.243 Bullet selection for deer

[Arkansas Paul]

I've heard horror stories about trying to get Handi Rifles to shoot accurately, especially in .243 Win. I have one in .280 and almost sold it within a month because I could not get it to group at all. I finally found a load it likes, Winchester Ballistic Silvertips. I just tried another load to see if I had any options with no luck. Not even on the paper at 100 yds, and when I moved it in to 50 it looked like a shotgun pattern.
I'm glad you posted that. I'll try it with the bag under the receiver and I'll also check that screw in the forearm.

 

[Paladin38-40]

Remington 660, Sierra 100 grain Pro Hunter, 40.5 grains IMR 4350 @ 2850 fps has worked perfectly with one shot on deer for me. All shots were placed in the boiler room. I have also taken 3 deer with a 150 grain Sierra Pro Hunter in a 30-06 but the deer were no "deader" no quicker than the ones shot with the .243.

 

[788Ham]

We've always used Hornady's 100 gr. Spire points in .243, knocks 'em flat on their back! They've been used in Savage lever actions and Savage 110 bolt action rifles, never had them go further than 10 yards after being hit.

 

[CMC]

my grand son has killed 2 deer and both of them droped on the spot at 80 and 100 yards with the Winchester supreme that is loaded with the Nosler ballistic tip.
He uses a Savage youth rifle with a 4x x 38 mm weaver scope, If your wife is a small person you may want to consider a youth rifle for her.

 

[Kachok]

Nothing wrong with a 243, but if you are not in love with the 6mm bore I would go 6.5mm. I did a VERY detailed comparison of light kicking rifle calibers http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=560821&highlight=sissy+kicker the 6.5mms ruled in the 14lbs recoil class. Case effecency and super aerodynamic bullets put them in a class above the rest. My 6.5x55 is the lightest kicking hunting rifle I have ever owned, and drops deer and hogs as quick as anything I have ever used. I have much more confidence in my long hefty 140gr bullets vs 80-100gr for the 243s. Get your wife a 260 rem/6.5 Creedmore if you buy factory fodder, or get a 6.5x55 if you handload
243s do have an advantage in terms of varmint hunting but since you did not mention them I have to advise the slightly larger caliber due to the huge increase in performance with virtualy no increase in recoil.

 

[IkenI]

If you handload try an 87 gr hornady v-max with 42 gr of imr 4350. that should do the trick, not that I'm endorsing the 243.....i have my opinion on cartridges derived from the 300 savage

Huh? try .308 Win. I've used the .243 for decades and never had any problem with any size deer, including monster Muleys. I prefer 100gr Hornady or Rem factory ammo although I used to do considerable reloading for this caliber. I also shoot/shot many other calibers but .243 is a favorite. Too small for Elk but no problems with any deer.

 

[ridgerunner1965]

id have to agree with kachok, the 243 is good but the 6.5 class rifles are the sleeper in the light kicking deer rifles.with the 140 grn bullets you will get good penatration on bigger game and sure kills every time you hit the boiler room.i dont get the DRT kills with the 6.5 that i get with the 243 but the deer go about the same distance on heart lung shots, organ damage is about the same but for sum reason meat damage is less.the 6.5 has better long range ballistics and i like the heavier bullet with the same kick in case i need the deeper penetration.

 

[Eb1]

AP, I hunt SW Arkansas, and I find that the .243 would be a good round for the size deer down there. I opted to go .25-06 instead of .243, and like you I feel that the Winchester 115 grain Ballistic Silver Tip is the pill for me. I would figure the same in .243 if it is available in 85 grain or higher.

I feel that the .25-06 has substantially less recoil than a .30-06, but the terminal ballistics on deer is fantastic. I haven't shot one that hasn't dropped DRT.

 

[Birdhunter1]

Sluggo1 my brother in law is hooked on the 87 Vmax as well. I kinda talked him into trying it, and he said if you hit a deer broadside for a heart or lung shot it is like it swallowed a hand grenade.

I don't know how well it would work if it had to penetrate bone, but I know I have taken coyotes at 365 yards that when shot in the rear it exited it's chest. Being the inquisitive type I am, and just having to know, I found that it fractured the rear hip, went through every organ I think, and broke the breast plate on the way out. So I am not buying the exploding on impact and not penetrating, the bullet traveled a full 18" at least through guts, bone and hide. Needless to say that coyote dropped on the spot. I had another do it at 528 yards broadside through the chest, didn't examine that one as he stunk.

Oh yeah, my personal favorite is the 87 Vmax, 50.0 gr. VV N560, a a Federal 210 match primer, Nosler brass with the bullet seated into the rifling.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

Nothing wrong with a 243, but if you are not in love with the 6mm bore I would go 6.5mm.

I like the 6.5s as well, but my funds will be limited, so I figure on getting an entry level rifle like a Marlin XS7, a Stevens 200, or a Savage Axis, something along those lines. I don't know that I could find a 6.5 in my price range, but I would certainly be open to it if I did find it.

AP, I hunt SW Arkansas

Where at Eb1? We hunt just out of Farindale. It's our first year in the lease down there, but everything we're seeing so far looks very promising.

