# 243 ammo



## younggun62 (Sep 28, 2006)

I just won a new 243 last night at a pheasant forever banquet, what is the best coyote round for it. :sniper:


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## Fallguy (Jan 23, 2004)

Factory or reloads?

I don't reload. Someone else could give you some input on that.

I am trying to find the best factory ammo right now. I shot 95 grain Federal Fusions this year since I used them for deer season. I killed 4 coyotes with that round and I am still not sold on it. I was thinking a larger, slower bullet would result in less fur damage than a fast bullet. It wasn't too bad though. I had one with a quarter size entry and no exit, and then one with a exit slit the size of a half business card. The others were in between that. I will probably continue using them next year. They are cheap too.


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## younggun62 (Sep 28, 2006)

I dont reload, I buy factory loads, I have a .223 already which I love, but I dont know what grain of shell people use the most


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## wackemstackem (Feb 22, 2007)

Ive had my best luck with win 55 grain,


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## Kelly Hannan (Jan 9, 2007)

I use 85 gr sierra bullet and 35 gr 4895 powder for coyotes. 100 gr hornady bullet with 33 gr 4895 for deer. I am very pleased with both loads. as always apraoch these loads carefully.Most people do not like 4895 powder, but I don't mind measuring each load. These should not be dangerous, but one can never be to careful. I was using hornady 58 gr v-max/moly with 38 gr 4895, very flat and fast, but lost 2 coyotes. No blood and no hair, but definatly hit them. hope this helps


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## Yote Killer (Feb 26, 2007)

federal Vital shock took them out to the range this weekend. 100 Gr.


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## weasle414 (Dec 31, 2006)

If you can't find a good load for it I'll take that pesky .243 off yer hands!  :lol:


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## rednek (Dec 29, 2006)

if you decide to load. 4064 is pretty good. it burns pretty clean. my 243 shoots a 75vmax with a tight group


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## rednek (Dec 29, 2006)

Kelly Hannan



> lost 2 coyotes. No blood and no hair, but definatly hit them


how fast are you pushin your round. i know my dad when when he was loading, he was gettin them so hot that the round was blowin up right when it hit the coyotes and was only blowin fur off.


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## Jiffy (Apr 22, 2005)

:eyeroll: Sometimes I wonder why I even try...............


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

> he was gettin them so hot that the round was blowin up right when it hit the coyotes and was only blowin fur off.


Maybe he was using a short fuse and they were going off prematurely...... :huh:


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## rednek (Dec 29, 2006)

he was gettin it around 4200 or so fps


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

> he was gettin it around 4200 or so fps


Really........... a 243 load pushing 4200 fps. I'd pay good money to witness that. Care to share the formula or is it a family secret?


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## rednek (Dec 29, 2006)

i have to ask my dad but if he remembers i get it, he has not used that load since '95. but i dont suggest it. there were just to dang fast. there was another load around 35-3700fps that worked very well in my gun.


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

rednek, I've just been jerking your chain a little. First, no bullet is just going to blow up on contact with a animal and just blow fur off. Second, the fastest load in the latest Speer reloading manual is a 70 grain bullet at 3500 fps and I suspect about the same in other manuals. As far as I know 4200 fps in a 243 Winchester loading is not attainable.


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## rednek (Dec 29, 2006)

my dad and i shot at a coyote 10-15 times with the some of those rounds and couldnt kill it. im not the greats shot but my dad can hit about anything and we both couldnt drop it. plus we did things stupid back then with reloading


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## Fallguy (Jan 23, 2004)

You shot at the coyote and hit it 10-15 times or you shot at the coyote and missed 10-15 times?

Gohon I think the 55 grain Winchester Silvertips, which I have used before in my 243, are supposedly reaching about 3900 fps. I know thats not 4200 as rednek said but its pretty quick. I am going off of memory and haven't shot them in two years but I'm pretty confident in that number as being right.


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## rednek (Dec 29, 2006)

http://www.gunsandammomag.com/reloads/243_varmint_0513/

here is one site real quit and one of the loads is 3842.
i dont think you would miss that many times. a couple yea. but others we get it looks like the bullet is blowin up right on them.


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

Fallguy, I looked them up and the 55 grain Winchester Silvertips are suppose to be clocking 3,910 fps. Now that's stepping out for the 243. But, how was accuracy? Seems to me that little 55 grain pill would have to be just barely seated to get anywhere near the barrel lands for any decent accuracy.


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## SDHandgunner (Jun 22, 2004)

I have used both VARGET and IMR-4320 to load 55gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips. For the most part in the different 22" Barreled Rifles I have chronographed these loads in they were between 3850 tp 3900 FPS.

