Be damned, projects, projects, projects.

Not so much so with this one, it's about ready to rip right away, settled a debt with a buddy, he unloaded a really nice 243 FWT rifle on me, it's all there and came with an old leather sling, a set of Weaver bases, and two ancient yellow boxes of 100 gr Partitions, the bullets have a turned ring around them about mid bullet length.

Called a buddy at the local fun store asking about a scope and rings, he had an older gloss 2-7x33 Leupold and a set of gloss weaver rings, perfect.

Went by today and mounted scope and rings and boresighted it there at the shop, came home and dumped 43 grs of IMR-4350 under those old Partitions, 2988 and 2976 fps, GREAT!!!!!, loaded 5 more for accuracy testing tomorrow.

What do you guys know about the pre-64 FWT 243's?

I'm going to use these old bullets and rifle to take a deer or two right quick this year, can't imagine why the 100 gr Partitions at near 3K wouldn't do the trick.

Those old Partitions shoot .4" in my 1959 Savage 110 243. Let me know if you get tired of them.

Gunner, that 243 will knock the hell out of deer... They work great on the mule deer around here.. Hell, my buddy even used his 22-250 on one this year..

LOL, great news FB, hope this FWT likes em half that well, I'll see in the morning.

BSA, Thanks for the vote of confidence, have used the 85 gr TSX's on a few deer and pigs in a NH FWT rifle in 243 around 6/7 years ago, just hoping Mr. Nosler's beginning design works as well as the newer ones.

My rifle's serial number is 442xxx, 1958?

It has the plastic butt plate.

Cool find buddy. One of these days I may get a 243 fwt. I've always had good luck with accuracy with the little cartridge.. The 100gr. partition is a great pill. 442xxx would be 1959, which explains the plastic butt plate..

Many thanks my Friend, I'm taking the rest of the week off and will have time to wring her out good, thinking a 200 yard zero and -7" at 300 will be good.

I'll shoot ya a text pic of the rifle tomorrow.

Sounds good.

Sounds like a great rifle. I'd like to get a 243 FWT myself someday.

Congrats Gunner,

I bought my grand daughter a post '64 Model 70 in 243 last Christmas. She shot with me all summer and we took a trip to Utah in October. She knocked the snot out of a 30" muley with one shot from 200 yards for her first deer EVER.

Pop Pop was pretty proud.

donsm70

That's awesome Don!! Congrats to you and your grand daughter.

Gunner,that's a POS rifle and being the kind-hearted soul that I am,I will gladly take that rifle off of your hands.

You know,just to save you from the giggles and snickers behind your back.

Uuggh, somethings wrong with my phone service, wont let me send ya a pic.

Many thanks 1911 and Don.

Cool story about your Granddaughter Don, she'll be hooked for life now, and a 30" Mulie first time out WOW!

I knew I could count on you Elk, I was gonna send it to ya but shot it about an hour ago, OOPS, that book load with some WW 243 brass I've had here for 20 years along with a WLR primer lit the imr-4350 and sent those old style 100 gr Partitions into just about dead on 1" for three at 100.

I didn't measure the group, but did take a pic of the rifle and group, considering how heavy the factory trigger is, I decided to leave it be and loaded the other 40 sticks of brass, group needs to be adjusted 5.5"s right and 2"s up and it'll be ready to put hair in front of it.

Well schit!

, I'm really liking this little rifle Elk, it's plenty light and handy.

I'm trying to figure out which FWT rifle i have had the least amount made, the 243 or 270.

The .243 would be the least amount made.

I'll be danged, thought the 270 would have been, good to know, many thanks Elk.

You're welcome.

Will be out at first light this morning getting the rifle zeroed Elk, I don't know why, and some may call me retarded, but the Weaver ring and base set up on this rifle is growing on me, it just looks right in this case.

The front base is extended giving plenty of room to set the scope back for maximum eye box visibility without having to crawl the stock, and the medium height rings give just enough clearance that the bolt doesn't drag on the side of the scope.

The first thing I used to do when I bought a rifle with anything Weaver on it was to find someone to give it too, or throw it in the trash, glad I'm calming down a little in my older age and giving other designs a chance, oh, one other bonus I've noticed, it would take a complete idiot to crush or leave ring marks on a scope tube with these Weaver rings.

Weaver rings and bases work,they may not be pretty,but by dog they work. My only beef with them is the rings,when you tighten the screws the scope will move just a wee little bit.

I do all my shootin' in the mornings before the winds pick up.

LOL, yes they do, cant em a bit counter clockwise first, got mine square on the first try this time.

