Tikka T3 Lite: 243 or 308?

My Tikka T3 .308 Winchester was wearing me out with the heavier bullets so I stuck to 150 gr loads. Then I put a Limb Saver Pad on it and went back to the 165s (they shot better!). Big Thumbs Up!

Oh yeah, the .308 for me - better on the big porkers!

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I bought a .243 right after I turned 18, shot my first buck that fall with it. I don't hunt much with that rifle anymore, but that's because I'm usually chasing elk at the same time now. It needs a new barrel as well as it won't print a satisfactory group anymore.

My first buck was a field fattened hog, probably weighed in at 250+ lbs.
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I would have no hesitation using a .243 with a good bullet on a world class deer. I'm not advocating one cartridge over the other, as they're both good cartridges. However, in a T3 Lite a .243 will be more enjoyable to shoot.
 
My Tikka T3 .308 Winchester was wearing me out with the heavier bullets so I stuck to 150 gr loads. Then I put a Limb Saver Pad on it and went back to the 165s (they shot better!). Big Thumbs Up!

Oh yeah, the .308 for me - better on the big porkers!
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Perhaps dumb question, but are those Limbsaver pads difficult to put on and size correctly?
 
Perhaps dumb question, but are those Limbsaver pads difficult to put on and size correctly?
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Find the right model of the direct fit pad for your rifle. 2 screws to remove old pad. Put new pad on and replace screws. Done in 3 minutes!
 
243 is fine for dear. About once in a bazzilion years will you get attacked by a black bear (more likely to get done in on the way to hunting by far, so go for more airbags!)

260 if it was big deere, 308 for Elk though 243 will do it inside its range.

Limb savers work fine, still a lot of shoving going on with a light rifle (I shoot my dads light 1903 Sporter and it has a slip on limb saver and as long as I snug it up ok.
 
My old BIL killed a bunch of deer with a M88 in 243 in the 70s-80s. Speer reloads or Power Points. A better vermin round would not be found, also.
 
I have hunted deer with a .243 off and on for 10+ years. I have never had one go more than about 50ish yds after a shot from one of my rifles. Some of these at well over 100yds. I have other choices in the safe but for a freezer filler I like that the .243 doesn't tear so much meat up. .308 is a heck of a round too but if deer for meat is the main target, it would be hard to go against the .243.
 
I like to have a little more "gun" than "really needed". You never know when you might need it to go through a small tree before hitting the deer. Also, I hunt where I've shot deer out to 450 yards. The .270 Win is my perfect round, in an 8 lb rifle. The stainless Rem 700, 24" sporter barrel in a Sendero stock and 3-9x Leupold 2 works for me, but we have a ground blind with a "rest", of sorts.

We carry in about a mile, and often bring in tent blinds, folding seats, Coleman-fueled heater, and a few other items.

My walk-about rifle is a new T3 Lite in .243 Win, but it hasn't yet been blooded. I use Hornady GMX 80 grain bullets in it and that should be fine for deer out to 300 yards or more. Shot placement is more important than the difference between a .243 Win and a .270 Win.

Bottom line: What are you going to use the rifle for most? If varmints and rifle range, get a .243 Win. If 80% or so is deer hunting, get a .308.
 
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Bought a little Sako Forester 19" carbine in .243 in 1971. During my active hunting years I tagged a couple of dozen bucks with it. No tracking, no trailing. All bang-plop.

Unless you're in wide-open long-shot country with really big deer, I figure that the .243 is pretty much as good as anything.
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Any concerns about 200 lb deer in Minnesota?
 
243 or 308? I'm not a real big fan of either, and my choice in the Tikka was 260, which I'm very fond of and can shoot all day without pain. But, back to the other calibers. Until the last couple of years, I'd have suggested to go with the 308, but now I'll switch sides and suggest the 243. The reason is that I've been shooting the 100 grain Nosler Ballistic Tip in the 260 and it works just fine on deer and big pigs. No reason the 100 grainer in the 243 won't work just as well.

I still think the 260 is a better choice if it's available in the Tikka, and I'd go for the 7-08 if I couldn't get the 260.

And, by the way, that Tikka of mine is an amazingly accurate rifle. After a minor session of barrel break-in, the first 5 rounds I seriously aimed went into a ragged hole at 100 yards. I remember thinking "OOOOOKay, this is gonna work".
 
I finally got one in 308 and really like it....
 

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I hit a buck in the shoulder with 100 grain 243 nosler partition and it strikes bone (not ideal, I know, that's the point), does it finish the job then and there?

Is it a good enough round for the shot that isn't perfect?

I've never failed to recover a deer, but I've used a 30-06. The furthest I've trailed one is 30 yards from point of impact.
 
I've either shot or witnessed over 80 deer kills and can't think of more than a few that wouldn't have died similarly, if shot with a .243 Win, using bullets with similar wound characteristics to 100 grain Core-Locts.

The .308 Win is also a proven deer killer in Maine, but used primarily by pump and semi-auto users. Most bolt-action hunters use .30-06 or .270 Win around here.
 
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