Any experience with 85gr Barnes XBT's out of a 243 for deer and antelope? My gun seems to shoot the 85gr XBT's pretty well so I thought I'd give them a try this fall. How have they done for you?

I have a buddy that killed 2 deer last year with that set-up,no problems at all.I have been loading the 95 gr. Barnes for my sons .243 and they shoot well using IMR4350 powder,but this will be his first year to get to shoot a deer with it so I can not comment yet on it's performance.

What a difference 100 yards makes. My 85gr Barnes XBT loads were sub MOA at 100 yards but at 200 yards the groups opened up to 3.5" - 4". Very discouraging. Maybe I need to look for a different deer/antelope bullet.

Jay,

What, did I read this right? Somebody from the Republic of Boulder that is a hunter?! Obviously you don't read the papers and are very lost!! Anyway, my hunting buddy shoots the 85gr. Sierra BT from his 243AI with excellent results on antelope. He does not shoot that round for deer here in CO. so I can't give you any feedback on that. Also the Barnes bullets don't seem to open up reliably on the lighter animals so the Sierras may be just the ticket. They are ALOT cheaper too!
Just my 2 cents,
Elk Country