it would be brutal to shoot off the bench, but it's not at all unpleasant. I have a 35 Whelen AI that is heavier with a beefier stock built by the same gunmaker and it IS brutal and downright painful after only a few shots. Worst gun to shoot off the bench that I own, and I have at least 10 magnum rifles. The numbers don't add up on that.

I've been a big fan of M70 featherweights since I was a teenager in the eighties. Never had an issue with recoil in any of them, but the M70 FW is NOT a true lightweight gun.

Agreed, AU338, some of the hardest kicking rifles I’ve shot were boat paddle Rugers in 270 and 30-06. Sharp recoil impulse with a thin, light stock concentrates that energy.

Arguing over who can stand the most kick while doing something you can do with a 223 is kinda retarded.

"Look here I killed this one with a Super Ultra Mag I paid $2000 for. Blood trail was awesome!"

"Cool. I just grabbed my AR and went to work. How do you bloodtrail? Mine don't go nowhere."

I use more gun than necessary, too. We like what we like whether it makes sense or not.

I have a Browning X-bolt Hunter model in 270. It comes with some fancy built-in recoil pad. I shoot Hornady 130gr Superformance SST. It kicks almost zero. Just a data point to consider.

7-08 is the way to go. Less recoil than a 270.

The 270 will definitely get the job done but it’s definitely not warranted for killing whitetails.

Killed my first 100 or so with a 30-06, 270, 270wsm & 300wsm and the last 100 or so with 223s, 243s, 6.5 Creedmoor and 6mm Creedmoor.

They’ve all died just as quick and those guns are more fun to shoot due to less recoil.

A 243 would be my first choice for my granddaughter and a 6.5 creedmoor second. Due to ammo availability. 7-08 is ballisticly similar to a 6.5 creedmoor but ammo cost 2x as much, is very scare and not near as many different factory offerings.

I talked a kid into a Tikka 270 and he killed a few a deer with it and ended up selling it for a 6.5 creedmoor b/c he said it kicked too much. This wasn’t a wimpy kid either as he was the starting varsity QB for 3 yrs (and a dang good one), but just wanted to give you a real life example.

I’ve been having the kids hunting with me shoot my model 7 .308, not one of them has complained about the recoil.

There is a lot to gun design when it comes to felt recoil.
I had a .270 A-Bolt that would rattle your fillings when you touched it off.
The T/C Venture .270 I’m shooting now is about like shooting a .243.

Agree. Some consider Steyr ProHunter rifles to be ugly due to the stocks, but I've never shot one that had any real felt recoil. Something about that particular stock design just dissipates it extremely well.

I have that pro hunter in 300 win and it’s a tack driver. As stated above never really fee a hard kick even when just playing around with it. It’s not pretty buts it’s a awesome setup

I’ve been shooting a 270 for years. It’s all I personally hunt with. Jack O’Connor killed every animal in North America with a 270. My granddaughter is recoil shy. I bought her a Left handed Browning micro hunter in 243. She’s deadly with it.

If he thinks a m70 featherweight is a stout kicker, he don’t want to shoot what you’ve got. Lol

Concentration is key. Blasting away for fun with a big gun, like shooting off fireworks, is not concentrating to shoot well. Everyone has a level of recoil which is insignificant to them in that it does not affect their concentration. This is the level of recoil which people shoot best. It varies person to person. If you don't know about the person, then 223 is the sure bet.

Most deer hunters can't afford to shoot anything other than 223 often enough to become truly excellent shots. If a person finds 270 recoil insignificant, and can afford ammo and barrels, there's no reason not to use it instead.

. I've been shooting one since the early 2000's, the only time I had trouble with it killing was when I switched to Berger Hybrids. These were more for long range shooting, they just didn't work well shooting 25-50 yards in the woods. I love this gun. I don't care what others say, it is bad juju on deer, hogs and yotes.

Anything under a .338 win mag should not have unpleasant recoil. Anything that kicks to hard is not the cartridges fault, it is the guns fault. I had a SBGM in a .300 WBYMAG that felt like a .22 when I shot it because it had a muzzle break. Muzzle breaks Trump recoil pads all day long. Even my .450 marlin with a 350gr bullet isn’t all that bad because it has a muzzle break.