243 win

I've never understood the attraction of using the smallest caliber possible for big-game hunting. There is flat-out nothing that a .243 can do that plenty of larger, but still manageable cartridges won't do better.
I don't see a similar mad rush to procure the ugliest women, dumbest kids, slowest sleds or smallest pay-checks. So why use sub-calibers for deer?:evil:
 
Dogleg said:
I've never understood the attraction of using the smallest caliber possible for big-game hunting. There is flat-out nothing that a .243 can do that plenty of larger, but still manageable cartridges won't do better.
I don't see a similar mad rush to procure the ugliest women, dumbest kids, slowest sleds or smallest pay-checks. So why use sub-calibers for deer?:evil:
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Sub caliber... the only thing that is sub, is your substandard knowledge of the caliber's abilities on big and small game...
Have you ever taken a game animal with a 243? ever seen a woundchannel from one bubba?
Doubt it, and your nonsense post above more than clarifies that. :rolleyes:
 
If you don't like the caliber then fine... shut up and go to a different thread.

The person that started this thread wanted some information from those that have used and appreciate what the .243 has to offer.
 
manbearpig said:
how is .243 a 'sub-caliber for deer'?

using it for moose, or bear, OK i totally agree with you... but its an excellent deer cartridge. you dont need a .300 win mag to kill a deer.
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No I don't "need" a .300 to kill a deer. I don't even "need" to hunt deer. I just don't see the attraction in using the smallest common caliber that the law will allow. The .243 is a great coyote gun, and an acceptable combination varmint/deer caliber. Not that many people use it that way.
There is a big difference between scrawny does and fawns and 300+ Saskatchewan bucks as well. Let the range get a little longer, shot placement get a little less than perfect and the .243 user is standing on shakey ground. These are the cons, what are the pros? Girly recoil?:p I've trained children on .270 level recoil with no ill effects. I can't think of anything else. What does the .243 bring to the party, that's worth having?
 
Dogleg said:
No I don't "need" a .300 to kill a deer. I don't even "need" to hunt deer. I just don't see the attraction in using the smallest common caliber that the law will allow. The .243 is a great coyote gun, and an acceptable combination varmint/deer caliber. Not that many people use it that way.
There is a big difference between scrawny does and fawns and 300+ Saskatchewan bucks as well. Let the range get a little longer, shot placement get a little less than perfect and the .243 user is standing on shakey ground. These are the cons, what are the pros? Girly recoil?:p I've trained children on .270 level recoil with no ill effects. I can't think of anything else. What does the .243 bring to the party, that's worth having?
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:feedTroll:
 
casterpollox said:
If you don't like the caliber then fine... shut up and go to a different thread.

The person that started this thread wanted some information from those that have used and appreciate what the .243 has to offer.
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No, the original poster wanted advice on shooting 150 max yard coyotes with a .243. I doubt that there is a wrong way to do that.
 
phishroy said:
Hi.
Im looking for advice on buying a rifle chambered in a 243 win. Which rate of twist and bullet combo work well. Any brand of rifles recommendations?
Would mostly be using it for long shots150 yards and up for coyotes.

Would appreciate advice on a good rifle , rate of twist and bullet weight combo.

Thanks.
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never mind the BS that's crept into your thread and get a new quality bolt action, most have a 10" twist which works with any bullet weight you are going to shoot at a coyote. All the 243"s I've owned which is a least 6 or 8 of them have been quite accurate and will vaporize gophers and nail big coyotes with ease.

I've owned almost as many 6mm's and 244's also....

And the 6mm doesn't add much to the 243's velocity...years back a friend and I had identical 22" 700 BDL's mine in 243, his in 6mm. With 100 gr bullets mine was just as fast as the 6mm, with lighter bullets like 75-85's he could beat me by 100 fps or thereabouts....and the 6mm runs into bullet seating issues in a short 700...kinda like the 257 Bob in a short action debate that never ends....the best might be the 243 Ackley in the 700 or the 6mm in a longer action like a short Model 70....
 
