243?

[bobcat]

if you want to hunt bigger game though or shoot at farther ranges I use a 7mm, that sucker will kill everthing from Praire dogs to really big game.

Which one:

7mm Mauser, 7mm-08 Remington, 7mm Remington Short Action Ultra Magnum,7mm Winchester Short Magnum, 7mm Remington Magnum,
7mm Weatherby Magnum, 7mm Remington Ultra Magnum......

When you only give the bullet diameter it doesn't mean much.  

[Skillet]

.243 Around here is just fine for deer sized game. 25-06, 30-06, 7mm, are more powerful but are over kill for deer around these parts. around here .243, 270, .308 are perfect, I would use .308 because you can get military surplus for super cheap at gun shows. if you want to hunt bigger game though or shoot at farther ranges I use a 7mm, that sucker will kill everthing from Praire dogs to really big game.

Just curious - how is the 25-06 overkill and the 270 perfect?  Isn't that backwards?

FWIW (this coming from a multiple 30-06 gun owner), I'm really starting to appreciate the .308-based cartridges more and more.  Now that we have the 338 Federal, nearly every needed caliber is covered between the .243 and .35 (in the .358 Winchester), all from an efficient and relatively small package.

[bobcat]

Just curious - how is the 25-06 overkill and the 270 perfect?  Isn't that backwards?

No such thing as overkill anyway. Dead is dead. If you're talking about standard hunting cartridges anyway and not a howitzer or something. I wouldn't even consider a 375 H&H 'overkill' on deer. As Bob33 says, the deer aren't smart enough to know the difference.   

[Mongo Hunter]

if you want to hunt bigger game though or shoot at farther ranges I use a 7mm, that sucker will kill everthing from Praire dogs to really big game.

Which one:

7mm Mauser, 7mm-08 Remington, 7mm Remington Short Action Ultra Magnum,7mm Winchester Short Magnum, 7mm Remington Magnum,
7mm Weatherby Magnum, 7mm Remington Ultra Magnum......

When you only give the bullet diameter it doesn't mean much.  

7mm i was refuring to is the 7mm rem mag.

[Mongo Hunter]

.243 Around here is just fine for deer sized game. 25-06, 30-06, 7mm, are more powerful but are over kill for deer around these parts. around here .243, 270, .308 are perfect, I would use .308 because you can get military surplus for super cheap at gun shows. if you want to hunt bigger game though or shoot at farther ranges I use a 7mm, that sucker will kill everthing from Praire dogs to really big game.

Just curious - how is the 25-06 overkill and the 270 perfect?  Isn't that backwards?

FWIW (this coming from a multiple 30-06 gun owner), I'm really starting to appreciate the .308-based cartridges more and more.  Now that we have the 338 Federal, nearly every needed caliber is covered between the .243 and .35 (in the .358 Winchester), all from an efficient and relatively small package.

Sorry miss spoke about the 25-06 vs 270. in anycase what I was trying to get at is a 308 is a light gun, low recoil, ammo is cheap and it will kill deer just fine. 

[Curly]

Very good points about the .308.  .308 Win is hard to beat because of the reasons you listed.

For a light, short action rifle, there are some good options:  .257 Roberts would be a very good deer cartridge (slightly better than the .243), but if you don't reload, it may be difficult to find ammo.  .260 Remington I'd consider to be just about perfect for deer, but if you don't reload, it may be difficult to find ammo.    .257 Weatherby can't be beat as far as performance, but cost of ammo is high and recoil is quite a bit.  Next cartridge option might be .270 WSM.......I've never shot one so I'm not sure about recoil, but I'd assume it would kick similar to the .257 Weatherby.  Next cartridge to consider would be the 7mm-08........it could be the perfect deer cartridge too.  Low recoil, but what about ammo cost and availability, I don't know. Seems like it would be easier to find 7-08 ammo than .260 Rem........  That might just leave the .308 Win as the winner for short action deer rifle cartridges (unless a guy reloads) because of low cost ammo and low recoil and decent ballistics for any sane range of shooting a deer.  I'd much rather have a .308 Win in hand than a .243.  I can't think of any reason to hunt with a .243 for deer over a .308 Win......unless the shooter is recoil sensitive.

But when you start looking at long action rifles, it is hard to argue against the boring old 270 win because of light recoil, ammo cost, ammo availability, and ballistics.  The 25-06 is just a step below the .257 Wthrby in performance, but recoil would be less than the .270........but ammo cost may be slightly more because it is not as common.

