Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting 243 Deer Rifle Recipes for Failure?

I buy several deer tags each year so that I can use different rifles, cartridges, and bullets.

I prefer to hunt fox squirrels 'cause the season is long, the game is plentiful, and I've run into fewer than a dozen other squirrel hunters in the 30 or so years that I've hunted squirrels in Nebraska.

The one deer my daughter shot with her .243 we lost and later found. It was a good shot in the vitals, but one wouldn't have known it. We were in a two person stand and I never even saw that deer flinch, it just ran off like it wasn't hit at all.
We looked for hours in heavy grass, but ultimately the ravens revealed it four-five days later. It had gone 500-600 yards.

My only experience with a .243 and big game. I'll not set anyone up with less than a .260-.270 for deer-sized game. Personal preference.

Amen brother. I've seen several big mule deer bucks killed with that exact combo by the landowner's son. It's deadly in the right hands.

I've seen a friend's young daughter kill 3 elk with a .243 using IMR4350 and an 80 gr..barnes TTSX bullets that I loaded for her. I've killed some big mule deer, whitetails and antelope with mine. I have shoulder problems and had neck fusion surgery and can't shoot my magnums anymore. Can't say I miss them either,

I've killed truckloads of deer, hogs and pronghorn antelope with a 243.

I've used factory Hornady 100 grain Interlocks, Federal Blue box 100 grain, Federal Fusion 95 grainers, 95 grain Ballistic Tips in the past. For the last several years I've used 105 grain Hornady HPBT's in hand loads. They all worked great.

Oh, and I forgot a 300 pound mule deer buck too. That was with a 105 HPBT hand load. Again, no problem.

I never killed anything with a 243 until last year. I shot a Doe at 150 yards with a 100 grain Sierra Gameking. Granted it was a liver shot but the deer went over 200 yards and towards the end I was running out of blood. Alls well that ends well but that was enough of small guns for me.

I've had real good success with the 95 Balistic Tips and deer. My dad isn't the world's best shot and has no problem taking deer with his.

I've used a 223 with 62gr TSXs. That's about all I use for summer crop damage permits. Real easy to see hits.

350 and real easy to shoot deer IN THE SUMMER NOT REALLY GOING OUT IN SESON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!..

Moose, you have this right... I have shot 60 head of game with the 24 and 25 rifles.. Sometimes they are great.... And sometimes they suck.. But if the guy gets his deer ok.. But if it gets off and is lost. Well, I must have missed.. Bullshit!!! You are on the right track.. My wife shot a deer with a .250 Savage yrs ago.. It was a liver hit and we fooled with that little buck for almost half an hour.. It about fixed her for big game hunting.. But lucky she stuck with it.. She killed much more game.. Moose, elk , antelope and deer.. Then toward the end of her life she shot a nice antelope buck at about 125 yards.. Just as she shot, he stepped.. A liver hit!! But this time a 120 gr. 7mm bullet at about 3400fps.. The buck dropped and raised his head, I saw the hit with my glasses, I told her to bolt in a new round.. The buck never offered to get up but dropped his head and was done.. We were there with in minutes.. I get sick of these 500 yard shots with a 223 and dropped them in their tracks.. GIVE ME A BREAK

Yeah I've had liver hits already with the 30-06 and still had them fall within sight.

The first centerfire rifle I ever bought was a 243. I killed probably35 deer with it. I lost one deer with it that I shot. But I tracked some of the older bucks 3 or 400 yards. I shot factory cup and core bullets when I used it. And I shot till the deer was on the ground. The last big buck I killed with it I shot 5 times before he was down. I have never deer hunted with it since and won't again. It is much easier to shoot a 30-06 once and walk over to the deer than shoot a 243 several times then have to trail the thing through a thicket then drag it out. I realize many people will disagree but that has been my experience. Plus they usually have a lousy blood trail. I shot 100 gn bullets for deer.

80gr Barnes TTSX through the shoulders, tracking is overrated.

First season is how you spell it. Second blood doesn't show up the best in the summer. It's real nice to be able to see the hit and track the deer in the field with the scope. Maybe 50 yards is the farthest I've had one run.

The farthest I've had to track a deer was with a .338 Balistic Tip. Guess why?

I had my son use a .243 Win for his first deer. It was a terrible shot. It was way too high and forward but it only went 40' . I was impressed. it was a Speer 100 gr. However, i have a .243 Win . cause I just wanted one. I am not sure I would bother anymore . It doubles as a deer / varmint round though, but no law against a .270 Win for varmints. I do have to say it sure is an easy round to shoot. and somewhat affordable .

Problem with 243 is shot placement. A lot of guys don't know how to wait for a good one.

There'a better calibers though. And recoil? Who has ever felt recoil while ahooting a deer?

My handle should make things obvious. The only issue I have ever seen with a 243 on deer was with sierra bullets, a lot of times they don't exit, the deer's dead and recovered so you can't really call it a failure. I switched to partitions, they always exit, and as stated previously have never lost one to that caliber exit holes or not. Just off the record, my brother wasn't the hottest with shot placement, but we still never lost one,

sounds like those who have had troubles need to spend more time at the range, self admittedly so. there is a very small margin of where caliber can trump shot placement, such as a diaphragm hit being called here as a "liver hit". I've killed probably close to 50 big game animals with a 243 ranging from turkeys to elk. (turkeys are considered big game here). mostly deer and antelope though. I have never lost one, and never had to chase one a great distance. in fact I can't remember any going more than 30 yards the vast majority dropped in their tracks. I used primarily the 95 NBT for the vast majority, including 4 deer just this year. all drt, although my sons mule deer doe ran 30-35 yards with a "liver hit" and was dead before we walked up to her 5 minutes later. learning anatomy and learning your rifle and practicing is the key. buying a 30-06 and being sloppy shouldn't be the goal, but if that's what your skill level requires to get a marginal edge then I say go for it, less wounded deer out there the better. just call it what it is and not blame the instrument. ymmv

The 243 works great, until it doesn't. Kind of like riding a bicycle no handed.

If you can't kill a deer with a .243 and the right bullet, you might need to get another activity. I had a friend that used a .243 exclusively and never needed more than one shot. He was a meat hunter and maxed out his tags every year. A box of ammo lasted him for years and years. Our shots are no more than 150 yards at the maximum and usually within 100. I've heard lost deer stories about a few even larger calibers, one was the .35 Remington for crying out loud, but the story tellers never admit to a badly placed shot.....it's always the gun's fault.

About right.

I'd never even consider shooting at a mountain goat with that caliber. just because someone can do something doesn't mean it's the smartest choice.
For me and mine, there are better alternatives out there for most big game, and it has little or nothing to do with skill level.