I came into a little extra cash from a side job and strongly considering giving my son, who graduates this Dec, my 30-06 as his first gun. It will probably stick around the house for awhile if I need it but really dont. I am not going elk or big game hunting in the future and could use that gun if needed. Mostly hunt deer and pigs and I prefer 80-120 pigs for meat.

So I think I am looking for a 243 but not opposed to a 270 just think the 243 would be a better fit for me. My budget is around 7-800 with scope but I can pitch in some more if its a hot smoken deal. Questions.

1. Is my budget realistic? I am not looking for an heirloom just a good reliable gun

2. any for sale here by posters?

3. recommendations on specific guns

thanks

1. Expect several to recommend 6.5 Creedmore
2. Personally .308 or even .300BLK would be my preferred
3. You can kill deer with a .243.
4. Look at Ruger first.

Edited to add: All those options would be in bolt action.

I have used a .243 as my primary hunting rifle from the time I was 9 to last year (31), so I will always support another .243 in the Texas woods.

That being said, your intended ranges to shoot it at may affect the choice.

Where are you located?

my hunt options are almost all in central Texas. That could change but I doubt it

And yes I know I will get a lot of different suggestions. I have seen these threads here before

yes bolt action only

I have a Ruger #1 in 243 - should be able to find one in your budget. She is a dream to shoot

I've shot a Howa 1500 in .243 since I was 12 and it's a great rifle. Not a competition rifle but I've put down whitetail with it out to 220 yds and never needed a follow up shot. It comes stock with a pretty great trigger and has a decent number of upgrades available if you want to gradually build on it.

https://www.cabelas.com/product/remington-700-bdl-243-win-/2539161.uts?Ntk=GunLibrary&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch.cmd%3Fform_state%3DsearchForm%26N%3D0%26Ntk%3DGunLibrary%26Ntt%3DRemington%252B700%252Bbdl%252B.243%26x%3D0%26y%3D0&Ntt=Remington+700+bdl+.243&slotId=0

I'm sure you can find it cheaper but one I would consider.

Too bad this Browning X-Bolt Stainless on Walnut is discontinued...
Beautiful weapon and i've never not dropped a deer with mine.
chambered in .243




Other X-Bolts are still on the market. Solid little shooter. Light weight, smooth action, great trigger, deadly accurate.

Edit to add... My .308 cost me a lot of good meat to eat. Heart/lung shots were destroying shoulders and backstrap on the exit side.

I'd look into a Ruger American. Of course I'm going to recommend a 6.5, but for a starter gun I would also consider 308. 243 is a proven round, but 6.5 and 308 are the most popular today. With a Ruger , you will be left with $300-400 for glass.

I'm not married to the 243 just seems like a good compliment to the 30-06 since eventually my son will have both and maybe a grandson some day

The 06 kicks like a mule and the doe I shot last season, hill country, had most of her chest blown out. It was a well placed shot too. She didn't run though.

Second the Ruger American in .243. My kids use it, I use it in the Hill Country and South Texas for WT, hog and axis.

I'm a .243 homer, though.

I have a Ruger American in .308 as well and to me there is a kick to it. Might be much for a kid.

I'll admit that I do like the 6.5 CM. Recoil seem to be similar to .243.

I would recommend a tikka. Have one in .270. Great rifle and super accurate.

As far as caliber I have had the current fad, wsm, short magnums. I have stopped short of the 6.5 creedmore.

My current opinion is stick with something that has been around and will be for a long time. You never know when the in thing you won't be able to sell because it isn't the in thing. Example .40s&w, super short magnums some of the wsm et al.

Don't get me wrong I don't dislike them because they were bad calibers or did't do exactly what they were designed to do. It is because their long term value suffers and if you don't reload you may have trouble with finding a good selection of ammo. They may even be better at some things than .270, 30-06, 7mag etc but they don't do it enough better to offset the potential drawbacks especially for the one or two rifle owner.

