Hornady .243, 100gr. BTSP.......

[encore4me]

......any one use this for deer? This shoots real well out of my Encore and is what I plan on using for deer this season, just wanted to know if any one else has used it. If you are going to bash the .243 please dont respond to this thread



Matt

[Graybeard]

I used that bullet in a factory load to shoot the only deer I ever shot with a .243. I didn't recover it. No blood trail at all. Since I didn't recover it I cannot be sure if it was a poor hit or if the bullet just didn't do the job. The buck stepped forward just as the trigger broke. It looked like a front of liver and/or rear of lung hit to me.

But regardless it didn't exit and there was a zero blood trail. I searched high and low for several hundred yards all around and finally decided that I had some how missed altho I couldn't see how. It was found by other hunters and reported to me about a week later when buzzards were seen circling. It was too late then for them to evaluate where the bullet had hit.

My friend Barry in PA had a rifle exactly like mine (Browning Low Wall) and used it for two does I think that season and one or two since. All were one shot kills. He was using same bullet but in his handloads.

So it can work but it can fail also apparently but then I can't be sure if the failure was the shooter's fault or the bullets. I just plain dunno but I lost confidence in it after that and haven't used a gun so light for deer since.

[rickt300]

I used the bullet on several deer on a culling operation and it worked okay. It didn't exit all the time but it did a lot of damage. I like the flat base version better. I should add I shot every one of those deer at the base of the neck at the shoulder and the spine is pretty big there, they all dropped on the spot as did the ones I shot in the same place with a 16 inch barreled AR15 in 223.

[Val]

I'm using the 100 grain Nosler Partition in my .243. I intend to use it on my deer hunts this season. I'm getting well under 1" three shot groups with this load.

[flintlock]

Matt...I have used on 7-8 deer, and have a close hunting partner that has used on another 12 or so, never had a problem, works well...