Loading for the .243 win.

[ArkansasFatboy]

Guys I got a new toy. A savage model 10 in .243 win. the twist rate is 1 in 9.25 and seeing as i didn't have any brass I went down to my local wally world and purchased a couple of boxes off the shelf so I could "make brass" any way I know the rifle dose not like the 100gr factory loads I was feeding it today. What bullet weight is best for this twist rate I would like some input from you guys to "get me in the ballpark" on bullet weight.

 

[NCsmitty]

What 100gr loads did you try? Were they Boat tail Soft Points by any chance? If they were, I would suggest trying some 100gr Core-Lokt or something that is not a boat tail.

If you want to shoot boat tail bullets, select something 90gr and under.

What is your barrel length?

There is a bunch of reloading data available at the powder manufacturer/distributor sites.

www.hodgdon.com

www.alliantpowder.com



NCSmitty

 

[243winxb]

90gr to 68gr. Try this- IMR 4350-42.0gr CCI BR2 primer, Sierra 85gr HPBT #1530 Rem or Win brass. H4350 if you can not find IMR 4350. Good for all critter up to deer. Want more accuracy, try Berger bullets.

 

[Lincoln4]

Comparable bullets

So, there's no info for reloading Core-Lokt bullets. I've read that you should use a recipe for a "comparable" bullet. So what would be a comparable bullet for a core-lokt bullet?
Speer Grandslam?
What else?

Thanks for any help you can give this relative novice...

 

[Clark]

I have 95 gr VLD hunting bullets and I have been amazed at how many on the internet say they work perfectly with 10" twist and how many say it is a miserable frustration to try it with 10" twist. It must be right on the edge, like 14" twist and 75 gr Vmax.

But your 9.25" twist would be perfect candidate for them.

 

[GURU1911]

.243 winchester recipe

I have been using this one recipe unchanged since 1977 & it has always performed well in almost every rifle i have fired it in. Brass life is very long & extraction easy. Velocity will be about 2800 fps.

95 / 100 grain bullets---hornady / nosler
40.0 grains imr-4350 / aa 4350
winchester lr primer
match prepped cases--trim & deburr, ream & chamfer flash holes, ream & square primer pockets.
Bullets seated to just shy of touching the rifling.

 

[ArtP]

Typically a 1:10 twist 243 will shoot (stabilize) up to 100 grain bullets. Because you have a slightly faster twist I would expect you to be able to shoot 105-107's without trouble.

The faster the twist (lower number) the higher weight the barrel can handle.

I've noticed in my 243 and other rifles, when using lighter bullets I have to back off the velocity to get the best accuracy. Perhaps google this: "twist rate accuracy velocity weight". You will find explanations about how those three factors work together.

I would not worry too much about the accuracy of one brand of factory ammo. Choose a couple different brand bullets and load them up starting at book max then drop the powder charge by 1 grain per set (I use two groups of three).

If book max for a 100 grain bullet called for 40 grains (hypothetical), I'd make two groups of three rounds (6 total) at:

36
37
38
39
40

Once you have the results then fine tune again:

37.2
37.5
37.8

Get the idea?

You might play with seating depth once you find a charge.

This is certainly debatable, but I am not the only one who finds Sierra component bullets to be very accurate for the money.

Out of my Tikka 243 I get half inch and sometimes better results using a Sierra 70 match bullet with 36.1 grains of IMR 4064 (which is pretty far below book max). And that's no internet BS.

 

[Funshooter45]

Before I started reloading, I noticed my Savage .243 definitely liked some ammo better than others. I tried factory ammo by Winchester, Remington, Federal, PMC with so-so results. I tried bullet weights from 80-100 gr. Then I bought some Hornady ammo. A box of their 95 gr Light Mag worked better than anything else had. Then I shot some of their 100 gr SP ammo. It wasn't the Light Mag, I think it just said Custom. That was magic stuff!!

Now that I reload, I use a variety of 95 and 100 gr bullets and a couple different powders. They all seem to shoot pretty well, just as good as the "magic" Hornady factory ammo did (but not better). I might be able to wring even better performance out of my own loads this spring, but they are under 1" now, which is pretty good for me.

But I don't think you can generalize that your rifle doesn't "like" a certain weight bullet based on the performance of one box of one particular brand of factory ammo. There are other factors that are more important than bullet weight.

 

[hans471]

Read here for some good info on this caliber:

http://www.6mmbr.com/243Win.html