swmac Posted February 20, 2008 Report Share Posted February 20, 2008 Im planning on getting a rifle in the near future. ive had a shotgun for the past 5 years but never owned a rifle. my main sport will be fox but i would also like to go on an annual dear or boar stalk. Therefore I was thinking of a 243, what are the chances of me getting a FAC for a 243 as my first rifle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traztaz Posted February 20, 2008 Report Share Posted February 20, 2008 boar with a 243???:drinks: Dont think so mate, whilst I realise that DEFRA have buried their heads in the sand and refused to admit that Boar are once again resident in the UK , and therefor have put no minimum caliber on the shooting of them 243 is utterly incompatable.I regularly shoot Boar here in germany , and the two rifles I am using are a .308 and a 9.6x62, the latter being a rewal Boar caliber.243 is fine for roe and other smaller deer , but not for snarly pigs!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duey Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 .243 no good for Boar will need at least .308 with a heavy bullet say 180gr at least IMO Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazza Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 Im planning on getting a rifle in the near future. ive had a shotgun for the past 5 years but never owned a rifle. my main sport will be fox but i would also like to go on an annual dear or boar stalk. Therefore I was thinking of a 243, what are the chances of me getting a FAC for a 243 as my first rifle. Your going to have some amount of hassle to get a 243 for your first rifle over here, you'll need a serious bit of land for a start. Good luck you'll need it Here's a few bits of info from the firearms guidance 23 Common rifle cartridges considered suitable for the shooting of foxes range from .17 Remington and .22 Hornet to .22 -250 and .220 Swift, though there is a wide range of suitable similar calibres commercially available. The maximum calibre to be used for fox control is .222. The same rifle cannot be used for killing both deer and foxes. .22 Rimfire is generally too lowpowered to be used against foxes, except, at short range, but may reasonably be permitted for use against them in certain circumstances. However, sole use against foxes would not normally be sufficient “good reason†to acquire such a rifle (see paragraph 15). Combination shotgun/rifles should have the rifled barrel in a similar calibre. Expanding ammunition should be authorised for shooting foxes. See also paragraph 14 on allowing applicants reasonable flexibility to shoot other species on named land. 25 Authority may be requested to shoot animals which fall outside the scope of usual types of game or pests, for example feral goat or wild boar. The type of rifle authorised should be appropriate to the quarry, for example .270, .30-06 or .308 or greater for wild boar. For feral goats, DARDNI advises the use of a minimum calibre of .236 with a bullet weight of 100 grains to be humane. However, individual bullet weights should not be stipulated on certificates. Expanding ammunition should be authorised for this purpose. 26 Hunting potentially dangerous animals with larger calibre rifles requires particular skill and applicants should generally have experience of firearms. Applications should specify land and include a request or authority from the owner/occupier to shoot the species concerned. 29 Suitable calibres for shooting deer range from .236 (the minimum acceptable calibre under Schedule 2 of the Wildlife (Northern Ireland ) Order 1985) to .45-70. For the larger species of deer (Red, Sika and Fallow) .243 calibre is legal but .270 and larger calibres are generally more suitable allowing a 130-150 grain bullet weight, a muzzle velocity of 2,450 feet per second and a muzzle energy of 1,750 foot pounds. For the smaller deer species (Roe, Muntjac and Chinese Water Deer) .243 calibres are optimal. 30 An applicant who wishes to shoot deer should name land, which has the likelihood of the appropriate deer species being present, and provide evidence of invitation, booking or authority to shoot. Many deer stalkers will rely on invitations to shoot on payment rather than be hired or paid to do so and may not be able to shoot regularly or frequently, though others may be permanently employed, for example Forest Service staff. Hunting large animals with powerful rifles requires particular skill and applicants should have completed a recognised deerstalking course Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tweedledee Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 go for a rimfire first then after a few months apply for a cf. psni wont grant centre fire first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gibby Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 There is a UK minimum calibre of .270 for boar but as has been said they are hardy. From the shooting times: "The minimum calibre to be used against wild boar is the .270 Win, delivering a muzzle energy of 2,700ft/lb, but it is recommended that a calibre of no less than 7mm with a bullet of 160 grains-plus and muzzle energy of no less than 2,800ft/lb should be used." Gibby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highseas Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 ime 17 and i now have my fac in the post i only have 300 acres passed and i have a hmr a .22 and a .223 and i have asked him about multi shot shotgun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traztaz Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 Gibby wgere did you get the .270 min for wild boar from , very interested as I have been baying at the doors of DEFRA to do somthing for ages.thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gibby Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 Here you go Traztaz. Boar Calibre Gibby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swmac Posted February 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 dazza tweedledee thats good sound advice and info, thanks........... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazza Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 go for a rimfire first Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob13 Posted February 24, 2008 Report Share Posted February 24, 2008 Shotgun slugs were reccomended for boar for their hard hitting power described as "mustard" against boar in sporting gun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highseas Posted February 24, 2008 Report Share Posted February 24, 2008 them hornandy slugs look the biz bet they would mess up a crow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robby22 Posted February 25, 2008 Report Share Posted February 25, 2008 got my fac through beginning of the month, applied for a .243 for deer and fox and got it, put down 300 acres of land. but i guess a lot of depends on your FLO and issuing force. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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