What's your opinion on the 243?

[d2wing]

I've had a couple and was disappointed by the performance on whitetails here in Minnesota. With good bullets and shot placement they do work. Some folks
like them alot so get one and try it. That's the beauty of living in the good old USA. You still can buy rifles and you can spout off how much you love it or hate it.Then sell it (or not) and buy another. If you want someone to say it's a good idea you've got that.

 

[Hunt480]

I love the 243 it is good deer rifle and fine shootin gun, but that 270 keeps callin my name.

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

Are you calling me a LIAR?

No, I'm calling you sorely MISTAKEN.

If this were true NOBODY would shoot 6mm BR in competition , are you sure you're not thinking of 6mmBR-Rem

Oh crap maybe I am thinking of the 6mm BR-Rem - hmmm; I'll get back with ya in awhile; possible oopsie.

 

[Legionnaire]

Opinion of the .243: I like it. It does what I want.

 

[mickeydim468]

FYI three out of hodgdon's top four performing powders show a max load of over 46.0grs topping out at 47.5grs for "supreme780" as per hodgdon themselves. Another manual shows using 48.5grs of H1000

Krochus:
Not over a 100Gr bullet like I was referring to in post 11.

 

[R.W.Dale]

Krochus:
Not over a 100Gr bullet like I was referring to in post 11.

Yes with a 100grain bullet

don't believe me go to hodgdon.com and look at the loads yourself

 

[R.W.Dale]

No, I'm calling you sorely MISTAKEN.




Oh crap maybe I am thinking of the 6mm BR-Rem - hmmm; I'll get back with ya in awhile; possible oopsie.

There is indeed quite a performance gap between 6mmBR rem and 6mmBR Norma or 243 win.

I'll concede thr Norma and winchester rounds have a small velocity disparity. But only about 100 fps + or - a tad depending on bullet weight

 

[snakeman]

243 is great, especially with ballistic tips. However a 257 roberts, 25-06, or 260 will perform better. I like 308 best though. Just my .02

 

[mickeydim468]

You quoted me as if to say I was crazy about blowing up with a 50Gr charge, and it seemed as if you thought you would not blow up with 50Gr of powder. I still stand behind my statement in post 11. I do believe 50Gr is too heavy and so does Hodgdon! So does Lee and Lyman. Even Alliant does not recommend that much powder. You also have not sourced your info about 50 Gr.

People, Please do not use 50Gr of powder in your .243 Win. I have not seen any data showing it's safe to use that much anywhere.

 

[Geno]

For my part, I have a good bit of respect for the .243 caliber, be it .243 Win, .244 Rem (6mm Rem) or the .240 Wea Mag. I have owned .243 Wins and 6mm Rems and both have been very efficient at killing with one shot. I'll follow-up with a picture for our "doubting Debbies" in a minute.

The only reason I bought a 6mm Rem in addition to the .243 was the ability to load more powder. Yes, I read the previous statements about overbore. Chronographs don't lie. My 6mm Rem handloads, with 95 Gr Nosler Partitions exited the 24" barrel of my M700V at 3,371 FPS!!! Check your ballistics tables and you'll see that exceeds the book-listed max by a full 200 FPS. It also exceed the listed velocity of Weatherby's .240 Wea Mag by 109 FPS, and that with a 2" shorter barrel to boot!!!!! It can't have been too d@mned overbore now can it?! I used compressed loads of AA3100, a fire-formed, turned and neck-resized-only cases, run through custom-made dies, Fed 210 bench rest primers and the Noslers. And yes, it grouped 3/8" at 300 yards. Had to put that back in this thread for the haters. (No, I will not disclose the amount of powder I used for the charge as it far exceed the max loads).

For me, and based on my hunting experiences to 400+ yards with .243 Calibers (Win, Rem and Wea), they all will kill a deer dead with one shot. Yes, it may run for 100 yards, but trust me, it'll be meetin' up with death soon enough.

The following picture is the severed heart (as in blowed clean off) from a 95 Gr Nosler partitian, handloaded to 3,371 FPS. The shot was dead-on, center of the breastbone on a deer at 300 yards. As you can see, it blew the heart clean free of the "attachment points" so to speak. When we cut the deer open to gut it, the heart rolled out on the ground. The Nosler Partitian was lodged under the skin, just left of the "@nus". It fully penetrated the deer's body-length.

Here's my take...you like the .243 Win? So do I and a heck of a lot of other fellas who have used them, and frankly, we know what we're talking about. You like the 6mm Rem? So do I (repeat). Buy the cartridge that you trust, and can shoot well.

Geno

Pic:

View attachment 465971

 

[MJR007]

never mind.

 

[Maverick223]

It can't have been too d@mned overbore now can it?!

Sure it can, here is a good article on overbore cartridges, and FWIW the .243Win. is amongst them. I do think that the article is completely wrong about accuracy WRT overbore cartridges, but there are a few negative impacts such as powder consumption and barrel wear.

 

[R.W.Dale]

You also have not sourced your info about 50 Gr.

like heck I haven't

In every post I've made on this issue I cite hodgdon's webpage. Yet you refuse to look at this or any other source published since regan was president

 

[Maverick223]

In every post I've made on this issue I cite hodgdon's webpage. Yet you refuse to look at this or any other source published since regan was president

So Reagan isn't still the president? No dog in this fight, but I looked it up in the Hodgdon manual and their online reloading center (and Lyman's 49th Ed.) and the closest I could find was a 105gr. A-Max with 49gr. of Retumbo compressed (the 100gr. bullets were actually less). That said, I am sure that 50gr. would be fine for most rifles BUT you still need to work up slowly from about 10% less same as any other unknown/unproven load.

