Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting .243 vs. 7mm-08 on whitetails?

250 is a nice round and I'd like to try one in the future.

Selmer, I'd throw in the 95 Ballistic tip and 90 Swift Scirocco (sp?), and the Sierra 85BTHP and 87 Hornady SP and HP are also known to drop deer like lightening, but I would not try breaking heavy bone nor shooting from a bad angle. Right now I have 95 BTs in my 6BR cases for my new 8 Twist custom Stiller rifle, often running 105 amaxs but it's a specialty proposition and penetration is not it's strong point, LONG range performance is, as it's holding 1,000 + lbs at 400 yds, enough to double lung and exit a broadside shot...from experience.

Many use the 100 partition and I did long ago but a deer hit ran showing no signs of impact, he did drop in 30 yds, small exit I thought. I do hear guys saying the 95 partition for some reason shoots more accurately on average in the partition vs 100gr. Others do well with Hornadys, 105 speer, and even Sierra GK BTSP but Selmer, I am with you, why not run the best bullets going, and be done for hunting. Having flattened a hog with the 85 X, I was VERY impressed, a DRT kill, and a perfectly mushroomed bullet recovered in off hide, 240 yd shot, mv 3100 in a 20" bbl, and retained wt. was if not mistaken, a full 85 grains upon weighing. I'd put a Barnes 85 up against ANY 243 bullet for deer/hogs, etc.

JB makes great point on the 243/308 for non handloaders, etc. I do believe Federal is/was planning to come out with 85 TSX in the 243 ammo. That would really shine for that round. Bullet will anchor deer/hogs like nobody's business -and do so from any angle and I'd not hesitate if it were in hand and an elk presented broadside up to 250 yds, IF legal, though it would not be my choice, I would know the bullet would penetrate well and destroy plenty tissue going thru.

I truly believe IF the mfg. would intro MORE choices in 260, AND ammo, it would over time take ALOT of would be 243 buys, for a dual purpose varmint/deer round with light recoil. Kills IMHO more like the 7/08 sized rounds. That said, having sold my RSI #1, which is no longer mfg., as of this past year, I regret letting that 243 go, as bullet choice and shot placement rules and it was a handy compact killer, light recoil so pleasant to spend time at the range practicing, and very accurate, sub moa easily with factory and handloads. If Ruger ever makes an RSI #1 in 260, or 250/3000, I'll be at the front of the line to buy one.

Vic if you reload, the 250 is great, and for a tad more energy downrange on longer shots if that is an issue, I'd look at the 6.5x47 Lapua. I REALLY like what that round has to offer overall, light recoil, premium accuracy - Lapua brass ready made (though rumor has it 260 may be on the way), and ballistics nearly duplicating a 260. To MY thinking, it represents an IDEAL deer cartridge ALL things considered, but again, if you plan to reload as factory ammo I hear has been slow to get here, although Lapua has it in 100, 108, 123, and 139.

http://accurateshooter.wordpress.com/2007/05/10/lapua-65x47-factory-ammo-tests/

Hi trig,

Its nice to hear someone admit that recoil effects their shot. A lot of guys get mad if you mention that to them. I'm a big guy and recoil flinch isn't a major issue for me, but i do like the more comfortable calibers. I have hunted with a .243 and its just my opinion, they don't kill as quick as a larger cal.

I shoot a 30.06 and like the 150 gn bullet better than the 165's. The extra 15gn adds a lot more recoil.

What ever you pick, shoot it well.

Hoot

Thanks for the insights, gentlemen.
I do currently hunt with a .270 Win. bolt action and limit my shots to 400 yds. when hunting from my tripod stand and using a V-rest.
I've just got the hankering for a new gun/action (it's going to be a short-action BLR) and can't decide on a cartridge. I plan on doing a combination of woods hunting and field hunting. The .270 is my recoil limit.

65BR, I do reload, and as a matter of fact, the only rifle in my possession that has fired factory ammo is that old M94 my daughter likes so much. I bought it when I was 13, and my father didn't reload, so it was fed a diet of factory ammo for a while.

Longer ranges are not really the norm where I hunt, which is the piedmont region of Virginia, mostly. Typical shots are under 100 yards, so the .30-30 is certainly adequate, but I have had occasion to make a couple of 250-yarders, but that is the exception rather than the rule. I have done the bulk of my hunting this year with a .45/70 guide gun.

Just my opinion, but ESPECIALLY if a guy is bothered by recoil, and if longer-range stuff is in the menu, a decent trigger is vital. So my advice is to factor in $100 or so to have Neil Jones Custom Products fix the trigger on that BLR, regardless of caliber.

