Is the 243 Winchester Too Small For Deer?
243 Winchester
Okay, I know I'll probably get flamed for this, but I think it's something that needs to be discussed. I know it's discussed every hunting season by at least one Outdoor magazine and in every Gun Shop and in every Deer Camp.
The topic of these discussions/heated arguments in deer hunting circles is...
Is the .243 Winchester Too Small For Deer?
The simple answer is Yes...and...No.
First of all, the 243 is a necked down 308 that uses a .24 caliber bullet (6mm). As everyone knows, the 308 is a great round for Deer and other Big Game. That doesn't make all of it's offspring great Deer rounds though!
I've owned a .243 and a 6mm. The 6mm was a Ruger 77V and was without a doubt the most accurate rifle I ever owned. But I only used it for Varmints and never once tried it on Deer sized game.
I did use a 243 with 100 grain bullets one year to take a small buck at about 60 yards. He was feeding along, calm and perfectly broadside. The shot was perfect double lung and he leaped forward at the shot and piled up 50 yards later. Not everyone has had the same experience with this round.
In the past, the 243 suffered from poor bullet construction. Sometimes the bullets blew up on impact, sometimes they didn't expand at all while other times they did exactly what they were supposed to do.
Bullet construction has come a long way over the years, but I still do not consider the 243 an ideal Deer cartridge, especially for beginners. Deer hunters can improve the performance of the 243 by reloading the round with premium bullets.
Sadly, the 243 Winchester is what beginners are handed a lot of the time as their first Deer rifle.
When the 243 Is Not Right For Deer Hunting
One of the problems I see now is beginners headed out to the field with the light 55 to 85 grain loads for the 243. Most of these loads have fragile bullets as they are intended for thin skinned varmints, not a tough old ridge running Whitetailed Buck Deer.
Part of the problem is that so called 'experts' behind the ammo desk and Gun writers are pushing these rounds on unsuspecting Deer hunters because they think lighter and faster is the way to go.
Another problem is that if you're not practicing regularly, you may not be as familiar with the rifle as you should be. Many beginners (okay, most) will get a terrible case of "the shakes" when it comes down to the moment of truth when that buck deer comes into view. Heck, even most of us old timers do! The difference is, those of us who have hunted for years and are experienced, have learned how to control "the shakes" and focus on the shot.
A poor hit on a Deer is made even worse when using a small bullet in a round like the 243. The extra damage caused by a .26 or or 7mm caliber can mean the difference between finding a marginally hit animal or not.
In my opinion, the minimum caliber that should be allowed for Deer hunting is the 243 with a 95 grain bullet. I can't believe the States that allow 22 calibers to be used for Deer. Yeah, I know they'll kill a Deer but so will the 22 Rimfire and even the little 17's. Why not allow them to be legal rounds to hunt Deer with? Having said this, it doesn't mean I think the 243 should be used by beginners. To me, the 243 is to Deer rifles what the 410 shotgun is to wingshooting. Sure, it will get the job done, but it's not for beginners!
How many of you that consider the 243 the ideal rifle for beginners would consider the 410 ideal for beginners to use Goose or Turkey hunting? Even though the 410 is used every year to take both, I don't know anyone who would put 410 in the hands of a new hunter when going after those two birds.
The fact of the truth is that the margin for error is nil when using a small caliber like the 243. Everything has to be just right and everything, including the bullet, has to do it's job. There are other low recoil rifle rounds that give you extra "knock down" than the 243 Winchester round. (FYI: this is no measurement of "knock down" power, just of .ft .lbs of energy)
Speaking of bullets again, if I were going to be hunting Deer with the 243 Winchester, I'd choose either the 95 and 100 grain bullets in a strong design like the Nosler Partition. Forget about using fragile bullets like the Ballistic Tip, even in the heavier bullets, for Deer sized game. A hit on a shoulder blade or other bone could cause the bullet to explode on impact.
When the 243 is Right For Deer Hunters
In the hands of an experienced and seasoned Rifleman, the 243 is more than adequate for Deer sized Game.
