[Dumbo]

Is the .243 Winchester used at all in the Midwest for deer hunting? I've been told that only a few people down south use them on deer, except virtually no one in the Midwest uses the .243 Winchester for hunting deer and that to do so is considered very unethical. Is this true? I have been considering buying a .243 Winchester for varmints and deer, except I'm concerned about it's viability on deer.

[dakotasin]

go w/ a 25-06.

243 will work. 25-06 will work better.

[Art Eatman]

I've killed over 20 deer with my pet .243. Almost all were DRT one-shot kills. The majority of them dressed out at 120 pounds or less. (Smaller, cenTex deer) I mostly shot them in the neck, with a few cross-body heart shots. I use the 85-grain Sierra HPBT. For larger deer, I'd recommend one of the 100-grain bullets.

While that 85-grain bullet is devastating on coyotes, the Hornady 70-grain SP works well. I've got some 55-grain bullets, but I've not yet had a chance to try them.

For larger deer, particularly mulies, I'd limit the range when using a .243, and be really sure of my shot. I don't think I'd want to take an angling shot where deep penetration is definitely needed for a clean kill.

Art

[Keith]

I've killed a couple dozen deer with a nice old Mauser Sporter that I've since passed on to my son, who has taken more deer with it.
The .243 is pure deer poison and entirely appropriate for the species!

I would agree with Art that limiting your range is a good idea ( a good idea with any caliber). The .243 relies (to a large extent) on velocity to anchor the critter - which it does quite well! But if you stretch the range too much, you may end up with a wounded animal. 250 yards, no problem. 300 yards... you might want to start stalking closer.

My favorite load is a max charge of 4350 behind a 100 grain Nosler Partition. Federal makes a Premium load with a 100 grain Partitions that I've used with great success as well.

Keith

[SteveS]

I was thinking of getting a .243 for my recoil-shy wife for whitetail. Since the .243 is dependent on velocity, what should I be looking for in terms of barrel length? Ruger makes a compact with a 16 inch barrel.

Steve

[Art Eatman]

My little Sako Forester has a 19" barrel. Inside of 200 to 250 yards, that's plenty long enough. :)

Art

[Matt G]

Here in Texas, .243's fill lots of locker plants every November and December. For your standard Texas Hill Country whitetail (85-120#), it's the cat's meow with a 100 gr. bullet, though some favor the light 85 grainer. (the latter is too lightly constructed, IMO)

Why is it so popular? Because it's effective. It kicks very little, lending itself to regular practice. It's chambered in light, handy rifles. It's got inherent accuracy.

There's a certain elegance to using enough, but not more, with great efficiency. (Dang. Any more of this talk, and I'll need to go buy one. I've been using a .257 Rbts for the same basic niche.)

[Matt G]

I would discourage going with the 16" barrel, if she's recoil sensitive. Much of what we perceive as "recoil" is in fact blast. Felt blast from a 16", even with a little ol' .243, is uncomfortable. In hunting situations without hearing protection, it's downright deafening. I would go with the lightweight 20" barrel, and also enjoy the improved ballistics with the 100g.

[Art Eatman]

SteveS, IMO the best thing would be to go to a major gun store and let the BossLady feel and fondle various rifles to see what fits. And, to get a better idea of comparative weights. Length of pull is another factor, of course, but that's easily dealt with.

My Sako totals seven pounds, ready to go. The recoil is trivial, compared to 7mm08 or '06.

I have a 700Ti in 7mm08. I'm quite impressed with it. IMO, that rifle in .243 would be a winner, albeit a bit expensive.

Art

[Gordy Wesen]

.243 is deadly varmint medicine and OK for deer if you can make surgical shots. In all my experience I have only seen it used in the hands of women who did a good job of making alot of animals sick and not dead. I once sat on a hill watching this activity while their bullets landed around me. The net result was a crippled deer that hunkered off under a fence to die in the next field.

