243

My first two moose were with a .243 and at this late stage in my life a .243 is my only center fire rifle... Factory Hornady 100 grain will work wonders on deer sized game...
 
I bought one of those cheap 700 stainless ADL's recently. 24" barrel. Restocked and bedded in a LVSF stock. The x Mark trigger adjusted to 2.5lbs. Shoots the 80 TTSX into little groups. Took it on a wolf hunt recently but it has yet to record a kill.
The 243 Win just works for what I intend to use it for...
Pictures in this case!
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Bucky Its a Nice Rifle Now ! Hey where did you find that LVSF stock ? If you hear of another one i NEED it ! Thxs

My Model 7 243 Win Likes the 80 gr TTSX and the 85 TSX ers too !

Cheers RJ
 
I started out with a remington 7600 in 6mm and shot 6 or 7 deer with it ranging anywhere from 10 yds to around 250 yds using 100 gr remington core-lokts. Only had the 1 not drop right in its tracks, and he only went 40 yds or so. Amazing the damage a 243 or 6mm will do on a deer.
 
Stick with the 95 and 100 grain bullets and it is a great deer rifle. I've killed 2 deer with my 243 wssm. One with factory 100 grain pp at about 175 yards and one with a 100 grain partition at 40 yards. Both were quick clean kills. I've also used the 55 grainers for coyote, very effective. Bang flop with no pelt damage. Also tried the 75 grain v max and that was very destructive to the hide. Put a huge hole in the shoulder.
 
Bucky Its a Nice Rifle Now ! Hey where did you find that LVSF stock ? If you hear of another one i NEED it ! Thxs

My Model 7 243 Win Likes the 80 gr TTSX and the 85 TSX ers too !

Cheers RJ
Thanks RJ
I've bought a few of them off here over the years. I'm a sucker for the old Remington stocks to replace the Tupperware that they come with now.
I'll keep and eye out for another one for you.
 
My usage of the 243 is quite low, but I have used the 6mm Remington extensively.
Since the two are so alike in performance, what applies to one also applies to the
other.
I have shot a lot of deer with the 6mm, ranging from island blacktails up to muleys
that dressed well above 250 lbs. I have used 95 & 100 grain Partitions, and the 90
grain Scirocco II. All have resulted in mostly DRT, with a few making the "death dash"
all were dead within 75 yards. Additionally, I have shot a half dozen Black Bear and
2 moose with the 6mm. Never felt there was any problem with killing ability, but
bullet placement becomes increasingly critical on larger game, of course. While I
would be reluctant to recommend the 243/6mm pair for moose, they will do the job.
D.
 
IMNSHO; A wretched deer hunting caliber. YMMV.

For bigger varmints, it's a step up from the 22-250.

Capable of good accuracy.

Versatile, 55 > 100+ gr. bullets.

Easy to handload for, lots of suitable powders.

Just wouldn't be my first choice for a deer rifle.

BTW; A gun forum troll's topic of choice.

Bloody heck, sucked in again.
 
IMNSHO; A wretched deer hunting caliber. YMMV.

Wretched?? Really?? Care to expand on why you would say that?

Only people who haven't used one or seen it used much would say anything like that. My mileage certainly DOES vary. Lots of others' mileage does too, it seems. I have loaded it for over 30 years in one rifle or another for friends and family, and, although I actually don't use one myself for deer now, I have seen literally dozens of deer killed quite effectively with heavier for caliber bullets. Saskatchewan deer are not small either.
 
Anyone else shooting .95 gr SST out of the .243 or 6mm?

I would be very shocked if a deer or black bear shook one off broadside behind the shoulder. They have(had) a reputation for being a little soft up close and causing a lot of bloodshot meet, but are supposed to have been beefed up to perform more like a conventional interlock. It may be worth shooting into dry news print to see how well they hold up to the challenge. Are you looking for factory or loading your own?

Hard to go wrong with Partitions, Accubonds, Sciroccos, Interbonds or monometals, if you're looking for a premium. If you're inclined towards more conventional cup and core bullets I'd look at the 95 grain NBT, 90 grain Hotcore or a 100 grain bullet of various manufacture.
 
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I would be very shocked if a deer or black bear shook one off broadside behind the shoulder. They have(had) a reputation for being a little soft up close and causing a lot of bloodshot meet, but are supposed to have been beefed up to perform more like a conventional interlock. It may be worth shooting into dry news print to see how well they hold up to the challenge. Are you looking for factory or loading your own?

Hard to go wrong with Partitions, Accubonds, Sciroccos, Interbonds or monometals, if you're looking for a premium. If you're inclined towards more conventional cup and core bullets I'd look at the 95 grain NBT, 90 grain Hotcore or a 100 grain bullet of various manufacture.
Factory loads as I am not yet a reloader. Been wanting to get into it, but time, space, and money have been a limiting factor so for now I will stick with prerolled stuff. I have sighted my rifle in with some superformance, but have yet to take any game with it. I think I will carry it in deer season this year. I carried it in 2017, but I did not encounter an animal that drew my interest enough to harvest it. 2018 I went back to my .30-06 as I was jumping back and forth between sitting and stalking. When stalking I like the extra power incase I don’t do my job.
 
A Winchester model 94 in 30-30 would be a wretched rifle for where I hunt deer. Most popular deer gun ever. I love this forum lol!

Now this somewhat the point I was making. A 30-30 with a 170 gr bullet, a 44-40 with a 200 gr bullet and the 243 with a 100 gr bullet all have about the same energy, at the muzzle. The 243 bullets have a smaller parachute, retains energy a bit better past the 100 yard mark. The 44-40 is not loaded to the velocities it used to be, and it has a big parachute. When I injured my back, I bought a light 243 for deer season. It did the job, but I'll have to agree with Elmer, "Not much of a caliber". My back improved, and I went up in caliber. 6 mm and 243 performance very much depends on the right bullet, placed in the right spot. It is suitable for the hunter that is not very recoil tolerant. 243's can be had in some pretty light packages, easy to carry and are light recoiling. It has limitations.

If you can tolerate it (the recoil), the 300 Win Mag is one heck of a good deer rifle, perhaps a bit on the big side, but you can buy "Deer" ammo for it. It will also work on Moose and Elk. Going lighter, I think the 6.5 Creedmoor should be ideal for whitetail. Up a bit and you have the 270 WSM, long range energy, also good. In the bush, my favorite is the 35 Rem. It is not a long range gun. From a blind in the bush, at bow range, try the 30-30 with 125 gr bullets, low recoil and flat murders whitetail. During shotgun, a 12 ga slug hits like a cannon, somewhat range limited. I hit a running deer in the neck with a slug, the head stayed on, but was kinda loose. A follow up shot was not required. Hit one standing, through the chest, spun it around. A 243 will not do that. It (the 243) will harvest deer, and sometimes, it lets you practice your tracking skills.

I like the write-up Nathan from Ballistic studies has posted on his site.

https://www.ballisticstudies.com/Knowledgebase/.243+Winchester.html

And, LOL, I love this forum as well. Disagreeing on the 243 as being or not being the perfect deer rifle.

I will concede one point, the bullets have improved a bit since I hunted with a 243, and that should help.
 
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