Best Caliber? Modest Recoil for Antelope at 300/400 yards

[Lloyd Smale]

243 has been doing it for as long as ive been hunting. That said for an ideal gun id probably chose the 2506

 

[JimKirk]

I have never shot an antelope .... but I do believe my .25/06 with a 100 gr to 115 gr bullet would be just about ideal .... flat ... deadly and accurate ...

 

[Dog Soldier]

Yes, back in the 1970s Wyoming had more "Goats" then we needed. There was a limit on cottontail rabbits of 6 per day etc. There was no limit on Antelope and the tags were half price in Natrona County.
Wyoming has more of the "Goats" than the rest of the entire American continent. The Antelope is harvested with every caliber known to man. The Wyoming truck rifles range from an old 1903 Springfield to a custom long range 6.5 wonder gun. They all seemed to work. Come to Wyoming and hunt these beautiful animals.

https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Hunting/Hunt-Planner/Antelope-Hunting

 

[Gtscotty]

A few different .270's have worked well for me, but they are probably on the higher end of what is needed. Antelopes are pretty similar in size (chest width) to smaller southern whitetail, ranges can get long, but you don't need a whole lot of bullet.

 

[Captcurt]

I do not have either a .270 or 6mm, I was just asking. The .243 does seem to fit my needs, however, now there is talk of the .257, that sounds very interesting as well.

Back in the days before rangefinders I sighted my 270 shooting 130 gr bullets 3" high at 100 yards. That put me +4" at 200, on at around 275 and 12-14" low at 400. I could hold half way down on the shoulder and hit out to 350 yards. With the same sightin with the Weatherby and 100 grainers you are dead on at 300 and 7-8 low at 400. That is flat.

 

[Bush Pilot]

A .25/06 is ideal for your needs. I've lost track of how many head of game my .25/06 has taken. This cartridge can also be used for elk.

 

[MachIVshooter]

.25-06 is the benchmark long range medium game cartridge, has been a popular number for a half century for good reason. A better deer & antelope cartridge there is not, it will cleanly take elk and moose at reasonable ranges with proper bullet selection and shot placement, and can serve as a varmint cartridge as well, although a bit blasty and heavy on recoil for that purpose.

 

[Risky buisness]

After some bullet failures, no fan of the .243. For big game, I want more mass. There's no "practical" reason not to.

As a .243 hunter, are you always waiting for that perfect broadside shot? Do you completely avoid quartering shots? Do you avoid hitting shoulders?

"After several bullet failures"= switch bullets. If you prefer more mass, by all means, gun up for a 90 -125 pound animal. The question posed revolved around moderate recoil calibers for antelope, which a 243 is admirably suited.
In reference to you questions: As an ethical hunter, yes I prefer uncluttered broadside shots, and will pass on animals not presenting them, irregardless of the caliber, quartering shots, same thing. Shoulder shots, I prefer not to, and with adequate marksmanship skill and stalking ability have be able to avoid doing that, with or without a 243 in hand

 

[Dr.Rob]

.25-06 is a great cartridge, if you can find a rifle designed for walking around rather than shooting from a bench-rest. 117gr bullets have great performance on game but are also more affected by wind than 30 cal bullets. Shoot on a windy day and you'll see what I mean.

Everyone that wants to get into antelope assumes 400 yard shots are the norm. They aren't.

 

[CraigC]

"After several bullet failures"= switch bullets. If you prefer more mass, by all means, gun up for a 90 -125 pound animal. The question posed revolved around moderate recoil calibers for antelope, which a 243 is admirably suited.
In reference to you questions: As an ethical hunter, yes I prefer uncluttered broadside shots, and will pass on animals not presenting them, irregardless of the caliber, quartering shots, same thing. Shoulder shots, I prefer not to, and with adequate marksmanship skill and stalking ability have be able to avoid doing that, with or without a 243 in hand

No 100gr .243 bullet should fragment on a doe's ribcage. I switched to the Barnes TSX in the .250 strictly because the 100gr CoreLokt I used on a couple deer 2yrs ago fragmented. Is your only scrutiny of a bullet's terminal performance the presence of a dead critter?

Okay. So if I prefer to use more gun and/or a more robustly constructed bullet so that I do not have to wait for a perfect broadside shot, then my ethics are in question? How quaint. Are my ethics, marksmanship and stalking ability also in question if I prefer to use a bullet that does not fragment but maintains its integrity? Have you ever tried to stalk in the eastern woodlands?

