Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats 243 build suggestions

I have a vanguard 243 i was thinking of using as a donor for a project. Id like to stay with 243 but i want a varmint gun that i could also take some longrange classes with such as bangsteel's. I was thinking of getting a bartlein 3b barrel 8 twist and a manners eh1 stock for it. would it being primarily set up for 75 vmax make it unable to use the heavy bullets needed for long range target practice? basically is it possible to set this gun up for both uses or should i buy something for longrange and make this a dedicated varmint rig. any input or suggestions?

Not sure, but the 8 twist should handle the heavier high B.C. bullets...

anyone have any idea how the 8 twist will work with 75 grain vmax or lighter varmint bullets?

It'll work just fine....you wont 'over stabilize ' them....

thanks, i kind of have a picture in my head of what i want just not sure on barrel profile yet

Cruise through the long range forum and see if it gives you any ideas...

I have a couple .243 custom rifles, one with 8 twist and 8.5 twist. Both will shoot 70gr BK's, 95 Bergers & up to 100gr Gamekings very accurate. To be honest, damn rifles shoot 'bout anything I feed it accurately. Gotta love the .243's.

Where I think you will run into a slight issue is with the throat. When you cut the throat to handle the 115 Berger and other high BC bullets so you don't have to stuff most of the bullet inside the case, you may have a bit of a long free bore with the light weights. It may or may not be a problem. I've also noticed higher pressures from the same load when comparing my 8 twist to my 10 twist .243. I had to reduce charges when I changed barrels (but then again all barrels can be different so it might not have anything to do with the twist rate)... Good luck!

Zeus

I would skip the 243 and run a 6.5x47 Lapua.
243s are very hard on barrels.The ones i've had usually torch the throat at 600 rounds.They will still shoot after that but they foul more and require more care for very little gain.
A 6.5x47 will give 2000 rounds of match accuracy and still shoot very well over that, if you keep it clean.
You can run 123g AMAXs for vermin and such and and have the mag length for the 140s in target and hunting bullets.
If you planning on shooting it alot.The -47 will hold up longer for less work..

dave

Often the long VLD type bullets need shorter throats, since their long secant ogives put the full diameter bearing surface a good way back from the tip of the bullet.

It's almost a lock that the 8" twist per se didn't increase pressure.

A 6mm dasher will run a 105-8gr bullet ~2900+fps depending on barrel length. One competitor I know has one with >3500 rounds on the barrel and still gets winning accuracy at 1000 yards. I'm getting one built up now.

8" twist will run the Hornady A-max and BTHP all day long. Berger 105's shouldn't be an issue either. I heard a lot of the same arguments against the .243 that you're going to hear, but in the end it boiled down to having a ton of .243 stuff on hand and not wanting to invest in a new cartridge that made me stick with the .243 Win. However, since you are putting a new barrel on it's the time to.decide if you want a new cartridge or not.

I am going 6x47 for my next build.

thanks for all the input, im sticking with the 243 as far as caliber as i already have all the reloading stuff for it and i just started a little over a year ago. im pretty set on caliber and which stock i want just not sure on barrel profileand length as well as twist rate

I have the 3 bartlein with the 8twist. Shooting 105 berger hybrids. Shoots between .5 and .75 at 200yds. 2950fps. Where this bullet shines is shooting in wind. With a 10mph wind, this bullet drifts nearly a foot less than an 85 grain Sierra hpbt at 600yds. They are working very well on all game as well.These bullets are not nearly as sensitive to seating depth as other vld s either. Haven't shot any other bullets with it.

Sit down and figure out what you really want as far as target weight all up with a full mag, optics, and other shooting accessories as well as to how you want it to handle. How much are you going to pack it around on your varmint shoots and at your long range shoots will help you to determine this.

anyone have any pics of a bartlein #3b?

im trying to decide between the bartlein 3b lt bull sporter or sendero contour. Its about a half poundiference so im not hat concerned with the weight. I was planning on 24" finished length. will the sendero contour allow me to shot more before the barrel heats up or will he difference be negligible?just trying to figure out if it would be worth going up to te sendero raher than the 3b

If Ya wanna go light, run 55 nbt with either 380 or 414, coyote and buck killin sumbitches....