legality for use of .243 wildcat in S.O.

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Aaron_303

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worst case ontario
I have a rem 7400 and wanted to know if it is legal to use the .243-06 wildcat
In southern ontario or not since the gun is chambered in 30-06.
Just wanted to know instead of buying a smaller caliber rifle since
it would be a cheaper alternative for hunting coyotes.

Thanks guys
 
does not that law restrict you guys to 270 caliber and smaller ?

if the gun in question was rebarrelled to 243-06 , it would no longer be able to function with 30-06 rounds , so it would no longer be a 30-06 .

it would be 243 caliber now , not 30 caliber , which is smaller than 270 and should be legal .
 
The gun is not rebarreled. Its a 30-06 like i stated. Yes the .270 law applies
Down here. This is why i ask for the use of a necked down 30-06.
To a .243 as i am unsure if this a a grey area or in the books. Just wanted
Some opinions before i call the MNR
 
Aaron_303 said:
The gun is not rebarreled. Its a 30-06 like i stated. Yes the .270 law applies
Down here. This is why i ask for the use of a necked down 30-06.
To a .243 as i am unsure if this a a grey area or in the books. Just wanted
Some opinions before i call the MNR
Click to expand...

That doesn't seem like a good idea to use a .243 in a 30-06 barrel....
 
Aaron_303 said:
The gun is not rebarreled. Its a 30-06 like i stated. Yes the .270 law applies
Down here. This is why i ask for the use of a necked down 30-06.
To a .243 as i am unsure if this a a grey area or in the books. Just wanted
Some opinions before i call the MNR
Click to expand...

How can you use a necked down 243 unless you get the rifle re-barreled?

Edit - what Gmwebs said...
 
The CARTRIDGE is apparently a .243/06 (a 30/06 necked down to take a .243 cal. bullet is no longer a 30/06).

The CALIBER of the rifle (basically the diameter of the bore) is now .243 which is less than .270.

If the law deals with the CALIBER that can be used then .243 is all that concerns you.
 
That just won't work, unless we're misunderstanding you? A 243 dia bullet won't make a seal in a 308 dia bore and you will have next to no velocity. There will also be no contact with the rifling, so no accuracy of any sort.
A rifle generally requires either a new barrel or needs to be re chambered to use any wildcat cartridge, depending on circumstance.
 
Aaron_303 said:
Probably should have mentioned its a saboted round.
Click to expand...

my guess is if a conservation officer checks you out , you might be screwed ..... basically your using a rifle with a 30 caliber barrel , firing a projectile that is 30 caliber ( 243 bullet + sabot = 30 cal projectile ) .

for all the grief you may encounter you would be better off in picking up a 300.00 savage in 270 or smaller and using that .
 
burnt_servo said:
my guess is if a conservation officer checks you out , you might be screwed ..... basically your using a rifle with a 30 caliber barrel , firing a projectile that is 30 caliber ( 243 bullet + sabot = 30 cal projectile ) .

for all the grief you may encounter you would be better off in picking up a 300.00 savage in 270 or smaller and using that .
Click to expand...

I agree with this. Not worth risking the problems if you are checked.
 
No, you cannot use it. They specifically say you may not carry or use a "rifle" of greater caliber...

A person hunting small game may not carry or use a rifle of greater calibre than a .275-calibre rifle, except a muzzle-loading gun, in the geograhic areas of Brant, Chatham-Kent, Durham, Elgin, Essex, Haldimand, Halton, Hamilton, Huron, Lambton, Middlesex, Niagara, Norfolk, Northumberland, Oxford, Peel, Perth, Toronto, Waterloo, Wellington or York.
 
Is there any real basis for this law? Or did somebody just feel like ####ing with the hunters? It just seems ridiculous to say that a 270 calibre bullet is so much less so than a 30 cal.
 
I have a rem 7400 and wanted to know if it is legal to use the .243-06 wildcat
Click to expand...

Probably should have mentioned its a saboted round.
Click to expand...

You are unclear on what constitutes a wildcat and what constitutes a specific cartridge.

A .243 sabot in an unmodified 30-06 case is still a 30-06. The shape of the chamber / casing determines what the round is. If the case neck is still .30 cal then the round is still a 30-06. In order to become a 243-06 wildcat, the case neck would have to be reduced to .243 cal and that would require a .243 size bore.

Will that be legal in your area? Who knows but I'd bet they would still classify the rifle as a .30-06 because it is still capable of firing 30-06 ammo.
 
kennymo said:
Is there any real basis for this law? Or did somebody just feel like ####ing with the hunters? It just seems ridiculous to say that a 270 calibre bullet is so much less so than a 30 cal.
Click to expand...

Welcome to Ontario's hunting laws. It's been that way in that area of the province since way in the last century. From what I recall it is because the land is flatter and the population denser so somehow the law came into being to make people happy. It is similar mentality to allow shotguns only for deer hunting in alot of that area due to the shorter range the slug will travel. It is law or regulation. It wasn't meant to make sense
 
kennymo said:
Is there any real basis for this law? Or did somebody just feel like ####ing with the hunters? It just seems ridiculous to say that a 270 calibre bullet is so much less so than a 30 cal.
Click to expand...


My understanding is this law came into effect due to the huge amounts of surplus 30cal ammo and cheap Enfields of years gone by. Yahoos shooting up the countryside with cheap FMJ got the ball rolling. By creating the .275" caliber restriction they effectively eliminated the use of FMJ ammo for small game hunting in these areas.
 
"... its a saboted round..." You'd have a .30-06 and it's nominally based on the .25-06. Mind you, the 6mm-06/.243-06 Wildcat isn't a sabotted cartridge. It's a necked down .30-06/.270/25-06 cartridge. Sabotted rifle cartridges are horribly inaccurate anyway.
In any case, the calibre restriction by-laws do not apply to all of Southern Ontario. Only some municipalities, mostly in southwestern Ontario and some outside of TO. So where you're hunting matters. That and you'd be looking at special order dies that would very likely cost a fortune.
"...any real basis for this law?..." Moronic civil servants making by-laws that mean and do nothing. Rumoured to have been enacted to stop returning vets using surplus Lee-Enfields after W.W. I. It's in the hunting regs now, but it isn't actually a hunting reguilation. It'sa municipal by-law. Mind you, if you drive North from London, you can't swing a cat without there being some kind of farm building within 200 yards.
 
It would seem that the 270 Win. -which uses a 277 bullet - is over the "275" that is quoted as the law, so you had better go smaller than the 270 that several persons have mentioned.
Just about as goofy as the Alberta law that says that the center fire cartridge must be 23 or larger. A 70 grain bullet at 3000FPS from a 22-250 or a 70 grain bullet at 3000 FPS from a 243 should have the same effect.
 
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