 

[X-Rap]

I'll echo the praises of the 25-06. I'll pick up one of mine 9 out of 10 for deer/antelope sized game.

 

[salt&battery]

Assuming you're talking about Pronghorn in the US - which is not actually an antelope - rather than African or Asian Antelope species...

If so, then you don't need much gun to kill speedgoats to 400yrds. Hit them with a 243win and they'll drop. Nothing wrong with 260 or 6.5, but don't need that much bullet when the task is so easy, and don't need any specialty bullet like the ELD-X to get to 400yrds (although the ELD's are remarkably cheap).

Guys get caught up in fads and forget how easy it is to shoot 400yrds, and how easy it is to kill antelope.



And will fly faster than the creedmoor, although at 400yrds, it really doesn't matter.

when I was in Montana and saw antelopes for the first time could not believe how small they were thought they were bigger. cant be much meat on them

 

[Sunray]

"...Is the .270 or 6mm too much..." Nope, but if you want one of those, go with the .270. 6mm Rem ammo and brass isn't exactly easy to come by. Midway lists 4 brands/bullet weights for the 6mm Rem. One is in stock. The list one brand of brass and it's on back order. It won't be found in small places either. The .270 is everywhere. So is .243.
In any case, whichever chambering you chose(there are lot of suitable cartridges. Any of the .24, .25, .26, .27 calibres will do.) you must know the ballistics and practice at long range. A 130 grain bullet(Factory Hornady American Whitetail brand) sighted in 1.4" high at 100 will be on target at 200, but 19.3" low at 400.
"...As a .243 hunter, are you always..." Needing to use the right bullet. Bullets under about 85 grains are not made for deer sized game at any distance. They're made for varmints.

 

[Swampman]

@JohnnyFlake
You don't say if you're a handloader or what your budget is.

If you don't handload, I'd recommend the 25-06 or .270 Winchester.

If you do, look into the .257 Roberts Ackley Improved (40° shoulder). It'll give you almost the velocity of the 25-06, but in a shorter, lighter rifle.

Guys get caught up in fads and forget how easy it is to shoot 400yrds, and how easy it is to kill antelope.

I guided professionally for several years and I saw a lot more people miss or wound at 100 yards than I ever saw make clean kills at 400 yards.

Shooting steel from a bench at 400 yards on a KD range is fairly easy even if you don't practice much.
Making shots from field positions, at game that moves around, at unknown distances and with variable winds, just isn't that simple.

Treating it like it's easy does a disservice to both the hunter and the game.

 

[denton]

As nearly as I can tell, the place the 243 gets in trouble is when using lighter bullets at very high speeds. Standard cup and core bullets tend to come apart if they impact at more than 2800 FPS, and it's easy to exceed that in the 243. 100 grain Partitions at 2950 FPS are one excellent solution.

Pronghorn aren't very big, and they are often hard to get close to. Pick whatever you like that shoots accurately. As mentioned, the 25-06 is one excellent choice, as is the 6.5x55 loaded to modern pressures, in addition to the 243, 257, 7mm-08......

 

[Dog Soldier]

A mature Antelope boned out will yield about 28 pounds of meat. The "Goat" has scent glands in it's rump. These glands release an oily scent when shot. Many hunters not familiar get this scent in their meat. It causes the meat taste and smell bad. The Prairie Goat meat is very good if handled properly and not bloodshot from the wrong bullet.

 

[Llama Bob]

I'll join in with other people recommending the .25-06. It's hard to imagine a better long range caliber for the lighter side of medium game.

The .243 is reasonable as well, but given a choice I'll take that little extra bit of horespower and wider selection of bullet weights that comes with the .25-06. The recoil of either is rather mild even in lightweight rifles.

 

[Captcurt]

Everyone that wants to get into antelope assumes 400 yard shots are the norm. They aren't.

True that. I expected long shots. We took 6 goats with the longest shot 265 yards. The closest was 50.

 

[LoonWulf]

.257 ROBERTS!!!!!!......'Cause....

Anything from .243 on up will do fine. I would personally probably chose something larger than a .243 if i were unfamiliar with my quary and hunting location. Otherwise it sounds like a perfect job for the round.

Describing felt recoil as being light, moderate, or heavy, is actually pretty hard as there are a number of variables. smaller rounds recoil less, and heavier guns soak up more of the energy, but shooter tolerance can vary.
My personal opinion is that an 8lb 06 is very moderate, same for 9lb 7mag, a 9lb 300win is brutal, but shootable, and anything larger and lighter ill pass.
Yours may be that a 7-8lb .25-06, or .257 wby kick sharply enough to hurt, but in an 8-9lb gun, like the Vanguard, they are fine. Id say anything from the .257 wby down SHOULD be pretty comfortable, but again, thats only what i think.

