Is the .243 win on the way out?

[Lee Goodwin]

I am just an ok shot, more of a reloader, I think. But, something about the 243 has always appealed to me. Outta 5 , the first to shots were high center, then, three in a big hole. You can shoot all day and your shoulder doesn't complain. I was out there 5 hours dinking around, 243, 270s, 338. I like my 243 and m700 270 the best.

 

[Backcountry sports]

Hi all, every 2 months it seems someone posts a "is the .270 dying" post (and is met with an emphatic "NO!") but I don't actually see much talk about the plain vanilla .243 Winchester, either of it's popularity or lack thereof.

the 6mms are in general a bit more of a "love it or hate it" cartridge family, neither fish nor fowl, over and underestimated, some regarding them as little more than the .22 centerfires and some regarding them able to do anything the bigger diameters can do, both probably wrong (according to me anyway ) - for a long time where I live the .243 was the minimum legal caliber for big game hunting and I personally feel changing that was a mistake, gotta draw a line somewhere and that made sense - there's also lots of shots I've taken with my .270 that I would have opted to pass on with my .243.

but with the advent of rounds like the 6 creedmoor and the advent of truly high bc 224" projectiles and cartridges to launch them fast along with the ever rising popularity of the 6.5s which some could argue don't recoil notably more, I wonder if many will be questioning the point of the old .243 win with its now anathema stubby neck and gentle shoulders and less than extreme twist rates.

any big .243 fans or shooters on here?

what do you think the future holds for this old workhorse?

I have a model 7 in 243 that shoots great and my daughters adl rem in 243 wont get rid of both excellant shooters lots of black tail deer fell to both of these

 

[Xescane]

The 30.06 will die and become obsolete well before the 243 or 270.

Lol. I doubt it 30.06 will ever go away. Fourty years of military use and another 40 of civilian make it one of the top ten calibers ever used world wide.

 

[Scooter 45ACP]

Hi all, every 2 months it seems someone posts a "is the .270 dying" post (and is met with an emphatic "NO!") but I don't actually see much talk about the plain vanilla .243 Winchester, either of it's popularity or lack thereof.

the 6mms are in general a bit more of a "love it or hate it" cartridge family, neither fish nor fowl, over and underestimated, some regarding them as little more than the .22 centerfires and some regarding them able to do anything the bigger diameters can do, both probably wrong (according to me anyway ) - for a long time where I live the .243 was the minimum legal caliber for big game hunting and I personally feel changing that was a mistake, gotta draw a line somewhere and that made sense - there's also lots of shots I've taken with my .270 that I would have opted to pass on with my .243.

but with the advent of rounds like the 6 creedmoor and the advent of truly high bc 224" projectiles and cartridges to launch them fast along with the ever rising popularity of the 6.5s which some could argue don't recoil notably more, I wonder if many will be questioning the point of the old .243 win with its now anathema stubby neck and gentle shoulders and less than extreme twist rates.

any big .243 fans or shooters on here?

what do you think the future holds for this old workhorse?

Just think of all the old hunters out there who's first rifle was a .243, it's been a favorite cal. since it's introduction and will be for years to come, the shiny new 6.5's that are having they're hay day now will vanish long before the .243

 

[Xescane]

For hunting the answer is no.
For bragging or punching holes in paper....probably, but so will the darling of the day. There is always a new toy that will make some drop the old toy....only to find the old toy wasn't so bad after all.

Exactly. I still haven't found the advantage of my 6.5 over anything. The bullets grenade just as badly as my 243 when they hit big game. I like mushroomed bullets not lead dust in my meat.

 

[Legionnaire]

The .243 Win may be obsolescent, but it isn't obsolete. If a new shooter asked me for advice on a low-recoil hunting rifle capable of game up to and including whitetail, I'd probably recommend the 6mm Creedmoor over the .243. Both are great cartridges, but the 6mm Creedmoor is a more efficient design and more rifles chambered in it have faster-twist barrels than most .243s, giving it the edge with heavier bullets.

That said, I don't own a 6 Creedmoor ... yet. I have a couple of .243 Winchesters and a couple more .243 Ackley Improved. I may re-barrel something in 6mm Creedmoor when a barrel shoots out, but that will be a while since I don't compete.

I don't think .243 Win will be displaced any time soon, though. And even if it was and brass became hard to come by, it's not too difficult to form .243 brass from its .308 parent, and the .308 isn't going away either.

 

[Backcountry sports]

Exactly. I still haven't found the advantage of my 6.5 over anything. The bullets grenade just as badly as my 243 when they hit big game. I like mushroomed bullets not lead dust in my meat.

I'll never jump on the 6.5 band wagon it's just a phase

 

[Legionnaire]

My 6.5 is a .260 Remington Ackley Improved.

 

[slas]

Bought my son a Rem 7 in 243 and it's a great shooter. I will never get rid of it. I've taken it with me on a few deer hunts and let others use it. They always try and buy it off me after that.......

 

[Lee Goodwin]

Lol. I doubt it 30.06 will ever go away. Fourty years of military use and another 40 of civilian make it one of the top ten calibers ever used world wide.

Exactly, the 243 question is like asking the same of the 30.06...

 

[Velvet]

I have a Tikka T3 chambered in 243ai, Bartlein 1:7.5 Twist 26". I can shoot factory 243win ammo, as well as fireformed. Give me a reason why I should change a rifle/cartridge that shoots 100/105gn bullets at 3200fs, and with which I hunted from feral heavy hogs, to deer and other species, always with instantaneous or near deaths.
In its improved version as in the original, it is a cartridge capable of cleanly killing many animals at the proper distances and shot placement. The ammunition and brass available is enormous, the quantity of bullets too, new powder to use and try, etc. With the simple change of barrel for a new one with a faster Twist rate, you can fire the new 115gn bullets, or the new design and better BC ones, always, at a lower price than buying a new rifle for another "modern" cartridge, so I see it difficult for the cartridge to be in the final phase, quite the contrary , it has a bright future !!!
As you can see, I´m a well established 243win fan...
V

 

[Lee Goodwin]

That would make an excellent military round too.

 

[Legionnaire]

Bought my son a Rem 7 in 243 and it's a great shooter. I will never get rid of it. I've taken it with me on a few deer hunts and let others use it. They always try and buy it off me after that.......

My kids who hunt all took their first whitetail with a Model 7 in .243. It now belongs to one of my daughters.

 

[73driver]

Exactly. I still haven't found the advantage of my 6.5 over anything. The bullets grenade just as badly as my 243 when they hit big game. I like mushroomed bullets not lead dust in my meat.

Sounds like a bullet choice issue not a caliber issue.