SuperCub said:
While I've never claimed to have any experience with a 243, I do own a 257 Roberts and can easily can get 3200fps with mine using 100gr Hornadys. It's main purpose is deer hunting, so I haven't tried the lighter bullets in it. If it will do that with 100s, I wonder what I could get from a 24" bbl using the lighter ones you listed. I'm pretty sure it would be a fair bit faster than the velocities you mentioned. :)


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Yours has to be a keeper Cub:rolleyes:. My manual on the desk as I type this shows only a few loads over 2900 from a 24" barrel. Squeezing another easy 300fps out of one might be tuff. I'd sudgest geting the crhony calibrated;). Share that load with us would ya;) I'd like to compare it with whats in the books.
My personal experience with the Roberts was short and sweet. Pretty lttle small ring Mauser rifle that I loaded with 75BT's . My first trip to the range showed me a 16" group @100 with those bullets and the Roberts went back to it's original owner the same day. Ifn it caint shoot varmint bullets it aint no good to me. I'm sure the Roberts is a fine cartridge but as a varmint round as phishroy asked about it can't even enter the realm of the .243
 
grnhawg said:
Yours has to be a keeper Cub:rolleyes:. My manual on the desk as I type this shows only a few loads over 2900 from a 24" barrel. Squeezing another easy 300fps out of one might be tuff. I'd sudgest geting the crhony calibrated;). Share that load with us would ya;) I'd like to compare it with whats in the books.
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My chrony works fine and I have nothing to prove to you.


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The .243 will do what you ask,for bigger critters I use something a little bigger.
I shot a bear right in the snout with a 105 gr Speer and he didn't go anywhere but down.
The 6mm Remington has never and never will be as popular as the .243 even though it has a marginal head start in velocity.
 
SuperCub said:
My chrony works fine and I have nothing to prove to you.


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Cub! You very quickly jumped in to asist BigBill on a thread highjack expounding the merits of the Roberts over the .243. I'd say you ought to prove your point not just to me but all those reading the thread, especially phishroy.
3200fps is very optimistic for a 100gr bullet in a Roberts with a 24" barrel as a matter of fact I doubt it can be done with 26" What's your load?
 
the 25-06 can do 3350 fps with a 100 grainer in a 24" tube, so I wouldnt think 3200 fps with the slightly smaller Bob to be out of line. Keep in mind alot of load data for the 257 Roberts is held to mild pressures for older mauser customs and some remington pumps

PS - basing the 257 Roberts performance as a varmint cartridge on one rifle with one bullet type tried would be foolish, as you probably can agree with. The 257 roberts is a heck of a good long range yote rifle, but its bigger than neccesary, but as a dual purpose cartridge is fills the medium game needs better than the 243 or 6mm IMO, with the quality 110-120 grain bullets available today.

as a gun nut, we should be looking at getting a 22-250 and a good 270 :D
 
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Read Books and Maybe Learn

grnhawg said:
Cub! You very quickly jumped in to asist BigBill on a thread highjack expounding the merits of the Roberts over the .243. I'd say you ought to prove your point not just to me but all those reading the thread, especially phishroy.
3200fps is very optimistic for a 100gr bullet in a Roberts with a 24" barrel as a matter of fact I doubt it can be done with 26" What's your load?
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Here is something I posted previously:

"The following is a list of data regarding the 257 Roberts. All velocities were obtained for a 100 grain bullets. (Note that the Barnes figures are from a 100 grain X bullet.)

Hodgson Powder Manual No. 27 Data Manual states that the 257 Roberts develops 2950 feet per second in a 24 inch barrel, with 46.5 grains of IMR 4831. Note that the pressure listed is 44,300 CUP.

The Hornady Handbook of Cartridge Reloading Volume 1, states that the Roberts gets 3000 feet per second in a 22 inch barrel with 45.2 grains of IMR 4831. Pressure is not listed.

The Barnes Reloading Manual Number 3 states that the Roberts gets 3117 feet per second in a 24 inch barrel from 48 grains of IMR 4831. Pressure is not listed.


The Nosler Reloading Guide (5th Edition) listed the Roberts gaining 3092 feet per second from 45.5 grains of IMR 4831 in a 24 inch barrel. Pressure is not listed.

The Speer reloading Manual Rifle and Pistol Number 13 states that 3053 feet per second is obtained with 48 grains of IMR 4831, in a 24 inch barrel. Pressure is not stated, but the text indicates that the load does not exceed 50,000 CUP limit, the maximum industrial pressure for the Roberts +P.

It is not hard to figure out what these figures mean. As others have pointed out repeatedly, the significant velocity advantage enjoyed by more modern cartridges over the Roberts is often obtained by loading the newer cartridge to higher pressures than those of the Roberts.

Jack O’Connor says he got 3200 feet per second with his Roberts handloads by exceeding the industrial pressure standard and by exceeding the over-all maximum length. There is no reason to question this."

But we all know Jack was an idiot, so all of this can be easily dismissed.