I once read an article by an Outdoor writer, I think it may have been Jack O'Connor or Jim Carmichel, that told a story about a man who used the .243 for Elk. He killed Elk every year with his rifle, everyone being a neck shot. He saw no need to buy a "real Elk gun".
Does this make the 243 an ideal Elk Rifle? Me thinks not!
However, in the hands of that Gentleman, it certainly was.
And so it is for Deer Hunting. I know a guy who kills 2 deer a year for his freezer. It doesn't matter what they are as long as they're legal. He has used a 243 Winchester for over 20 years and it's the only "Big Game" Caliber rifle he owns.
Every deer that I've seen him kill has been a neck or head shot. He's hunted out of the same two stands year after year for the last 20 years. His shots range from 30 to 300 yards. In his hands, the 243 is the perfect caliber for Deer.
A seasoned hunter knows how to control his/her excitement when they see their buck. The seasoned hunter has the patience to wait for the "perfect" shot placement opportunity. The seasoned hunter knows which bullets perform best in his/her rifle and they can put those bullets where they need to go at the moment-of-truth.
Many new hunters can not do these things due to a lack of experience. They don't have the experience to wait and to recognize when a Buck is nervous and about to bolt. They haven't learned how to control their breathing when putting the crosshairs on a Buck.
It's for this reason and mainly this reason alone, that I do not consider the .243 Winchester an adequate rifle for Deer hunting in the hands of a Beginning Deer Hunter. As I stated above, there are other great choices of low-recoiling rounds for deer hunting that pack a bigger punch than the .243. Check 'em out before buying your potential new hunter a .243. Nothing's worse for a new hunter than to shoot a deer and not be able to recover it because of a marginal, or a poor, hit. Put the odds in their favor by using a larger round!
243 winchester
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33 Responses to “Is the 243 Winchester Too Small For Deer?”
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Again, good points. I’ve watched my grandpa kill deer for years, using his .243 The lighter recoil allows him to continue hunting. However, accuracy is paramount with ANY caliber.
I agree that accuracy is the key with any rifle, but it’s the most critical with smaller calibers. And we all know that we’re not really steady when that old buck comes strolling along!
[...] here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!After writing about how the .243 Winchester was not a good round for the beginning deer hunter, I received a number of emails asking me which [...]
I agree with you on the .243 with factory loads and no bench time pre-season. I’ve shot 19 deer since 1975 and my 3 sons have all bagged their first deer with the old model 700 and we’ve never had one go over 200 yd before dieing. With good ammo and practice it can be very good deer rifle.
Think about this: People who think the .243 is too light on deer don’t shoot deer with it. That’s fine. Those of us who think it is adaquate for whitetails kill a lot of deer with it. Sure you have to use deer bullets, but that goes with any caliber. My 12 year old 100 lb. grandaughter wanted to hunt this year. I got her a T/C Encore with a .22RF barrel and a .243 barrel. We shot a lot this past summer. The recoil from the .243 bothered her so she shot the .22 more. Once it got cold and she wore a coat she got good with the .243 making 1″ 3 shot groups from a rest at 100 yds. Opening morning she shot a nice little 150 lb. doe at about 80 yds. The deer went less than 50′
The 100 gr Federal bullet did OK. Those of us who use the .243 keep on using it because it works, it is accurate, and it is just plain fun to shoot. Those who prefer something bigger are free to use something bigger. But, don’t try to tell me that a .243 is too light for deer. It has killed way too many deer to say such a thing.
You are on the money. Anybody with serious buck fever needs and extra margin of bullet weight and a bipod!
I have killed many deer with a .243. I have a Sako and a Cooper.
I like the .85gr Federal and shoot them in the ear; they do not move horizontally. A standing deer will almost always turn it’s head and hold it for at least 3 - 5 seconds. NEVER shoot at a moving target, it is not worth the misery of tracking a gut shot animal. Which means I have also watched a lot of deer walk or run away.
A short barrel, like my Sako Forester (20″) does NOT like 100 gr. bullets and spreads them out… Has something to do with the twist.
