Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Predators and Varmints Best 243 Bullet for Coyotes

70 gr Speer TNT's at 3300 fps works great..... no exit wound on a broadside chest shot......

I've used the 85 gr. Sierra HPBT-GK for a long time. My plain Jane vanilla .243 Winchesters with 22" barrels run them a bit over 3,100 fps and they are accurate. Really accurate and easy to find a good load with. Works ok on deer too.

69 gr berger if you want to save the fur stoked with Re 15.

87 gr. v-max would probably do a good job of killing DRT.
Shot a 15 lb. coon right below the bunghole it blew up like a PD does -pieces flew.
I'd guess it weighed 3-4 lbs. less after the shot -just emptied it out -shot at 55-60 yards. I pushed my thumb on a couple of spots around the shoulder - it broke every bone in its body.
W/a .400 BC there's a lot to like with that bullet 48gr. H-4831sc , win. case , 20K off lands , cci 200lr primer.
Hopefully it won't bounce off a coyote like a 270win. does.

Both the 75 gr. and 87 gr. V-Max provide dramatic kills. I've hit coyotes at a raking angle on the shoulder blade with the 75 gr. V-Max that looked as if you tried to fillet the thing with a chainsaw.

55 Ballistic Tip if you want to save fur.
Or, a Hornady 70SX in the ribs.


If you want to anchor them pronto hide be damned, the 87 VMax is the most bullet out there.

65/75 V Max, 70 grain Blitzking or Ballistic Tip, 80 Blitz Varminter, 85 Sierra Varminter or if you want ultimate wind bucking 87 V Max. They all hammer yotes from the 24's. I usually run the 85 Sierra SP on both dogs and deer from my 6Mm Remmy, kills them both dead and a bit softer than the 85 HP Gameking. Take your pick they are all big medicine against song dogs.

I've had excellent results with the 75gr Vmax at full speed. I went about 33-34 coyotes straight without an exit or pelt damage, shots from about 20yds to over 400yds. The first V-max the did cause pelt damage, at about 75yds, was 'impressive', though.

I did try the 55gr B-tip, at full speed,for several coyotes, and had more runners with that combo, including losing one, than I care for. I shot a prairie dog at 308yds that was on all fours, and it did not react at all. My son say's "you missed". As we watched, the prairie dog drags itself into it's hole. We found blood and drag marks, so the hind legs did not work.

So, from me, the 75gr Vmax gets a 'thumbs up' and the 55gr B-tip needs more 'research'.

55 grain ballistic tip @ 4200