new stevens 200 in .243

hey guys, i'm new to the savage world but been a long time wanna be. i just picked up a new stevens 200 in .243 this morning and was wondering in any of you have this gun that have developed a good hand load recipe for it. I usualy like to do this on my own from scratch with my handguns but it is a little pricey with a rifle. i was just looking for a good starting point. i will mostly use this gun for coyote's (new to that game as well) and punching holes in paper. any offers would be great.

Both my savage and my brothers stevens prefer 55gr nosler b-tips and 42-43gr of varget and cci primers. For the 70gr bullets H322 works well. I load the 85gr sierra game kings with RL19 and it is good enough for deer but probably not paper.

I used the 87 vmax and 45.1gr H414, seated out near the lands with a CCI200 primer. Start low and work up! Any load someone gives you may be too hot for your individual gun.

Mine likes 45.0gr RL-15, 55gr NBT, Fed. large rifle match primer, shoots well under 1/2 moa at 100yds...I mostly just use it for coyotes very deadly load ! I have also used RL-19 with the barnes 85gr TSX with good results...Hope this helps !

thanks a million guys i really do appreciate it. it is nice to have a good place to start. thanks again for the input

Its a rare 243 that will not shoot one of these loads well
55Nos 51.5 H414
87 VMax 44 IMR4350
105AMax 43 R22

i noticed on the spec sheet also this barrel has a 1: 9.25" twist rate. is this a common .243 barrel?

For a late model Savage it is....the old ones where 10 twist. The 9.25s will usually stableize the 105-107s but niether of my 10 twist like anything over 90 grain and much prefer the little 55s.

I also suggest that you invest if you have not done so already, if your going to reload any ammo. to buy the Lymans # 48 or # 49 reloading manual which will cover most ammo reloading Max & Min safe loading Data & you can also go on line to GUNNERSDEN.COM which shows reloading specs for just about all cartridges, Hope this help's you out, Good luck with your new 243 win as it will make a fine white tail deer gun also. 8)

Try Sierra 85 gr HPBT...they will do it all if you shoot deer thru the ribs.

"..........Try Sierra 85 gr HPBT...they will do it all if you shoot deer thru the ribs."

+1 Here I've been shooting that bullet for longer that some of you guys have been alive. Never had a complaint from any deer or coyote shot with it.

uj

I built some 105 Amax's with Retumbo for my brothers rile that shot very well out to 600 yards. I was given a brandnew .243 Savage Sporter barrel from Teele1 that i have not shot yet, but I'm gonna try the 105.

Uncle Jack what load are you using with that 85 gr. Sierra HPBT bullet As I would like to try that for coyote's in my 243 gun ? ???

shot it today for the first time! not to bad. pretty impressed with accuracy for out of the box with factory ammo. shot the remington express rifle psp 80gr. once on paper got a 3 shot group touching at 50 and about an inch at 100. had to quit it got cold. first thing will be a good scope and then for sure some kinda trigger work. can the factory stevens trigger be adjusted a little?

The easiest way to adjust a stevens trigger is to replace the trigger return wire with a lighter one. It is the long wire with a short hook on one end, usually they are already loosened about all you can when they are shipped. The end of the wire goes down into a screw with 4 slots on it's end, easy to identify. A better fix is to replace the trigger with an older 3 screw model with sear engagement screw.

i was thinking about "stiffening up the fore end of the stock with some carbon arrow shafts, have any of you heard of this or tried it? what makes a good filler for the rest of the cavity in the stock? i was think of some kinda plastic filler such as for body work but want to keep the weight down. also what do you guys think of the boresnake for cleaning? any good or junk? sorry for all the stupid questions just trying to learn something here ???

Yup, I did it useing a stiff Carbon Extreme X Cutter Shaft. It worked great, no more flex and when I use my bipod.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Uncle Jack

"..........Try Sierra 85 gr HPBT...they will do it all if you shoot deer thru the ribs."
+1 Here I've been shooting that bullet for longer that some of you guys have been alive. Never had a complaint from any deer or coyote shot with it.
uj

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+2 I like to load them in front of IMR 4350 with a Winchester WLR or Federal GM210M primer. This bullet also shot great in my old .244 Remington with the 12 twist barrel.

Has anyone tried out the Sierra 95gr Matchkings on their stevens yet? I've been thinking about picking some of those up.

70gr berger, 75gr sierra with imr4350 and H4895. Havn't found the Varget recipe yet.

i am seeing alot of comments on other threads about barrel life being kinda short on a .243. is there anything i can do to prolong it's life? do moly coated bullets help? i am not shooting a couple hundered rounds a week but i want do what i can to make this thing last!!

85 grain Sierra HPBT, 37.5 grains of 4064 (near max), Win brass, Win large rifle primers....work with the seating depth a little and have fun.

uj

Quote:

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Originally Posted by scott597

i am seeing alot of comments on other threads about barrel life being kinda short on a .243. is there anything i can do to prolong it's life? do moly coated bullets help? i am not shooting a couple hundered rounds a week but i want do what i can to make this thing last!!

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Unless you use it for compititions or take the 243 doggin a lot you aint never gonna burn the barrel out!! There are 3 243 barrels in the safe that are over 1200 rounds that shoot just as good as when they had 100 rounds. I'm not kidding myself though they could be done soon or could make another season or two??

85 grn sierra gameking
37.8grns varget
br-2 primer
2.610 OAL

shooting .65 moa out to 440yds so far