.243 Winchester

[Mojaveman]

With hunters there seems to be no middle ground regarding this cartridge. Seems like people either like it or hate it. Some say it works fine for deer and other game and others say it's too small.

Has anyone done a lot of hunting with it and would you like to comment?

[NapalmCheese]

With hunters there seems to be no middle ground with this cartridge. Seems like people either like it or hate it. Some say it works fine for deer and other game and others say it's too small.

Has anyone done a lot of hunting with it and would you like to comment?

My wife has done a bit of whitetail hunting with one.

One day she put a Fusion through both lungs of a deer at 100 yards and it ran 80 yards before going down.

The next day she put a Fusion through the top of the heart of a different whitetail at 260 yards and killed it so fast it dropped straight down, feet neatly folded under it.

[Divernhunter]

Have friends who liked it until they lost too many animals. The stopped using it. I have a 6mmRem and will only shoot yotes with it. It is for sale.
I will not hunt deer/pigs with it. Maybe pronghorns in open country but I have other rifles that "I" feel are better.
For a light recoiling hunting rifle I prefer many other cartridges such as a 257Roberts. I would buy a 260Rem but with my hand loads in my 6.5X55 do the same. The 7mm-08 is also nice and a better choice for me than the 243/6mm.

The 243/6mm lovers can flame away as I have a fire suit to protect me.

[Noonanda]

I love the .243 Win, and would us it for Southern California deer with no problem. Now other states which have much larger deer, I would likely pick a different caliber.

[joefrank64k]

I've always had a soft spot for the .243...in fact, I'm having a precision bolt gun on a Defiance Deviant action made up in .243.

If I were still into hunting, I'd have no hesitation using a .243 for California deer. IMHO, YMMV, etc.

[NapalmCheese]

I love the .243 Win, and would us it for Southern California deer with no problem. Now other states which have much larger deer, I would likely pick a different caliber.

Not having had an opportunity to hunt WY mule deer yet, my wife would at this point feel confident using her .243 for mule deer bucks (with good bullets, etc.). For hunting anything larger she would prefer something else. I use a 7mm-08 and don't doubt it's efficacy on mule deer sized game, though I've not had an opportunity to hunt WY mule deer bucks either.

Confidence, familiarity, bullet construction, and shot placement have a lot to say when it comes to killing game animals out in the wild.

That being said I'm on the fence about the fusions. From what I've seen in gel tests they expand very readily giving them limited penetration. Though, I've never recovered one from the three animals I've seen shot with them (2 whitetail with a .243 and a blacktail buck with a .223 and 80 yards).

[RandyD]

I know of a man who regularly hunts elk with a .243 Win. and is successful almost every year. With a choice of bullets, shot placement and knowing the vital areas of your game, it can be an effective cartridge.

[NapalmCheese]

I know of a man who regularly hunts elk with a .243 Win. and is successful almost every year. With a choice of bullets, shot placement and knowing the vital areas of your game, it can be an effective cartridge.

I know a guy that does the same thing, the .243 is his 'big game cartridge', it's .223 for everything else. Though neither of us endorses such.