.243 barrel heat

[Devy55]

I continue to work on my .243 to improve it's accuracy, but I'm still not satisfied with the groups, and experience frequent fliers.

I read a post here (which I can no longer find) that said something about H&R problems with the .243 barrels heating up too quickly and affecting their accuracy.  I thought it was related to a specific barrel length.

Does this ring a bell with anyone? 

I want to check and see if this problem applied to my barrel.

Thanks.

[quickdtoo]

The heat problem affects all .243s, but the 20" superlight is the one that has the bad reputation. The standard contour would be more affected by heat than the bull barrels, but even the superlight can shoot good with the right load, see Howard NZ's posts, his is shooting the 95gr SST very well. Stimpylu32 has a superlight also that shoots very well.  My 24" bull barrel shoots the Federal 95gr and 100gr under 1" with no problems as do other bull barrel .243s.

Tim

[Devy55]

Thanks for the quick reply.

I measured my barrel and it is 22 inches from muzzle tip to the chamber rear.  I think it is a bull barrel, but there's no markings on the barrel indicating it for sure.

I've only fired about 40-50 rounds through it, so I was wondering if polishing the bore would help.

Also, I read a post that said heavier bullets seemed to work better in the .243's.  I've been shooting lighter bullets, believing the lower weight and slightly greater velocity would give me the flatest trajectory and greatest accuracy.

Maybe I'm wrong.

Wachatink?

[quickdtoo]

What ammo have you tried? Some shoot the 95gr and heavier best, others seem to like the 85gr and lighter bullets. The Federal 85gr BTHP is one of the lighter factory loads that shoot well in some, mine shows a definate preference for the 95gr Fusion and 100gr Power-shoks. The 95gr Winchester Supreme Ballistic Silvertips is another one the shoots good.

Tim

[Devy55]

I've been pretty much sticking with 75 grain Remington, and Hornady.  It seems to like the Hornady more than the Remington, but like I said earlier, the performance still isn't that great.

From what you said, I should probably try the 95 or 100 grain bullet and see if it will shoot any better.

[quickdtoo]

Winchester offers a 55gr Ballistic Silvertip and 80gr PSP, two more to try. Mitchell's .243 shoots handloaded 55gr BSTs extremely well, they'd be worth a try if you're looking for a varmint bullet.

Tim

[Hunternz]

Can't see why the .243 should be any worse than the 7.008 and .308, let alone .270, .280 and 3006. Barrel heating up on my superlight .243 would be an issue if I was trying to fire as fast as possible but during testing it's three shots and then check the target, so my barrel never gets hot, just hand warm.
Regards Howard.

[stimpylu32]

I have just started working with my superlite , so far i can get the 100 gr. Speer to shoot 1 1/4" @ 100 , that is 3 shots . As Howard said the best thing to do when working up loads is to shoot 3 and let it set for a few then shoot 3 more . that way you take the heat out of the process till you find the best load .

I will be using lighter bullets at the range next trip , will keep everyone posted .

stimpy