anybody done much loading with the 55 grain bullets in the 243 Winchester??

I've done a bit with the 58 grain Vmax, got up to 3800 fps in my 24" barrel Model 700 with Varget.

Hornady lists their 58 gr factory load @ 3750 fps, which is pretty mild Id think. Federal and Winchester both load 55 grain Ballistic Tips. Winchester @ 3910 fps (lubalox coated Ballistic SilverTip), and Federal @ 3850 fps (naked NBT). BlackHills ammo in the US loads the 55 NBT @ 3800.

Nosler #4 manual lists one load at 4000+ fps, and six that are above 3935 fps. Hornady #5 lists no load with the 58 grain Vmax at 3900 fps or above. Hodgdon.com shows a few loads with the 55 gr NBT over 4000

I got five hundred 55 grain Ballistic Tips and a bunch of Varget & RL15. Im gonna see what the 243 can do


anyways, results w/ chrony info will be much appreciated. stay tuned

H4895 is the quickest that I have heard about . Max 4050 FPS .

I hope you have LOTS of copper cleaner.

Im shooting a list max load using H380 and the 55 gr Nosler Bt.
I don't know how fast it's going and it really doesn't matter to me. I do know that it's an accrurate load in my old Sako Forester and it gets to the target instantly.
I originaly loaded it for rock chucks and ground squirrels, but use my .204 for them exclusivly now.
There's very little recoil...a great trainer load for new shooters and should be a nightmare to coyotes! BT

quote:

Originally posted by 30378:
I hope you have LOTS of copper cleaner.

Kind of ironic coming from someone whos handle is 30378... don't you think?
I've been shooting the 55 graun BTs for years out of me 6mm Rem. With a 24" bbl I get 4100 out of 53.0/H414 with no increase in fouling vs. the 95 Nosler BTs. They Hammer coyotes and absolutely nuke 'chucks and crows. You should be able to see 4000 with RE-15 or one of the 4895s.

I'm using 47.3 grain of Varget with the Nosler BT for 4060fps through my Chrony in a Remington CDL with the 24" tube. Accruacy is tight enough to make the starting lineup in the varmint rifles. Recoil is very light and the performance of the bullet on rock chucks, coyotes, and small deer is amazing. Of course every rifle and chamber is different and all that stuff but I've found a winner for me. JMHO.

I must admit, I'm getting confused.

In this thread there are a number of folk who are apparently getting 4,000 f.p.s. plus with quite good accuracy from the .243.

Yet, in sessions with various Camp Perry-type high-power competitors I've met, I hear that one of the reasons David Tubb invented his new 6 mm "X" cartridge, and that .243s AREN'T very popular in the national maches, is that even standard .243 loads EAT barrels.

Straighten me out on this one, please.

There is nothing magic about 4,000.....3,800 is a very respectable number as well.....

My 24" HB will get 4000+, but the load I settled on does just a tad under 4000 fps.

Despite the fact that the 55 grain BTip shoots very, very well in my .243, I still prefer the 70 grain BTip at 3575 fps for more reliable performance at long range and it also seems to give the targets more "air time".

My 6mm has about 4000 rounds through it... about half of which were the 55 grainers at 4000+. It still shoots sub 1" groups at 200 yds... routinely. I haven't seen a round yet that will hold less than 80 grains of powder and EAT barrels... unless they're abused in a Prarie Dog Town somewhere. And lets not fool ourselves here... Ol'Mr. Tubbs created the 6XC for the same reason we have the WSMs, SAUMs, and .204... the all mighty dollar. I think they call it the 6XC because the XC stands for Xtra Costly.

My S-I-L has a Ruger M77 All-weather in 243WIn that I sold him and he loaded some 55 grain Ballistic tips for, the accuracy didn't start to happen until he was shooting a couple grains over Max Load. The primers were starting to flatten and the bolt had a slight increase in lift resistance. Chrono was giving about 4250 ft/sec at muzzle + 10'. This was using H4895 with WLRP and Win brass. Then he tried the 58V-Max's and they seemed to group as well without testing the action strength of the rifle but also with less velocity. If I could get a 6MM bore rifle with a slower rate of twist than 1/10" I would consider a heavy barrel varmint gun in this caliber, but I don't think a 10" twist rate is condusive to accuracy with the lighter weight slugs. Just my opinion.

I have a Rem ADL in 243 that is a real accuracy pig right out of the box... like 5 and 6 inch groups...

however, 50 grains of H 380 with a 55 Ballistic Tip or 58 gr V Max or a Sierra 60 grain HP.. and I get 4000 fps plus and the accuracy is a one hole shooter at 100 yds...