Can't speak to it's terminal effectiveness, but I've run a couple hundred of the 120-gn BT's through my 7-08 and that is one excellent bullet! It has a very good BC for it's weight and holds up well ( accuracy wise) out to 400+ yards. Others, notably Dogzapper, give glowing reports as to it's terminal effectiveness on critters up to ELK. It's quite light in the recoil department too.

My vote remains, 7-08 and a trigger job for that BLR!

Vic,

Its the same here in Florida. most shots are under 100 yards. My go to rifle is a ruger 44 carbine. I bought it last year and have already started making memories with it. took a nice buck this year.

Think my wife is going to take it away from me. she shoots it very well, plus the fact that the recoil is very low and she loves the EO Tech Halo site I installed on it.

I would sell it for twice what I have in it.

Hoot

If the 120 gr. pill shoots well in the 7mm-08, that's my caliber then! I was afraid that the 120 gr. would be "short for caliber" and not do well..kinda like the 125 gr. does in .30-06 or the 100 gr. in .270. I doubt that I would notice any recoil difference between it and a 100 gr. .243 bullet. If y'all say it's working well, I'll believe you and that's what I'll get.

I've yet to purchase a rifle that hasn't gotten a trigger job done on it.

120gr bullets and R15 are like a stripper and brass pole from a 7mm-08

Kind of skanky, and expensive for what you get? <grin>

Triggernosis, again speaking only of how they shoot, those 120 BT's are amazing little guys. I wasn't expecting them to do well at longer ranges but they do. Word on the street is that they have a thick jacket, and do amazing things to deer.

The reason I keep bringing up Neil Jones is that he's the only guy I've found or even heard if who will do a BLR trigger job. And he did a great job on mine!

You should get 1.5 moa if not 1 moa accuracy off sandbags in a 7/08 or 243, but the trigger out the box and depending on accuracy shown on paper with hunting ammo to be used will dictate how far you can confidently shoot. BLR may be lighter than what you have been using but recoil should be fine in either cartridge. A 20" bbl BLR is not optimal for best ballistics but will not hamper too bad either, use good ear protection for blast.

Good luck and let us know how it works out. BLRs are nicely constructed.

BTW, Vic, Guide Guns are nice, but wow, sure must leave a blood trail! 45/70..classic round that flattens most anything at normal distances. You'll enjoy a milder round IMHO and not look back, I have! First rifle was a 7mag, then many more in between, even a 7mm BR (rifle-custom) not long ago. Pendulum swings, perhaps with age (read wisdom) and confidence borne out of practice at range, as well as experience on game in the field.

wldthg, there is the normal rut and then the doe's that don't go into rut in the first rut will go into rut latter in the year. Its not as stong of a rut. On why a silly doe ran so far I dont' really know but I was just surprised due to the size of the hole I shot in it with a plug of lung sticking out of it. Most I shoot as I said I destroy the shoulders on does but could not this time.

Hoot get one of those 357 magnum marlin rifles!

Triggernosis, as long as you know that the 7-08 with 120's is going to kick about as much as a 270win with 130's you should be fine. I thought about one long and hard but could not see a reason that a 308 with 150's would not do the same thing as a 7-08 and the ammuntion was more available.

The 308 sure makes more sense in my opinion.

Could that also mean the 7mm-08 is so popular that it's all sold out?

FWIW I agree and it took a lot of contemplation before I went with the new kid on the block 7mm-08 but I've been very happy with it. That being said, this spring as I pass my nephew the same p64 M70 fwt in .243 that my Dad passed me I'll be in the market for another.

Really hard to go wrong with either.

Well, the 243/100 is going to have a noticeable recoil difference from the 7-08/120.

If your recoil tolerance is around a "270 level," then why not get a 308 and be done with it? It will give a noticeable improvement in 'whack em' over the 243 where the 7 doesn't show much.

A 243 BLR sure would give some fun to the coyotes in the off-season as well.

Finally, the 125 grainers shoot great in both 308 and 30-06! That leads me to believe that you haven't reloaded a lot or spent too much time shooting, which if true, brings us back to what Mule Deer mentioned, that you can get good cheap ammo in 243 or 308 at every store around.

Jimmyp- I guess I did not understand you-- I know about the second rut but I thought the reason why the doe ran 82 long steps with a large hole in her, is because of some super power she had because she was in heat . Deer will amaze you. I shot a small buck last fall. 40 yards and the bullet cut a 3/4" gash in the side of his heart.I have never seen a deer run so fast as that one, after the shot. That deer died 100� yards from where he was shot. Thank you Web

Heckola, to me it's just a newer kind of Roberts...grin

Dober