243 beginers Rifle

[Deleted member 46119]

I have 8, 9, 10 and 12. wanna shoot against a 10 or a 12 twist ? they really shoot good. the 10's are sako barrels, the 12 i s a hart. barrel quality is important.

I have or have had 8, 9, 10, 12 and 14.

My results are different from yours as far as hunting rifles with factory barrels go. Quality is hit or miss....

Factory barrels are generally ~10. The Sako L579 Mannlicher was cool but took a bit of development because of the Mannlicher stock. The Winchester M70 1959 shot flat base bullets really well. Copper took some work. The Vanguard original 243 barrel never shot worth a penny, it became a 260. FWIW Savage .243s are 9.25 and I don't have one.

I get more flexibility with 8tx for 6mm and 6.5mm or course I live in Copperfornia so faster is better for me. So far these are all custom barrels. Customs are of course higher quality but don't come on factory rifles so your argument is not very supportive of the OPs purchasing options.

The ARPerformance 9tw barrel has a V-Max load that is sub moa, now I have to work out the copper load.

The 12 is gone. Never got it to shoot.

The 14 is a BR rifle for ~65gn flat base short range. Only 20 rounds down the tube but a Hart bench rest barrel will shoot no question, if I do my part. I am refinishing the stock. It got painted cammo over a beautiful flame gel coat color scheme...

 

[Deleted member 46119]

I forgot..

My buddy's son has a Vanguard Youth 243. Shoots copper factory very well. Shoots my reduced loads very well. Shoots HornadyLite reduced loads very well.

I think he has 6 pigs so far with it out to 225yards. He's 9 maybe 10 now.

 

[roninflag]

Ebagwell- where are you hunting deer?

 

[ebagwell]

I live in SC. The gun would not only be used for deer but coyotes and other varmints as well.

 

[Deleted member 46119]

What is the best twist rate? One just said 1-8 rate?

There is no 'best' only preferred for the intended use.

Factory hunting rifles probably will not have 8tw. Semi custom might, custom, you specify.

Factory rifle 243 twist rates:
Ruger 1-9
Remington 1-9.125
Savage 1-9.25
Everyone else 1-10

When I was young, you would not have been able to convince me to buy a Ruger. I have to say I was wrong then. Now, I am very impressed with Ruger. I am more stuck on Weatherby but M77 Hawkeye and American are very attractive.

 

[roninflag]

Ebagwell- where are you hunting deer?

Ebagwell- not all deer are created equal. the whitetails here in az avg are dinks, 75 lbs dressed, the ones in sask cost 7.5k to hunt and weigh 300 pounds. having killed a lot of deer with a .243 and over 250 coyotes i know it is a great choice. enjoy.

 

[ebagwell]

Thanks to all for the info and help.

 

[ShootnMathews]

I'm not sure how much you are looking to spend, but I have a Marlin XS7 that I bought brand new for $319. Has a button rifled barrel, target crown, pillar bedded stock, floating bolt head, marlins version of the acutrigger, super soft recoil pad, and includes a zero MOA scope mount rail.

With 35.1 grains of Varget mine shoots 95 grain nosler ballistic tips at 2886fps in 3/8 MOA groups reliably. This is my deer load.

With 43.5 grains of Varget it shoots a 55 grain Nosler Balistic tip at 3650 fps into 1/2 - 3/4 MOA groups reliably. This is my coyote load.

The best part about the two loads is the profile of the bullet is the same almost so I don't have to change my seating die for the different loads. Only the powder charge.

Despite my many more expensive guns, this one is one of my very favorite guns.

 

[ebagwell]

Not wanting to spend a ton but would love to find a deal like yours. I have been eyeing the savage 11preadtor hunter.

 

[ShootnMathews]

Hard to beat a savage In My opinion. Here is the Marlin. My own camo for coyote hunting.

Ps. I played with one of the limb savers tuner things on a few guns for a bit. It's on the barrel in the pic. I saw no real improvement on any of the guns.

 

[ebagwell]

Shootnmathews, what final total in gun?

 

[ShootnMathews]

Gun was $319, Nikon scope $360, rings $35. So about $715 total the way it sits in the picture. Since that pic I made my own cheek piece for it. Cost about $5. At 500 yards she holds a 2" group. That's as far as I usually shoot it because it doesn't have enough energy to kill much past that. But I did dial and put a few hits on a 12" gong at 800 one day when my buddy was burning ammo.

 

[ebagwell]

That is a good deal there.. hope I will be as lucky.

 

[ShootnMathews]

Here is a better pic. But again I'll add, can't go wrong with a Savage.