al4x Posted November 28, 2014 Report Share Posted November 28, 2014 That's the difference I'm 90% foxes and fox bullets aren't great on deer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activeviii Posted November 30, 2014 Report Share Posted November 30, 2014 I use both the 243 and the 6.5 both have their place. But if it had to be one then its the 6.5 Yes I could dual load, but why, a 140 gn bullet will put every thing down but a light 243 will not deal with deer as cleanly. 243, fast and splatty, smashes the pants of most things but with carefully loading you can get away with clean kills on deer. 100gn interbonds or prohunters will give about as clean a wound track as you'll likely to get. 243, shashes its way though 6.5, pushes its way though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted November 30, 2014 Report Share Posted November 30, 2014 And that's why you need to know what you will shoot most of as foxing the maximum damage is a good thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew f Posted November 30, 2014 Report Share Posted November 30, 2014 I use both the 243 and the 6.5 both have their place. But if it had to be one then its the 6.5 Yes I could dual load, but why, a 140 gn bullet will put every thing down but a light 243 will not deal with deer as cleanly. 243, fast and splatty, smashes the pants of most things but with carefully loading you can get away with clean kills on deer. 100gn interbonds or prohunters will give about as clean a wound track as you'll likely to get. 243, shashes its way though 6.5, pushes its way though Norma 100gn do the job on roe fallow and fox with little meat damage to the deer never had a problem with using these on a fox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris31 Posted November 30, 2014 Report Share Posted November 30, 2014 Having had plenty of experience with both I'd have to say the 6.5 is the way forward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hambone Posted November 30, 2014 Report Share Posted November 30, 2014 I use both the 243 and the 6.5 both have their place. But if it had to be one then its the 6.5 Yes I could dual load, but why, a 140 gn bullet will put every thing down but a light 243 will not deal with deer as cleanly. 243, fast and splatty, smashes the pants of most things but with carefully loading you can get away with clean kills on deer. 100gn interbonds or prohunters will give about as clean a wound track as you'll likely to get. 243, shashes its way though 6.5, pushes its way though I have both and agree with this, if I had to chose between them I would keep the 6.5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blankfirer Posted December 1, 2014 Report Share Posted December 1, 2014 I think the 243 is not the flavour of the month but listen to this for a story a good 40 years ago a study was made regarding military and calibers at the time Britain was using 7.62 nato what they said was that this bullet was killing pretty much everything it hit .so they dropped to 223 .the reason because the smaller calibre inflicted less damage but took more resources because more soldiers needed attention on the battlefield and off it were as before they was just left on the ground were they fell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunkield Posted December 1, 2014 Report Share Posted December 1, 2014 There is a world of difference between the damage inflicted by FMJ's and expanding ammo though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougy Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 £800 budget is an OK kind of figure. Just for info Ratty, i bought a fairly used Browning A Bolt in 30.06 flavor some years ago for the princely some of £299 including mounts, OK admittedly you will need a scope, but my buy would still give you £500 for a decent scope 2nd hand and that will get you kitted up. There are bargains out there the thing with the larger cals is its very rare for them to get shot out through normal sporting use. I,m waiting for the comments regarding the accuracy of my old Browning Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyska Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 I think the 243 is not the flavour of the month but listen to this for a story a good 40 years ago a study was made regarding military and calibers at the time Britain was using 7.62 nato what they said was that this bullet was killing pretty much everything it hit .so they dropped to 223 .the reason because the smaller calibre inflicted less damage but took more resources because more soldiers needed attention on the battlefield and off it were as before they was just left on the ground were they fell I must say 1) the op isn't shooting humans 2) .223 isn't part of the topic Both are worlds away from Fromm .223, so I'm not sure what your post adds. Interesting fact though, obviously if either military calibre used expanding ammunition, the story would be....well a non story I guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blankfirer Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 what I mean is 308 drops em dead if you hit it and 243 you gotta be **** hot and hit em in the right place. got it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blankfirer Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 the story if you think about it is about using the smaller calibre and what its limitations are Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Essex Hunter Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 the story if you think about it is about using the smaller calibre and what its limitations are What would you say the limitations are..............? .243 95 grain @ 150 yards 10mm plate the bottom 3 and the top left was a 75 grain.... TEH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 what I mean is 308 drops em dead if you hit it and 243 you gotta be **** hot and hit em in