243. win for whitetail and mule!

[angus-5024]

Take the .243 win, but carry the .300 win. Under 200 yards it is fine if your rifle is accurate. but beyond that it is a coyote rifle. I think that the majority of hunters out east use the .243 because it is perfect for whitetale sized game... INSIDE 200 yards. I own a .243 and I use it for yotes, but wouldnt hesitate to use it on deer when the ranges are close. The problem with the .243 isn that its to small, its that people are streching it beyond its intended use. It is however great for not damageing meat. I would step up to a bigger bullet if your gun likes 'em. Whats the twist on it? 1 in 8.125? if it is i think it should handle the bergers.

 

[kyumanaz]

Take the 243. 10 years ago no one mentioned fist size holes. I think people use too large of guns anymore, the new thing is who has the larger gun instead of the most undamaged meat. Many people forgot about shot placement. I used to get laughed at when hunting with a single shot 410 when rabbit hunting, but I always took home more rabbits. I think the 243 is the best round ever made. I would use it on anything up to a moose myself.

 

[threejones]

This thread is a little old, but I'll chime in anyway. I've only hunted in montana, but I have been doing it for better than 20 years. Depending on where you're planning to hunt, a 243 might not reach out far enough to retain much energy. In alot of eastern MT, 400yd shots are pretty common, and farther if the shooter is up to. I like my 243, but the 270 or bigger goes with me for anything bigger than yotes.

 

[orangeride]

I was in Wyoming a few years back on a mule deer hunt. My brother and I where in my truck watching some doe's and a small 4x4 feeding in a field. This truck pulls up on the other side and of field and pulls out a rifle. So I pulled out my binos to watch the action unfold. They proceded to shoot this buck at least 4 times in the shoulder area. I could actually see the tufts of hair bloody from the shots, I was no more than 200yrds from the deer and neither where the shooters. The buck slowly limped off to the brush. My brother and I where super ****ed off. We drove over to the other truck to let them know we had seen their buck walk off. They where locals and really looked like they didn't care. We never saw them go look for that animal. We asked them what they where shooting. The reply, 243. Now I don't know what bullet they where using. Could have been 55gr Bt . They did seem idiots. The fact of the matter is, if it had been a 30-06, I don't care what bullet you where using, that buck what have been down on the first or second shot. And yes, I did tell fish and game.

 

[kyumanaz]

I dont know about that, maybe I over reacted. I am just tired of seeing people use too big of gun on some game species, and blowing cannon sized holes through them. I have used 30-06 in the past, and I know it has more nock down power. I just also know that a well placed shot with a 243 will take them down with 1 shot as well. That is my thing, I was always taught to make the perfect shot or walk away. Maybe that is why my dad started us out with single shot weaons. I know 100 grain SPBT will do the job on muleys and elk. We used to reload our own ammo, and different loads for different purposes. I am looking at getting a 308. I havent hunted since I went into the military in 1991. I am outfitting myself and my sons with Savage 243 initially, then I am going to get 308's once I save up to buy the rifles. I may also go with 30-06. I had a Ruger M77 in 7mm mag, and I loved it as well, but it is just too hard on barrells.

 

[CRNA]

I think the 243 is a great gun up close. But, I personally would limit it for white tail out to about 200-250yds max.

 

[Powder_Burn]

I have personally taken five whitetails at a little over 200 yards using Hornady's 95 gr SST. The deer are every bit as dead as they are with my 30-06 but you won't always get an exit hole. Make the shot and it works just fine...

 

[tnshooter111]

I was in Wyoming a few years back on a mule deer hunt. My brother and I where in my truck watching some doe's and a small 4x4 feeding in a field. This truck pulls up on the other side and of field and pulls out a rifle. So I pulled out my binos to watch the action unfold. They proceded to shoot this buck at least 4 times in the shoulder area. I could actually see the tufts of hair bloody from the shots, I was no more than 200yrds from the deer and neither where the shooters. The buck slowly limped off to the brush. My brother and I where super ****ed off. We drove over to the other truck to let them know we had seen their buck walk off. They where locals and really looked like they didn't care. We never saw them go look for that animal. We asked them what they where shooting. The reply, 243. Now I don't know what bullet they where using. Could have been 55gr Bt . They did seem idiots. The fact of the matter is, if it had been a 30-06, I don't care what bullet you where using, that buck what have been down on the first or second shot. And yes, I did tell fish and game.

I'm sorry but I disagree that If the gun would have been a 30-06 the results would have been any different. *With a well placed shot a 30-06 doesn't kill any better than a 243. Some animals just take a bullet better than others.*

 

[chucknbach]

Use the .243 if you like to eat what you shoot. Use the .300 if you like meat jello.

