Who has actually used .243 Win for deer

[Legionnaire]

Several of my kids got into deer hunting (whitetail) using a Remington Model Seven Youth in .243. It has taken its share of whitetail, none of which required a follow-up shot. And since the kids are familiar with it, they also use it for groundhogs ... which helps with accuracy and shot placement come big game season. They shoot 100 grain Remington CoreLokts for everything.

 

[rizbunk77]

I've shot 3 with my 6mm Rem which outperforms the 243 by 100 fps if you are a handloader. 2 of the deer it blew them up like they were hit by lightning. One took a couple shots.

 

[wyohome]

My sons have each taken a mulie with a Remington 78 Sportsman in .243. I have killed 2 or 3 with a model 788 in that caliber. I don't own either of those rifles now, but I think I will get the 78 back from the kid that now owns it. It will be a good starter rifle for some other hunter.

 

[elkman06]

Deer and antelope taken here. 42grs of 4831 behind a 100gr Hornaday BTSP.
Shooting a Tikka .243 w/ cheap Simmons scope and Tikka rings.
elkman06
Now the kicker. This is a 1970s version Tikka marketed by Ithaca. 1/2MOA at 100yds.

 

[Oldtrader3]

I have killed a couple of whitetail and a mule deer with a .243, A-Bolt Medalion. It did the job but I started grandkids on 6.5x55, CZ550 with 120 grain bullets. I won't recommend the .243 for an inexperienced hunter.

 

[jaholder1971]

Use heavy, tough bullets and keep the shot off the shoulder and it'll kill you deer DRT.

Use a varmint bullet and take a shoulder shot and you're tracking it yourself, I'm going back to the truck.

 

[Faster Daddy!]

I have killed a Cow Elk, one Antelope, 3 Mule Deer, more than a dozen Coues Whitetail and more than a dozen Javelina with my 243 ( I live in Arizona). All were one shot kills except the Elk (two shots) and I would not reccomend a 243 for Elk. I use handloads that consist of 43.5 grains of IMR 4350 behind a Sierra 85 gr. HPBT. This round was discovered in a magazine article (and verified in reloading manuels) as a recomended load for deer sized game in 243 cal. I have had outstanding results with this round just as the author of the article did (sorry can't remember who that was). No matter what your selected caliber is, practice and shot placement, on an un-spooked animal is key.

 

[moosehunt]

I've shot a few deer with the .243, works fine, but generally it is my Pronghorn rifle because I have another that I consider my deer rifle. I use 85 gr Barnes X bullets. I personally think the .243 is an ideal Pronhorn caliber, a perfect fit. My mom used a Sav. Mod 99 in .243 for all her hunting for many years, mostly deer and Pronghorn, I beleive 1 elk (not recommended, though she did fine). She liked it because of the recoil thing, and it worked great for her. That was before Barnes, I beleive we used mostly Nosler Partitions, 80-90 gr. If you poke the hole in the correct place, it's game over. If not, a little bigger hole ain't going to help!

 

[Husker_Fan]

In the last three years I have shot five whitetail deer. Two with a .243, two with a 7mm rem mag, and one with a .357 mag. Both shot with the .243 ran less than 20 yards from where they were shot. That is about the same as the 7mm without the gaping exit wound. The .357 did just as well from a 6 inch GP-100 at 35 yards with good ammo.

Shot placement is key so long as the caliber is adequate. The .243 is more than adequate. I think it is just about ideal for deer.

I had a several year break from deer hunting before that, but I shot a few before that and all were with the .243.

 

[JWF III]

Never personally hunted with the .243. (Shot them a number of times, but that's the extent of it.) I have seen many deer taken with the cartridge. One general thing I've noticed about the deer killed, the closer they are the further they've ran. (Again just a general rule I've noticed.) The only conclusion that I can come up with is that the premium bullets are moving too fast at the close ranges to give the bullet enough time to mushroom and transfer more energy. Where at longer ranges (150-200 yards), the bullet has slowed enough to give a better energy transfer, and a fully mushroomed bullet.

I might be wrong with my conclusion, but nobody, as of yet, has come up with a better one to describe the phenomenon.

Wyman

 

[Neurosis]

Since I started hunting four years ago, the .243 was what I started out with and has the caliber of choice of the "younger" farm folk (while the 30.06 is a holdout with the older farmers) that have taught and taken me out to hunt. I don't shoot more than 200 yard shots, which I feel is stretching the bullets capabilities and my personal comfort as far as skills go. I've taken numerous MO whitetails with Federal Barnes Triple Shock 85gr (yes, 85gr but I think it's a devastating bullet). The longest was about 150 yards on a ~120lb doe who had practically done a death somersault and DRT, had many other running shots that were DRT's, and the longest one had ran was 50 yards. I'll be bumping up to a 308 this year, but have no qualms with using the 243 as a backup gun.

 

[Horsemany]

I've been deer hunting for 20years. Last year I used a 243 for the first time. A Tikka T3 stainless. It worked perfectly. I shot a doe quartering away around 75 to 100yds. THe shot was just behind the shoulder and exited just in front of the far shoulder. She ran about 30yds. Bullet was a 95grain Partition loaded hot.

 

[tango2echo]

With the right bullet and shooter it is fine. I have taken 70-80 deer with the .243 win out to 280 yards or so as memory serves. I like the 95-100gr bullets with the 95gr SST and 95gr Partition, and the 100gr Speer SP being the best choices. I have also had some factory bullets blow up after penetrating 2" and recovered the deer days later stone dead and a 1/2 mile away. Shot one once that the bullet never expanded. The entry/exit wounds were identical. So, once again, bullet+shooter=deer rifle.

Honestly though, you can load a .308, 7mm-08, .270, .30-06 or any other "deer" round to lower felt recoil, which kind of lessens the need for the .243. If I were buying a gun for a kid or someone recoil shy it would be one of the "deer" rounds that they can grow into.

t2e

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

I have also had some factory bullets blow up after penetrating 2" and recovered the deer days later stone dead and a 1/2 mile away

And which factory bullets were those, please?

 

[tango2echo]

Specifically, the 95gr Winchester Ballistic Silvertip, which has worked well in the .308 and 30-06 on deer at the same ranges.

T2E

 

[Joe Demko]

My first centerfire rifle was a .243. I still have it, 36 years later. I killed a good many PA whitetails with it and none needed shot twice.
Of course, none of those deer were like the deer y'all hunt today that are all hopped up on goofballs and ****.

 

[Fred Fuller]

Choosing the right bullet, picking your shots and hitting where you shoot at are important with most any caliber. It's no less true for the .243. My first CF rifle was a Ruger M77 in 6mm Rem, back in the mid '70s. It's pretty much a ballistic twin to the .243. Still have it, and it still does just fine, it's taken several whitetails cleanly with 100 grain bullets.

DW got her Winchester Model 70 Youth model in .243 as one of her wedding presents from me, and the next season (we got married in Dec) she collected her first deer with it. Not ideal shot placement, she hit too far back (later she said something about too many people insisting she shoot center of mass for too long) but the little spike only went a few yards before bleeding out. She swears she'll do better with placement next time, but so far there hasn't been a 'next time.' She loves shooting the little rifle, too, and that doesn't hurt anything.

Best answer I can give is, pick good bullets, and from there on, it will do if you will do.

lpl