My old instructor at Ft. Benning said “If you don’t know exactly where the bullet will go; do not pull the trigger. If you need more than one shot, you should not have shot in the first place.”
well there is a lot of good deer rifles out there but, The main thing is bullet placement,You can have a cannon and still have a animal get away from you,now for penetration take the 243 witha 100 gr bullet and the 06 with 180 gr shot at a half inch piece of steel and see which one goes through.meatand bone is a lot softer than steel.take it from here.
i beg to differ on many of those points. i’m a begginer (kind of) and i’ve killed all 4 of my deer with a 6mm or .243. igot 2 this year with my .243. one was a button buck at 100 yards with a ballistic tip. you say ballistic tips will blow up on the shoulder, but this went through BOTH shoulders without blowing up.it dropped. the 8 point i got with it dropped. and the pig i got last year dropped (headshot). this is by no means a marginal cartridge with a good bullet and confident shooter. a point i do agree with you on is that it is’nt as good on gut shot deer.
I’m in total agreement. In fact if you haven’t practiced at the range at all you shouldn’t be shooting at any deer with any caliber.
i am now 12 years old i now use a 243. when i started out hunting with a gun i use a 410 slug i shot at a 4 pointer runing and shot over it. a year later i got my 243 on the very last day of hunting i killed my first deer. i thank if you r going to shot a 243 you need to sited it on at 100 at 2″ high. but i thank a 243 is a good rifle.
On the comment of a .243 being in sufficent in killing deer
i would have to say what about the hydrostatic shock? Its a deer hunters best freind there is you variance of a couple of inches.
I have used the 243 for years and now my son is using it.The best bullet i found for hunting and long range shooting is the 105 gr speer,now you talk about a race horse decined bullet is this one.All the big mulie bucks i have shot with it have fallen in thier tracks,And never moved.I shot a huge black bear with a 100 gr seirra the bear measured 7′6 ihit him right behind the shoulders,He only ran 25 yards and i found him stone dead.the 257 roberts has fallen by the wayside when the 243 was introduced to the hunting and shooting crowd,the one i have imust have got lucky because it shoot all different bullets all the same,I have shot elk and moose with this calibre,and i know alot of other people who have done the same thing .A friend of mine tild me of the time he got a cow moose draw and was out looking for her,I had hand loaded him a box of 90 gr seirra,s.He was up on a hill and seen cow moose come out approx.150 yds from him he shot and moose diappeared so fast he thought he missed,then o there it is in the same place he shot again and the same thing he went down ther and he had 2 of them.Its not a practice i would use,But i would never back down from a bull moose with 105 gr speer,you have to confidence in your rifle and your shooting ability,My son in the last five years has havested a bull elk every year with this 243,So as far as the 243 being to small for deer is nuts,All you hunters with this calibre try out the 105 gr speer you will glad you did.Good hunting and be safe
The main thing that must be remembered here is that when the word “deer” is used here, it means whitetail; a comparitively small, lightly built animal. Here in Victoria (Australia), we mainly hunt sambar (deer). The minimum cartridge allowed (by law) is a 270 Win, with 130 gn bullet. Many experienced hunters think the 30-06 with a 180gn bullet should be the minimum. Sambar have been recorded up to 700lb, and have been known to carry 2 or 3 chest hits from 338 Win Mags (or bigger!!) for 200yds or more. For the record, I use a 375 H&H, and so far all 1 shot kills, with nothing going more than 30yds. The use of premium bullets, an accurate rifle and plenty of practice is critical to sucessful hunting any medium to large game. But, I’ll be trying out the 243 this season I hope, but only on fallow deer (about the size of a whitetail) and I’ll be loading with Noslers, Grand Slams or similar.
Happy (& sucessful) hunting.
.243 too light for deer? Hitting the target and knowing the kill zones are far more important than the caliber. The older I get the more I like my 243. My .300
Weatherby Mag will do the job too. Most would say it’s too much gun for deer though. The .243 wouldn’t have survived if it wasn’t good enough. Bigger isn’t
allways better. I can recall few instances (none) of a hard charging buck attacking a hunter. Leave your .600 Nitro Express at home. Deer aren’t that hard to kill.
