Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters .243 Win. Factory Hunting Ammo Pecking Order

I will be looking to settle on factory ammo for a new-to-me .243 Win. The most likely use will be for short-range whitetail deer.

My plan is to create a preferred list of ammo and only progress down the list if the first and subsequent choice doesn't shoot well. Please critique my list, or my overall plan.

1. Barnes Vor-TX 80 gr. TTSX
2. Federal Premium 85 gr. TSX
3. Federal Premium 100 gr. Nosler Partition
4. Winchester Supreme Elite 95 gr. XP3
5. Hornady Superformance 80 gr. GMX
6. Remington Premier 80 gr. Copper Solid Tipped
7. Federal Premium 100 gr. Sierra GameKing BTSP
8. Federal Fusion 95 gr. Spitzer BT
9. Winchester Super-X 100 gr. PowerMax Bonded Protected HP
10. Remington Premier 100 gr. Core-Lokt Ultra Bonded PSP

I am sure everyone's list would vary somewhat, but if anyone has a good reason why my list should be different, I'm all ears.

Thanks.

You don't need premium bullets for deer. Standard 100 grain Core-Lokts work great.

Wouldn't a premium bullet give me more margin for error, especially on a less than perfect shot - say a quartering shot that hits heavy bone?

Pretty safe list.Myself wouldn't use that Sierra for nuttin but paper.Prolly try the Federal 85gr TSX 1st.Can't see that load not shooting excellent.

Deer are very easy to kill. If you want to spend more money go ahead.

In all fairness Swampman is correct.

They even die when you shoot them with a 223.

OK. Then, for the sake of argument, assume that the rifle may also be used for a black bear hunt, even though the chances of shooting a bear here are relatively small. The bear can range anywhere between 80 - 700+ lbs.

Start with #8.

Though I am running reloads with the Barnes 80TTSX, I think the Fusions do a better job for most scenarios unless you really need to take a rear end shot.

Next in line would be the Remington Premium ammo with the Scirroco 90 grain.

But I thought Swampy swears by the '06. Why shoot such a high powered rifle if they are so easy to kill (which I don't doubt that they are)?

What is more "overkill" - a .243 with premium bullets or a 30-06 with 180 gr. Core-Lokts?

If you want to shoot premium bullets at deer, you might want to choose the premium that had a similar ballistic coefficient and velocity to the cheapest ammo available in your area (e.g. , Federal blue box or red box at Walmart for around $13 per box of 20) so you could practice a lot for not much dough. As others have said, deer aren't that hard to kill, so any of the premiums should work, as should any cup-and-core 100 grain .243" bullet designed for deer.

A .30-06 isn't a "high powered" rifle. It's a normal deer rifle.

I shoot a .30-06 so I can use the same rifle on everything.

i'd start with the 100 gr partition. if they shot at or under 1.5" at 100, i'd quit right there and just hunt. ymmv

The .243 isn't a bear rifle but a 100 Nosler Partition in the brain or heart will do the job I suppose.

Others may have different views, but if I (me personally) was going to shoot a bear with a .243 Win, I would be sure I shot it like I would with a bow and arrow - with the bear slightly angling away so the bullet would go through only ribs before getting to the lungs/heart, and avoid the shoulder. In that scenario, I don't know that bear would be that different than deer in terms of bullet needs. That being said, a stout premium like a monometal (Nosler E-Tip, Barnes TSX of some variety, or a Hornady GMX) or a Partition would probably give me more peace of mind if bear was possible.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I think I would try to match the stout premium to the cheap practice load because I doubt there would be much difference among the stout premiums in taking a deer or putting a bullet through a bear's ribs.

Wasn't comparing rounds.Just believe the cup core standards such as Win Power Points Hornady Interlock and even the lowly cor-loss are more than enough for the largest deer that walks.Also theirs nuttin wrong with using a TSX either if it shoots.

That's a great suggestion. I just looked at the Barnes Vor-TX 80 gr. TTSX and compared it to the Federal Blue Box 80 gr. soft point. I didn't see any BC data, but the published velocity of the TTSX is 3350 fps and the Federal 80 gr. SP is 3330 fps. With a 200 yard zero, the TTSX is 1.1" high at 100 yards, and so is the Federal Blue Box SP. At 300 yards, the TTSX is 5.7" low, and the Federal is -5.6".

They almost look like ballistic twins with this limited data as a guide.

My son has been shooting the "blue box" Federals in 80 gr out of an SPS Remington.
They group very well and put the hammer down hard on coyotes with fairly minimal pelt damage.
I suspect they will handle blacktail deer very well.
$22 per box locally.

Federal Blue Box 100's, Fusions, Win PP 100's, or 100 R-P's whichever of these shoot bestest is what I'd go with

Dober

The first part of your post is the most important. From what I've seen of 100g factory .243 loads over 30 years time, you are overthinking and overspending for short range .243 deer ammo with that list.

If you were hunting large, trophy sized deer at long range, or Elk etc, then the loads above would be needed. Given your requirements listed- not at all.

These three will do the job and are available most anywhere ammo is sold. And, they all run $15-$20 per box which is about half what most of the other loads on your list run.That leaves more $$ for buying ammo to practice with before season starts.


Federal 100g Power-shok
Remington 100g Cor-Lokt
Winchester 100g power point

I've used all of them- especally the Federals and Remingtons on lots of deer and antelope. They simply work ..

I've seen the 100g Federal loads shoot through 2 yearling antelope bucks standing side by side at 350 yards. Both stone dead with lung shots. The Remington 100g bullets are also stoutly constructed from what I have seen from 30 yard shots.

If you cannot find a load from those three that shoots well in your rifle, then get "fancy".

Otherwise-K.I.S.S.