 

[gdcpony]

If you can only have one rifle and it must have available ammo, be able to drop large as well as varmint type game, be as accurate as any rifle you are likely to buy, mild on recoil, and be available in almost any rifle from single shots to AR platforms, then the .243Win will work for you.

I will do what you want on whitetail so long as you do your part with the right bullet. Change it up and with some careful reloading you have a 4000fps varmint gun. Go down the middle with a 70gr BT and you can get a 3500fps load capable of any varmint out there as far as you are likely to shoot it (sorry, pet load). I think you are on the right track with this round.

Now to be honest, I like the 257Roberts for a down the middle round, and the 7x57 even more for big game. I just like their performance better and the nostalgia of using some old rounds that were the forbears of the newer ones. However, finding those might be rough, and unless you reload they both leave allot of performance behind. The .270 (that has been mentioned) is a bit big for someone like me who has broken both shoulder blades and collar bones, and in a light rifle you will feel it. I think you would be better served- unless elk hunting is in your future- to use the versatile .243.

As far as bashing the .243- Why? I just looked at some data and found NO 50gr loads for 100gr bullets. I did find a 49gr compressed load for a 105gr Amax sending it off at an estimated 2986fps though. As far as it being overbore- so what? Am I not to like it for what it can do simply because it uses some powder to do it? Give it a break. The OP wanted to know if it would do for deer not whether it was "efficient."

Yes, it will do for your purposes. It will do very well. You will be able to tell it does very well as you watch the hit through your scope.

 

[gdcpony]

the closest I could find was a 105gr. A-Max with 49gr. of Retumbo compressed (the 100gr. bullets were actually less). That said, I am sure that 50gr. would be fine for most rifles BUT you still need to work up slowly from about 10% less same as any other unknown/unproven load.

Beat me to it! LOL

 

[Al LaVodka]

I think that you're good to go with a .243 and any North American deer ('cept maybe a Moose).

Big fan of the .243. Remember, its a .308, which is almost a .30-06, just necked down. Weee!

Al

 

[R.W.Dale]

Look you nitpickers. Odviously a comment across the propellant spectrum about charge weights is gonna be a bit of a generalization.


Would it make you guys feel that much better if I edited my comment to say "you'll burn darn near 50 grains"

 

[Redneck with a 40]

Efficient cartridge = .308 Win. I don't think anyone can argue that point.

Nuthin' wrong with .243 for its intended purpose, white-tail size game out to 300 yards, but here in Colorado, doesn't serve my purpose very well. Also, from various internet articles I've read, its a barrel burner. 1000 yard accuracy is usually shot after about 1500 rounds.

.308 can go over 10,000 rounds before 1000 yard accuracy starts to suffer.

I'm not saying you should consider .308, but for me, it work's beautifull, punching paper at 400 yards.

 

[Uncle Mike]

Are you guys still at it over the 243?

It's a good round....yes!

Is it the best deer puncher or paper killer...no!

Live with it...we can do that, right?

 

[WYcoyote]

Could just be coincidence but the antelope I've shot with my 7mm Rem mag took off running for 100yds or so, that frantic dash that animals do after their heart is hit.
My .243 more often drops them where they stand.
Does that mean the 7 mag is not as good of a antelope gun?
Of course not but that's how opinions of calibers are skewed by a small sampling of experiences.
My biggest mule deer and whitetail both fell to my .243.
I think it's a great caliber. Flat and easy to shoot. And deadly.

 

[Maverick223]

Look you nitpickers. Odviously a comment across the propellant spectrum about charge weights is gonna be a bit of a generalization...Would it make you guys feel that much better if I edited my comment to say "you'll burn darn near 50 grains"

Don't get all in a tizzy, I was just trying to set the record straight. No there is not a [Hodgdon] load for 50gr., but yes, undoubtably you can work up to that (don't go shoving 50gr. in there for your starting load) in any newly manufactured rifle. I agree with you, it isn't efficient, or elegant, or the best overall choice IMO...though it will get the job done if the rifleman does his part.

 

[Safwan]

Ok krochus, you don't much care for the .243, keep your hair on lad, you'll make yourself ill.

 

[skoro]

I have a 243 that I really like, but I'm not a hunter. An old pal of mine has a Remington 788 in 243, and I used to kid him that it wasn't enough gun for deer. He proved me wrong by getting a nice mulie every year for several years and even an antelope with a single shot at over 300 yards. I gained some respect for this cartridge after that.

 

[paducahrider]

Howdy!
Do I think the 243 is any good?
Why Yes I do.
Why do I believe that?
1. I've got a little Rem. 788 short-barreled carbine in 243.
2. It's paid for.
3. It's never failed to drop what it was aimed at(I hunt Deer, I don't hunt Cape Buffalo).
4. It's really very accurate. '
5. Even in this light weight rifle, the recoil is negligible.
6. Ammunition is available everywhere.
7. It's stood the test of time and proved that Winchester got this one right, in 1955, but it took Remington two tries at the same caliber to equal it.

Are there better cartridges?
Yes there are, Lots of them.
Would I rather have them?
Not at todays prices!!
Thanks for your time.