 

[Eb1]

In Lamertine. On the edge of columbia and nevada co.
Do you hunt down by the old armory? If it is whete I am thimking.you should have good luck. They restricted hunting there for along time, but opened it last year.

If you haven't bought the rifle. Seriously check out the .25_06. It is some serious deer medicine. A little more bang IME. 115.gr ballistic tips are on a lack og a better word AWESOME.

 

[Kachok]

The biggest advantange for me is the versitiity. Both can shoot lazer flat light weight varmint bullets at 3500+fps. Both the 243 and 6.5x55 can shoot zippy midweight bullets. 100gr@ 3100fps and 120gr @ 3020fps respectivaly. But when the game gets tougher and larger the 243 wimps out, that is where the 6.5x55 finds its sweet spot, its mainstay 140gr bullets have a remarkable SD and penatrate enough for hunting elk and our trophy hogs. It is this super penatration that gives the 6.5x55 its reputation for disproportionate killing power. But it gets even more versitle still. The ultra hefty 160gr monsters it was designed for are still used by many hunters and penatrate like nothing else in the small caliber world, though this is an overkill for nearly anything in North America. A .328 SD means that in theory a 160gr 6.5mm will penatrate deeper then even a 200gr .30 cal or 175gr 7mm bullet of similar construction. Impressive performance for a sissy kicker
BTW Paul I found my wounderful T3 Stainless 6.5x55 for only $408 NIB, not much more then I paid for my XS7 .308.

 

[T.R.]

Any of the newer bonded core bullets or Nosler's Partition should produce 100% penetration every time. This Dakota antelope was toppled well beyond 275 yards with Nosler 95 grain Ballistic Tip from my Remington .243 rifle.

TR

 

[slugg01]

No offense, but a bullet like the V-max, designed to fragment upon inmpact, is a wonderful load for varmits and furbearers, but a HORRIBLE choice as a deer bullet. When using lighter bullets, like the .243, you want a well designed bullet that will retain weight and penetrate well, not something that fragments into tiny pieces upon impact. I'll never understand why people often suggest varmint bullets when discussing loads for the .22 caliber centerfires and the 6mm/.243 family of cartridges. Hollowpoints and V-max's just don't hold together well enough to be used on deer-sized game, and anything less than a perfect shot could EASILY lead to wounded animals.

I watched a guy shoot a deer last year with these bullets out of a 308. He damn near shot it in the guts and the deer dropped in its tracks. I would call that a less than perfect shot but they worked. I'm still not promoting anything derived from a 300 savage though.

 

[slugg01]

Sluggo1 my brother in law is hooked on the 87 Vmax as well. I kinda talked him into trying it, and he said if you hit a deer broadside for a heart or lung shot it is like it swallowed a hand grenade.

I don't know how well it would work if it had to penetrate bone, but I know I have taken coyotes at 365 yards that when shot in the rear it exited it's chest. Being the inquisitive type I am, and just having to know, I found that it fractured the rear hip, went through every organ I think, and broke the breast plate on the way out. So I am not buying the exploding on impact and not penetrating, the bullet traveled a full 18" at least through guts, bone and hide. Needless to say that coyote dropped on the spot. I had another do it at 528 yards broadside through the chest, didn't examine that one as he stunk.

Oh yeah, my personal favorite is the 87 Vmax, 50.0 gr. VV N560, a a Federal 210 match primer, Nosler brass with the bullet seated into the rifling.

I like my animals to look like they swallowed a grenade lol. I shoot 125gr hp TNTs out of my 300 win mag for deer. Now thats devastating!!! I'm trying a 577 t rex this year......hopefully the bullets penetrate

 

[slugg01]

IkenI..............the 308 is still derived from the 300 savage

 

[Eb1]

I have got pictures of a 115 grain Winchester Supreme Silver Ballistic Tip from my .25-06 I recovered from the back ribs of a 300 yard quarting shot on a 125 lbs. doe. I also have the wound channel entrance. If anyone wants to see the pics I can put them on a website somewhere.
When the bullet hit it made an entrance hole about the size of my fist. It opened rapidly. Very rapidly, abut it did not come apart. It yawed and tumbled through the vitals. Absolutely destroying ever organ in the upper cavity. Penetration was about 22"-28" before it stopped in the offside skin. It broke the front shoulder also. I would say that is excellent performance. The bullet they use can be bought to reload with.
The company is Combined Technologies. It is a Nosler BT with a coating called Lubalox. I don't know if it is different than Moly, or if that is actually what it is, but it works good. It acts like Moly. I have to shoot about 20 rounds before they really start to group out of the gun. They are not bad groups during that 20 rounds, but after 15 to 20 shots the next 300 rounds will be excellent.

 

[Hoxviii]

I've seriously never shot a "bad" round through my ruger 77 MKII in .243. do your part and any round will do its.

I've always hunted with plain old Winchester Super-X 100 grainers for deer. They're as accurate as you are to 250 yards easily. I have pet loads for other creatures, but for normal "deer ranges" for a starter pick heavy soft points that are cheap to learn on.

