what about the 243 cal?

[nsaqam]

Well.... READ the story.

Whidden is OVER-LOADING that powder by 500 fps!!! That is an ARSE-LOAD of pressure!!!

and yes, I CAN get the 55's to 4300 also, and I can also throw away my brass after 2 firings because of primer pocket enlargement, and head seperations.

With a 32" tube there are 18 different powders which when loaded into a .243 case will exceed 3300fps with the 105 Amax. All of them under 65K pressure as well. N570 will do 3360 at only 60K.
At 60K brass life is almost unlimited.

[darkker]

The point is NOT that he was shooting 105's at 3300. It's about the .243 being a fine caliber for long range target shooting.

Overloaded by 500 fps? Not really. 300 fps over what I shoot in a barrel that is 4" shorter than his 32 incher. Granted, I would not push that high out of my equipment. But, I am sure the Mr. Whidden knows a bit more about it than you or I.


With a 32" tube there are 18 different powders which when loaded into a .243 case will exceed 3300fps with the 105 Amax. All of them under 65K pressure as well. N570 will do 3360 at only 60K.
At 60K brass life is almost unlimited.

Whidden Listed his bullet AND powder. By Lapua's info(10-twist, 24" barrel), Whidden is pushing THAT powder 500 fps faster than the data for the powder. Now CAN that much barrel length add that much? Maybe

I think my point stands: What Whidden has for a gun & load is a stout load, in an extremely long barrel, on a custom action, stock and optics. If the Original question is can a 24-cal be set-up for long range duty, then certainly; as can anything. If the question is is there a production rifle in 24-cal that is a good long range shooter, I stay with my original answer.

So what is the actual Question? If you want to throw money into a deal and have a specific tool, YES.
If you want to buy a LRP(or other production rifle) and get world class results, NO.

[bootsmcguire]

I have had several 243's over the last decade or so. For a fast flat Varmint shooter, its hard to beat. 58gr V-max's at over 4k is the way to go. If you plan on reloading for the 243 I suggest going with the 243AI just to give you added brass life and almost no trimming. I just love mine, and it is my go to rifle for Varmints. Very accurate and has been easy to load for.

[nsaqam]

As always, Lapua is limited by the SAAMI MAP applied to the cartridge for their loading info.

The SAAMI MAP is a rather low 60K.

Just the change in barrel length from 24" to 32", when running at 60K, accounts for 200fps.

Push the pressure up to 65K and you pick up 200 more.

Push the pressure to 70K, a not inconsiderable increase but one which is likely safe in a strong action, and you get all the way to 500fps faster than the published Lapua data.

Definitely doable if you are comfortable with 70K. I'm not but I'm perfectly comfortable with 65K.

[JackinSD]

Whidden Listed his bullet AND powder. By Lapua's info(10-twist, 24" barrel), Whidden is pushing THAT powder 500 fps faster than the data for the powder. Now CAN that much barrel length add that much? Maybe

I think my point stands: What Whidden has for a gun & load is a stout load, in an extremely long barrel, on a custom action, stock and optics. If the Original question is can a 24-cal be set-up for long range duty, then certainly; as can anything. If the question is is there a production rifle in 24-cal that is a good long range shooter, I stay with my original answer.

So what is the actual Question? If you want to throw money into a deal and have a specific tool, YES.
If you want to buy a LRP(or other production rifle) and get world class results, NO.

Once AGAIN. But, "Do you suppose it would be a good target round for paper bunching?", as asked by the OP.

If you are going to shoot "world class" as you are stipulating, then yes you will be throwing money at it. No matter what caliber you choose.

I don't think anyone is saying that you MUST have the same load, rifle, scope, etc. as Whidden to shoot the .243 precisely.

I only am stating that the .243 is used by at least one person (and more) to punch targets and done very well.

[markb317]

I have just rebarreled my model 12 with a 28" 1-8 twist bull barrel from N.S.S. that shoots 105gn. berger hybrids into a bug hole at 100yds. Was shooting 4" clay birds at 600 yds. and shooting very consistant at 1000 yds on the 12" steel plate.