Practice, practice, practice prior to your hunt.
Advocating using a larger caliber to compensate for marginal hits is irresponsible. A bad hit is a bad hit no matter what the caliber. A .260 Remington or 7mm-08 isn’t going to be any better than a .243 to a person who finds the recoil of the larger calibers unpleasant. A beginner (even with the shakes) is much more likely to make a good hit with a soft recoiling caliber like the .243 because they are concentrating on the shot, not the upcoming recoil and I’d rather see a new shooter make a good heart/lung shot with a .243 than gut shoot a deer with a larger caliber because they weren’t concentrating 100% on shot placement.
As for using ‘too-light’ bullets, unknowing folks are led down that road with many other calibers as well. I’ve seen fellas recommend using 90 gr. varmint bullets in .270’s because they think extra velocity and energy is the holy grail of successful hunting and its just as wrong as using a varmint bullet in a .243.
Nosler lists two different types of Ballistic Tips - Varmint and Hunting. The 90 and 95 gr. Ballistic Tips are of the Hunting variety which are constructed heavier and are recommended for deer by Nosler themselves.
What is too light for deer is not the.243. However the correct ball for the application and familiarity with the rifle are givens. If you can’t place the bullet the cartridge choice is irrelevant. Let me tell you a story. Back about ‘74 I was in Dawson City and some people were getting together a search party (which I joined) for a road construction guy who had gone missing at approx. mile 50 on the Dempster Highway.We found him sitting with his back to a tree, The right side of his head was Gone. on His lap was a rifle chambered for the .257 Roberts, their was an empty in the chamber.
Back about 1930 in the Spring a trapper was coming off a deadfall on the Stewart river 30 miles or so downstream from Mayo. He was charged from 30 yards or so by a large Grizzly. His rifle was a 30-30. he fired twice, the first round upon examination of the body did little damage, it was a 170 gr flat nose. The second however was a Solid ( he had been shooting rats) it went through the scull and lodged in the fourth vertabrae.
In 1990 I spent some time working on the Beaufort Sea. One of the people I met there was An Innuit who spent his winters Trapping, he was about 28 years of age and of a good size. We were great friends, one day I asked him what rifle he carried on his trapline. He said .257 Roberts. i said where do you shoot a bear with a .257 Roberts? he said you shoot a Bear In the Neck.
you have some good points but i have a 243 and every deer i killed with it they droped so your not tottaly right sryy man it is the best deer rifle
I think you should have shortened your article to about 2 or 3 sentences and spent the rest of the time stating what makes ANY cartridge successful for deer hunting, and that is bullet construction and shot placement. Bullet weight is not as important as bullet construction. I’ll take a Barnes TSX at 85 grains over any 100 grain bullet you can find. A 95 grain Winchester XP3 isn’t too bad either, but still, it is shot placement that kills better than bullet weight.
My wife has taken 41 mule deer with her model 600 Remington–all shot from 75 to 150 yards–I load up a 105 Speer—H4831 powder—Federal 210 match primers—none of he deer has went over 10 yards—in her hands this is the ideal rifle and caliber— but she does use our rifle range quite a bit—
I have killed all but my first deer with my 243. It is my belief that the only shot that should be taken on a deer is a neck shot close to the head, regardless of range. the neck near the head give you 2 targets, the veins and arteries and the spinal cord. A shot here will either put the dear down and he’ll stay down or if you get veins he’ll bleed like crazy and you’ll find him. If you graze him, he’ll live till next year. Body shots of any kind are risky regardless of caliber. Makes the animal easy to hit but easy to wound. If he jumps when you shoot he’s gutshot. with a high neck shot, if he jumps, you miss clean.(most likely). I don’t even like headshots because there’s too much stuff around that you can hit that will kill the deer in a week but not right now. I shot a doe in the head when I was a youngster, hit in the lower jaw, (bloody corn all over the place), we trailed her for 3/4 of a mile. I guarantee that she died of starvation weeks later. Thats when I stopped shooting deer anywhere but the high neck. If your gun is powerful enough to break an animals neck, then its good enouch for the animal. A 243 is plenty of gun. You have to learn how to shoot. You might suffer if you don’t hit where you want to, but the animal won’t.
