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Trying different ammo for my .243.

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Thaddeus Beauregard
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12:12p, 7/4/24
Honestly, if you just find a load that groups best in your rifle, any expanding non-varmint bullet from 80 to 115 gr and good shot placement will get the job done on whitetails as well as any other.

IF you don't handload:

In .243, I've had great luck with Sierra Gamechanger with their 90gr TGK. Every rifle I've fired this stuff in has loved this ammo! I've killed a few critters with it and terminal performance has been impressive.

I also like Hornady Precision Hunter with 90gr ELD-X, though the Sierra Gamechanger has grouped a little better in my .243.
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agsalaska
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12:57p, 7/4/24
AG
One of my bigger concerns after reading everything I have read is shot placement. Seems to me that with the Barnes especially a lot of people are trying to break bone. I specifically teach my kids to avoid bone as much as possible and shoot behind the shoulder to avoid meat. In through ribs out through ribs just like I was taught.

I feel like, especially with the Barnes, we are going to be shooting for bone, at least one way in, to ensure the bullet expands. Is that accurate?
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agsalaska
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In reply to NRH ag 10 • 1:16p, 7/4/24
AG
Thanks. Thats an awesome website. I also read the 'best all around .243 bullet' on there.
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TikkaShooter
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In reply to agsalaska • 3:33p, 7/4/24
That's my experience. I only shot em for 1 season. Then moved back to other options.

FWIW, we do pop mgmt. So I had a lot of test subjects to gauge performance on.

Never lost a deer. So bullet never "failed". But I didn't like them as much as softer bullets that dumped/expanded more rapidly.
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BurnetAggie99
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3:38p, 7/4/24
I shoot Barnes TTSX. They are deadly and still maintain accuracy
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agsalaska
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8:48p, 7/29/24
AG
Bump to post the picture
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agsalaska
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8:55p, 7/29/24
AG
He back. And that back.

The plan, right now, ………

This is not a big plot of land. Three blinds at two feeders in a tight spot off of Park Road 4.

Plan is my son and his two cousins covering the blinds on youth weekend. I will sit with him since he will be 13 but the 15 and 16 year olds, with their 6.5 creed and .270. Will be on their own.

Only deer to be shot that day is him and the first one that gets the shot takes him. They are on a mission. From god.
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agsalaska
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8:57p, 7/29/24
AG
I just sent him that picture and said 'your reminder for today'

Haha.

That deer has zero chance.
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CS78
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In reply to agsalaska • 9:20p, 7/29/24
agsalaska said:

This is not a big plot of land. Three blinds at two feeders in a tight spot off of Park Road 4


You're right by my place. Might even see some of the same deer.
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agsalaska
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In reply to CS78 • 9:44p, 7/29/24
AG
CS78 said:
agsalaska said:

This is not a big plot of land. Three blinds at two feeders in a tight spot off of Park Road 4


You're right by my place. Might even see some of the same deer.
If you see that deer please let him go. At least til after youth weekend.

After that we move on and spend the rest of the season in Fayette Co. Shoot him!
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ldg397
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11:49p, 7/29/24
AG
Mark me down as another vote for Barnes ttsx. I shoot them in everything have had success with partition and ballistic tip as well even tipped game king but prefer the Barnes performance on game. They just shoot ok in my 243 but I haven't really found anything that shoots lights out in my 243 so it probably needs some work bedding etc.

I got really lucky last year bought a mint all original pre64 model70 featherweight in 270 and bought a box of 130 ttsx and it shot them in 1/2" groups so much for my thousands of dollars of reloading equipment. Has been a very good combination for me.
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agsalaska
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In reply to ldg397 • 8:29a, 7/30/24
AG
I ended up buying a box of Federal loaded Barnes 85gr and a box of Federal Fusion. I will take them out to the range next week and see which groups the best. The winner gets opening weekend.


Also, hunting ammo is really cheap right now on Midway. Cheapest I have seen in years
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Tumble Weed
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In reply to CactusThomas • 8:32a, 7/30/24
CactusThomas said:
agsalaska said:
fburgtx said:
Nothing really "magic" is needed to kill whitetails. We've always done the "high shoulder" (almost base of the neck) shot, for years, and eliminated all the "tracking" needed for deer. They fall (and die) right there. This includes 243, 6mm Rem, 25-06, 264 win mag.

Certainly lots better options than Blue Box Federal or standard Core-Lokt's, for stuff like Elk, but for deer, with decent shot placemt, the cheap stuff will do.
I agree. I am not really trying to find anything to kill deer more dead than we already do. That's not really the point. I am just kind of a tinkerer. I used to be a scratch golfer and mostly quit and replaced it with trips to gun ranges. When I played golf I was always testing out new golf balls, gloves, shoes, wedges, etc. Now I am the guy that will buy all kinds of 9mm ammo, sit at a bench from 30 yards, and see which is the most accurate. Then do it again with a different gun. Just, cause.