 

[Art Eatman]

Er, uh, .243. Not Big Maggies; not 6.5...

 

[Birdhunter1]

Slugo I guess I should reword that, he said the deer looked like it inhaled a hand grenade as the lungs were vaporized/shredded/flattened, bullet exited just fine and not alot of fragments found inside.

 

[greywolf444]

I use a 243 and the old 87gr hornady. Kills deer like lightning hit them, never saw lung tissue until I switched to a 270. With the 243 I have had exactly one deer take one step after being hit. The rest took zero. with the 270 they run 50-100 yds. In my family this gun is like magic. Everyone starts with it, some have tried other calibers but few are as effective. We only take lung shots and no less than sure shots are allowed. BTW-The bullets don't pass thru and don't hold together but they work so well I never tried changing them.

 

[Kachok]

243s much like 25-06 are a shock kill caliber, they do not have the standard twist rate to handle heavy for caliber bullets, but both do a great job of shooting relitivlty light bullets at ultra sonic speeds. These create a large cavatation effect on impact, the resulting pressure wave can cause in instant KO and the deer will bleed out right where they sit. The only problem is when they are not knocked out on impact, the shock wounds tend to be much more shallow and my not have damaged all the vital organs. I tend to perfer very heavy for caliber bullets, they are less dramatic in their killing I rarely get that instant flop, but my 140gr 6.5mm bullets will make a substantial wound through any deer and always blast through the other side. Over 20 years of hunting and I have never recoverd a bullet, and never lost a deer.

 

[Eb1]

You make valid points Kachok. Have you ever shot a deer with a .25-06? I would agree with you 100% in regards to the 6.5mm 140 grain bullet, but the last deer I shot with my .25-06 left a fist size hole on a through and through, and the other standing next to it quartering left a fist size hole going in. It broke a shoulder bone, and was found 24" behind the rib cage on the other side partially out of the skin. So I can agree about the shock factor, but there is also great penetration to happen with a .257 bullet of 100 grains to 120 grains, and the would channel with the respectable Ballistic Tip just leaves devastation in the chest cavity like nothing I have seen before. Explodes energy into the chest cavity, and then tumbles right on path. A very well designed bullet.


I shoot deer down in S. Arkansas, and they are an average of 140 lbs. Not the 225+ Iowa deer, but I wouldn't hesitate to drop an Accu-bond or Partition into one of those larger deer. Heck. I'd probably just use the 115 grain BT that I am use to shooting, and have really good results. The thing about your statement that is also kinda misleading is the "shock/knockout" factor. If you shoot a deer with a 6.5mm 140 grain, and it makes a nice permanent wound through and through, but if it doesn't completely destroy the lungs and heart, well, you are watching that deer bleed out on the run.

With a .25-06 and BT that releases tons of energy 4"-7" after impact, and then keeps on going your deer drops and bleeds out while before they hit the ground. This isn't a post against your choice of firearm. I would love to have a 6.5x55 or the like, but I still have much respect for the .25-06, and I don't worry about lack of penetration.
The .243 will have a harder time with penetration than a .25-06. I don't think they are in the same category to be honest. That is just my opinion, but I think the .243 is perfectly fine for whitetail deer. I was just replying on another thread about deer hunting with a 9x19. I also don't knock those that use a .223 for whitetail.
I have chased more deer shot with a 30-30 than any other caliber, and I am talking about dead nuts heart shots, double lung shots, and also a few neck shots. I finally switched to 125 grain HP in the 30-30, and resolved a lot of the chasing hit deer syndrome, but as luck would have it. I finally got my .25-06 that I always had a sweet spot for, and so far it has proven to be the best deer rifle I have ever shot a deer with in my hunting career since I was a young, young child.

 

[Kachok]

Nope never owned a 25-06, but hope to be fixing that soon Seen plenty of deer they have put down though. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that a 25-06 or 243 won't penatrate well, that is as much a function of bullet design as SD, but you are alot more likley to create a bullet failure (overexpansion) at 3300fps then the 2750fps I am getting with a given bullet design, and on avrage a .287 SD will punch much deeper then a .216 SD. Now the 25-06 is avainlable with some very tough bullets to make up for it's lack of hefty bullets, the Nosler Partition, Accubond, and TSX just to name a few. These are proven to drive deep even with light bullets and high speed impacts. That is enough penatration for elk (with ideal shot angle) which is the upper end of .25 cal limits anyway.
I tend to agree that the 243 and 25-06 are not in the same class. Not a world of difference in factory loads but the 25-06 like the 6.5X55 can be safly handloaded far above it's factory specs.

 

[Eb1]

Admittedly that the 25_06 has its limits, but for what it is designed for it does very well. I guess when you get your own. You will be more inclined to sing the quarter bore praise. Something about them you just have to experience first hand.
I am a little nervous myself dropping from 115 gr to 100 gr this year, but I think the results will be the same. At least I hope so. If the accuracy is not there the I will not switch, but if it is then I will. Something tells me though that the 115 gr BT is about as good as it gets for whitetail.