.300 is way too much for deer.

 

[CogburnR]

I like using a larger caliber if there is heavy cover or a chance the deer can run off the property.

A 243 will kill deer but if a bullet that has limited expansion is used the deer can make it a long ways before dying.

I have had it happen a few times that the deer made it over 300 yards before falling over dead with a lung shot.
]
I watched a giant muley doe spray blood out her side 6 feet for over 300 yards with a half dollar sized hole in the ribcage before tipping over. It was shot perfectly with a 85g HPBT Sierra. The bullet did its job but the deer was big and it took a while for all of her blood to pump out-the blood trail was impressive. The deer laying on the carrier was wider than the 1985 Blazer... a really big doe.

I have also had to go tell people that the deer they were shooting with the 243 is hit and then track it for them to where it lay dead.

One guy swore up and down he missed and I saw the shot-it was a good lung shot...deer ran into a cornfield 200 yards away and lay dead about 20 rows in.

I use a 270wsm most of the time and if the shot needs to anchor the deer I shoot the 140g HPBT sierra. A broadside shot will result in a 5" hole in the far side of the ribcage and the deer usually doesn't even move. My 45/70 makes even bigger holes with the 300g hollow point.

Most people don't make deer ribs so there isn't a whole lot of meat ruined.

In a 243 the 85g HPBT sierra will put deer down much better than any other bullet I have used or seen used. Most deer that run away and drop were shot with 100g bullets that have limited expansion especially at longer ranges.

You can keep those bullets that "penetrate" and "keep 98% of their weight"...that usually means they poke a caliber sized hole through whatever they hit which means little or no blood trail and a long track to follow.

 

[bearpaw]

there's been alot of elk that have fallen victim to the 243. It was all my dad would hunt with for the longest time, never had a recovery issue wit helk or deer. That 243 was the first rifle I packed at the age of 12, killed two elk and several deer with it. One elk was 350 yds. it's more adequate than people are giving it credit for here. Always shot 100gr pills out of it. that said, I am a a big fan of knocking one down with a big bullet, but if all I had was a 243, I'd be willing to take any shot i would with a 300wm inside 400 yds. Frank Glaser, the alaskan wolf man killed everything in alaska with a 220 swift...

 

[6mm Remington]

The 243 with a 95 or 100 gr. Nosler Partition or the 90 gr. Nosler E-tip would work perfectly in your rifle. I would use whichever your rifle shot the best out of those three and feel confident that it would do it's job if you do yours. I don't feel the Sierra 85 boattail hollow-point would be the way to go. If you do get a perfect broadside shot and poke one behind the shoulder in the ribs it will work, and might kill the deer very quickly, but it's a varmint bullet not a game bullet and the result you might not be happy with and the deer deserves better than that. There are some really great bullets out there and the 243 is plenty of gun for antelope and deer with the right bullet.

I have shot many deer and antelope with my 6mm Remington which is similar to the 243, just a touch faster. I also have killed one spike bull elk with it using a 100 gr. Nosler Partition. Pick a good bullet that shoots in your rilfe, and you will do fine. Good luck.
David

 

[CogburnR]

The 243 with a 95 or 100 gr. Nosler Partition or the 90 gr. Nosler E-tip would work perfectly in your rifle. I would use whichever your rifle shot the best out of those three and feel confident that it would do it's job if you do yours. I don't feel the Sierra 85 boattail hollow-point would be the way to go. If you do get a perfect broadside shot and poke one behind the shoulder in the ribs it will work, and might kill the deer very quickly, but it's a varmint bullet not a game bullet and the result you might not be happy with and the deer deserves better than that. There are some really great bullets out there and the 243 is plenty of gun for antelope and deer with the right bullet.

I have shot many deer and antelope with my 6mm Remington which is similar to the 243, just a touch faster. I also have killed one spike bull elk with it using a 100 gr. Nosler Partition. Pick a good bullet that shoots in your rilfe, and you will do fine. Good luck.
David

To be clear the 85g HPBT was made specifically for killing deer.

It is the 85g HPBT Sierra GAMEKING not the Matchking target version.

People come and beg for me to load them for them because they kill deer WAY better than anything commercially available for the 243.

I wouldn't even bother commenting on it but the Sierra 85g HPBT Gameking is so much better than most anything else you can get for a 243 that it isn't even a contest. The partition is a good bullet but if the fence to some other property is 50 yards away I would feel ALOT better with the Sierra.

It is not a "VARMINT" bullet unless you call deer "varmints".