.243 or 30-30 for elk

[dagon]

My grand daughter wants go for elk this year. She is 11. Smallish for her age. She has been using a .243 and got her first deer last year. I'm wondering if the heavier bullet for 30-30 might be better then the .243. She got her deer at 210 yards. one shot kill. I'm thinking for elk we probably need to cut that in half. Thoughts?

[jrebel]

Here is a good video. 

Both calibers are capable of taking an elk.  Pick a good bullet and keep ranges reasonable.  With a good bullet, I wouldn't hesitate to use the .243 to 200-300 yards. 

You will get a lot of opposing responses.  Take it for what it's worth (free advice)...

[Fidelk]

Compromise on a .25-35?

[Mtnwalker]

.243 all day, any idea what bullet she’s shooting?

[brokenvet]

Both will take an elk, but for me they are on the lighter side.

Between the two, the .243 is the better choice.  Pair that with a solid copper bullet.

[spookgus]

In the .243, I would shoot the heaviest Barnes (or other mono) bullet that the rifle will stabilize. Standard factory barrel twist will likely be between 9 and 10, depending on rifle brand, model and vintage.

[jrebel]

With mono's....speed / velocity is king.  You want the bullet to perform as it is designed and they do this with speed.  Mono's will penetrate well, but if they don't have the speed to open up, it won't matter much.  75-90 gain Hammer HHT would be my pick for the .234 if you reload. 

[Mtnwalker]

Respectfully I very much disagree with the recommendations for monos out of the 243. They do penetrate but it’s a recipe for small wound channels and running elk if not perfectly placed 

[jrebel]

You fix the small wound channel by making sure you have adequate speed.  This was an old problem with mono's of the past.  I am currently loading an 80 grain HHT in a 6.5 creedmoor at  3675 fps and it will leave a bigger wound channel than any 140 grain cup and core on the market at reasonable hunting ranges....and they will also exit which gives two holes to bleed from. 

All that being said.....not all mono's are built the same, so a I am speaking of one particular mono. 

[bigfish51]

My son was 8 years old when he killed his first buck and bull (spike).  243 did the trick on both.  Single shot right behind the shoulder on that spike and it exited through the off shoulder.  Amazing the damage that it did and spike didn't take a single step after being shot.  150 yards.  I would agree with others before that stated the 243 is an adequate gun when shot placement is in the correct spot.  Get the elk to give you nice standing shot and get it done!!!!

[Mtnwalker]

You fix the small wound channel by making sure you have adequate speed.  This was an old problem with mono's of the past.  I am currently loading an 80 grain HHT in a 6.5 creedmoor at  3675 fps and it will leave a bigger wound channel than any 140 grain cup and core on the market at reasonable hunting ranges....and they will also exit which gives two holes to bleed from. 

All that being said.....not all mono's are built the same, so a I am speaking of one particular mono.

Roger. With posts like these I tend to assume most are working with off the shelf ammo options

[Karl Blanchard]

You fix the small wound channel by making sure you have adequate speed.  This was an old problem with mono's of the past.  I am currently loading an 80 grain HHT in a 6.5 creedmoor at  3675 fps and it will leave a bigger wound channel than any 140 grain cup and core on the market at reasonable hunting ranges....and they will also exit which gives two holes to bleed from. 

All that being said.....not all mono's are built the same, so a I am speaking of one particular mono.

you've killed with every 6.5 cup and core bullet on the market?! That's impressive.

[Bullkllr]

Another thing to think about is the rifle itself if 30-30 is an option. Straight-stocked lever actions are not the most recoil friendly rifles on the shelf. Sounds like she shoots the 243 well, so why not keep that going.

[Karl Blanchard]

.243 is so incredibly adequate for anything in North America its not even worth debating. Energy IS NOT a function of bullet performance. A high bc .243 bullet has far less frontal surface than a round nose 30 cal so it will penetrate deeper. It's faster so it's going to reliably expand at longer distances, and with the correct bullet it is going to create a larger wound channel than any 30-30 projectile you could possibly shoot. And do it all with far less recoil. There's literally no downside.

[jrebel]

You fix the small wound channel by making sure you have adequate speed.  This was an old problem with mono's of the past.  I am currently loading an 80 grain HHT in a 6.5 creedmoor at  3675 fps and it will leave a bigger wound channel than any 140 grain cup and core on the market at reasonable hunting ranges....and they will also exit which gives two holes to bleed from. 

All that being said.....not all mono's are built the same, so a I am speaking of one particular mono.

you've killed with every 6.5 cup and core bullet on the market?! That's impressive.

(Insert donkey emoji). You are always looking for a fight.   

I apologize to the OP…..no one should answer questions on ballistics.  Karl is the leading expert on this topic and he will definitely let everyone know it!!  I noticed he didn’t offer any thoughts or suggestions to the OP question, but is quick to be critical of others post. 

I have shot many many cup and core bullets (not all in the 6.5) and have seen good and bad performance across the board.  There are a lot of great cup and core bullets….matter of fact I still shoot quite a few.  I have also shot many of the major bullet manufacturers mono bullets with very mixed results.  It wasn’t till a couple years ago I would make the statement above…..but I have experienced amazing results from my current mono of choice.  Wound channels are the best I have ever seen.  Terminal performance is second to none.  Add complete pass through on all animals with the same bullets and I would say…..cup and core bullets (even the best I have used) don’t compare when looking at all factors involved in the OP’s question. 

If I’m gonna use a small caliber on big game animals , I want penetration and optimal terminal performance.   If the OP had ask about a 300 wm, I would say a good cup and core or good mono would be sufficient.   Now I know, I should pm Karl before offering my opinion on terminal performance of bullets.  My bad!!