I am not a 6.5 basher either had .260 and own a 6.5x55 finnlight.

For what you describe I would suggest .243, 25-06, .270 pick one or draw them out of hat doesn't matter.

Yea I'm leaning obviously, to traditional rounds that have good history. I'm not really worried about ammo price either. I'll buy two boxes, sight it in with a box or less, and fire it at most 5/6 times year from there.

I'll price all the suggestions so far, keep them coming,and start narrowing it down. With two kids in college I'm not even thinking lease for 2-3 years and rely on good friends to invite me to hunt. So this is a long term family play.

7-08 would be my recommendation over a .243, however, in either caliber I'd look at the Savage with an Accustock so you can adjust it for you grow older or when your child gets it.

dad used a .243 to fill the freezer with caribou every year in Alaska for 20 years. its the only rifle i remember him having.

too bad you're married to bolt actions, a Savage 99 lever action would fit your bill nicely.

Tell you the truth I did not consider a lever. I have. 30-30 that has killed more deer then I can count. Got old man eyes 15 years ago and it's a gun I can't put glass on since I'm left handed. 68 Winchester. Can only mount glass on the left.

What I guess I was saying is I'm not interested in ARs. I love the look and feel of the bolt. Again I'm a traditionalist. Wood stock etc

SteveBott said:

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Tell you the truth I did not consider a lever. I have. 30-30 that has killed more deer then I can count. Got old man eyes 15 years ago and it's a gun I can't put glass on since I'm left handed. 68 Winchester. Can only mount glass on the left.

What I guess I was saying is I'm not interested in ARs. I love the look and feel of the bolt. Again I'm a traditionalist. Wood stock etc

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gotchya!

im to the point in most of my firearms purchases where i am buying stuff that i probably won't shoot alot. i have synthetic socks on the stuff that i take to the field on a regular basis, but lately have been doing more collection building so its wood stocks and things that's different than what is in my safe already. (lever actions, thumbhole laminate stocks, maybe a ruger no.1 in the future)

Eskimo is a .243 homer like me. Love seeing his references to dad popping Alaskan caribou with a round that had been relegated to kids in Texas, but will kill damn near anything in Texas.

6.5 Creedmoor, Bergara HMR, Swarovski Glass...

What's wrong with this board? Have you forgotten who you are?

Seriously though, .243 is a solid round. I am a weatherby homer but like the Rugers, too. You can get a vanguard and a decent Leupold Vx-ii scope for your budget.

Traditionalist here. I love the 243.

I second the tikka recommendation. I have a tikka T3x Forrest in 243. I think the only difference between the Forrest and hunter model is that the Forrest model has a raised cheek piece. Beautiful wood grain classic looking rifle. Mine is not the lightweight version but it's plenty light and shoots great. Might be near the top of the price range you listed so my second recommendation would be the ruger American as others have said.

.243 Winchester and 6.5 Creedmore are extremely close in ballistics. They are almost twins.

Go with the .243 for the history.
In 10 years the bench shooters will drooling over the next round with a cool name

Savage 110 hunter should fit your budget.
Tikka t3 might fit

SanAntoneAg said:

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Eskimo is a .243 homer like me. Love seeing his references to dad popping Alaskan caribou with a round that had been relegated to kids in Texas, but will kill damn near anything in Texas.

---

since meat had to be flown in, beef was very expensive. we would fill the freezer with salmon in the summer and get our limit of caribou every winter. we weren't hunting for fun, that .243 was putting meat on the table.

I asked dad why he didn't use a bigger round like a 3006, 308, or 7mm like a lot of my friends dads. he said those bigger rounds wasted too much meat. He tought me to aim behind the shoulder and low to hit the heart. it dropped them clean and we were able to harvest the whole carcass.

Just an observation, if you are blowing out rear shoulders with a 30'06, you need to change the bullets you shoot

There are many bullets with better construction that will decrease the damage you experienced.

