Thread: 243 load research/development

Background: I am a "new" hunter having been bitten hard by the bug 2 years ago. I hunt mostly open tops and sub alpine bush with a Franchi Horizon in 243 and from trial and error have found that Win Deer Season 95g produces reliably consistent results (barring the nut behind the trigger) all the fallow I've taken have been out around the 300m mark with bang flop results. With my preferred ammo being hard to come by locally and with prices continuing to head north I have dived into the rabbit hole of reloading.

My research thus far has revealed the following, Winchester Silvertip delivers more bang than Deer Season but I'm pretty sure it has a boattail whereas the Deer Season has a flat base, more suited to my 1:10 barrel. Hornady's SST seemed to be the semi obvious choice BUT the ballistics say it does not seem to deliver as much punch as the Silvertip running out of velocity and punch at around 300 metres (2211/1035) compared to the silvertip (2185/1007 at 374m)

So my question, finally is this, is there a flat base projectile that will give me similar performance to the silvertip with appropriate load development. (I'm aware of the Nosler BT Silvertip, which is also BT base and used by Winchester in their silvertip factory ammo) My aim is to recreate similar to the Win Silvertip so that on the rare occasion where I may need the 243 to reach out a little further and/or to deliver more knockdown on larger game (Red hinds/stags) closer in.

Side note: I am a rank beginner so some of the above may be incorrect or drawn from incorrect assumptions. I'm not interested in shooting out beyond the distances mentioned, IMO thats not hunting, just target shooting on live targets, getting in "close" is part of the challenge. Also at some point I MAY go up in caliber but for now I want to maximise the 243 whilst honing my shooting/hunting skills especially around consistent accurate shot placement.
Cheers
Pete

I have great faith in Speer projectiles as they are generally soft and expand readily. The nbt was obvious choice but a duel load might be better. 87 GRN Hornady has or had big following with fallow,sika hunters. @257weatherby or @deer243 hopefully will chime in. Pretty sure Mr Songhurst had good run with 80 GRN Barnes.... They would be good option on big stuff up close perhaps.

I'm trying to stay away from dual loading as that can lead to "look at the horns on that donkey stag---damnit I've got my fallow rounds loaded" kind of deal, the silvertip/deer season both seem to be good allrounders and the Franchi loves that 95g bullet. I hadn't looked at the 87g Hornady, so now you've just added to the confusion! lol Nosler partition were another option, ju8st when I think I've narrowed it down, more options surface....and down the rabbit hole I go!

1:10" just keep it simple and use the nosler ballistic tips or 95gr sst. Both will work past 300m. Both work equally as well if not better than the deer season. The sst is cheaper.

Originally Posted by TLB

1:10" just keep it simple and use the nosler ballistic tips or 95gr sst. Both will work past 300m. Both work equally as well if not better than the deer season. The sst is cheaper.

The deer my mate shot tonight was the 3rd time he had used a rifle. Thru the head with a 95gr SST. Too easy he said. He is 6-3 and built like the out house.

Fiocchi 100 gr would definitely be worth a look at I feel

Go 95 sst mate, its pretty hard to beat as an all round 243 bullet

The 95sst is also a flat base

BUT the ballistics say it does not seem to deliver as much punch as the Silvertip running out of velocity and punch at around 300 metres (2211/1035) compared to the silvertip (2185/1007 at 374m)[/FONT][/COLOR]

[COLOR=#333333][FONT="]So my question, finally is this, is there a flat base projectile that will give me similar performance to the silvertip with appropriate load development. (I'm aware of the Nosler BT Silvertip, which is also BT base and used by Winchester in their silvertip factory ammo) My aim is to recreate similar to the Win Silvertip

Either of those bullets has heaps of velocity remaining to function at 300m. The other number tells you nothing about what is going to happen to the deer.

You could load the 95gr BT, 90gr Hornady ELDX, or you could try the NZ-made targex 95gr. All will work in a 1:10 .243 and as long as you've got more than 2700fps at the muzzle (very achievable) you'll happily kill anything you shoot with them out to 300m

It's not clear why you have decided you want a flat base bullet. What you need is a bullet that will stabilise from a 1:10 twist. Any of the above will do so, perfectly. The idea that a flat-based bullet will provide better precision is a gross simplification; it's absolutely not to be expected.

Originally Posted by Marty Henry

Fiocchi 100 gr would definitely be worth a look at I feel

My first pack of ammo was Fiocchi 100g and the Franchi hated it, grouping all over the place, although to be fair any 100g ammo I've tried hasn't shot well

The only possible two advantages to flat base over boat tail are #1 it may be better in tired old bore as can seal better(obsturate or some such fancy pants word) and #2 more likely in your case the projectile is shorter so may stabilise better in slower twists.

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

The only possible two advantages to flat base over boat tail are #1 it may be better in tired old bore as can seal better(obsturate or some such fancy pants word) and #2 more likely in your case the projectile is shorter so may stabilise better in slower twists.

#2 is irrelevant if you simply pick any bullet that will stabilise in a 1:10, such as the 3 I listed

If #1 is the case, get a new barrel. It isn't the case for this gentleman though

Originally Posted by gimp

It's not clear why you have decided you want a flat base bullet. What you need is a bullet that will stabilise from a 1:10 twist. Any of the above will do so, perfectly. The idea that a flat-based bullet will provide better precision is a gross simplification; it's absolutely not to be expected.

Everything I've read has suggested that for my twist rate, a flat base is far easier to produce reliably consistent results whereas the boattail is more sensitive to factors not being perfect and there's the issue of propellant gas blowby on boattail projectiles which CAN?MAY cause instability as the bullet exits the muzzle and the cloud of gas, the following is a link to one of my references https://www.gunsandammo.com/editoria.../375628#replay

The second number you dismissed is energy at POI and my understanding is that the rule of thumb is 1000ft/lb is reckoned to be the safe minimum on medium size game or am I missing something?

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

The only possible two advantages to flat base over boat tail are #1 it may be better in tired old bore as can seal better(obsturate or some such fancy pants word) and #2 more likely in your case the projectile is shorter so may stabilise better in slower twists.

Yeah, that's what I've been told re: projectile length, they won't stabilise in a 1:10 especially as you increase beyond 100g projectile, and my limited experience of 100g in the Franchi is...we don't like them!

Also worth knowing, Gunworks do sample packs at a small premium, so if you can't get a few samples projectiles for what you want to try from some helpful forum members, you can try them.