Winchester 243 how good or bad for deer and range

[Pygmy]

9 minutes ago, G-Man said:

Heck a .22 caliber can kill a polar bear.. again  id prefer and would reccomend a caliber that gives you a margin of error for less than optimal placement or bullet selection

When I was hunting caribou in NWT  in 1994, my Inuit guide showed me a video on his camcorder of his son shooting a big polar bear with a .222 Rem... Dropped him like a rock with a shot right behind the ear...That's not to say that a .222  is a good bear rifle, however...  Another aquaintance was hunting polar bears in northern Canada with a .375 H&H mag....He told me his Inuit guide was "backing him up" with a 22-250....

[wolc123]

18 minutes ago, G-Man said:

Heck a .22 caliber can kill a polar bear.. again  id prefer and would reccomend a caliber that gives you a margin of error for less than optimal placement or bullet selection

If one is recoil sensitive, wouldn’t a 7mm-08 be a better selection for deer, than a .243 ?   I wonder which one has better ammo availability right now ?  

[Pygmy]

12 minutes ago, wolc123 said:

If one is recoil sensitive, wouldn’t a 7mm-08 be a better selection for deer, than a .243 ?   I wonder which one has better ammo availability right now ?  

The 7-08 is not a hard kicker, but it definitely kicks more than a .243....No idea on ammo availability..Most of my rifles have never had a factory load fired in them....

[suburbanfarmer]

Just now, Pygmy said:

The 7-08 is not a hard kicker, but it definitely kicks more than a .243....No idea on ammo availability..Most of my rifles have never had a factory load fired in them....

Do you give reloading lessons?

[Pygmy]

Just now, suburbanfarmer said:

Do you give reloading lessons?

No offense, but no.....

[G-Man]

4 minutes ago, Pygmy said:

The 7-08 is not a hard kicker, but it definitely kicks more than a .243....No idea on ammo availability..Most of my rifles have never had a factory load fired in them....

Thats something many here forget there are dedicated hunters here that know thier guns amd ammo..  the average guys grabs a box off a shelf ..maybe looks at little pic of what its recommended for..   there are reasons  10%  of hunters take  90%  of the game.  ..  the eskimo guides have one gun and know how to use it..  many hunters  sight in and never fire another round till they see game...  

[Nomad]

My daughter put two mags of 7mm08 in the center of the target today , hasn’t shot it since this time last year either . She’s not a “ big” girl , I was pretty happy .

As far as factory ammo , my basement is well stocked . I’ll buy more after the season and demand drops too . 

[cdbing]

I rarely rifle hunt, but have taken 4 deer with the 243 and had no problem with recovery on 3. The 4th was poor shot placement on my part, but deer was recovered. All shots were within 75 yds.

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[luberhill]

1 hour ago, Robhuntandfish said:

If a .243 is all you got use it. But can't see a reason to buy one for deer hunting. Even recoil sensitive people could still shoot a .308, 7mm, 30/30 etc without much issue and would do a better job. To buy one specific for deer hunting is a poor choice imo. It's better left for varmints and such.

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The ballistics on a .243 outweigh the 30/30 so I wouldn’t choose the 30/30 over the .243

[luberhill]

Some good reading

https://www.ronspomeroutdoors.com/blog/243-winchester-vs-30-30-win

[ATbuckhunter]

I know plenty of big deer are killed every year with a 243. A guy I know shot a 200+ pound 11 point near Rome NY a long time ago with 243. I wouldn't hesitate to use one, but I would definitely want to use a copper bullet. The Barnes and any other all copper bullet will have great penetration. 

[G-Man]

59 minutes ago, luberhill said:

The ballistics on a .243 outweigh the 30/30 so I wouldn’t choose the 30/30 over the .243

Distance of expected shot is the factor thats important  buying a long range caliber for 70 yards shots  defeats the balistics..  when rifle was made legal guys bought 300 win mags .. a few years later all using short range guns like 3030 or 45 70.  Ect.. average shot 70 to 125 yards max..  

[Lucky118]

4 hours ago, G-Man said:

Why im not fan of .243  this is from good friend  in southern tier ny.

My neighbors daughter shot this one during the youth hunt with a 243. 10 days later he's in one of my brassica plots eating. Sadly the cam was set for pics, but I believe the shoulder is broken, I think one of us will shoot him during the gun season, don't think he'll travel far. 

Proper bullet and proper placement are probably a factor  in this.  But  a slightly larger caliber  would give you a much better margin for error and penetration...

Holy crap! Did the bullet explode on impact? I usually have to search for the hole my 270 makes with a 130 grain the hole is so small.

[Lucky118]

19 minutes ago, G-Man said:

Distance of expected shot is the factor thats important  buying a long range caliber for 70 yards shots  defeats the balistics..  when rifle was made legal guys bought 300 win mags .. a few years later all using short range guns like 3030 or 45 70.  Ect.. average shot 70 to 125 yards max..  

Pretty sure they traded the 300 win mags in because a box of bullets is $100 now lol. Or because it gives you a slight concusion every time you shoot lol

[Larry]

Last deer I shot was a trotting at 70yds with a Nosler 95gr IB hit ribs going in and out dropped in it's tracks 

[Robhuntandfish]

The ballistics on a .243 outweigh the 30/30 so I wouldn’t choose the 30/30 over the .243

With a 160 grain bullet?

