[28Shooter]

I was at the local gun shop yesterday and they have scoped BAR in .243 that looked great and felt good on the shoulder. They tell me that it's an extremely fast and accurate cartridge but all I know about it is that it was the cartridge you bought for the kids as their first deer gun. Anybody have any experience with the .243 and what do you think about it?

 

[JohnnyLoco]

Sir,

I'm going to give my opinion of the 243 on large game, as we all know, with varmint bullets it works for varmints.

This is what I know from years of shooting 243 and hundreds of kills. The 243 is an awesome 200 yard gun and the best ammo ever made is XP3. Inside of
225 yards it will drop elk, bear, hogs, axis, deer, sheep, coyotes, dogs, and whatever else without a problem. I've seen it blow an elk heart like a hand grenade hit it.

http://www.winchester.com/products/rifle-ammunition/supreme-elite/xp3/Pages/SXP243W.aspx

The 243 is my favorite hunting rifle with my 35 LTD close second

 

[axxe55]

i will second that! the 243 is a good caliber for a young shooter to venture into a centerfire caliber with, but is excellent for veteran shooters as well. my father is almost 70 and has had his Winchester M70 in 243 for over 40 years. loaded with the correct bullets and bullet weights, it is a very versatile caliber. i plan on myself adding a Marlin XS7 in 243 to the collection in the near future. the 243, IMO is one of the great do all calibers and is pretty close to perfection. if the price is right on the BAR in 243, and it feels good, i say buy it.

 

[JohnnyLoco]

Personally, I started out using Corelockt, then 100gr Hornady custom Interlock BTSP, then Hornady SST Super-performance, on to Barnes TSX.

I've now rested with the XP3 and doubt a better bullet for the 243 will be developed in my lifetime. It drives that perfect performing 95gr bullet deep or through
the animal with outstanding damage. I'm getting just over 3000fps with my 20 inch Model Seven Remington. I feel these new projectiles change the the way
many calibers perform. I'm a promoter of the new generation of projectiles coupled with velocity. When you can shoot a 200lb animal with a 95gr 243 and have an
exit hole bigger than a golfball its amazing. I've larger exit wounds sometimes than a 450 marlin.

If you plan to shoot over 200 yards or so, I'd recommend two bullets in the above list for best performance on game, either the Hornady 100 gr interlock or the XP3

I still believe for game animals, the 243 is a 200 yard gun to get the max performance.

Added: The 95gr XP3 243 produces slightly better instant shock and knockdown results on animals than my 35 using 200gr Leverevolution. The 35 LTD is still my
favorite carry rifle.

 

[Hyphenated]

The .243 is a dandy. Good performance on deer size game and smaller. There are zillions of components available, which makes it a reloader's dream. The .243 is so popular you will never have to worry about ammo availability.

 

[axxe55]

Personally, I started out using Corelockt, then 100gr Hornady custom Interlock BTSP, then Hornady SST Super-performance, on to Barnes TSX.

I've now rested with the XP3 and doubt a better bullet for the 243 will be developed in my lifetime. It drives that perfect performing 95gr bullet deep or through
the animal with outstanding damage. I'm getting just over 3000fps with my 20 inch Model Seven Remington. I feel these new projectiles change the the way
many calibers perform. I'm a promoter of the new generation of projectiles coupled with velocity. When you can shoot a 200lb animal with a 95gr 243 and have an
exit hole bigger than a golfball its amazing. I've larger exit wounds sometimes than a 450 marlin.

If you plan to shoot over 200 yards or so, I'd recommend two bullets in the above list for best performance on game, either the Hornady 100 gr interlock or the XP3

I still believe for game animals, the 243 is a 200 yard gun to get the max performance.

Added: The 95gr XP3 243 produces slightly better instant shock and knockdown results on animals than my 35 using 200gr Leverevolution. The 35 LTD is still my
favorite carry rifle.

i agree with you assessment of the practical yardage for game size animals. my next 243, i want to try out bullets in the 50-55 gr weight range and try for longer distances as a varmint caliber. when my father use to reload for his, he reloaded ammo in the 100-105 gr weight range for deer.

 

[JohnnyLoco]

They have some dang excellent varmint rounds but I use xp3 for everything.

 

[axxe55]

They have some dang excellent varmint rounds but I use xp3 for everything.

who makes the XP3? is it loaded ammo or is available as a reloading component? kid of interested in maybe trying it out. i am more concerned with accuracy, as i don't really hunt anymore like i use to. but i like to try out different bullets.

 

[JohnnyLoco]

Axxe, If you only hunt varmints, I'd choose a lighter round. Winchester makes the XP3

http://www.winchester.com/Products/rifle-ammunition/supreme-elite/xp3/Pages/default.aspx

 

[axxe55]

Axxe, If you only hunt varmints, I'd choose a lighter round. Winchester makes the XP3

http://www.winchester.com/Products/rifle-ammunition/supreme-elite/xp3/Pages/default.aspx

i was looking for components to reload for a 243. it would used for the same as the rest of the rifles, mainly for punching holes in paper accurately. i went on their website, but it doesn't look like you can get just XP3 as a bullet, just loaded ammo.

 

[JohnnyLoco]

There are many other great bullets but I'm sold on XP3. They might sell the projectiles one day soon.