DPS
I don’t have a problem with light rounds, I guess MN just lowered calibers for deer. I got the chance to hunt deer in ND last year and was so happy to be able to see what I could do on the open range. I shoot a 300 Win Mag, its the rifle I have ever owned and i bought it for the simple fact that it was cheaper then others and I wanted something larger for Black Bear. I was hunting with a group that laughed at how large of a bullet i had when two of the 3 were shooting 22-250’s and the other was a 6mm or 7mm. I had two one shot kills that droped the deer within 100yds of being hit. and that was a clean heart shot. The small rifles had to hit deer 3 times just to make a clean kill. My feelings are larger calibers are needed for long hunting situations like an open field, but not from my deer stand in the north woods where my longest shot is 70yds. However I have long shots when we set up drive and pushes around swamps so I love my large gun over any small round. I guess my point isn’t that you can’t kill a deer with a 243, you can kill on with a 17mm, but when you pull the trigger on a deer and 150yds its diffrent then a gopher at 150. Hunters need to make ethical choices using light ammo. In North Dakota our party had to finish off a deer that had been shot 3 times and wouldn’t run even though we were 10yd away from it, that was pure horror and there was no one in sight following the poor thing. I know if I miss, it won’t be a long time till i can finish the job, it won’t take off running for miles with a Win Mag through the guts. Shoot what you want, take the caliber for your skill and distance, Please.
I started hunting at age 12…the earliest I could, and as a beginner I used a 410 slug to hunt deer. Crazy, I would never think to waste my time on that. I upped it to a 3030 after two years and loved it and now am using my Winchester 243, and I think it works fine. I sighted it in on 100 yards and was less than cm off but that could be me shaking. I love the 243 perfect for me!!!
i have used a .243 since i was 8 on deer and varmints. and i have never had any trouble with the knock down power and effectiveness of this round and is not too small for deer yeah its at the lower end of what u want to use but little kinds cant take the harsh recoil of a 7mm or 300. the recoil my not be to bad for adults but it will rock the little kids world. so you dont want them scared of guns and a .243 doesnt kick very much and can shoot just as fast as larger calibers and will kill a deer just as fast. my grandpa told me if u cant kill a deer with a .243 get out of the woods because you dont know what your doin because its a fast flat shootin round that hits pretty herd for its size and its got alot to do with shot placement there wont be no difference if you shoot a deer through both lungs with a .243 or a 300 H&H mag. the deer will die in both cases and i have shot deer with both and the 243 killed the deer faster thenm the big 300 did and i was farther when i shot the deer with my .243 so you dont know what your talkin about!!
The .243 winchester is a very capable big game cartridge. Not interested in “One time I…..”, or “I heard……” Just do the math: A 100 grain bullet moving at ~2900 fps through the 6-8inch vital area visible on a broadside presentation = a dead deer every single time! I’m not worried about the shoulder either.
Great article!
As someone who has guided big game hunters in Texas, New Mexico and Colorado since 1981, I have to say your article is spot on!
I get the chance to perform dozens of “field autopsies” each year on big game. Certainly more so than the average joe. Your conclusion that the .243 Winchester is not adequate as a rifle for beginners or the less experienced hunters is enlightening. I’ve been saying this ever since I began guiding.
I can’t tell you how many beginners and inexperienced hunters I see show up at camp and proceed to put 5 rounds in a tight group at 100 yards. Then when the moment of truth comes to drop the hammer on a game animal, they couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn. I’ve had to track more than a few poor hits on Deer that ran much further than they would have if shot with a larger caliber.
