best cartridge for this aplication?

+1 .243

IMO the 25-06 or the .243 are great and probably your best bet but I'm gonna give you one to think about, probably gonna catch unabrashed H*** for this but why not the 6.8spcII, I know it's a relatively new round but it does leave you the option for bolt guns or the AR platform and there is enough info and aftermarket support now to develop good loads. I know you could say the same for the .243 but that is in the AR-10 style which tends to be more problematic and not as much aftermarket support as the AR-15. From what I've seen the 6.8 has performed well in a bolt gun.

You can't do this with a 30-30.

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How such an insanely unethical shot is relevant to this discussion I have no idea.

The 25-06 would be my choice over the 243.

25-06.......... 85 grain ballistic tips shoot as flat as a 22-250; and for deer, you can shoot 100-grain partitions, triple shocks; 110-grain accubonds; 115 grain partitions, 117 grain and 120 grain.

But it's long action; you might like the .243 because it's short action; and the .243 is more common; with ammo being more readily available in the local stores. The .243 is a very good choice; it's right behind the 25-06. The 25-06 will shoot 85 grain bullets as fast as the .243 shoots 75 grain bullets.

Ian Johnson said:

well im liking the tikka t3 and it comes in 243 and 6.5x55! not sure which one now, but Im still getting reloading equipment first

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My baby is my T3 Stainless 6.5x55 it is a dream gun, I have owned MANY rifles over the last 20 years but it is by far my all time favorite. True sub MOA accuracy with dran near everything you put though it, featherweight, compact, sounds like a 22mag, kills like a death ray and kicks like a cricket. The 6.5 Sweed T3s are hard to come by now unless they brought in another shipment which I understand that they are bringing more soon. BTW if you go 6.5x55 get some IMR4350 and 120gr Ballistic Tips, you can thank me later I don't load for the 243 (yet) but I understand N560 is a hella good powder with 95-100gr bullets, the guys in the Nosler lab got the best speed and accuracy with that one powder.

jmr40 said:

243 is what you want. Not that many others won't do the similar things, but for the money and versatility it is hard to beat.



How so. You can buy a very accurate bolt rifle considerbly cheaper than a 30-30. Factory 30-30 ammo is a little cheaper but you can reload 243 for a lot less. The OP did say he wanted a good round for reloading.

You can't do this with a 30-30.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hY0w1c-gf18

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0KY-X1e-Vg&feature=related

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30-30 is easy to reload,can be loaded from a .310 round ball over Unique, (Hornady makes a great little round ball for this;excellent for rabbit/squirrel hunting without destroying a lot of meat) up to the 190gr Hawk. I'm currently loading up a 'yote load with the Sierra 110gr Varmiter. So yes it is very versatile.

30-30 is more of a speciality round, nobody shooting prairie dogs at 400 yards with it, nor shooting 1000yd match with it, but what it does it is very very good at, deer sized game within 200yds with a handy little lever gun. Sure I heard about the guy who shot a jack rabbit with one at 60,000,000yds too, but it's external ballistics put it at a real hefty disadvantage compared to the very flat shooting 243 and wind bucking 6.5s. Now mind you I think the 30-30 is the better deer cartrage in the woods, more total wounding potential then the 243 thanks to it's much heavier .30 cal bullet with similar energy, and the fact that the low speed 170s won't make alot of gunshot meat even through the shoulder. Penatration is also much more reliable with its vastly heavier bullets. So great deer rifle, but I would never champion it as the all around gun, not by a long shot. The top "do it all" rifles are the 6.5x55, 7x57, 280Rem and 30-06 very few others even come close if you think about it.

Kachok said:

30-30 is more of a speciality round, nobody shooting prairie dogs at 400 yards with it, nor shooting 1000yd match with it, but what it does it is very very good at, deer sized game within 200yds with a handy little lever gun. Sure I heard about the guy who shot a jack rabbit with one at 60,000,000yds too, but it's external ballistics put it at a real hefty disadvantage compared to the very flat shooting 243 and wind bucking 6.5s. Now mind you I think the 30-30 is the better deer cartrage in the woods, more total wounding potential then the 243 thanks to it's much heavier .30 cal bullet with similar energy, and the fact that the low speed 170s won't make alot of gunshot meat even through the shoulder. Penatration is also much more reliable with its vastly heavier bullets. So great deer rifle, but I would never champion it as the all around gun, not by a long shot. The top "do it all" rifles are the 6.5x55, 7x57, 280Rem and 30-06 very few others even come close if you think about it.

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My opinion was based on the OP's desire to go after smaller fur bearing critters, not the cartriges effective range. Blasting something that I have no interest in keeping a pelt or meat such as a prairie dog or a chuck; then yes I would go with many of the fine calibers mentioned. I don't think I would like to take a perfectly prime bobcat with a .243 due to the damage it would do to the pelt. And as far as handloading goes; you can't beat the bullet availability of the .308 caliber. Many choices to choose from in cast or jacketed,rifle bullets or pistol bullets.

I love that the 30-30 sneaks its way into every cartridge discussion. It really is an great all arounder for under 200 yards.

30-30 is more of a speciality round, nobody shooting prairie dogs at 400 yards with it, nor shooting 1000yd match with it

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A specialty round??? Who said anything about prairie dogs at 400yds or 1000yd matches? I don't think anybody hunts deer and hogs with their F-class rifle or sits over a prairie dog town all day with their deer rifle either so how valid is this statement?

Very valid, no 30-30 load has the external ballistics for long range work, that is the point I was making. The OP said he wanted something versitile, so that is what I am focusing on. I don't varmint hunt with the exception of the occasional troublesome yote. Where I hunt now seeing a shot of 200 yards or more is dang near impossable anyway (most shots are within 70), so I would be very well served with a 30-30. My buddie out west would not, 300yd+ shots are routine for him. Yet both of us find our 06s and 6.5x55s to performe perfectly even under such wildly different conditions, highly versitle.
There are a couple of ways to perserve pelts and they are polor opposites, one is to use a modest power rifle (223 for example) and load it with low grain V-Max or Ballistic Tip Varmint. The idea is to have a small caliber entery wound and have the bullet come completly unglued inside the anamal so there won't be an exit. The other method is to load a higher power rifle with barnes solids or other non-expanding non-yawing bullet, very clean hole through and through minimal damage to the pelt, and the 25-06 guys swear it puts them down with a quickness, I don't use either since I don't keep pelts, all I know is 120gr ballistic tips kill them with an authority.