[stephen_g22]

I have been planning on buying a .30-06 or larger to replace the .243 my dad gave me when I was a pup, but the .243 keeps dropping deer and hitting what I aim at, so I keep putting off the other purchase.

I would not give anything for my .243

[kudu]

You got to remember a lot of midwest states are shotgun for deer, no rifle allowed. Check your local regs first. Otherwise I'd say go for it. >243 does a dandy number on deer, if you hit them right. Practice practice practice.

[pdt203]

I used a .243 for deer in OK. Never had a problem with a good kill.

[Sunray]

You give here a .243 with a 16" barrel and she'll end up beating you over the head with it The .243 has a fair bit a of boom to it. Give her a 22" barreled Savage. Use 100+ grain bullets for deer and have fun.

[Joe Demko]

I used .243 on deer for about 20 years, before switching to .300 Savage. My dad and brother still use .243. I never noticed that the .243 made the animals any less dead than larger calibers. My switch to the .300 was motivated by love of the Savage Model 99, not by a lack of performance by the .243, btw. I still have the Remngton Mohawk 600 which was my first .243 and wouldn't part with it for anything.
You won't regret buying one. Just be sure to buy or reload cartridges with bullets appropriate to deer. Much of the reputed poor performance on deer comes from people using varmint-weight bullets.

[Glamdring]

Hmm...the deer here are not as small as down south.

Here in MN at least half the state is Shotgun/slug (or handgun) only. You can use rifle in northern 1/2 of state. But AFAIK 243 isn't very common. I would say for people here that use rifle 30-30, 308, 30-06, 270, & 7mm Mag probably most common.

Myself I wouldn't pick a 243 for deer, I think 6.5mm's are about perfect, but with a premium bullet the 243 would work.

Unlike Art I wouldn't use a neck shot so I would probably use a Nosler partition or Barnes X if forced to use a 243 for midwestern deer. I generally go for breaking shoulder (to me it is all practice for DG hunting).

[Art Eatman]

For me, it's a size and distance thing. For deer that are likely to dress out above 150 pounds, I'd use a 7mm08 as my own personal minimum. In the days when my legs carried me 12 to 15 miles a day, I used Ol' Pet, my trusty '06.

:), Art

[Keith]

I don't know... A .243 with a Nosler Partition generally leaves an exit hole you can stick your fist in. It's possible that on a very large deer you wouldn't get an exit wound, but no critter is going far with that much internal damage. I shot a couple of very large mule deer in Colorado and got exit wounds and good kills. One buck dropped on the spot, and another was hit a bit too far back and went maybe 50 yards before keeling over.

I've shot deer with a variety of calibers, but the most dramatic "lightning strike" kills I've ever seen have been with a .243 and some hot loads with 100 grain Partition bullets. I've taken an awful lot of blacktails with that combo. Five deer a year on my own tags and a goodly number for my elderly neighbor and my own kids as a "proxy hunter". Thinking back, I must have taken 30 or 35 blacktails with that rifle and 100 grain Noslers over a five or six year period - about evenly divided between Federal premiums and my own handloads, which were a bit hotter.

The only reason I no longer hunt with that old .243 Mauser is because of bears in this area. Still, I'm fonder of that rifle than of any other firearm I own. My twelve year old son uses it now.

Keith

[Art Eatman]

Keith, around Terlingua, offhand shots at a running deer are far more likely than at a standing-around volunteer. And, if he's really worth bothering with, he's gonna dress out toward 200 pounds. I guess I'd call my druthers about the '06 as "insurance". :)

Art

[Keith]

Well sure, Art! Use any caliber you like and feel comfortable with - I'm using a .350 Rem Mag nowadays!
But the old .243 is a fine deer killer also, and nobody using it should worry that they haven't got enough gun.

Keith

[Glamdring]

Keith:I'm using a .350 Rem Mag nowadays!
But the old .243 is a fine deer killer also, and nobody using it should worry that they haven't got enough gun.

Elmer Keith might think the 350 was a little light for deer :)