Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 243 hunters - Barnes 80-85gr - results on game survey

I am posting this b/c of such positive feedback on this combo, though many still feel the 243 is 'too small'

Which bullet, animal, range, shot placement, results?

Anyone ever lose an animal or have a long tracking job on an animal KNOWN to be hit thru vitals?

In 2010 I went to WY for antelope and mule deer. I shot an antelope at approximately 175 yards with a Barnes 85 gr TSX. It went thru the heart and the antelope went about 10 yards. There was ALOT of blood. I was using Imr 4064 and I ended up seating the bullet 80 thousands off the lands. I believe it was Ingwe that recommended the 4064. I was
shooting a TC Icon.
Bill

65BR, I have been thinking of the same combo you have listed. I had this bookmarked from before:

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/4282437/2

I've killed several deer with the 80 TTSX from a 243. My daughter has killed a couple of does with the same bullet from a 6x45. All complete pass thru's and the deer were all recovered within 30 yards of the shot. Plenty of blood. I've busted shoulders, lungs and hearts all with the same result -- dead deer quick!

If Killertraylor sees this post he can tell you about how well it works. I'm pretty sure Joe has taken several deer with that exact combo.

I sure have become a fan of the .243 since getting my Kampfeld .243 last year, fine rifle & caliber!!

Those that feel the .243 is too small haven't used it. I was in that camp until about 6 years ago btw... Pard's wife shot a dandy 8pt that didn't make it 30 yards and was leaking from both sides on a Win. Power Pt 100gr bullet.

The 85gr TSX improves on that bullet in spades.

My 13-year-old son shot a fall black bear with a 243 and 85 grain TSX's. Shot was tight behind the shoulder, range approx 110 yards, distance traveled after shot was 10-15 feet and bullet exited.

I crushed a mule deer doe with an 80gr hornady gmx. 50 yards tough angle, didn't find the bullet.

The Berger 95gr VLD left allot on the table in terms of on game performance. Lesson learned back to copper monos

No need for monometal bullets here. I just busted my umpteenth buck with my .243 last weekend. One shot from a 100 gr. cup/core {Federal "blue box" factory} was all it took. Smashed the onside shoulder to smithereens, traversed the chest cavity diagonally and left a nickel sized exit on the far side. Range was 50 yds. and he dropped so hard I had to pry his pecker out of the ground with a shovel.

You carry a shovel in the woods?

Doesn't everybody ?

Never had one stop in a deer. All one shot kills. Most down into their shadow. Had one that hardly bled but three drops on the outside but everything inside the chest was wrecked, 30+ inches of penetration.

Id rather have a .243 with 80 TTSXs or 85 TSXs than any 30 cal lead core bullet.

Who the [bleep] said this thread was only about deer, dipshitt..

Large whitetail buck at ~125 yards
-broadside through lungs and heart
-no reaction to shot, kept running into brush, no blood trail for at least 50 yards
-found dead about 100 yards from initial hit
-full penetration, rather small wound channel compared to other 243 bullets, very little bleeding internal or external

Small whitetail doe at ~125 yards
-quartering away through top of shoulders
-DRT but with rather little internal damage and no external bleeding

Compared to a 130TSX in 30-06, they leave very little damage internally and do not bleed nearly as well IME. I think that there are better bullets for the 243 by far on thin-skinned game.

I've killed a truck load of deer with the 85gr X/TSX, both MD and WT, and I've only ever caught 2 bullets. Both were shot at hard angles, and both were recovered from the rear ham, after entering the front end, breaking the humerus, punching through the deer nearly lengthwise, and then breaking the opposite femur. The vast majority of deer that I've shot with these bullets have gone straight down, but I've had them run up to 100 yards when shooting the lungs. I nearly always shoot shoulder, and they nearly always go straight down.

Barnes bullets have proven to be the least finicky bullets I've shot through my rifles. It seems that if I toss together a decent load, it shoots sub-MOA, and I'm done load development. Just today I was out shooting the 80gr TTSX from my .243AI for the first time. I threw together a load with Lapua brass, 48gr of IMR4350, and seated the 80TTSX 0.050" off the lands, and the very first 5-shot group measured right at 0.56MOA at 100 yards, and averaged 3485fps. Load development complete, and I have no doubts that the terminal performance will equal what I saw from the 85's.

Talking 85TSX or 80TTSX?

85 grain, Mule deer, 100 to 300 yds shoulder, dead deer.

243 is devasating on Tennesse whitetails. Average weight is running 100 lbs to 175 lbs. My 243 kills have all been one shot kills with Hornady 100 gr soft point. None have traveled more than 40 yards. Only those head shot have dropped right where they stood. I always aim for heart at distance over 50 yards no matter the angle. I pass on deer going directly away because of too much meat damage with rear end hits.
Sierra has some lighter bullet that work well on lighter deer but break up too easily for my preferance. The kill but i prefer a through and through bullet.

236 yards, Barnes 80gr TTSX out of my 243. Head on shot in chest, recovered from rump roast in textbook condition.....







The same gun/bullet combo is up to bat again on Monday for opening day in PA. Wish me luck!

Good Luck