BB
 
grnhawg said:
Cub! You very quickly jumped in to asist BigBill on a thread highjack expounding the merits of the Roberts over the .243. I'd say you ought to prove your point not just to me but all those reading the thread, especially phishroy.
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I didn't (very quickly) jump in to assist anyone, and I didn't certainly "expound". I merely pointed out that the 250 Savage and 257Roberts were two other very good dual purpose calibers. If you care to read back, you will see that I did say that the 243 was a good case, but I just prefered the 25s instead and they were another alternative. Furthermore, if you weren't sensitive about what other that about your beloved 243, you would see that my original posts were more tongue in cheek than anything, but you take that light joking to the point of almost calling someone a liar over some claimed velocities. Jokes over now, I guess. :(

grnhawg said:
3200fps is very optimistic for a 100gr bullet in a Roberts with a 24" barrel as a matter of fact I doubt it can be done with 26" What's your load?
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My 257 Roberts is a custom 700 LONG ACTION with the throat cut to allow for a 3" OAL. As you probably know this extra length will allow for more powder and the modern action will allow for more pressure. The manuals you quote take into consideration the fact that many older actions were employed for the 257 and pressures were kept low accordingly. BTW .... To further your (so called) arguement against me, I will allow you to know that the bbl on my 257 is only 22", not 24.

Here are the loads you requested ........

100gr Hornady Spire Point
48.5 IMR 4831
Win mag primer
2.845" OAL
Remington brass
3200fps

110gr Nosler Accubond
48.0 IMR 4831
CCI 250 primer
3.050" OAL
Remington brass
3100fps


Also .........

Hodgdon #26 lists quite a few 100gr loads for the 250Savage that are @ the 3000fps mark with even one load (40/H414) that goes over 3100. I'm pretty sure that a handloader with a modern bolt action could pretty much, or very closely, match the 243 with either the 257 or 250.
 
phishroy said:
Hi.
Im looking for advice on buying a rifle chambered in a 243 win. Which rate of twist and bullet combo work well. Any brand of rifles recommendations?
Would mostly be using it for long shots150 yards and up for coyotes.
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Phishroy ...... I apologize for my part in the hijacking of your thread.

The 243 would be an excellent choice for coyotes. As stated, my dislike for the 243 is not based on experience or anything rational, just one of my personal quirks. :)

Here in NB, we are not allowed to use any caliber larger than .22 outside the big game seasons, so the 22/250 and .223 are very popular here. My own personal varminter is a A-Bolt 22/250 sporter with a 2x7 Leupold. I prefer to have a light weight varmint rifle for coyotes as opposed to a heavier gun as the shots are few and the gun gets carried a a fair bit.

If I was buying a 243 for your purpose, I would probably buy something like a T3 (walnut, as those Tupperware stock tend to be noisy, esp in cold weather) and top it off with a Leupold 3x9 or 3.5x10. This would be light, accurate and still useable for deer hunting if need be.


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Thanx for clearing it for me.
I found max loads of IMR 4831 in the only manual I have handi that list one (Hornady #25) to be 47 gr in a 26" Universal Reciever to be 3007
Lyman 46 shows a mx load of 44gr H414 @ 2973 out of 24"
Seaud and the boys at Acurate Reloading are getting 3174 with 55 gr H4831 out of a 24" barrel but in a 257 Ackley chamber;)
Hope you can see where some of my bewilderment comes from and that the "almost " calling you a liar was more a show me how you done it;)
Yes the .243 is beloved and it's Saturday morning and I think I'll head out and play with one rather than the keyboard;)
 
Ok,
Well, thank you everyone for all the information. The more info I get the more complicated it seems to get. I do really appreciate all your advice.
Yes , I have been looking more closely at the information on the 243 and it does seem to have had a lot of help from the marketing aspect in comparison to the Roberts, 6mm rem and the other in its class.
I did a bit of calling around to a few shops to see what they have in stock as far as the other calibers , like the 6mm rem and the 243 Akley. Unfortunately none of them had anything like that .

Again. Im looking mainly for a coyote gun, possibly with some use on varmints. I do like taking those long shots, I like the challenge.
Does anyone know what manufacture makes and model makes rifles at a 6mm rem or the 243 akley or is that something I would have to custom make at a gunsmiths?
do you know of any shop that has anything like that in stock?
yes, i do handload

You info is greatly appreciated.
Thaks.
 
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if your looking for a stock factory rifle stick with the 243 win. if you don't handload the ackley will be out of the question and the 6mm is more difficult to find factory ammo for.

most factory rifles come with an approxinate 1-10 twist barrel. i've had the best success with 90 - 100 grain bullets.

the 243 is a great round.

to top all the talk of 257 roberts and 2506 speeders, my 257 weatherby MK5 shoots my 100gr TSX loads @ 3705 fps .6 MOA. even at 300 yards it still makes a 3 inch entrance hole.(on deer)
 
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