.243 bullet for PA whitetail

I've loaded Hornady GMX 80 grain and Barnes 80 gr in my .243 Win rifles. Both work very well. Last year, two grandkids took deer with the GMX within minutes. The grand-daughter got a 140 lb. doe at 175 yards. One shot per kill.

Accuracy was great and damage was excellent. The girl used a Tikka T3 Lite and the boy, a Rem 700 ADL.
 
Sierra #1530 85gr hpbt with 42 gr IMR 4350 -CCI BR2 primer- win or rem brass out of a 18" bbl Rem 600. This bullet is also available in factory ammo.
 
My son used the PPU 100gr SP stock ammo with great success in MO. .243 is a great deer cartridge. Pretty sure most any soft or hollow point over 90gr will work very well on whitetail.
 
Histed,

I don't know if your in the woods, or hunting the edge of a field. Either way, 243 is not a bad gun at all.

I have used Nostler Ballistic Tips with good success. I don't see where you would go wrong with the Sierra HPBT Gamekings, or Barnes either.

Check out Reloder 17. Gave me real good velocities in the 7mm-08.
With the heavier bullets, Reloder 19 usually gets the nod.

Std7mag
 
I was fortunate to have hunted every Oct.-Nov.in Wyoming for 26 straight years.Made a ton of lifelong friends!While I used an '06,truth be told,many,many elk fell to residents 243's!Whitetails will not be a problem.Good Hunting! :D
 
I have shot a lot of deer with a lot of different 6mm bullets. The Sierra 100 Gr. SBT is a bullet that is definitely up to any medium game. The 85 TSX is now my bullet of choice. Is it "overkill" for whitetail? Probably is, but it gets the job done in impressive fashion.
 
After I use up the current stock of handloads, I'm going to try the Federal Vital Shok "Trophy Copper" 85s - factory ammo.

These aren't that expensive for what you get - an excellent premium gilding metal bullet (Nosler E Tip).

What could possibly be better deer medicine than a .243 with light-recoiling, laser-flat-shooting, hard-hitting, super-penetrating, premium 85s?

https://www.federalpremium.com/products/details/rifle.aspx?id=969

If handloading, lightest you can go with the E Tip is 90 gr. But the 85s in the Federal are said to be E Tips by some.

http://shop.nosler.com/nosler-bullets/e-tip/e-tip-6mm-90-gr-spitzer-w-band-bullet-50ct.html

http://www.nosler.com/e-tip-bullet/
 
Use to use. Don't anymore. But when I did. 75 HP Hornady or 87 gr HP by the same maker without dropping the 4831 powder charge any. Fastest flat shooting little bullets in the woods when reloaded. Never like the performance of any 100 gr (ever.) In/out little holes. Sparse blood trail. On the other hand 75 HP always enter deep into the chest {when placement was spot on} and typically dumped its entire energy load and seldom exit. When a neck shot was the preferred. Horrible size hole it left behind. Either shot > "Tim~~ber Brown is down!!"

Bye bye see ya_ behavior on more than one occasion I've experienced deer shot with 100 gr._ "As good as I am at tracking. That was taught due to my early on use of 24 caliber 100 gr SP bullets no matter who made em._" No doubt about that!!"

Long time shooter of a 6mm Rem gave me a Tip years ago just after a days hunt. _I was so frustrated having to tracked a (big bodied) 8pt. thru the MN woods and a wet swamp on my place. Reeling out toilet paper and hoping the batteries in my flashlight held up was surely on my mind that evening after the deer passed thru my property into State forest land. A near perfect single shot to the necks white patch that deer received 15 minuets prior to the end of daylight shooting time. Finally found that Buck after a good hours walk. As we both stood over the recovered deer looking down at it. "Try those 75s and see a world of difference. My friend said" __By golly I sure did on the very next deer harvested. That deer. It momentarily puffed up like a song bird when that little 75 HP plowed into its chest.

Its a preference amongst us shooters. There will always be those fellers who swear by the use of 100 gr with its so so 2900 ftps. And others like me who prefer the 75 gr with its 3400 ftps speediness and its clover leaf like groupings at 100 yrd's. Thank Goodness for that.
 
In my 243, a Speer grand slam 100 grain bullet is all I use. These are great bullets and work across all velocities the 243 will produce. God Bless
 
I don't handload but I use Winchester Super X. The bullet turns the heart and lungs into stew usually. I've taken all but one of my deer with a .243 110 and the cartridge is pretty potent and often overlooked. Many people don't realize it's basically a wildcat cartridge.
 
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