The barrels accuracy otherwise really sucks with regular 243 loads.. however throttle it down to 2000 to 2200 fps and it is a tack driver also...

I don't look at caliber based on it being hard on barrels or not.. to me that is like buying a car, based on whether it is hard on tires or not...

A barrel wears out, replace it, or have it cut back and rechambered...

but learning to live without max velocities can greatly reduce the frequency of having to do all of that...

I just put a 223 barrel on a Winchester Model 70, that I plan to have a life span of about 10,000 rounds or so.. and I figure that will be based over a 2 to 3 year service life...but I just plan on getting another barrel ordered for it.. since they don't make Model 70s anymore... I don't plan on swapping this action, not in my shooting life time and I hope my son won't either.. as it is going to him....

Hi Bushchook

If I have understood your location it's WA.

I get 4025 mean velocity with 53.0 gr. of H380 and the 55 gr. Nosler BT out of a straight factory Rem 788. I never expected this short of a bullet to stabilize well at 4000 fps, but I bought one box and worked it up. This load groups 3/4" all day if you allow the barrel to cool. This is max. listed load in the Nosler manual, and this is partly governed by case capacity, it takes a different trick to get that much powder in the case! Very impressive on p-dogs and gophers out to 500 yds.
Selmerfan

Alberta Canuck,

I know!! I know!!

because nobody here wants to fire ten rounds in sixty seconds.


Rich
DRSS

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Sharpshooter:
Alberta Canuck,

I know!! I know!!

because nobody here wants to fire ten rounds in sixty seconds.


Rich
DRSS

Yeh, Rich, I had already understood they'd probably be shooting relatively few rounds per minute.

I was not trying to be a smart ass, but asking a genuine question. I have somewhere between 600 & 1,000 of the Noslers on hand, but had never even considered using them in my nice little Schneider-barreled M 600 .243. I use them instead in my 6 TallDog for varmints.

Am still curious as to what using a bunch of powder will do to a good .243 barrel. Has anyone out there used a bore-scope to check their barrel throats at relatively regular intervals?

My experience with the 243 is very similar to that of Seafire. My WalMart special 243 was and is a dog with 95-100 grain factory loads. It is a mean machine with 55 grain NBTs, and close with the Sierra 60 gr. HP. I think the 60 Gr. HP probably violates some sort of treaty somewhere for the amount of damage it does on groundhogs. I mean it is absolutely crazy out of this world, even on the big groundhogs. I actually got spoiled with this gun, and started shooting lots of other rifles, mainly 223s for groundhogs, but might re-scope the 243 this year. I am glass poor. Will have to pull one off another rifle.

With regards as to why David chose the 6XC:

The .243 has quirky reloading pressure problems. Even modest pressure spikes/dropouts will lose a match at the level David competes (I've mesured this exact effect with my chrono - spooky!).

The 6XC also has a little less recoil (no, David is not recoil sensitive, but less is more better).

The 6XC is more efficient, and gives approx .243 velocities.

The case config is such that the sharper shoulder angle gives (apparently) more consistent ignition (ie: powder is crowded into smaller space = faster ignition. I've seen the velocity consistency results from chrono'ing my loads).

As for DDP207's insult, <<Ol'Mr. Tubbs created the 6XC for the same reason we have the WSMs, SAUMs, and .204... the all mighty dollar. I think they call it the 6XC because the XC stands for Xtra Costly.>>

DDP207, it may also stand for Xtra Critical. Let me tell you that David is a stand-up guy and did NOT intend to commercialize his experiment. That he can make some change on his efforts - great! And it's plain Mr. Tubbs to you! (I can call him David, but never Dave).

Also, you better get your facts straight re the short mags: Efficiency, efficiency, efficiency...all else is do-do.

The 6XC is a fine cartridge, and one of the more fun ones to shoot, IMHO. I've put more XC rounds down the tube than I want to count, and have a .243 as well - so I do have a little knowledge of what I speak. I reload for > 30 calibers at last count over a period of (ooof!), er, let's just say more than six doggy-years, and have not blown myself up yet - so I am at least a beginner.

Strangely, the most accurate 6XC round I load is the 60 grain Varmint Sierra. Can't remember the velocity (yep, I do chrono a lot of loads) but I cannot remember a 'yote or squirrel ever complaining that it was hit with something too slow.

Didn't mean to rant - but some people in this business DO deserve respect. I hope someday I can shoot as well as one of David's sneakers can...

'Flinch