[Westcliffe01]

There is a guy shooting tactical competition with a 243 see here: http://www.6mmbr.com/243Win.html

".243 Win For Tactical Comps We asked GA Precision's George Gardner why he chose .243 Winchester for his Tactical Comp Gun. He replied, "Why would I run anything else? Think about it. I'm sending a .585 BC 115 at 3150 fps--that'll shoot inside the 6XC and .260 Rem with ease. I'm pretty sure I have found the Holy Grail of Comp Rifles. There are no brass issues like you can get forming .260 brass. I don't have to worry about doughnuts, reaming necks--none of that. And the choice in brass is great too--run Lapua if you want max reloads and great accuracy. Run Winchester if you're on a budget, and so you won't cry if you lose some cases in a match. I can get 10-round mags, and feeding is 100% reliable, since the case is identical to a .308 except for the neck. Accuracy-wise, I don't think I'm giving up anything to the .260 Rem or the 6XC." We then asked George if he'd considered using a .243 AI instead: "Yeah, the cases look cool with that 40° shoulder, but I think the standard .243 feeds a little better. And I don't think I really need the extra performance of an improved case. Run the ballistics for my load--115 moly DTAC at 3150 fps. You've got less windage than a 2950 fps 6.5-284, with cheaper brass, cheaper dies, cheaper bullets, and less recoil."

[kelbro]

243AI is a great chambering. Regular 243s or pumped up a little. I'm enjoying 243 again after a 25 year hiatus.

[FUBAR]

243 is a fine round, plus I like the 243 AI a lot and also the 243 WSSM....

Back in College my buddy had a wildcat he called a 243 Weatherby Mag, now days we would call it a 6-300 Weatherby Mag wildcat

[tbartley]

Ask 82boy about the 243... He stretched some rounds out to 1K a few years ago. And yeah, brother, I still have the barrel. :)

[acemisser]

Not sure what a 243Rem is, but the 243 Winchester has a rough past. REMINGTON RIFLE DUH,,you KNOW THAT YOU JUST WANTED TO BE FUNNY HA HA HA
It is notorious for having random(sometimes violent) pressure excursions for no apparent reason. Call any of the bullet/powder folks who do their own shooting; and ask them about it....
Standard 243 twists are a bit slow for current heavy match bullets, and back to the case... So you don't see many on the firing line in matches. Something like the "Six"(6mm PPC) is a MUCH better case choice for match shooting, Pretty much owns alot of the shooting matches.

I love my 308, I like my 243 for coyotes(because Z-max's are cheap) but I don't use it for much else. With light bullets, the 243 & 22-250 are only a few small grains apart for loading: Lots of powder, lots of heat, small bore to erode upon.


Remington rifle got that rifle duh

[acemisser]

Well,from all the comments I am going to get me a 243 barrel and give it a good test..Not sure what twist yet.

I need to do some more research on that part..All this hype about having to have a custom rifle,I thing is Bull..

I was told a ton of degative things about using the 22-250 for f class...It was all bull...I managed to out shoot
a guy using the 6BR Maybe it was because he was having a bad day or maybe I was able to work the wind
better than he was..But it was done..And I did it..lol

I was told the barrel life will be short..What is short? I only have 543 rounds through it so far.Maybe I wouldn't get
1000 from it.Who knows..Keep shooting it until it don't want to shot any more..I clean it after every 50 round match.
I don't let it get smokin hot..It's a bull barrel,but still gets warm..I run a slow velocity with H 4831 SC powder..Will that
increase the barrel life..Hell,I have no idea..

So I am going with the 243 as well..I may do good-I may do bad..What the hell,I'm shootin and havin fun....

[FUBAR]

No I'm not surprised that you did well with a 22-250....

There is this misconception that high BC equates to high accuracy, it does not, nor does it have much effect on point blank range

High BC means the shooter will not have to make as many corrections for the bullet to hit the POA.

All things being equal high BC bullets =


More energy on target (less drag in the atmosphere)

Less drift in wind

"Flat shooting" meaning it takes less arc to get to the target




Shooting the 22-250 against the 6BR just requires you to make more corrections to control your POI, you just increased the variables that must be corrected:cool:

[FUBAR]

I was told the barrel life will be short..What is short? I only have 543 rounds through it so far.Maybe I wouldn't get
1000 from it.Who knows..Keep shooting it until it don't want to shot any more..I clean it after every 50 round match.
I don't let it get smokin hot..It's a bull barrel,but still gets warm..I run a slow velocity with H 4832 powder..Will that
increase the barrel life...

The best thing to increase barrel life--keep it as cool as you can and run a patch through it as often as possible between shots. The left over primer crud that is spewed into the bore is hard on fast shooting overbores....

[HIGHRPM]

The 243 is one hell of an accurate tach driver. Load it light for varmints and load heavy at 100 grains for a super deer rifle. So many people just seem to need the biggest magnum to hunt, which at times is severe overkill. There are vetern hunters out there, me being one, that have great success hunting whitetails and mulies with the little 243. It's more shot placement than anything. I shoot many different calibers, I love variety, but I would never ignore the 243 for light to medium game.