here its legal to hunt moose with a .243 cal .... do you think its too much small or it depends on the place you hunt... where my set up is.. the farest shot i can make is about 600 feet is it good enough to make it .. i have a deal on a .243 target very nice rifle.. what you guys think?
.243 for moose hunt ?
- Thread starter Sierra1500
- Start date
In Quebec you are allowed to shoot moose with a .243. Other provinces may differ. Some will say it's ok and others will rave of their personal small bore caliber wonders. I will say, a .243 it is a poor choice for moose. I'd get something bigger in one of the popular calibers like a .270, .308 or 30-06.
This is very similar to the troll threads on deer hunting with the 7.62x39.....the .243 will work, but with all the better cals. out there, both old and new, i would think that anyone serious about hunting moose would go with something more effective. If cost is a problem I would take a 30/30 or .303 for moose over a .243 IMHO.
Northman999
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Southern Yukon
I know a woman here in the Yukon who successfuly hunted everything except polar bear and bison with her .243 loaded with 100 grain handloads. Moose, caribou, black bears, sheep, grizzlies, you name it. She shot them all, and out to a little past 300 yards. All humanely and effectively. If you're a good shot and you go for heart/lung shots with good ammunition you should be fine. I'd have to dissagree with ben hunchuck and definitely take a nice scoped .243 over the 30-30 any time.
Republic of Alberta
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- ,location, location
A target rifle you say?
You can probably find a better rifle in a better caliber more appropriate for moose hunting.
You can probably find a better rifle in a better caliber more appropriate for moose hunting.
the deal a guy is offering me is a remington target in .243 bull barrel with a big leupold scope and he only shot handload with it, he tells me its very accurate so i thought maybe accuracy can be my choice over power.... it sounds more challenging to me
Republic of Alberta
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
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- ,location, location
Having a rifle that will group 1/2 inch at 100 yards wont help you out if you choose a bullet that won't go half way through.
But if you must use this gun be sure to use at least 100g bullets and you should really use *write this down* a Nosler Partition or Triple Shock (TSX) as Killzone suggested.
I know a guy that "lost" (as he puts it) moose, elk and/or deer every year, he uses a 243 with light weight bullets (less than 90g) meant for varmints. He just won't listen. Don't be that guy.
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- Location
- St. Joe's Island, Ont
So everyone on this site is a military sniper are they?
I know I've buggered up a shot once or twice, get a 10 point buck in front of me when I'm pumped up and I'll be shakin like a leaf just from the rush, doesn't mean I'll miss but a moose at 200 yds with a 243 it better be a real good shot cause if your 2 inches to far and that 100 gr bullet is gonna hit the shoulder bone. Is a 243 pill gonna smash through that and take out some vitals? I'd have to say no and now you've got a wounded moose running around that your gonna be chasin till dark.
Either way this thread goes theres gonna be guys that say it'll do the job and guys that are gonna say your nuts.
I know one thing, it'll get interesting anyways.
I know I've buggered up a shot once or twice, get a 10 point buck in front of me when I'm pumped up and I'll be shakin like a leaf just from the rush, doesn't mean I'll miss but a moose at 200 yds with a 243 it better be a real good shot cause if your 2 inches to far and that 100 gr bullet is gonna hit the shoulder bone. Is a 243 pill gonna smash through that and take out some vitals? I'd have to say no and now you've got a wounded moose running around that your gonna be chasin till dark.
Either way this thread goes theres gonna be guys that say it'll do the job and guys that are gonna say your nuts.
I know one thing, it'll get interesting anyways.
- Location
- Edmonton mostly
Accuracy won't help out much if the bullet only goes 1/2 way through???????????????????????????????????????????????????
Now isn't the heart halfway through?
You can kill anything with any bullet, you just have to shoot em right. Now the 243 may not be my ideal choice for a moose hunt, but I could do it. Shoot it in the pump or the base of the skull you have an immediatley dead moose, shoot it in the lungs or the liver you have a moose that will cling to life for 2-3 minutes tops, blow a leg off and it will hobble off just as sure as if you have blown the leg off with a 30-378 weatherby. shot placement counts for 95 percent of the kill, size of the bullet factors in only for the last five, do you want to find the bullet sitting in the skin on the far side or do you want to make an exit hole. Personally if i got shot in the head it wouldnt really matter what bullet did it, id be dead.
Now isn't the heart halfway through?
You can kill anything with any bullet, you just have to shoot em right. Now the 243 may not be my ideal choice for a moose hunt, but I could do it. Shoot it in the pump or the base of the skull you have an immediatley dead moose, shoot it in the lungs or the liver you have a moose that will cling to life for 2-3 minutes tops, blow a leg off and it will hobble off just as sure as if you have blown the leg off with a 30-378 weatherby. shot placement counts for 95 percent of the kill, size of the bullet factors in only for the last five, do you want to find the bullet sitting in the skin on the far side or do you want to make an exit hole. Personally if i got shot in the head it wouldnt really matter what bullet did it, id be dead.
Republic of Alberta
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
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- ,location, location
You know what I am getting at.
Yeah, a dead moose with a caliber you dont approve of...
A 243 isnt a "best" option, but I'd much rather have a guy with a 243 he can use than half the guys on the site with super duper magnums that couldnt hit the broadside of the barn...
If a 243 is all you can afford, it will do the job... I've heard of guys on this site killing moose with 25-20's and I know an oldtimer that hunted moose with a 250-3000 model C for about 40 years. Other than a few thousands of an inch, whats the difference? Nothing. If your going to buy a rifle primarily for moose, and you havent spent your money yet, look at something a bit bigger. Maybe a 308? Is recoil an issue? If so, there are many options that will allow you to use a larger caliber with less felt recoil. Good pads, muzzlebreaks, mercury recoil reducers... lots of options...
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243 is a great varmint caliber...
As for Moose I will have to quote a CGN GREAT "In the hands of an expert marksman a well placed and well constructed bullet from a marginal caliber will kill a moose"
I don't believe you are an expert marksman or you would not even be asking the question.
As for Moose I will have to quote a CGN GREAT "In the hands of an expert marksman a well placed and well constructed bullet from a marginal caliber will kill a moose"
I don't believe you are an expert marksman or you would not even be asking the question.
IMHO, the .243 is in a grey zone, too much for coyotes and not enough for anything else, certainly not for moose. I would put aside the "challenge" that it presents to you and put yourself in the shoes (or hooves) of the animal that you plan on hunting. It is your responsibility as a sportsmen to make as quick and painless kill as you possibly can, therefore the .243 is NOT up to the task, because everything doesn't always play out as you planned it. And just because someone knows someone else who's done it, doesn't mean that you can replicate that.
Republic of Alberta
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- ,location, location
I approve of a 243, I just feel it is irrisponsble to recomend it to a rookie hunter without stressing the importance of choosing the correct bullet. It's not like a 30-06 where petty much every box of bullets on the shelf are for big game hunting. I would hate to see a guy pick up a box of varmit bullets and shoot a moose with them thinking that everything was going to be ok.
My "friend" that shoots moose with varmit bullets stopped in at work one day with a moose he shot multiple times, We looked it over and not one bullet entered the body cavity.
I have seen it with my own eyes, use a 100 garain bullet.