Agreed on the early part of the day, works that way to here most of the time, got the FWT striking center and 2"s high at 100, it's ready.

Gunner500: I have used those "old style" 100 grain Nosler Partitions on Deer and Antelope in the past and they worked rather well.
IF... that Featherweight in 243 is "really nice" like you mentioned then get this urge to Hunt with it out of your system ASAP and find an old Remington 700 in 243 to use up those old Noslers in.
I have three Featherweights in caliber 243 Winchester (including one "Gopher Special") and in my opinion they are just way to valuable to take afield and Hunt with.
But to each his own and I hope your 243 shoots well for you and you don't ding it up much while sighting it in and Hunting with it.
Enjoy.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Take it hunting,that's what the rifle was/is made for. Dings,scratches just add character to it.

VarmintGuy, thanks for the tips, this old FWT is quite nice, it has been well cared for over the years, but sorry, I have no safe queens buddy, they ALL get hunted here, I've even taken my Supergrade Hornet out many many times.

I can't build a history with a weapon standing my life away in a dang safe, I may be one of the few people you meet that doesn't give a flying squirrels nutsack about money.

Damn right Elk, it's gonna be in the woods starting dark thirty Sat morning.

Good luck Gunner.

Thanks Elk, I shot it again this morning, first shot from a fouled cold barrel, dead center 2"s high at 100, that should work, fired at a 200 yard gong next, best I could tell bullet was still about 1" high and center.

Hope you're going to get to hunt something this weekend too.

Nope,Monday is when my hunt starts.

GREAT, you've got the weekend to check zeros and get ready.

Nope,my flight takes off tomorrow and will be in the air for quite a while.....heading to South Africa.

KICKASS!!!!!.........................oh, and you suck!

Yup,I know.

"Flying squirrels nutsack". That has a nice ring to it... Reminds me of a Gene Tracy joke...

My 1955 .243 FWT has been relegated to a corner of my safe. Still don't know why I got it and it will be the first to get sold.

When I do I expect to offer it to this august forum first

Not looking for offers at this time

It's the one in the middle of this:


and the foreground of this:

Is this the Lion hunt, what else you going after Elk?

OOPS

Very nice rifles Bushmaster1313, you are obviously a man with much more control than I, mine go BOOM asap.

Yup,also going after blesbok and blue wildebeest. May get some shootin' on some culls and a jackal or two.

Gotdang!, in that case, I'm gonna have to borrow the full line from our buddy ET..............................YOU LUDICROUS TURBO SUCK!!!!!


Have a wonderful time Buddy.

And if you tell us you're gonna use your pre-64 300 H&H I'm gonna go jump in front of the next train passing through this farm!

I did shoot it ASAP
But not recently

Nope not using the .300 H&H.

With lioness my priority taking the .375 RUM and .375 H&H.

Oh, okay, Id still have to scope it up for a good bleeding though.

WHEW, I was about to lower a window and start listening for the train. lol

The H&H and RUM won't let you down, 260 gr Partitions?

I'd hunt the fu ck out of that 243, buddy.

In the RUM,using a 300 gr NP and in the H&H a 270 gr Swift A-Frame.

It's only waiting on legal buddy.

More than enough there Elk, good luck and safe travels my friend.

Save your big rifles for jack rabbits like Ken does...

Thanks Gunner.

Yup, with irons only ;]

Your most welcome Elk.

Never under estimate the dangers a jack rabbit posses to a person.

Ya, they could jump up and take off a big chunk of an ear lobe!

Yup,or worse.

You all have a Happy Thanksgiving!

LOL, have a safe trip and a wonderful Safari Elk.

They wouldn't even have to jump that high to take off a nut sack.... That's why I'm with Ken on this one. Better take a real big gun when hunting rabbits..

Thanks, and good luck on your hunt. Be sure to post a bunch of pictures, so we can live vicariously though you... ..... And if Ingwe is going with you, please leave the leopard skin bikini out of the pics. We just don't need to see that kind of stuff here....

UH, Yes it certainly did my friend, happy to report I killed the largest old barren white tail doe I've ever seen, 65 yards through a hole in the brush, center punched right shoulder, exited off side rib cage, DRT!

I couldn't be more pleased hunting with that old FWT and enjoying the performance of the 243 W and 100 gr Nosler. Partition.

Sounds like it worked perfectly to me.. Good job buddy..

Thanks and you bet, I believe I'll stick with the 100 gr partitions with this rifle, I NEED an exit, that 243 entry hole was tiny, need a good exit for when one runs.

Exit on this big doe was thumb sized outta the ribs, had she ran it would have been easy tracking.