Ie. I don't shoot ballistic tips for body shots for said reason

Pick a good bonded bullet.
Go with a 130 grain if you want to decrease recoil.




Back to the 243.
Solid caliber that shoots flat.
Accurate shoots are the key on big bodied deer

I think a .243 is a great compliment to a .30.06.

If you think the .30-06 kicks too much, consider getting a limb saver fitted to it. It completely changed the way mine shot to where it is enjoyable to shoot.

Most shoot Remi Core Lokts or the $20 a box Winchester in .30/06 for Texas deer and comparable sized mammals. And yes they blow out shoulders. And in Eskimo's example, his family was hunting for sustenance.

Dude... don't turn this into a shoulder vs neck shot argument!

#teambehindtheshoulder

The .243 is a great round, amd the idea that it is a kids gun or too small for most things is kind of silly. When I lived in AZ, it was in the top 5 most popular rounds used for elk.

I have only not recovered 1 deer, and it was from a shot I should not have taken. Outside of that, it works exactly like it should. If you can, get a 1:10 twist so you can shoot heavier than 100 grain projos. Most are 1:12 twist - 100 grain bullets can stabilize in it, but they are at the absolute top end, i shoot 95 grain BST's out of mine, it shoots them very well.

Winchester, Tikka, Savage, Weatherby, Ruger, Ted Williams. All make great models. I am not a Remington guy, especially a newer one.

You can probably find something on Gunbroker used. My last rifle was a Winchester Clasic with Leupold VX3 scope, I think I paid $800 for it. Great deal, be patient and you will find what you are looking for.

I have my grandfather's Rem model 4 semi in .243. Very tight grouping. It was made in the 80's and have had no issues with it. Find one of those,,grab it up.

FIDO 96 said:

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1. Expect several to recommend 6.5 Creedmore
2. Personally .308 or even .300BLK would be my preferred
3. You can kill deer with a .243.
4. Look at Ruger first.

Edited to add: All those options would be in bolt action.

---

I've o.ly.killed deer with a .243

I'm not saying shoot them behind the shoulder but shoot the behind the shoulder.

SteveBott said:

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I came into a little extra cash from a side job and strongly considering giving my son, who graduates this Dec, my 30-06 as his first gun. It will probably stick around the house for awhile if I need it but really dont. I am not going elk or big game hunting in the future and could use that gun if needed. Mostly hunt deer and pigs and I prefer 80-120 pigs for meat.

So I think I am looking for a 243 but not opposed to a 270 just think the 243 would be a better fit for me. My budget is around 7-800 with scope but I can pitch in some more if its a hot smoken deal. Questions.

1. Is my budget realistic? I am not looking for an heirloom just a good reliable gun

2. any for sale here by posters?

3. recommendations on specific guns

thanks

---

I saw this thread the other day and it caught my eye because, I've also been looking for a .243 as well. I missed out on a very nice .243 yesterday by about 5 minutes. Walmart had .243, .270 and 30-06 Weatherby Vanguard Sporters on clearance for $499 which is a pretty decent price.

Since I missed out on the .243, I asked the counter to let me have a look at the .270. There was a Sporter and Deluxe right next to each other in the display case. He handed me the .270 Deluxe which is usually a bit more expensive. I asked the guy if it was on clearance for $499 and he said yes. I walked away with a .270 and now I am looking for a nice scope to put on it.

Provided your local Walmart sells rifles, I'd say give them a go. You may find a decent deal.

+1 on the Browning X-Bolt in .243. I have one as well, it is a great rifle.

https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/savage-axis-ii-xp-243-winchester-bolt-action-rifle#repChildCatid=3516582

this is a damn good gun for the $$. I really like the accu-trigger. Not really sold on the scope, but its something you could always upgrade in a year or two.

Tikka T3 or Browning A-Bolt/X-Bolt

I love the 243. One of my favorites.

But the 7mm-08 is the tits.