.243 vs .30-30 on deer?
- Thread starter philthygeezer
- Start date
bearkilr
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
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- Nowhere, ......just past the middle
Philthy, sometimes threads get derailed, sometimes certain members turn it into a train wreck. LOL. By the way, my preference would be the 243. But, both would do the trick if bullet placement is correct, out to a certain distance. Don't use the video as reference.
canadaman30
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
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600yds doesn't seem so far after all....................
No I don't have the gear to make it, but there are a few that do. x2.
Takes me awhile to read all the way through a thread, esp., when so many posts are happening so quickly.
Bought the wife a .243. I consider it a capable deer rifle even out to 300yds, but I will only take a perfect shot at that range. She has taken 5 deer with it, all about 150yds away. Is it a 300 yd elk rifle, nope, not to my thinking, that's why she has a P14 in .303 Epps. 180 gn bullets at 2600fps are more than sufficient for 300 yd kills.
Sorry, folks, as much as I like the .243, it is only a deer rifle to me. But my 340 will do the job better and just as far (perhaps not as flat) since I can load 165gn spitzers in it.
Boomer, how can you say that it isn't a 200 lb gun, but then say it is a wolf gun? Seen lots of wolf coming up on the 200lbs range.
Bought the wife a .243. I consider it a capable deer rifle even out to 300yds, but I will only take a perfect shot at that range. She has taken 5 deer with it, all about 150yds away. Is it a 300 yd elk rifle, nope, not to my thinking, that's why she has a P14 in .303 Epps. 180 gn bullets at 2600fps are more than sufficient for 300 yd kills.
Sorry, folks, as much as I like the .243, it is only a deer rifle to me. But my 340 will do the job better and just as far (perhaps not as flat) since I can load 165gn spitzers in it.
Boomer, how can you say that it isn't a 200 lb gun, but then say it is a wolf gun? Seen lots of wolf coming up on the 200lbs range.
bearkilr
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Nowhere, ......just past the middle
Weighed? I've shot quite a few wolves and they weigh quite a bit less than you'd figure. A big male goes 130 lbs or so. An actual 200 lb wolf is a monster and a rarity. They're also leaner than a deer, their rib cage/chest is narrower than a whitetail's.
I have never shot a deer with a 30/30 but have shot a few with 243 up to 300 yards.
Most a 100 or so.almost always neck shots exept 1.All with 100 grain bullets.Everyone
Has dropped literally in its tracks.Instant kills.
My two cents.
Most a 100 or so.almost always neck shots exept 1.All with 100 grain bullets.Everyone
Has dropped literally in its tracks.Instant kills.
My two cents.
If this was a math test you would have failed it.
The area of a 0.46" diameter circle = .17 sq in., (not .665 sq in.)
The area of a 0.60" diameter circle = .28 sq in., (not 1.13 sq in.)
In other words you're off by 300% - I did the math.
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- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
I've got a pretty good handle on the principles that relate to bullet expansion. I'm not surprised you like Bergers, many do, they just don't fit the performance envelope that I prefer, which is reliable uniform expansion over a broad impact velocity range, combined with high weight retention, to ensure deep, straight line penetration. I suppose that if I wanted a long range game bullet I'd have to give them a look. A minor oops, I guess, but not one that discredits my findings.
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- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
You're correct, I should have double checked, my guzzintas. The area of a circle with a diameter of .46" is .166 sq. in. and the area of a circle .60" in diameter is .283 sq. in. Thus the heavier bullet when fully expanded still provides an increase in frontal area of just a hair under 59%. Apparently I injected the numbers I measured from my recovered .375 bullets by mistake, when I was scaling back to 6mm, which is why the 59% still works.
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- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
Sure, if you are hunting deer with a 6mm, your best bet is to choose a premium bullet. The low impact velocity of the .30/30 is less demanding on the construction of the bullet, so any .30 caliber cup and core bullet of suitable shape and weight will work fine. Even cast bullets have proven to be good performers in the ole girl.
Well several wolves shot in the local area when I was in Alert would come close to changing that rarity, I believe. I swear one stood taller than the top of the grill on the truck and was in camp lots one summer.
But, one can say what one will, each of our experiences lead us to a place where we draw our own conclusions for our opinions. There was a point in my hunting career that I believed that a .303 was magic. All you had to do was brush a deer and it would fall down. My father believes that two rounds a year is all anyone needs to shoot to harvest one deer a year. I believed that I was a deadly off-hand shooter. What I didn't KNOW was that my shots were well thought out and fairly accurate even with a .303. I also didn't know that I could not estimate range and a 300yd shot wasn't and even marginal shots knocked the deer down. My father shoots a particular set up every year. Vegetables and apples for a bait that starts in August. The stand (an 8'x10' shed hauled down and placed 50yds away 20 yrs ago) proves that to him. I was a lucky off-hand shooter because I hit a few animals and recovered them in short order, but the law of probabilities caught up with me and showed me different... I began to spend hours tracking animals, even those from other hunters who had magical cartridges like a .308, .30-06, .270 sometimes we lost them, some guys didn't even try to find them. I began to build up a more realistic view of hunters and shooters, little realizing that I had already had a good background in waiting for a shot. I watched when others continued to take marginal shots and let the animal run off. I watched as my own marginal shots cost me hours in tracking and dragging. I watched as my own "ethics" developed, as my own shot window narrowed, as my own level of discipline grew to match my love of this sport.
I hunt pretty much with a .30-06 if my shots will be 200yds or more, no matter the game. Bullets range from 150gn to 220gn. Mostly Interlocks or game kings. However, when I pay money for a hunt, i.e., travel more than an hour and set up a camp, I use these "premium" bullets, normally Nosler partitions. 400yds is my max today for even the most perfect shot. GOTTA be full broadside, no hurry in the animal and no moving. I won't shoot at a moving animal no matter how close. I shoot enough throughout the year that I can hit a 4" circle out to 200yds with a more than passing consistency, making my shots fairly certain. Not losing any game in the past 12yrs has proven my experience.
canadaman30
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Far from the City
Your so right, there is nothing challenging or impressive about what go's into building LR rifles...................
Your so right, there is nothing challenging or impressive about what go's into building LR rifles...................
I don't care if you say you are a retired steel worker and show a hundred pics of a grey haired geezer... I believe that you have to be a pimple faced 15 year old kid...
