7mm Rem Mag is only a slight improvement over the .270 Winchester. They both can use 140 and 150 grain bullets. They're about the same diameter (.277" vs. .284") and length.
The 7mm Mag will give you 150 to 200 f.p.s. more velocity (at pretty much every range). The 7mm will give you an inch or two less bullet drop at long range, but at long range the bullet drop for either one will be measured in feet, so the difference between them is small.
If you're going to buy a new rifle for the new place you live and the new game you're going to be hunting, I say get something that shoots 180 - 250 grain bullets and still has velocity around 3000 f.p.s. and is known to pack a wallop.
As a poster above said, if self-defense is the concern rather than hunting, a 12 gauge 3" magnum slug gun should be able to put a hurting on any animal in Alaska at self-defense distances. That's a 400+ grain hunk of lead moving around 1600-1900 f.p.s. and developing nearly 3000 foot/pounds of energy. Its penetration in meat is measured in feet, not inches.
The 7mm Mag will give you 150 to 200 f.p.s. more velocity (at pretty much every range). The 7mm will give you an inch or two less bullet drop at long range, but at long range the bullet drop for either one will be measured in feet, so the difference between them is small.
If you're going to buy a new rifle for the new place you live and the new game you're going to be hunting, I say get something that shoots 180 - 250 grain bullets and still has velocity around 3000 f.p.s. and is known to pack a wallop.
As a poster above said, if self-defense is the concern rather than hunting, a 12 gauge 3" magnum slug gun should be able to put a hurting on any animal in Alaska at self-defense distances. That's a 400+ grain hunk of lead moving around 1600-1900 f.p.s. and developing nearly 3000 foot/pounds of energy. Its penetration in meat is measured in feet, not inches.