I have a buddy that has an old SAKO .243 that just seems to love the more powder you push through it. He loaded my load consisting of 55gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips loaded with Varget. He thought the load was mild so loaded up a bunch of test load increasing the powder charge 1/2 grain at a time. He topped out with a super accurate load at 4200 FPS in that old SAKO.

While I have not shot any of the 55gr. Winchester Supreme Ballistic Silvertips I have a buddy that has been shooting them in his 20" Barrled Remington Model 660 with excellent results. Ih the 20" Barrel he is getting just under 3600 FPS with excellent accuracy and bullet performance on Coyotes. We ended up loading 55gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips with my load of VARGET and these shot about the same groups and velocity as the 55gr. Winchester Supreme Ballistic Silvertips did.

Personally I like the Federal Premium V-Shok 70gr. Nosler Ballistic Tip Factory Ammo out of the .243 for Coyotes. No it is not the most fur friendly load but will put em down from about any angle you want to shoot em from. This ammo out of my 22" Ruger prints 3/4" 5 shot groups at 100 yards and chronographs 3395 FPS.

I personally feel that the .243 Winchester is one of the best Coyote Cartridges available today and there are a host of factory loads that will serve the purpose.

Larry


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## Kelly Hannan (Jan 9, 2007)

I don't know the speed, but I am using a 85 gr Speer p.s.p bullet, 35 gr of 4895 and cci 200 primer. I know most people don't like 4895 powder because it doesn't flow out of a measurer. I weigh each load so it doesn't matter to me. I don't have access to a chronograph, but they are(I am not very steady anymore), 1/2 to 3/4 inch groups at 100 and seem to hit where I aim them out to 300. At 350 I aim a little high and made the shot, so I have no complaints. 0-350 with very little hold over and small amounts of wind drift


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## lyonch (Feb 26, 2006)

I shoot a 22-250 with hornady moly coated v-max bullets (factory loads) and with a 40 grain bullet the velocity says on the box that it is just shy of 4,200 fps. With the same bullet only jump it up to 55 grains of lead the bullet travels aroun 3,800 fps. So i would have to say a .243 getting those type of results is probably not going to happen. Not to mention the cup pressures tolerance in your gun would have to be extremely high without blowing up your chamber right in your face  . I shot a coyote with levi this year with those 40 grain bullets traveling at 4,200 fps and yeah it did seem like it just blew up on contact but there was no front shoulder left and there was blood everywhere. I only had one that got away on me this year and it wasn't hit very well but yet there was a blood trail to follow. ( i think i blew the back foot off)


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## jerry hunsley (Jan 20, 2006)

I am very pleased with my .243. I load varget 41grains with 70 gr. ballistic tips. That gives me about 3500fps. The bullet very seldom exits , just blows up inside and does a number on coyotes. If not a solid hit, thats a different story.


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## bighands (Dec 12, 2005)

We have been trying the 55gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips with a mild load of H-414 at about 3600fps, They are super accurate and should work great on coyotes, Only shot 1 so far and it didn't exit on a broadside hit. These bullets can be loaded to around 3900fps in 243 with a 22" barrel and according to all the tests I have read they are very accurate with the hottest loads.


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## SDHandgunner (Jun 22, 2004)

lyonch said:


> I shoot a 22-250 with hornady moly coated v-max bullets (factory loads) and with a 40 grain bullet the velocity says on the box that it is just shy of 4,200 fps. With the same bullet only jump it up to 55 grains of lead the bullet travels aroun 3,800 fps. So i would have to say a .243 getting those type of results is probably not going to happen. Not to mention the cup pressures tolerance in your gun would have to be extremely high without blowing up your chamber right in your face  . I shot a coyote with levi this year with those 40 grain bullets traveling at 4,200 fps and yeah it did seem like it just blew up on contact but there was no front shoulder left and there was blood everywhere. I only had one that got away on me this year and it wasn't hit very well but yet there was a blood trail to follow. ( i think i blew the back foot off)


First of all a .22-250 with a 55gr. Bullet and a .243 with a 55gr. Bullet are to totally different cartridges. To start with the .243 has more powder capacity than does a .22-250, 12.9% more case capacity than the .22-250. Secondly the larger diameter of the .243 bullet provides for more base area of the bullet for the powder to push on thus creating a higher velocity level even if powder capacity was the same (ie the same reason a .30-06 with a 150gr. bullet will produce more velocity than a 270 with a 150gr. bullet). In addition if both rifles have a 22" Barrel the .243 will have more bore volume to burn the powder than does a .22-250. Lastly the sectional densities of the 55gr. .22-250 bullet and the 55gr. 243 bullet are vastly different.

Larry


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## Fallguy (Jan 23, 2004)

Yeah...what Larry said. (He knows his .243's)


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