Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 243 bullet opinions wanted...

I am just wondering what the Campfire preference is among these 2 bullets in a 243... I have worked up 2 outstanding loads with my T3 Lite Stainless... One is a 95 gr Partition shooting at 3150 and is good for groups of around a half inch... The other is a 95 gr Ballistic Tip shooting at the same velocity and grouping about the same. Which do you folks prefer for whitetails? One of the loads uses R26 and one uses H4350. I have ran the Partition up to the high 3200's with the 26 with no real pressure signs but the groups opened up. Both loads are fairly mild in this gun seems to just have a fast barrel. Ive used both and love both but just wondering what the preference is here...

I really prefer premium bullets in smaller calibers, so the partition would be my preference of those 2. That said, I have never used either in a .243, so my opinion is worth exactly what you paid for it.
I worked up a mild load for my daughter using 80 gr ttsx at about 3175 fps and I can tell you that it kills deer with authority. There is not much in in this country that I wouldn't shoot with a 95 gr partition at 3150......

The partition has a well earned reputation so no flies there.

The 95 gr BT is no slouch either given its designer at Nosler.....

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/4570554/1

Seems both would be rockstars on whitetails.

Of the 2, I'd go with the Partition.

No preference at all for on game performance because it won't matter a bit between those two on deer. But, I like to shoot my hunting loads as range loads, if it's practical, so I'd go with the BT because it tends to be less expensive to load and shoot in bulk, even if I'm buying seconds from SPS.

Only used the 95 Partition on 1 deer and it was a DRT on a decent bodied buck at maybe 15 yards, 6mm Remington.

Pick whichever shoots best and you will be fine.

Will be using the 95 Partition in the 6mm again this fall.

I use the 100 grain partition in 6mm rem. It has stopped allot of Deer and Antelope from playing.

It depends on the size of deer you plan on shooting, and from what angle.

The Partition will outpenetrate the BTip, but leaves a much smaller hole going through after initial expansion.

The 95 BTip is just about a perfect deer bullet in my opinion. The 95 Prt won't leave much of a blood trail on a broadside lung shot given its smaller would channel.

But if you're a shoulder shooter, or a Texas heart-shotter, or want to hunt elk with the same load, then the 95 Prt will get it done.

BT leaves great blood trails on deer... I shoot that bullet or AB in almost every caliber I have.

Great link, nothing like hands-on experience to back up an opinion.
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Two of the best for the 243 I use both interchangeably. If the deer are likely to be 200 lbs. plus I might use only the partitions but really it is a matter of which I grab first. Shot one larger bodied deer with the BT and he ran maybe 30 yards and piled up. He might have run 31 yards with the Partitions. Mine are doing about 3200 fps with R26 and will fall out of the chamber of my 1885 low wall after firing so pressure should be mild. Didn't do much load work up but they shot an inch or less and I called it good enough.

I have a 243 with 100 NPt's that has accounted for 14 elk, plus a few deer and pronghorns. Originally H4831 at almost 3000 fps, with RL26 about 3140 with a 22" bbl.

Dang, I'm gonna have to get me some of that rl26 stuff.

Yeah, 26 works pretty well in the .243. I'm getting right at 3000 fps from 105 Berger Hunting VLD's from a 21-inch barrel, with Alliant's data.

As far as the original question, I don't really have a preference between the 95 BT and 100 Partition. The 95 BT may not penetrate quite as deeply as the Partition, but it penetrates more than enough. \\

In fact a lot of Ballistic Tips act a lot like Partitions (or Accubonds) when they hit game these days, due to heavier jackets than the original models. But the 6mm 95 was designed from the beginning with a heavy jacket.

I've got a jug of '26, just haven't used it in the .243. Those numbers are impressive.

It will definitely make you smile. I cant get it to group in my 270 but both 243's love it. The hard part us finding more.

Not sure its possible to have a better endorsement for a bullet than that!

The 95 grain NBT is a very tough bullet and is the perfect deer bullet for the .243.

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What he said. Either would work great. I get a tad better accuracy out of the BTs and performance on deer has been excellent..