.243 Winchester Hand Loading Thead

[shawnhu]

Do you hand load for .243 Win? What's your favorite hunting bullet or most accurate bullet/load?

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[asav2013]

iv loaded 95 gr nolser partition ballistic tips they were super accurate took a woodchuck out  at 380 yards like nothing, just loaded some 58gr v maxes seem to be same accuracy but my savage seems to love every thing its simply a tack driver, haven't found a load that this gun wont produce 1/2" moa at 100, don't shoot deer with my 243 woodchucks and yotes are about it fox once and a while if the chance presents itself,

 

[Culvercreek hunt club]

iv loaded 95 gr nolser partition ballistic tips they were super accurate took a woodchuck out  at 380 yards like nothing, just loaded some 58gr v maxes seem to be same accuracy but my savage seems to love every thing its simply a tack driver, haven't found a load that this gun wont produce 1/2" moa at 100, don't shoot deer with my 243 woodchucks and yotes are about it fox once and a while if the chance presents itself,

Great response. It is important in these type of threads, when talking about bullet selection, that we specify what game they are used on.

[pistolp71]

No such thing as Nosler partition ballistic tips. The partition and ballistic tip are totally different.

 

Shawnhu,

I load for the .243 as well. It's pointless to say what shoots well out of my gun because every bullet and load shoots different out of different guns. Also, what my gun handles, as far as pressure, and what your gun can handle, could be very different. Always start low and work up. I can say IMR 4350 is the go to powder for most bullets weights. What twist is your rifle?

[shawnhu]

1-9.25, Savage. I couldn't get IMR 4350, but got a hold on some H4350.

Yup, no such thing as a BT 95gr partition.

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[Pygmy]

 

1-9.25, Savage. I couldn't get IMR 4350, but got a hold on some H4350.

Yup, no such thing as a BT 95gr partition.

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I don't for the .243 , but as far as 4350 goes, I have read that IMR 4350 and H4350 are interchangable, unlike some other granulations such as 4831.

As always, start low and work up carefully.

[Culvercreek hunt club]

 

 

I don't for the .243 , but as far as 4350 goes, I have read that IMR 4350 and H4350 are interchangable, unlike some other granulations such as 4831.

As always, start low and work up carefully.

 

 

Great point. I see folks post quite a bit without the letters. Can make a difference.(when in doubt go to the manual, when not in doubt, still go to the manual) 

[Pygmy]

Shawn..I just did some more research...

Opinon seems to vary some...Some guys interchange them, and some say that they are SIMILAR , but not interchangable. H4350 is slightly slower burning than IMR 4350.

Most people feel that it would be safe to interchange STARTING loads, but to use caution with higher end loads.

There is a bunch of discussion on the net..Google up " are IMR4350 and H4350 interchangable" and check them out and you can come to your own conclusions. Good luck .

[shawnhu]

Thanks Pygmy. I did look at the burn charts and that's why I bought the H4350. My data calls for IMR, but its not available. I'll just have to take extra caution.

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[pistolp71]

Most people feel that it would be safe to interchange STARTING loads, but to use caution with higher end loads.

 

 

I agree. But don't take anyones word for it on the internet. We are talking about potentially dangerous stuff here. Go by the manual. You should have no problem with most bullets with that twist. What bullet are you thinking of using? I'm assuming you are loading for big game.

[Culvercreek hunt club]

I agree. But don't take anyones word for it on the internet. We are talking about potentially dangerous stuff here. Go by the manual.

 

 

I can't paste but I really wanted to put the Allstate video here...lol

Edited January 13, 2014 by Culvercreek hunt club

[Pygmy]

This is from my Hodgdon manual, No. 26. .243 with 100 grain bullets

IMR 4350 starting load 39.0 grains Max load 42.0 grains

H 4350 starting load 39.0 grains Max load 43.0 grains

[pistolp71]

Culver, I don't get it.

Edited January 13, 2014 by pistolp71

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Culver, I don't get it.

It is that video about  "I saw it on the internet, so it has to be true"

[shawnhu]

I agree. But don't take anyones word for it on the internet. We are talking about potentially dangerous stuff here. Go by the manual. You should have no problem with most bullets with that twist. What bullet are you thinking of using? I'm assuming you are loading for big game.

I'd like to shoot Nosler 85-95 grain BT bullets, or their AccuBond line of bullets.

I'd like to also find a load that'll work well with their varmint BT bullets in either 55gr or 70gr. Since 55gr is readily available, I'll try to work up a load for that first, and try my luck at some predators with it.

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[shawnhu]

This is from my Hodgdon manual, No. 26. .243 with 100 grain bullets

IMR 4350 starting load 39.0 grains Max load 42.0 grains

H 4350 starting load 39.0 grains Max load 43.0 grains

Pygmy, how would you work up a load given those min and max? What increments would you load and how many shots per group per load?

