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RIFLE CALIBRE HAVE I MADE THE RIGHT CHOICE?


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Hi again guys after quite a few stalks and a number of kills i have made the decision to put in a variation on my section 1 firearms certificate for a large bore rifle, I have tought about it long and hard and my conclusion was that if i bought a 243 then i would end up wanting to shoot big reds too and it would not be as quite as effective as a 308 so on applying for my variation i have chosen a 308 with the train of thought that if i were to use it on smaller deer like roe doe's etc then i can use a lower grain bullett trying to reduce any as much damage on impact, i know there will be more damage than a 243 but its also the impact im looking for too, am i right in my train of thought or should i tear it up and go for the 243?

 

any comments and suggestions would be well appreciated guys cheers , :gunsmilie:

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Everyone finds different combinations that suit them best depending what they want to shoot.

 

I don't like 308's for anything. To get a round heavy enough for an October Stag it is far too slow, and trajectory is poor, generally referred to as an old cannon around here!

 

I use a moderated .270 with a 130 grain bullt for absolutely everything, from foxes to rutting stags.

 

Just remember you will have to re-zero your rifle every time you switch to a different grain of bullet, and with most bullets now costing around £1 per round, it can become very costly if you vary what you shoot throughout the season.

 

The .243 is too light to shoot red deer. Many people will argue that fact, and I've heard it all before, but if a guest comes to the hill with me, they will not be allowed to use a .243 to shoot red stags, I have had to chase/follow up/restalk and finish off too many deer that had good bullet placement with a .243 to allow it.

 

Have you considered a 25-06, or a .270?

 

Either of these with a moderator will satisfy large calibre shooting needs in this country

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308's are great for med-large deer....... of all the calibres used down here the 270 would have to be the most hated or the most loved, alot of guys buy them on rep and sell them not long after trying a mates 243 or 7m08, the gunshops are fill with 270's for some strange reason......i use a 3006 myself and find it does the job with out fuss, i'd be happy using a 308 myself for reds.

for your little roe a 308 is total over kill, even handloaded 110grs will put a large hole in them.

my choice would be a 2506, mild to shoot and very accurate, all the good bullet weights of the 243 and the 20% increase in bullet weight for the odd red deer.

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You are definitley thinking along the right lines, .308 is fine for reds, I am a .270 fan for the slightly flatter trajectory, but when it comes to deer size targets the difference on chest shots will make feck all difference. The .243 will also handle them well though with the correct bullet, there have been thousands upon thousands of reds shot over the years with .222's, if you feel comfortable with the .308 I would say great choice as it will handle the reds better.

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No expert myself but I hear good things about both the 6.5 x 55 and the 7mm08. I suspose everyone who has a few years under their belts will have their own personal favourites. I know the .308 is a very popular calibre for hill reds.

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No expert myself but I hear good things about both the 6.5 x 55 and the 7mm08. I suspose everyone who has a few years under their belts will have their own personal favourites. I know the .308 is a very popular calibre for hill reds.

 

I shoot numerous reds and roe using a 6.5x55 - it does not have the 'kick' of a 270 having had one which nearly gave me the shooter's flinch.

 

However the 308 is a great round for deer with quite mild recoil - even for roe - a friend uses one and on the perfect lung shot, have never seen an exit hole larger than 2 inches - seen a lot also of 243 on roe and yet to see an exit hole less than 2 inches.

 

Someone talked about the slow bullet for the 308, yes it is slow this is what makes it the ideal deer calibre ( about 2750fps) but it has the kinetic energy, on the other hand the 243 is about 3300 fps and that is one of the reasons for severe tissue damage.

 

Someone also mentioned poor trajectory on the 308. If it is zeroed at your average shot taking say 130 yards, the bullet will only drop 2 inches at 200 yards which is still the same lethal shot on a deer - unless.............that someone uses his rifle at attempts over 500 yards.

 

Seems to me that to some, stalking a deer is a simple matter of driving to the chosen spot, walk 50 yards and shoot at a deer two parishes away. These people have lost sight of the meaning of the word stalk. A true stalker is the person who enters the the deer's domain to outsmart it by getting say within 100 yards - and before anyone asks me - yes I have stalked in Scotland when it has taken me nearly an hour to get 100 yards nearer.

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Having been brought up in a hunting environment with red deer in combination

with the 6.5*55,I would recommend it to anyone hunting deer. There are a range of bullets

out there with a variety of purposes in mind. Personally me and my father have

used the RWS(Dynamit Nobel) DK (Doppel kern geschoss) for the last number of

seasons with brilliant effects. This bullet seems to be hard to get within the British

Isles but its a real killer. 99% of the deer shot ran for very short distances if any.

 

As was mentioned already, bullet choice is often a personal thing and various

shooters have had different experinces. I shot a Roe buck with 9.3*62 2 yrs

ago and it ran for over 50yards with a lung shot and exit wound the size of a

tennis ball. So from my experience heavy bullets don't often live up to their

reputation of effective killing. Keep in mind that 6.5 is a renowned bullet

for moose in scandinavia. It is also a lovely round to shot on targets as it does

not have a heavy recoil. Its increasing popularity amongst shooter in Ireland

and Great Britain indicates that this opinion is shared by many hunters.

Best of luck with your choice and happy and safe hunting.

 

Rgds

 

Reddeer1

Edited by reddeer1
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i see no problem with your choice but for the fact that what do you shoot most, reds fallow etc or roe, muntjac,

The .243 is effective on hill reds fact, if poor placement of the bullet is to blame then surely this is not the rifles fault but the shooters.

i've seen all deer species in ireland hit with .308, .270, 6.5x55, 6.5 x 284, all hit reds and the deer run, shooter error, not rifle.

If your a competent shot the .243 will be a good all rounder............... :gunsmilie:

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My .270 is fitted with a t8 reflex suppressor sound moderator, which massively reduces the recoil, and eliminates the flinch reaction to the shot.

 

I stand by my opinion that a .243 is not a large enough calibre to shoot hill red deer (particularly rutting stags), regardless of the compitence of the person using it. It is at the lower end of the scale in terms of legality in Scotland, and longer distance shots are often the only possibility in some situations, which are better suited to the larger charge and muzzel velocity of the .270 (for example).

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Dicehorn great post, very, very true, obviously speaking from experience.

 

By the way mods I had this post deleted yesterday, the second time it has happened lately??

Edited by FJager
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Hi guys thanks for all your comments i really appreciate it! i have done 10 stalks and taken 6 bucks all my shots have been good heart and lung shots if i wasnt confident enough to place a spot on shot i would just let the moment pass by bu all your comments have been very usefull as it happens i have actually now submitted my paperwork for a 308 that was the choice i have made using my origional train of thought,I had my visit today everythng went well and should have my new rifle very soon and be out with it, :clapper::gunsmilie:

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