My Recent Love Affair with the .243
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ridgerunner1965
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i have hunted whitetail deer for 30 yrs with a model 7 rem in 243.i cant even begin to count the deer ive killed. ive always used rem core lokt 100 grn ammo,even tho i reload.
also killed tons of coyotes and groundhogs with it same load.
after 20 years the 243 killed with such boring regularity i got a 3006 and then a 6.5x55. both are good guns but since i butcher my own deer i never saw the damage the the 243 inflicts.
then last year a giant deer stepped out, maybe 250lbs, huge neck, huge rack, giant body.265 yrds. got him with the 243. my only beef was he was so fat the qaurter sized exit wound did not bleed like it usually does.he only went maybe 50 yrds but im rethinking my caliber choice for longer ranges.
i made a perfect shot on this one but what if i made a marginal shot? would a bigger caliber be better?
also killed tons of coyotes and groundhogs with it same load.
after 20 years the 243 killed with such boring regularity i got a 3006 and then a 6.5x55. both are good guns but since i butcher my own deer i never saw the damage the the 243 inflicts.
then last year a giant deer stepped out, maybe 250lbs, huge neck, huge rack, giant body.265 yrds. got him with the 243. my only beef was he was so fat the qaurter sized exit wound did not bleed like it usually does.he only went maybe 50 yrds but im rethinking my caliber choice for longer ranges.
i made a perfect shot on this one but what if i made a marginal shot? would a bigger caliber be better?
Armybrat
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Ten years ago I inherited a like new little-used Browning Safari in .243 from a family friend. It was made sometime in the 1960s (does not have the "salt" stock). I gifted it to my oldest son for his son to hunt Central Texas Whitetail. It's a beautiful gun and looks like this one:
FL-NC
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Ridgerunner- You made a good shot at 265ish, and got a respectable exit wound and a dead deer. What's the problem? Its all about shot placement. A gut shot deer with a more powerful round is still a gutshot deer. You got a rifle that works good for you- stick with what you know (and have) if it works, just continue to maintain and improve your abilities.
Nature Boy
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doubleA, you have a quality collection of rifles dude
zb338
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I have seen a lot of whitetails and mule deer killed very quickly
with .243s. I feel the reason is that they are so accurate and
easy to shoot with low recoil that hunters put the bullet where
it counts.
Zeke
with .243s. I feel the reason is that they are so accurate and
easy to shoot with low recoil that hunters put the bullet where
it counts.
Zeke
Got a Savage model 11 that has been a tack driver with 100 gr Sierra Gamekings and 87 gr Vmax's. About a month ago my son bought a .243 Ruger Precision rifle and left it with me. He said he didn't have any time to dial it in because of work. Today he sent me a 4 x 16 Burris eleminator to install. He said this will be his back porch coyote gitter. Hope he don't have to work to long, I just might burn the barrel off this thing "dialing it in" for him.
I have a couple of .243's...........one for yotes, the other for deer....
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OP
OP
Olympus
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Love that No.1. I just bought the same gun in 257 Roberts a month or so ago. I have a No.1 B in 243 also.I have a couple of .243's...........one for yotes, the other for deer....
Sav .250
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Minds an older model savage 110 in Win 243. Got it in the early 60`s.
It`s light in weight. Puts the pill where it`s supposed too.
Has taken many a Buck over the years. Use commercial loads (100 gr) .
After all these years still looks .....great. Gets all the TLC I can give it.
It`s light in weight. Puts the pill where it`s supposed too.
Has taken many a Buck over the years. Use commercial loads (100 gr) .
After all these years still looks .....great. Gets all the TLC I can give it.
I had a #1B in .243win around 1978. Traded for it (used).
Was in 8th grade LOL.
Was not the first gen like my dad's .22-250 (checkering pattern different).
Thing shot great, but over the years the throat eroded.
Had that thing til I got married............25.
Shoulda thrown it in the corner until I had the $ to rebarrel it.
Life got in the way.
Should been clipped at 16............would have a really cool gun collection and some critters on the wall.............but noooooooooooooooooooooooo.
Was in 8th grade LOL.
Was not the first gen like my dad's .22-250 (checkering pattern different).
Thing shot great, but over the years the throat eroded.
Had that thing til I got married............25.
Shoulda thrown it in the corner until I had the $ to rebarrel it.
Life got in the way.
Should been clipped at 16............would have a really cool gun collection and some critters on the wall.............but noooooooooooooooooooooooo.
Nathanael... Try a Remington 760 or 7600 pump. I found a .243 7600 pump at an estate sale a couple of years ago and I LOVE it!
bannockburn
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- Apr 24, 2007
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Hookeye
Love that Ruger No.1 as well! And I felt the same way as you did when I saw that Browning Safari! Bolt action sweetness personified!
Love that Ruger No.1 as well! And I felt the same way as you did when I saw that Browning Safari! Bolt action sweetness personified!
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