 

[Risky buisness]

Craig C, lets do some apples to apples," No 100gr .243 bullet should fragment on a doe's ribcage. I switched to the Barnes TSX in the .250 strictly because the 100gr CoreLokt I used on a couple deer 2yrs ago fragmented.". Ok, I'm posting about the .243 Winchester, an apple, lets say. Your 'empirical' evidence of bullet failure/ caliber failure consists of 1 projectile, Rem Coreloc, in a caliber I'm not currently discussing, some .250 caliber you tout. Lets call that, an orange. Where does that come in to play, using 1 reference of a projectile that failed in an unrelated cartridge to down a really great rifle, the .243.
" Is your only scrutiny of a bullet's terminal performance the presence of a dead critter?". Seriously? Had you done more testing with a selection of bullets in your '.250' you probably would have reached a different conclusion. I spent quite some time developing loads and projectile choices before firing them at live targets.
" Okay. So if I prefer to use more gun and/or a more robustly constructed bullet so that I do not have to wait for a perfect broadside shot, then my ethics are in question? How quaint. Are my ethics, marksmanship and stalking ability also in question if I prefer to use a bullet that does not fragment but maintains its integrity? Have you ever tried to stalk in the eastern woodlands?" Seriously...again? When did this discussion devolve to questioning anyone's ethics or abilities other than my own? Here's the thing, yes I have stalked animals, not in the east, but in the south, Louisiana, namely. And found it to be very challenging, lots of brush and trees to shoot through, hold on.. that may be it, you were aware that a projectile striking a tree before it hit the intended target for would cause it to loose it's integrity and energy and preform as you indicated your .250 projectile did.

 

[GooseGestapo]

.25/06 or .257wbyMag.
100gr bullet.
Flattest trajectory to 400yds.

I've got a .257Roberts custom on M98 action. Also HAD a Ruger M77 in .257Robt. Have a Weatherby Vanguard in .257wby.
My .257Robt with hand loads essentially matches.25/06. .257mag has 200- 300fps advantage. I like both.

I have a .260Rem, but don't consider it to have any advantage at under 500yds. Not even then as it has a 1/10" twist barrel and doesn't do anything the .25's don't. (Won't stabilize a 140gr bt tipped bullet).
My two longest kills have been with .25's.
The .257WbyMag is the ultimate "speed goat" gun, IMO.
My 7mm-08 is great, but no match for the Wby on deer.
However, the .270win would be a close second choice.

 

[CraigC]

I used the .243 in the past and had 100gr bullets blow up on ribs. Traded it away due to those failures. If a cartridge couldn't do a proper job on an 80lb doe with standard factory loads, I had little use for it back then. Same reason why I gave up on Hornady bullets in the .405Winchester and went to Woodleigh. Same reason why I don't be using the 225gr Hornady SST in the .338 for elk. Barnes gets the nod again. Luckily I discovered its shortcomings with ballistic testing media, rather than live flesh.

I use the .250 presently and because I really like the rifle, I avoid its shortcomings by using premium bullets. Not the 100gr CoreLokt that lots of folks swear is a good one. I don't know where you get this idea that I'm a Fudd stumbling around in the dark.

And your comment about ethics did have implications. There was no need to even bring up ethics but you did and there was a reason for it.

It seems to me that lots of folks are satisfied with bullets that fragment, as long as there's a dead critter on the other end.

 

[CraigC]

Assuming you're talking about Pronghorn in the US - which is not actually an antelope - rather than African or Asian Antelope species...

If so, then you don't need much gun to kill speedgoats to 400yrds. Hit them with a 243win and they'll drop. Nothing wrong with 260 or 6.5, but don't need that much bullet when the task is so easy, and don't need any specialty bullet like the ELD-X to get to 400yrds (although the ELD's are remarkably cheap).

I find it interesting that folks will make a correction like that, that they're not "antelope" and in the same breath refer to them as "goats".

 

[farmerboy78]

Gonna say this cartridge because I just got into it in an ar, 6.5 grendel

 

[Llama Bob]

I think CraigC has a point. Lots of cup and core bullets have a fairly narrow velocity window and unpredictable response to bone. If you're going to use a round that pushes velocity very high, then it seems sensible to choose a premium bullet. In fact, I can't think of a good reason not to use them across the board. Frankly no one hunts enough to ever notice the difference in cost.