What ammo? .243

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CC268

New member
Hey guys just wondering what you guys would recommend (grain, etc) for these three situations:

1. Target Shooting
2. Coyote
3. Whitetail and Mule Deer

Also, where should I get my ammo...Midway USA is pretty much sold out of all .243 :(. I just have two boxes of 58 grain Winchester ammo right now.

Thanks!
 
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steveNChunter

New member
Federal Fusion 95 gr as an all-around for all three. It was the most accurate in my wife's Remington model 7 .243 before I started handloading. I also like the bullet construction with the Fusion ammo. Its basically a boat-tail version of the Speer Deepcurl. Seems to expand reliably and always stay together. It's premium ammo priced about the same as the cheap stuff.

Not saying everything else is trash. This is just my personal fave
 
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CC268

New member
Interesting...do you know where I can buy this ammo? Seems like .243 is kind of scarce right now.
 
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steveNChunter

New member
My local Walmart in Boone, NC has .243 in stock, as do most local gun stores. Everything is still selling out pretty quick online, and you have to pay high shipping for ammo. Look around locally and I'd about guarantee you will find some. If not find out when the next gun show is in your area.
 
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upstate81

New member
The only factory ammo we have used in our .243 is the hornady american whitetail ammo. They loaded them with a 100 grain interlock spire point boat tail. They claim a MV of 2960. This would be a VERY effective bullet for deer and due to the fact the are 21 bucks a box at my local bass pro they would be suffice for target shooting as well. My father used them on Thanksgiving morning in his brand new 700 cdl and killed 3 doe back to back. none went over 20 yards with good blood. Food for thought. I have only used them for target shooting while working up a load they have proved to be accurate and reliable.
 
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Art Eatman

Staff in Memoriam
I like the 85-grain Sierra HPBT for coyotes. Federal was using that bullet at one time in their premium load, but I've not kept track. It also works well on whitetail, but I limit its use to neck shots or cross-body heart/lung shots. It's a "blow-up" bullet, so I wouldn't use it on an angling shot.
 
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AllenJ

New member
50 bucks!!!! Holy...
Click to expand...

Yes they are expensive but the results they provide are truly amazing. Since I reload I don't have to pay that price, I'm actually able to reload them for about $1.03 per round. In my 243, a Weatherby Vanguard S2, they have shot multiple 1/4" groups at 100 yards.
 
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CC268

New member
For now I have some Winchester 58gr VarmintX rounds for coyote. It is all I could find and deer hunting is a little ways away for me. I will pick up some 95-100 gr when I see some!
 
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CC268

New member
Doesn't it cost like over a thousand dollars to even get into hand loading?? I am a college student, no way that is happening. Maybe in a year and a half when I graduate.
 
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Colorado Redneck

New member
Cabelas has Herters 100 gr in stock for $14.99 / 20
And they have a few other brands that are backorderable---Hornady, Federal, Winchester that are all reasonably priced.
 
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CosmicCoder

New member
Handloading

CC268 wrote:
Doesn't it cost like over a thousand dollars to even get into hand loading?? I am a college student, no way that is happening. Maybe in a year and a half when I graduate.​

You could get into handloading for under $250 but that is pretty bottom end. Your $1K estimate would set you up quite comfortably with good equipment. There's no limit to how much you can spend on reloading equipment.

The economics is really a matter of how much you shoot and how many guns you shoot. The more of each, the better the economics. It's a matter of scale. If you are doing only a limited amount of shooting, then reloading is probably not a viable option economically ... at least in the short term.
 
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Rifleman1776

New member
I don't buy cf ammo. I handload all my rifle ammo.
For hunting I used 100 gr. Nosler Ballistic tips in my .243. Great round.
For predator control I used Blitz bullets that broke up on contact with anything. This was for safety to avoid richochets. I was not interested in saving pelts.
Never used for target work. But Sierra Match Kings in other calibers brought home the bacon.....uh.....medals.
 
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mxsailor803

New member
I do reload for my .243 (100gr Sierra ProHunters) and with that combo, I've killed everything from foxes to hogs with it. If you can find a factory ammo around 90-100gr, I would use it for everything. That way you will never have to make any scope adjustments and you are comfortable with the rounds.
 
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Art Eatman

Staff in Memoriam
Back when I was a po' boy kid, I loaded many a round of '06 with a Lyman 310 tong tool and a Redding powder scale.

Start at the bottom and work up. Let the top end come when it's affordable.
 
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CC268

New member
Just picked up some Winchester SuperX 100 grain. I plan on zeroing in my rifle with my Winchester VarmintX 58 grain though since I will be doing coyote hunting and won't be deer hunting for another 7-9 months. I figure I might as well use this 58 grain on the coyotes
 
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tahunua001

New member
in my gun 100 grains all the way. it doesn't like anything lighter. but then the only 100 grainers that does very well is federal powershoks.
 
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