New 243, which one?

N

NHSHOOTER

New member
I have been thinking about a new 243 for my line up. Thought about the savage, ruger, etc. After doing quite a bit of looking around I have come down to 2 choices and I would just like some feed back from all of my fellow shooters. BTW, I will be realoading which doesnt really matter, just thought I would add that.
My 2 choices
Weatherby Vanguard
Browning X bolt..
Now its up to all of you..Thanks
I might add.
I do own, Remington, Ruger, and Tikka So, I am not brand snobby.
The local gun shop has a used x bolt in 95% condition for $600, good price?
 
I like guns with a heavier profile barrel so I bought a Savage Predator Hunter Brush for my .243. That's a great shooting little gun.
 
Okay, what will your main uses be for the new .243 Win? I really like the .243 Win it is a versatile cartridge good for big game, varmints and target shooting. The main drawback these days with the .243 Win is the twist rate most manufacturers will use for the barrels which is a 1:10. This twist is the old industry standard that needs to be updated.

With the bullets today that are available to the reloader such as yourself a faster twist would be more beneficial. Savage and Remington both offer faster than 1:10 twists and that will at least get you into bullets like the Hornady A-Max for target shooting, and 95 grain hunting VLD as well as a few others that won't work with a 10 twist. I really wish that makers would offer a 8 twist .243 and that is the one I'd recommend the most.

$600 is near retail on some models of the Browning Xbolt. So I'd do a little more comparison shopping so I could go in armed to haggle the price if that's the rifle you really want.
 
I agree, a faster than 10 twist would be preferable. 1:9 would be fine.

The X-bolt is a very fine firearm. For the NIB price point though, you might consider building your own from a Savage base.

From your choices, I'd buy the X-bolt but I'd rather build my own.
 
.243 rifle

I bought a Tikka t3 light in .243,6 years ago and am very satisfied. It prints right around a inch with about any ammo I use in it, Mostly my own reloads. It has the smoothest bolt of any rifle I've tried .hdbiker
 
I can't answer your question on which one to get but maybe I can add to the confusion :D

I own a Vanguard Series 2 in 243 Winchester and really like it. It is a very accurate sporter rifle and other than when I tried Reloader 17 it has been a true sub-MOA shooter using 80 grn TTSX's and Remington PSP's, 95 grain Remington Accu-Tips, and Berger 95 grain VLD Hunting bullets. With the 1-10 twist I was surprised at how well it shot the 95 grain bullets, but it shot them just fine. It really likes IMR4350 and the Bergers and has shot many sub half MOA groups using that combination. I have no experience with the X-Bolt so I can't comment on it.
 
I appreciate everyones input, especially input from someone that owns 1 of the rifles I am thinking about (AllenJ)..Thanks all of you..
 
I previously owned a Vanguard (series 1) in .243, and my dad currently owns a Vanguard S2 in .243. Both were/are Sub-MOA shooters with factory ammo.

I also own several Brownings (A-bolts, not X-bolts), Rugers, and Winchesters and like them all. I've handled Savages but never owned one - they just don't do it for me.

In my opinion, the Vanguard S2 is one of the best values in the market today. They are widely-regarded as being very accurate, and they also have a very solid feel to them that you don't find in many other rifles at or near their price point. If I were buying a new .243 for general purpose use I would probably go with the Vanguard S2.

SR
 
I also own a Weatherby Vanguard S2 .243 Win and it is very accurate up thru mid-weight [~90gr] bullets. My only complaint is that I wish the twist rate was faster - 1:9" would be good. 100gr bullets won't stabilize in my gun's 1:10" twist unless I drive them 3050+fps.
 
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When I was in the market for a new smallbore CF rifle a few weeks ago, I had almost settled on a new .243 Ruger American Compact, after coon-fingering a dozen or so different brands/rifles like the three you're considering (there's about 30 funshops within a 30min drive of my home).

The only reason I didn't by the new Ruger American ($320 OTD) was that I got an unexpected chance to buy a fairly hard-to-find tang-safety Ruger in .250 Savage (which I bought instead).



.
 
i own a browning xbolt and as Brian said the xbolt is a fine firearm and shoot really well the fit and finish on the browning are nearly perfect balance and drop at comb are just right as well. the browning comes glass bedded and the three lever "feather trigger" is just as good as the accutrigger (looks better too)
also the browning composite stalker can be had for around 650.

i have no experience with the weatherby. but if i were you i would actually buy one of the savage axis rifles put a timney trigger in it and a new stock. man those rifles almost seem to shoot them selves
 
X-bolt, no. A-bolt, yes. That's just me- I hate detachable mags on turnbolts (though the X-bolt is otherwise a very nice rifle).

But your choices are in two different price ranges. If you can go to the X-bolt, budget-wise, then you should get a Winchester 70 Featherweight or Browning A-bolt, in my opinion, or maybe a high-end Remington 700. Maybe even a Sako.

The Howa/ Vanguard and Vanguard II, while good, are not in the same quality league as these. But, *IF* you have to step down, budget-wise, to the Vanguard's range, then the Vanguard is as good as any in that general range (since the Tikka is in the next general range up, no?)

FWIW, my Win 70 FW of fairly recent manufacture (FN), is very very high quality and pleases me immensely. It happens to be in .243 Win.
 
I don't think you could go wrong with either rifle. Go with whatever feels better to you. I have used a Weatherby Vanguard a whole lot and my hunting buddy has an A bolt. I don't think there is a whole lot of difference in these rifles other than ergonomics. Get what feels right in your hands.
 
I have a re-barreled Rem 700 ADL in .243 Win with a Pac-Nor stainless barrel. The barrel company recommended a 1:9 twist, which they said is quite popular these days, so that's what I bought.

The rifle shoots very well with a variety of 80-90 grain bullets, but I haven't used any 100 grain rounds through it. The 80 grain Hornady GMX bullet that I use for deer-sized animals is quite long and could be considered needing the same (or tighter?) twist than a 100 grain spitzer.
 
Made my decision, with the feedback I got and price and availability I went with the Vanguard S2 in 243. Good reviews and Boyds has 3 different stock options for it also.
Saw a link to Buds gun store on here in another thread so I checked it out, great prices and free shipping to the FFL about 6 miles from me. As far as glass, I do have a Bushnell Elite 3-9 that I will mount on it for the time being, I will be going to something higher power in the near future. I have a Nikon Buckmaster 6-18 on my 223 so I think I will be heading in that direction..
 
CONGRATULATIONS on your choice, sounds like a nice gun. I went with a Savage 10 in 243 about 7 years ago and have had nothing but good luck with it.

It is a 1:9.25 twist and my old standard was Hornady 105 grain A-Max, now I am using the Hornady 95 grain SST's and both work great and are supper accurate.

I went a little overboard on the glass and use a 6-24x50 mm scope, no need to get the Spotting Scope out.

Good luck and have fun with the new rifle.

Jim



 
Nice rifle Jim, I will be putting some good glass on my new rifle in the very near future. I dont like spotting scopes either. High magnification and shoot and see targets cant be beat. Pictures will come soon..
 
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