.243 for whitetail

The 243 and it's twin the 6mm Rem are great deer rounds, shoot the deer behind the shoulder, at the top of the heart, and deer fall over DRT. I found the old Speer 105g spitzer to be great deer medicine and got two elk with the same load. In all honesty, a 30-30 shooting 170g CoreLokt round nose bullets will kill deer as well up to about 150 yards and ruin less meat with a slightly off shot.
 
243 a family tradition

I have a Very old FN 243 Mauser action. Inherited it from my Dad many years ago. It was his deer rifle for as long as I can remember, and has been my only deer rifle for over 20 years. Never found a need for anything else. It gets the job done.
 
High shoulder shot, cause...I like them DRT!

Your shots won't produce that as many times as mine will.
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You are wrong. Of course a bullet through the spine in the neck or shoulder will drop a deer instantly. BUT, the spine is a VERY NARROW target compared to the heart/lungs/liver - a much larger three dimensional target. A shot aimed at the heart/lungs/liver is more likely to kill the deer swiftly than a shot aimed at any part of the spine. Has anyone every had a hunting guide suggest aiming for the spine of a pronghorn, whitetail, mule deer, elk, sheep, goat or bear?

Edit: Sorry, I ignored the topic of hunting for meat. If the hunter's objective is obtaining meat then a head or neck shot may be fine. Obviously, a head shot won't destroy (much) edible meat. A neck shot may destroy some but certainly not the best meat. I cannot imagine wanting to shoot a trophy animal in the head or neck. Ironically, I shot my biggest mule deer at 400+ yards through the heart and he died almost instantly. He has a scar on the right side of his neck from a three-blade broad-head. I doubt if the bow hunter was aiming for the neck. (I took my largest and only record-book whitetail with a three-blade broad-head through the lungs.)
 
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Some of it is where you hunt. Hunting farm country, you might not care how far a deer runs. Where I hunt 40 yards is a long shot. Running a 100 yards is no fun.
 
I've killed a bunch of deer with a .243, they all died. Behind the shoulder, broadside, no meat damaged. Later started using a .270, they fall down faster with the .270. They just don't run as far. If you need to drop him in his tracks then shoot thru the shoulders or in the head or neck. My experience is that shot thru the rib cage(heart/lungs) is that the animal will run I've never had one run over 50 yards, most of the time they don't go 25 but they usually run if it's a thru and thru broadside shot.
 
This year hand loaded nosler partion, 30-06 180 grain, both lungs mush, at 25 yards, ran around 75-100 yards. Heavy bush. Once I found the blood trail I was able to trail him easy.

I usually do neck or lungs/heart. Might think about shoulder. Until reading recently on the internet, never even consider it.
 
When I was younger I accepted the "Bigger is better" theory. I was up on a mountain one day and met a guy with a pretty fancy outfit. We stopped to talk and he told me he was shooting a 6MM. I asked if he thought it was enough for deer. Answer was "Heck yeah. I blew the front leg clean off a doe last year." (Or something close to that) I often think of that when these arguments come up. I have used both a .243 and 6MM with no problem since that episode. Still have a .243, wish I still had the 6MM.
 
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DITTO, Have used a 243 for 15yrs and never lost a deer and most run less than 50yrds. A fine round indeed for many purposes, and low recoil. Love our Encore in 243. Took 3 does in 35 seconds here in Indiana late doe season.(1 for landowner, one for disabled friend, one for us) Two dropped in tracks and one ran 20yrds.
 
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