Would .5 increments and 3 shot groups be sufficient or smaller increments and more shots per group?

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[Culvercreek hunt club]

Personally I wouldn't mess with .5 gr on the first outing. (but I have easy access to the range.) What I have found with my guns is accuracy is like a Bell curve working up the loads. it gets good to a point and then drops off. SO I don't see a need to load a bunch of rounds that are on the right side and falling off of the accuracy curve. I haven't had anything that is close to max loads that ended up being the most accurate. That said for the H4350, I would load 3 rounds at 39 and 40 and 41and 42. (12 rounds). Once those groups are established I would take the best and work between those numbers. I would bet a beer that you end up between 40.5 and 41.5. for the 55gr bullet.

 

I strongly suggest getting very good stability for shooting the groups....lead sled, sand bags or such, taking as much human involvement out as you can.

[Pygmy]

Given the min and max for the H4350, I would load 4 rounds each of 39.0, 40.0 and 41.0.

I shoot 4 shot groups when working up loads..Allowing 1 shot per group that I might pull, or whatever.

Then I look for a trend...Groups expanding or reducing.. If groups are getting smaller with increase, I work up a grain at a time. If none of the groups are acceptable, I'll generally try another bullet or another powder.

With case capacities of 40 grains or more I don't generally mess with 1/2 grain increments..That is for fine tuning. Of course, with smaller case capacities like some of the .22 or .17 centerfires, a half grain ( or less) would be much more relevant.

[shawnhu]

Excellent info guys, thanks! Can't wait to put my first round together.

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[Lawdwaz]

shawn.......I'm not TOTALLY ignoring you ( ) on this.  I'm too whipped right now to give any accurate info for you.  Good stuff so far from all the guys.  What I can tell you is the 80gr Barnes TTSX is what I use in my 243 NULA for deer.  I think I'm around 3400fps but, like I said, I'm wiped out.  You don't need that expensive of a bullet of course but I do enjoy using them as there's not much chance for failure.  I started using them in my Remington 700 243 and killed a couple deer with them.

 

Remember this:

 

 

 

 

The above of course is the Barnes 80gr TTSX bullet.  Here is where it came from:

 

 

That Is a roast from the hind quarter of a PA doe that I shot, head on at 235 yards in 2011.  That bullet went bow to stern on her.  She flipped over backwards and went zero yards.

 

Here is the buck I killed at 200+ yards in PA, 2012 with said bullet:

 

 

I like them but I won't say they are necessary for our deer, just accurate and consistent, IMO.

 

More to come after chow time..................................................................

 

 

 

, 

[pistolp71]

I work up loads by half grain increments, even less with my precision stuff. If you want to work up 1 grain at a time, once you find which load your rifle likes, increase and decrease by half a grain to fine tune. If your rest is solid and your shooting form is good, 3 shot groups is fine. Once you find the accuracy node, then you can fine tune some more with the overall length of the cartridge. Usually the bullet seated as close to the lands as possible will give the best accuracy.

 

The 90gr Nosler Accubond is what I recommend for big game. And the 70 gr. Ballistic Tip for varmints. I've sent hundreds of prairie dogs and woodchucks to varmint heaven with that bullet.

[shawnhu]

After looking at Hodgdon's data, I noticed that H4350 and IMR4350 seems to differ in that the lighter bullets require less charge vs the heavier ones require more in IMR than H.

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[Lawdwaz]

After looking at Hodgdon's data, I noticed that H4350 and IMR4350 seems to differ in that the lighter bullets require less charge vs the heavier ones require more in IMR than H.

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My Barnes data (from their web site) on the 80gr TTSX shows MAX loads of IMR 4350 of 46.0grs and H 4350 of 45.5grs.

[Lawdwaz]

Definitely look at that 95gr Nosler Balistic Tip.  I'll plan on grabbing some of them and putting a load together this winter or spring.  I've heard good things about them.......  

[shawnhu]

I work up loads by half grain increments, even less with my precision stuff. If you want to work up 1 grain at a time, once you find which load your rifle likes, increase and decrease by half a grain to fine tune. If your rest is solid and your shooting form is good, 3 shot groups is fine. Once you find the accuracy node, then you can fine tune some more with the overall length of the cartridge. Usually the bullet seated as close to the lands as possible will give the best accuracy.

The 90gr Nosler Accubond is what I recommend for big game. And the 70 gr. Ballistic Tip for varmints. I've sent hundreds of prairie dogs and woodchucks to varmint heaven with that bullet.

I wasn't going to get into COL and seating depth from the lands yet, but I'm sure that's next along with action screw torquing.

I have the 55gr and 90gr on order from midsouth along with some Hornady 100 interlocks.

I was also looking at the Hornady SST and Nosler E-Tip as well as the Barnes TSX. Tr BC is great on the copper stuff, but I found expansion to be a very steep drop vs speed/range.

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