Thumbing thru my Nosler Reloading Manuals the other evening I noticed a load that piqued my curiosity. I've killed a few things with a .243 Win. over the years all with the Remington and Winchester 100gr. factory loads. Deer hit ran up to 50yds and fell over. But, we are always looking for better and more (velocity). In the Nosler No. 3 Manual there is a 100 grain load using 47.5 grains of IMR-7828 powder. The load produces 3250fps. In the No. 4 Manual a load of 45.5 grains produced 3123fps. Both were in a Lilja 24in. test barrel with the same primers. Do you reckon the No.3 Manual load was a misprint or too hot? I like the thoughts of a 243 at 3250fps with a 100 grain bullet.

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Originally posted by Magnum Hunter1:
Thumbing thru my Nosler Reloading Manuals the other evening I noticed a load that piqued my curiosity. I've killed a few things with a .243 Win. over the years all with the Remington and Winchester 100gr. factory loads. Deer hit ran up to 50yds and fell over. But, we are always looking for better and more (velocity). In the Nosler No. 3 Manual there is a 100 grain load using 47.5 grains of IMR-7828 powder. The load produces 3250fps. In the No. 4 Manual a load of 45.5 grains produced 3123fps. Both were in a Lilja 24in. test barrel with the same primers. Do you reckon the No.3 Manual load was a misprint or too hot? I like the thoughts of a 243 at 3250fps with a 100 grain bullet.

Well, you could always try to work up to it, maybe at 2/10 grain steps. Even if you achieve a couple of hundred fps, I can't imagine you'd gain more than 20 - 25 yards of point blank range, and dead is dead.

Me? I'd stick with what I know to be safe and what works.

Magnum Hunter--I use 100 grain cup and core-usually Winchester or Remington bulk packed. I don't load them hot-probably 2900-3000 range. Last deer I shot was most unusual. At the shot it didn't flinch,
jump nor fall down, but slowly walked with a stagger. Walked maybe 10 yards and stopped and was standing still but swaying. I walked right up to it while it was still on its feet and I was completely unnoticed. After a short time it fell dead. I had taken out heart and lungs and how it took one step is beyond me.

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Originally posted by carpetman1:
Magnum Hunter--I use 100 grain cup and core-usually Winchester or Remington bulk packed. I don't load them hot-probably 2900-3000 range. Last deer I shot was most unusual. At the shot it didn't flinch,
jump nor fall down, but slowly walked with a stagger. Walked maybe 10 yards and stopped and was standing still but swaying. I walked right up to it while it was still on its feet and I was completely unnoticed. After a short time it fell dead. I had taken out heart and lungs and how it took one step is beyond me.

Not to go too far off topic, but I had a near identical experience.

20 years ago, I shot a 4X4 about 80 yards away with my .35 Rem. Thompson Contender. He was standing broadside, facing right, but looking at me in my tree stand. He gave no sign of being hit. None at all. He just kept looking at me.

I couldn't believe I missed him! So I looked through the little 2.5 scope and found a little mark on his lower chest that I hadn't seen before, right at my aiming point.

I figured I'd hit him where I'd aimed, and that it was a kill shot. But I didn't want to spook him by reloading. After a wait of 15 - 30 seconds(?) he turned 180 degrees, walked very, very slowly for a few yards, turned 90 degrees to his right and walked up hill, stumbling as he walked, turned right took two steps and dropped.

The 180 grain bullet had passed between a couple of ribs, gone through the right lung and taken the top off the deer's heart.

Don't mean to hijack the thread, but I sure get it.

BL O'Connor--I too could see the spot where I hit it and knew it was a good shot by that.

Iam doubtfuk you'll get 3250 FPS out of anything. More like 3050 at the top. If you need 3250 out of a 243 for killing deer try Barnes 85 grain TSXs or 80 grain TTSXs and 37.6-38.5 grains of Varget. That'll give you good accuracy once you find COAL and will penetrate better than any 100 grain cup and core and you get the 3250 with room for more up to 3400.

Misprints have been known to happen. Most 308 class cartidges have a 4 grain charge weight in their spread. A different max of 2 grains from 1 manual to the next is pretty significant on a base ~45 grns

Also, Hodgdon while for a diferent bullet but still a 100 grains shows 46 grains as a compressed load.

If you don't get 3250 the deer will just laugh at you.

Do the two loads have the same bullet and length? 7828 is a pretty slow powder so the case is probably full or even compressed. Maybe the lighter load is all they could fit in there?

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After a short time it fell dead. I had taken out heart and lungs and how it took one step is beyond me.

Easy they do it all the time.

I seen deer with the heart and lungs turned to mush. Run close to a hundred yards.

Nothing unusual about a deer moving after a chest hit.

Enough oxygen in their system to keep moving that's all.

I think both were accurate.

Different barrels.

Different velocities.

By the way, you are not going to kill anything better with higher velocity.

What counts is where you hit them.

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(Saeed) By the way, you are not going to kill anything better with higher velocity.

What counts is where you hit them.

Are you telling me if I hit them in the leg for example they are going to live but I'm not going to kill them even if I had 200 fps more velocity? What if I hit them in the leg with a bigger bullet, wouldn't that kill them for sure? If not, that is contrary to what I read here all the time.

Hitting a deer in the leg is a kill shot! Happened to me several times - even with one moose. Bullets hit the front leg and broke it. Then they continued on through the lungs and out the other side. Animals were dead in seconds….

But to your point, maybe a bigger faster bullet would have killed them deader. Seems that many here think so.


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Originally posted by carpetman1:

quote:

(Saeed) By the way, you are not going to kill anything better with higher velocity.

What counts is where you hit them.

Are you telling me if I hit them in the leg for example they are going to live but I'm not going to kill them even if I had 200 fps more velocity? What if I hit them in the leg with a bigger bullet, wouldn't that kill them for sure? If not, that is contrary to what I read here all the time.

Try one of the .22 centerfire's---they will knock the shit outa anything!!!

HIp

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Try one of the .22 centerfire's---they will knock the shit outa anything!!!

HIp

Been saying and doing that for years.

34.5 grains of IMR 4320 and a 100 grain Nosler flat base has been making meat for me for 52 years as of this year. Not a fast load and does not need to be .
If I hunted where I made a lot of shots of 300 yds or more a faster load might be an advantage to me but I can't imagine the deer would ever know the difference.