Those are my thoughts anyway........

[Fullabull]

I purchased a Tika3 in 7mm-08 for my son and it is one of the sweetest rifles I have shot. The ammo is not hard to get. I put a limbsavers pad on it and wow... My daughter enjoyed shooting it also.

Good luck,
Fulla

[BLR 243]

Jack O'Conners wife killed elephants with her 7X57. I'v killed deer with everything from a .22 to a 30-06 (overkill) Compound bow ( might just as well used a .22 magnum) Recurve with cedar shafts and zwickey broadhead but my favorite is the 243. With the bullits made now you could kill anything. You have got to put the bullits in the right place no matter what you are shooting, if you can't hit em where you should then don't shoot. Be a better hunter (Hunt ) The butcher kill truck kills 1800lb steers with a .22. My neighbor has killed approx. 50 buffalo with everything from a 416 to a .17 rimfire.

[danceswitharrows]

You will find that bear faster if it was a vitals shot from a 243 over a gut shot 300ultramag  

See, I think most of us agree with that statement, however, statements like this make it sound like it's all shot placement and that the 2 guns are of equal value on a bear.

If so, then why not take a .243 brown bear hunting?

Well I am certainly not advocating taking a 243 brown bear hunting    But on a deer sized animal (like was stated in the question in the opening post) a vitals hit from either 243 or 300UM would produce the same effect, dead deer.  If he was asking about brown bear hunting I am sure he would have had more answers about stopping power and penetration

[Raul Duke]

.243, Yes it will kill any deer. My 12yr old uses one, and it drives tacks.
Rem 6mm, YES My 17yr old has havested 2 dead with his 6mm . first one at 250yrd. Droped it in its tracks. 2nd one at 75yrd. went about 10ft.

Both great guns for deer. I have no problem letting either of my boys take a shot up to 400yrds. (maybe more, but that means I have to pack it further, so we limit them to 400) As others have mentiond, Shot Placement, Shot Placement,Shot Placement.

[shockeere]

The resounding theme I'm hearing here is shot placement which is totally true. It boils down to having confidence in your equipment. I have a 7mm Rem Mag for deer hunting in the hunting regions that don't have a firearm restriction. To be honest, with the ranges I am comfortable shooting, I could do with a lot less. I am certain I am going to get a .243 for deer due to a few reasons:

1) low recoil (very nice for someone who likes to shoot a lot to get ultra comfortable with a piece of equipment. I want it to be "an extension of my arm" - and my 7mm would rather blow my arm off )

2) short action firearms can be more maneuverable. my 25" long action remington 700 is a bit more unwieldy than a 22" .243...

3) cost to shoot (handloading) I have found .243 bullets to be cheaper, and they take less powder

4) versatility. As has been mentioned before, one can use it as a varmint gun as well. 58gr vmax or 55gr nosler BTs at 3800-4000 fps with decent ballistic coefficients translates into some major varmint slaying, and the above features only compliment this. The 7mm is also very versatile, but still rather large for me.

5) the kids can use it too.

6) it's so popular, that an amazing variety of rifle choices exist chambered in .243. I was wanting to get a .257 Roberts, but I found myself pretty limited in rifle choices and I'm sold on a CZ 550, which unfortunately doesn't come in Roberts.

it should be noted that I'm 6'3 185 lbs and that's only my opinion. Your mileage will vary.

If you are a great shooter and have the confidence to take super far shots and typically hunt plains where you can see for days and don't feel like getting closer to your target, perhaps a larger caliber is more suitable. Good luck! and be sure to report back and let us know what you decide and perhaps some success stories as well

[jackelope]

Whats the difference between a 6mm and a .243?

[jager]

6mm = .244

[Bob33]

Whats the difference between a 6mm and a .243?

If you're referring to the 6mm Remington vs. the Winchester .243, the 6mm is about 100 ft/second faster in general.  Bullet diameters are the same.   When Remington introduced the 6mm it was called the 244 Remington. It was designed to shoot lighter bullets which limited its effectiveness as a big game caliber.  Winchester then introduced the Winchester .243 with a twist rate that could accurately shoot heavier bullets.  It caught on, and the 244/6mm essentially faded away.

The 243 is much more popular today than the 6mm.  There is a vast amount of factory ammo available.  If you handload, the 6mm does have a very slight edge.

[martin1]

i love my 243 and have killed everything from coyotes to elk with it. ive shot 7 deer with it and only had to shoot one deer more deer then once with it. great rifle all and all