I’ve also seen my share of bullet failure on the 24 calibers. In fact, I believe one person in the comments above stated he shot a buck through both shoulders at 100 yards with a .243 Winchester with Ballistic Tips. If that is the case, I’d think that would be a great example of bullet failure. The Ballistic tip isn’t designed as a bone crusher.
I’ve seen premium bullets from the 24 calibers blow up on impact and I’ve seen them act like FMJ bullets with little, if any, expansion.
Sure, the .243 and others like it will take Deer, but then again, so will a .22 LR. I also believe that the .243 should be the very minimum allowed for Deer, with beginners and inexperienced hunters starting out with something like the .25/06, .270 or even something like the .260 if they are sensitive to recoil.
Keep up the good work, I look forward to seeing more articles.
Dwayne
the 243 win. is very capable of killing a deer. this year i got my first buck using a 243 with 80grain shells from 174yds in one shot . My uncle shot a deer at over 200yds with a 243 and got it. even though the 243 bullet is smaller than 30caliber rounds such as the 30 06 it has higher muzzel valocity than the standerd 30 06 round.So you older guys shooten 2 and 3 shots at deer are just bad aims .
The 243 is a fine round for deer!!! YES- Bigger is better!, but I have let me girls shoot deer, and hogs with a 223 with great success! The main factor is to let kids practice BEFORE hunting. To make a good shot on the animal is more important then the caliber! As long as you have 1000 foot pounds of energy in a bullet at the range you will be shooting him then the gun will work! Good luck…
I agree with the fella who mentioned that the 243 Winchester would not have survived if inadequate for deer. I know for a fact it kills like lightning! And, head and neck shots aren’t necessary. I have had more deer drop in their tracks with my 243 than I have had with my 444 and 30-06…no kidding. Just plant 100 grains of simple, basic Winchester Power Point ammo in the vitals. If they don’t drop, they won’t go far, usually 50 yards or so.
The only problem I have with this writer is his statement about how tough a deer’s hide is. I once shot a doe with a Bear bow set at 63 lbs.The deer was 40 yards away and the alluminum arrow went completly through, breaking a 2″x2″ slab of rib on exit.So much for tough old deer hides.
Alright… I own a .243, and its the only gun i shoot. Last year i shot two deer. I shot a 170lbs spiker, and a 140lbs doe. They both dropped on impact. I am shooting 100gr. bullets. When you guys are all arguing about bullets, and bigger is better. Girls always say… “Its not the size of the ship that matters… Its the motion of the ocean”. Think about it, bigger bullet = better? Umm… No Its all about the shot placement. All u guys that need these big rifles are only able to shoot 5-10 rounds through target practicing without whineing about ur shoulder hurting… Us using the .243 can shoot all day and not whine once! BIGGER ISN’T BETTER!
I shot my first rifle deer last year. My rifle is a Rossi 243 Win. I am using some “old” bullets I got from my wife’s uncle. They are American Arms Ammo in a 100gr. Anyone ever heard of them? Anyway I only had a 25yd. shot and the 117lb. doe ran maybe 20yd. after I hit her. What I noticed was the entrance and exit holes looked exactly the same….that robably isn’t good right? I guess that means I had no expansion at all. These bullets I am shooting have got to be 20 years old. I hunt medium woods, not to thick and not to thin. What bullet should I invest in?
I own a Browning A-Bolt .243. I have been using this gun for the past 16 years for deer. I use 100 grain remington core lokt bullets and i have dropped quite a few deer in there tracks at different yardages. All of them went in and out destroying the heart and lungs. This gun is as good on deer as any. And as for any caliber for deer, it is shot placement that counts.
@ Chuck,
Congrats on your Deer.
It does sound like the bullet failed to expand. Something that is one problem of the older .243 rounds as I stated in the article.
I would invest in a box of Premium 243 ammo. Take a look at Hornady’s Light Magnums in 100 grain or their Custom Ammo line with a 100 grain bullet.
You should also look into Federal Vital Shock ammo with 100 grain Nosler Partitions. Their other 100 grain Vital-Shock ammo with 100 grain boattail should also do great for you.
Good Luck,
Don