55gn & 100gn .243 bullet weights

[henry d]

A question posed by a friend who is new to reloading, we have together reloaded 80gn heads for a competition and now he wants to reload some fox and deer rounds.

 

He liked the 55gn factory rounds for fox, hence the question. However as it`s for 243 wouldn`t a slightly heavier round be better ballistically, say 75-80gn. I also see in the recipes for varget, this would drive a 55gn at 3770+ fps would this make it a bit of a barrel burner ?

 

Lastly, to save having two or more different tubs of powder, is Varget OK across the range of weights ?

 

**EDIT** Vmax for fox and SP for deer.

 

Many thanks in advance for all input

[garygreengrass]

I use varget @ 41grns with 65grn vmax heads in my.243 zeroed at a inch high at 100 yrds so when I am foxing its just point and shoot out to 300 yards.

tryed a few different powder weights but found this the best for my rifle.

 

My Lyman reloading handbook says varget 100grn start load 31grn/max34.5grn,I have some 100grn shop bought bullets at the moment when I run out I`ll be loading with varget powder.

[sako751sg]

Dont reload the 55 or 100 grains but have done 58 and 75 grainers and Varget does fine.The 58s were very hot but with 36.5 grains of Varget the 75s are superb and a good all round bullet.

[henry d]

Cheers guys !

 

................. 36.5 grains of Varget the 75s are superb and a good all round bullet.

 

Thanks for that, it`s at the lower end of the scale I see. We will definitely be needing 100gns as we have a lot of red culling and we can`t afford to let them get back into the woods with a hole in them I`m alright with 140gns

The 75`s I suppose will be a good one to buck the wind too.

[njc110381]

With lots of Reds to cull you should have talked him into a 6.5 H!

[Redgum]

or a 308, you will need something with a bit more energy than a 243 can deliver, that said, a bullet in the right place will kill em dead but will you be able to find the dead animal.

[henry d]

zactly, but a `keeper isn`t the best paid job in the world, deer are less important than birds, soooooooo where do you spend the money(cos the estate won`t pay).

[choke it]

i use 58 g vmax with 43 grs of vit n 140 in my 243 howa 1500 lightweight and its smack on

[game_boy]

Dont reload the 55 or 100 grains but have done 58 and 75 grainers and Varget does fine.The 58s were very hot but with 36.5 grains of Varget the 75s are superb and a good all round bullet.

 

What was the bullet weight used on the big red chap?

[jamie g]

my mate is using varget with 70 grain blikings in his 243 it hits very hard on the foxes bucks the wind better then the 55's or 58's

and at 300 yards there isnt much more drop to be fair to make the 58's any better for foxing.

 

for deer he has loaded up some 100 grain softpoints with varget.

[henry d]

What was the bullet weight used on the big red chap?

 

100gn

[Redgum]

shot placement crucial, you will have to hit him square in the heart and then go and fetch a very good dog, then again you could neck shoot him if your confident and can get close enough.

[al4x]

shot placement crucial, you will have to hit him square in the heart and then go and fetch a very good dog, then again you could neck shoot him if your confident and can get close enough.

 

 

not what our scottish boys who have actually used .243 on decent sized reds say

[Vermincinerator]

243 is legal for reds but that does not make it adequate, IMO a 270 is the minimum that should be used on reds.

 

Ian.

[sako751sg]

What was the bullet weight used on the big red chap?

 

Factory load 100 grain Winchester soft points fella.Only get a chance 2-3 times a year for red so just buy a 20 when needed.

[sako751sg]

shot placement crucial, you will have to hit him square in the heart and then go and fetch a very good dog, then again you could neck shoot him if your confident and can get close enough.

Have only shot 8 red,4 being stags and the furthest one has went after an engine room shot has been 40 yards most.If the woods isnt too thick,i would not worry about him running that distance.If someone cant find a red/roe thats only ran that distance in a wood they are not trying hard.Saying that,the dog cuts the time looking dramatically.

[game_boy]

Someone I know quite well involved in a deer organisation up here said sometimes its the roe that will do a runner and its the reds who are softer and more likely to go down on the shot. Anyone else of this opinion. Certainly the only red I have shot ran 50 yrds or so before dropping - unfortunatley right into a 6ft deep feils ditch!

[Mr_Logic]

The is-a-243-big-enough-for-reds argument has been done to death, let's not bother.

 

As for Varget in 243, you're much better off with H414 for a powder for 243, it does everything right the way through. H4350 is also worth a look.

 

I don't have 243 any more but did a fair bit of loading for it. 51gr of H414 does you a 55gr Nosler at 3900fps, and that's one excellent fox round if your rifle likes it. I used 95 gr Hornady SSTs to great effect in the 243, atop 46gr H4831SC. My old Howa shot that lot to about half an inch 5-shot at 100 yards, and it did the business nicely on the deer too.

 

Tbh, the only reason the 243 went was that I can shoot deer just as well with a 308 (even if they are roe) and I wanted a proper target rifle, so my 308 T3 Varmint is now my deer rifle. With light scope and light moderator, the weight and balance is similar to my light-barrel Howa, and with 125gr Noslers it shoots similarly as well.

[Redgum]

The is-a-243-big-enough-for-reds argument has been done to death, let's not bother.

 

As for Varget in 243, you're much better off with H414 for a powder for 243, it does everything right the way through. H4350 is also worth a look.

 

I don't have 243 any more but did a fair bit of loading for it. 51gr of H414 does you a 55gr Nosler at 3900fps, and that's one excellent fox round if your rifle likes it. I used 95 gr Hornady SSTs to great effect in the 243, atop 46gr H4831SC. My old Howa shot that lot to about half an inch 5-shot at 100 yards, and it did the business nicely on the deer too.

 

Tbh, the only reason the 243 went was that I can shoot deer just as well with a 308 (even if they are roe) and I wanted a proper target rifle, so my 308 T3 Varmint is now my deer rifle. With light scope and light moderator, the weight and balance is similar to my light-barrel Howa, and with 125gr Noslers it shoots similarly as well.

Been using H414 for the last year as it works really well with 85grain and 100grain in 243, I'm quite convinced it really suits 20 -22inch barrels. Looking forward to getting some Alliant reloder17 when its in stock. Read some really good reviews about it, more fps per pressure due to a very uniformed burn, as its quite new you won't find it on alot of burn rate charts but is comparable with H4350 and is even recommended to use in place of H4831

[strudwick]

A question posed by a friend who is new to reloading, we have together reloaded 80gn heads for a competition and now he wants to reload some fox and deer rounds.

 

He liked the 55gn factory rounds for fox, hence the question. However as it`s for 243 wouldn`t a slightly heavier round be better ballistically, say 75-80gn. I also see in the recipes for varget, this would drive a 55gn at 3770+ fps would this make it a bit of a barrel burner ?

 

Lastly, to save having two or more different tubs of powder, is Varget OK across the range of weights ?

 

**EDIT** Vmax for fox and SP for deer.

 

Many thanks in advance for all input

 

I think varget is a barrle burner any way it burns a 4040 wich is a hot powder n140 is 3720.. i like the hever bulleds over the light ones. most factory barrles are 1:10 twist wich should be better for 75_80gr