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[Robhuntandfish]

I know plenty of big deer are killed every year with a 243. A guy I know shot a 200+ pound 11 point near Rome NY a long time ago with 243. I wouldn't hesitate to use one, but I would definitely want to use a copper bullet. The Barnes and any other all copper bullet will have great penetration. 

I def think it will kill a deer I guess the ask is - what is the advantage of buying a 243?

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[G-Man]

5 hours ago, Lucky118 said:

Holy crap! Did the bullet explode on impact? I usually have to search for the hole my 270 makes with a 130 grain the hole is so small.

Looks like hit scapula and deflected. From what i can see.imo

[phantom]

8 hours ago, Robhuntandfish said:

If a .243 is all you got use it. But can't see a reason to buy one for deer hunting. Even recoil sensitive people could still shoot a .308, 7mm, 30/30 etc without much issue and would do a better job. To buy one specific for deer hunting is a poor choice imo. It's better left for varmints and such.

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Someone I know is thinking about selling one of his rifles that is really light and compact  that happens to be  Chambered in that thats the reason I asked all my  other Rifles are much  Heavier  larger caliber  Rifles that i hunt with. Where I hunt most the time you can't see more than 70 anyway. 

[G-Man]

2 hours ago, Larry said:

Last deer I shot was a trotting at 70yds with a Nosler 95gr IB hit ribs going in and out dropped in it's tracks 

It kills deer sure im sure youve shot for long time as well .. young hunter shot was little off. A larger caliber would be more forgiving. 

[phantom]

21 minutes ago, G-Man said:

It kills deer sure im sure youve shot for long time as well .. young hunter shot was little off. A larger caliber would be more forgiving. 

 What  I'm asking is if I buy this guy's light  rifle and use that caliber what am I losing compared to using my 30-06 at shots that I know never going to be more than 70 yd 80 yd a  100 the most ? Seems like for the most part if you dont mess up the shot its very  Usable for what im seeing in the comments.  I'd use a nosler partition or Similar version of that if he sells it to me in that gun .

Edited October 31, 2022 by phantom

[G-Man]

15 minutes ago, phantom said:

 What  I'm asking is if I buy this guy's light  rifle and use that caliber what am I losing compared to using my 30-06 at shots that I know never going to be more than 70 yd 80 yd a  100 the most ? Seems like for the most part if you dont mess up the shot its very  Usable for what im seeing in the comments.  I'd use a nosler partition or the  barn's version of that if he sells it to me in that gun .

Imo  Your losing margin for error as well as a decent chance for a bear if they are around..  had a guy shot a bear 5 x with 243 100 grain and bullet never penetrated vitals from 10 to 50 yard shots..  went thru hide and 4 inches of fat and stopped at ribs.  Found every bullet when we skun it out . 

[stubborn1VT]

14 minutes ago, phantom said:

 What  I'm asking is if I buy this guy's light  rifle and use that caliber what am I losing compared to using my 30-06 at shots that I know never going to be more than 70 yd 80 yd a  100 the most ? 

As others have mentioned: margin for error.  You lose bullet weight, penetration, knockdown power and recoil.  The only benefit IMO is that the .243 is more shootable for someone who is recoil shy.  I have seen instances where a person was more accurate with smaller caliber than one they were afraid of. 

[G-Man]

53 minutes ago, Robhuntandfish said:

With a 160 grain bullet?

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The whole article is about bullet shape. Today leverevolution bullet raises the 30-30 stats  and puts 2 spitzer style bullets against each other.  Comparison being done to flat nosed bullets..  a savage 99 could load spitzers 100 years ago in its rotary mag. 

[Grouse]

30 minutes ago, phantom said:

 What  I'm asking is if I buy this guy's light  rifle and use that caliber what am I losing compared to using my 30-06 at shots that I know never going to be more than 70 yd 80 yd a  100 the most ? Seems like for the most part if you dont mess up the shot its very  Usable for what im seeing in the comments.  I'd use a nosler partition or Similar version of that if he sells it to me in that gun .

The .243 became popular with hunters as a dual game animal rifle.  It will take deer and it isn't too big for varmint, coyote, bobcat, raccoon or porcupine.  It is popular with people who want an all around rifle in NY.

Deer hunting with a .243 requires the bigger bullets available, from 95 grain and up, and a Partition or Barnes copper bullet would be a good choice.  Any all copper bullet would be a good choice.  To use it specifically for varmints and small game, the smaller, lighter bullets work well, especially when designed to fragment on impact so you don't have to worry about the bullet traveling further than the target after impact.  I once had a Winchester Mod 670 in .243 that wouldn't shoot the lighter weight bullets well.  I think the accuracy was affected by the bullet having to jump farther from the chamber to reach the rifling.  It shot heavy bullets well, but was not accurate with varmint bullets of 75 grain or less.  It was terrible with the Remington Accelerator bullets that used a sabot and 55 grain bullets.

Since the rifle in question is light and compact, that would make it a pleasure to carry while hunting.  That's an advantage.  It will have less recoil than a larger round and shoots flatter than many at longer ranges so that can help you be more accurate.  It can be used for more animals than deer without overkill, so there's an advantage there.  

The only thing I disliked about the .243 was meat loss when the bullet hit bone or was fired into a deer at close range, due to the high velocity of the bullet.  If you handload you can drop velocity down to 2700 FPS or less for deer under 100 yards and not have to worry about meat loss or losing too much penetration.  For close range work, I chose a neck shot to avoid meat loss.  I never had an issue with lack of penetration using a .243 with 95 grain or heavier bullets.

If the price is right for that rifle, I would not pass it up.