the right place. got it You hear some cods wallop on here and this is up with the best of it. The last muntjac that I was called to find was shot with a 308, shoot anything a bit far back and you can have to look for it whatever you use. Up to fallow you will be hard pressed to see any real difference in killing ability. Carcass damage will be where you see the difference if you use the wrong bullets in the .243 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew f Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 You hear some cods wallop on here and this is up with the best of it. The last muntjac that I was called to find was shot with a 308, shoot anything a bit far back and you can have to look for it whatever you use. Up to fallow you will be hard pressed to see any real difference in killing ability. Carcass damage will be where you see the difference if you use the wrong bullets in the .243 Exactly Hit them right first time with a soft point they don't make it far no need for these overkill ballistic tip type bullets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malkiserow Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 What is your preferred calibre.........? TEH .243 for fox and small deer with a single home load + a 7mm with a 140 grain home laid for bigger deer but will develop an heavier load for wild boar I should add, if I was starting from a blank sheet now...... If I use my head a .308, if I listen to my whimsical side, a 7.08 Fister was on the money in post 10 I think there is no perfect answer and much depends on personal choice. If you want the odd boar, go bigger ideally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fortune Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 270 Yeah. If you load it, it can be loaded up or down from a soft round or up until the recoil hurts you. It is a superb cal and has been around for a very, very long time. There is a load of rubbish written about it. that it is a banger and damages meat and has heavy recoil. So does anything that uses the wrong bullet or isnt held in the right place. it is out of fashion now so they can be bought cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malkiserow Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 270 Yeah. If you load it, it can be loaded up or down from a soft round or up until the recoil hurts you. It is a superb cal and has been around for a very, very long time. There is a load of rubbish written about it. that it is a banger and damages meat and has heavy recoil. So does anything that uses the wrong bullet or isnt held in the right place. it is out of fashion now so they can be bought cheap. I know 2 people use them to very good effect....... Home load seems a must in my area though as there are hardly and rounds in our shops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Essex Hunter Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 I should add, if I was starting from a blank sheet now...... If I use my head a .308, if I listen to my whimsical side, a 7.08 Fister was on the money in post 10 I think there is no perfect answer and much depends on personal choice. If you want the odd boar, go bigger ideally. malkiserow, on 26 Nov 2014 - 8:23 PM, said: .243 for fox and small deer with a single home load + a 7mm with a 140 grain home laid for bigger deer but will develop an heavier load for wild boar How have you done this year for foxes and small deer this season? I use 2 factory rounds of the same brand 75 and the 95....very little difference in them, I just put a couple of clicks on the Kahles for the 95 with the rangy Fallow... TEH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malkiserow Posted December 2, 2014 Report Share Posted December 2, 2014 Much better than the large deer but that is down to the land rather than me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted December 3, 2014 Report Share Posted December 3, 2014 malkiserow, on 26 Nov 2014 - 8:23 PM, said: How have you done this year for foxes and small deer this season? I use 2 factory rounds of the same brand 75 and the 95....very little difference in them, I just put a couple of clicks on the Kahles for the 95 with the rangy Fallow... TEH Very similar here but have gained a love for 56 grain vmax. They really are like a death ray on foxes, as a fox caliber it's hard to beat for my use. The fact it works perfectly adequately on deer is why I have it. If I shot mostly deer then the choice might be different Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moose man Posted December 3, 2014 Report Share Posted December 3, 2014 Very similar here but have gained a love for 56 grain vmax. They really are like a death ray on foxes, as a fox caliber it's hard to beat for my use. The fact it works perfectly adequately on deer is why I have it. If I shot mostly deer then the choice might be different What species do you use the 56gr on al4x , ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted December 3, 2014 Report Share Posted December 3, 2014 Foxes, I meant the rifle rather than round using an 85 grain soft point it works very well on small deer up to fallow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moose man Posted December 3, 2014 Report Share Posted December 3, 2014 (edited) Ok , see what you mean , I shot my .243 for years on deer & fox & ended up shooting every thing with 100gr .. Edited December 3, 2014 by moose man Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WelshMike Posted December 18, 2014 Report Share Posted December 18, 2014 A well placed shot from a .243 will drop a red with no problem at all. I have a couple of mates with 6.5 x 47 custom rifles and they are impressive, another mate with a 6.5 x 55 which he swears by. I have a NV dedicated .243 for the foxes and a .270 for the deer. If I was pushed I would go for 6.5 x 55 over a .243. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.