243 win hunting load...?

[Msprink05]

So ive got an old 243 win im planning on shooting some.. I plan on hunting whitetails with it this fall (some) as a back up and also as something to shoot while the .308 cools. My question is (since im new to reloading) what powder should i buy? And also what bullet recomedations do you have? Hunting and target, hopefully with the same powder. BTW its a pencil barrel savage.
Thanks in advance for the help Matt

 

[B.Bates]

Re: 243 win hunting load...?

i would pick between 80g barnes ttsx or 85g barnes tsx

varget, rl-15, rl-17 will work fine


2 years ago i hunted with my 243ai shooting 85g barnes via varget. its a giant killer, i killed 6 or so deer that year and they were all one shot kills 5 dropped right there.

even took it out to colorado and slammed some big bodied mulies, the barnes kill

 

[Fritzcat]

Re: 243 win hunting load...?

IMR 4320 with 100gr Sierra Game King. 1" group @200yds wth Wal-mart Rem 700ADL. Loaded some 95gr Nosler Partitions for a Mule Deer hunt and grouped 1 1/2" @ 200 yds. Shot a Mule Deer and he fell in his tracks. Then later shot 2 white tails at home and they melted in their tracks. I put a Texas heart shot on one and found the bullet past his shoulder and lodged in his neck. It went entire length of body and stayed together. Eddie

 

[SNOW]

Re: 243 win hunting load...?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: shootone</div><div class="ubbcode-body">i would pick between 80g barnes ttsx or 85g barnes tsx

varget, rl-15, rl-17 will work fine </div></div>

Hit the bullet on the money. '15 is THE powder too. Varget works OK but I didn't get the velocity from it like '15 gave me.

 

[RidgeRebel]

Re: 243 win hunting load...?

Best load for mine is IMR 4831 and Hornaday BTSP. Shoots great near max load in Hornaday book. I have shot mule deer with this load and it works perfect.

 

[trigger time]

Re: 243 win hunting load...?

85 grain Sierra BTHP gameking on top of H380 has killed many many a deer out of my little 243.
The H380 is a ball powder so metering is easy as it gets, and that bullet has allways shot very well for me. 21 bucks for 100 makes them pretty cheap to.
http://www.grafs.com/product/251108

 

[Msprink05]

Re: 243 win hunting load...?

Has anybody had any experience with the ballistic tip bullets? They are considerably cheaper thant the tsx barnes.

 

[grandslam]

Re: 243 win hunting load...?

I have used alot of ballastic tip bullets in my 270, and had great results on California blacktail. I shoot Sierra GameKing 85gr through my 243 and they work great for most of the things I shoot out here.

 

[aqualung]

Re: 243 win hunting load...?

I use the 90grn Nosler bt ahead of 36.4grn of RL15.

Just edited to say this;
This load is the accuracy load in the Sierra reloading manual vol 5. I can't complain, it works for me.
If this is incorrect guys, it's because I'm working from memory, and my body tells me it's 03:02 where I am.

This comes out of a heavy 20inch pipe faster than I can run, and it kills deer. Also, I can put that bullet wherever I want out to 250/300m. It is a tack driver, but it has a Moderator on it which takes out all of the recoil.

I don't like the ammount of meat loss due to bloodshot damage. I prefer my 7mm-08Rem with a 150grn Sierra Game King.

Bottom line, the BT shoots well, kills game, but DOES cause meat damage due to blood shot meat. Shooting for trophies?, no worries. But I shoot for meat and resent the loss.

Hope this helps.

Neil