So I am doing this just because. I have hundreds of rounds of CoreLokts for 30-06, 30-30, and .257 Roberts. But I have an opening here for .243, and actually 6.5 Swede if I want too.


You need to be hand loading!!! It's obvious
I was hoping that someone would share a couple of recipes.

Looking at cranking up the velocity on the 243. Saw some Hodgdon Superformance at the store the other day and was tempted.


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76Ag
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1:14p, 7/30/24
AG
Game King.
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jmm
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2:19p, 7/30/24
I am a bit of a tinkerer with reloading. Tried virtually every combination known to man in the '06. Big fan of the Swift A-frame for big game(moose, eland, buffalo, etc..). For general use, the Sierra GameKing/ProHunter is an unbeatable combination of penetration and expansion for medium size game(elk, deer, wildes, gemsbok, aoudad, etc...) Also a big fan of Barnes, but at a much lower weight bullet and at high speeds. I used the 110 grain TTSX at 3500 fps for many years culling.

Back to the point of the .243. It is my main culling rifle. Mohawk 600 with suppressor. I don't tinker with it because any quality factory ammo works. I use Federal blue box, Remington Corelokt, Nosler BT, Winchester soft points, and Sierra GameKing(when I can find them.
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alvtimes
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12:19p, 8/1/24
another vote in the Barnes column
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CS78
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In reply to agsalaska • 12:25p, 8/1/24
agsalaska said:
I ended up buying a box of Federal loaded Barnes 85gr and a box of Federal Fusion. I will take them out to the range next week and see which groups the best. The winner gets opening weekend.


Id be really surprised if the barnes isn't more accurate. Fusion is an excellent performing bullet. Been really impressed with it's results on game. But, it seems to fall a little short on paper sometimes.
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O.G.
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2:10p, 8/1/24
About 10-12 years ago, I hunted one season exclusively with a .243 with TSX

I killed multiple deer (over several counties & on 2 places that had MLD tags) including one big bodied, very healthy 8pt buck.

I shot a bunch of hogs, coyotes and one bobcat that season.

Nothing walked away from it and I was trying to see if I the TSX, espeically in that lighter caliber, would fail. It did not.

This is the combo that I would go with 100% of the time.
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JeremiahJohnson
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3:29p, 8/1/24
AG
Good part about the Barnes is they are solid copper. So no lead shards in your meat. That doesn't matter to most, but its a plus. I converted all my meat bullets hunting bullets to Barnes.
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agsalaska
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3:43p, 8/1/24
AG
Yea unless for some reason the gun just doesnt like the Barnes bullet I am leaning towards trying out first.

The Barnes load an 80gr version and Federal loads an 85gr version. I went with the Federal.


Also the lead thing I have never thought about. I must have a lot of lead in me.

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agsalaska
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4:37p, 8/1/24
AG
Here we go. Tomorrow.

That box of .44 was to get free shipping from Midway.
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agsalaska
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5:59p, 8/10/24
AG
Great interview with the guys from Barnes this week on Vortex Nation which is the best outdoors podcast that there is.

I'm convinced enough to try it.

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agsalaska
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3:04p, 11/11/24
AG
Huge thread update. Please like and sub….. just kidding.

Ended up going with the Barnes 80gr. TTSX because it shot inside .50 MOA. Amazingly accurate round. Finally today my daughter shot a nice 4.5-5.5 yo 9 point from 253 yards. The deer jumped straight up in the air, landed, took one huge jump away from the stand and landed on his chest dead. Total distance about 15 yards dead in about 1 second.

Double lung And the blood trail looked like someone had poured a bucket of red paint. Shattered ribs going in and out. After skinning it and looking at the damage I never would have guessed .243. I've shot or seen shot a lot of deer with a .243 and on its own is a great cartridge with soft points and I'm sure if she made that shot with a CoreLokt or something she would have killed it also. But when you see the damage and the blood trail the Barnes bullet changes the game quite dramatically. I bet it also does with the .223.

Exactly what I was looking for. And to be clear, I would go tomorrow with PowerPoints or whatever. No problem. Those also work great.


The trouble with quotes on the internet is that you never know if they are genuine. -- Abraham Lincoln.



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CS78
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5:07p, 11/11/24
Awesome. Congrats to both of you and good job.
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Thaddeus Beauregard
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8:54a, 11/12/24
Fantastic! Congratulations to both of you for a great hunt!
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McInnis
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In reply to cledus6150 • 9:00a, 11/12/24
AG
cledus6150 said:
Anything with a Barnes TSX is the right answer


This is a 130 grn TTSX that went through both lungs of an elk cow a couple of weeks ago. I found it lodged against the far side shoulder. If you use the tipped version I wouldn't have any concerns about it expanding in a deer.



Edited to say it was fired from a .270 winchester.
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