The .243 Winchester cartridge has been on the market for 70 years now. I first used it as a young hunter in the mid to late 70’s. Developed by Winchester as a versatile short action cartridge for hunting medium big game it was immediately put to use by deer hunters when introduced in 1955. It also quickly became popular as a varmint hunting cartridge.
Today, it stands out as one of the most favored cartridges for whitetail, mule deer, pronghorn, and a wide variety of small to medium sized African plains game.
Specs: .243 Winchester
The cartridge is based on a necked down .308 Winchester, which came on the market only three years earlier in 1952. Today with the advent of expanding monolithic copper bullets in 80 to 85 weight grain class or the continued availability of jacketed rounds of 90 to 105 grains there are ample choices for any medium big game hunting need.
I relied on 243 Win with 100 grain bullets for most of my big game hunting back in the 1970’s and 80’s. One of my favorites was the old standby, Remington 100 grain Core-Lokt. But today, as mentioned, there are a wide range of .243 ammo choices for every need.
Ballistic Capabilities of .243 Win
As to performance and comparisons, the .243 Winchester is in the same category as the newer 6mm Creedmoor (developed in 2007) however, the .243 Win has more bullet and casing options. It also delivers more factory ammo offerings.
With very minimal recoil, even less than that of the 30-30 Winchester cartridge, the .243 gives higher chamber pressures and larger powder volumes. The .243 muzzle velocity comes in anywhere from about 2800 feet/second up to 3900 feet/second from factory-loaded expanding ammunition depending on bullet weight and barrel length.
Best .243 Ammo Recommendations
Deer & Big Game Hunting
The following charts give an example of just a few of the more popular .243 Win offerings that would be ideal for deer sized game. These charts and varied ammo selections range from 100 to 95 to 90 weight grains, and are from 24-inch test barrels according to the manufactures.
Hornady BTSP InterLock American Whitetail 100 Grains
Distance | Velocity (fps) | Energy (ft/lb.) | Trajectory (inches) |
Muzzle | 2960 | 1945 | -2 |
100 yds | 2729 | 1653 | 2 |
200 yds | 2509 | 1398 | |
300 yds | 2300 | 1175 | -7 |
400 yds | 2101 | 980 | -21 |
500 yds | 1912 | 812 | -43 |
Hornady Superformance .243 Win SST 95 Grains
Distance | Velocity (fps) | Energy (ft/lb.) | Trajectory (inches) |
Muzzle | 3185 | 2140 | -2 |
100 yds | 2908 | 1784 | 1 |
200 yds | 2649 | 1480 | |
300 yds | 2404 | 1219 | -6 |
400 yds | 2172 | 995 | -19 |
500 yds | 1953 | 804 | -38 |
Federal Premium .243 Winchester ELD-X 90 Grains
Distance | Velocity (fps) | Energy (ft/lb.) | Trajectory (inches) |
Muzzle | 3150 | 1983 | |
100 yds | 2910 | 1693 | 1 |
200 yds | 2684 | 1439 | |
300 yds | 2468 | 1217 | -6 |
400 yds | 2262 | 1022 | -18 |
500 yds | 2066 | 853 | -37 |
As you can see from these charts, the .243 Win provides the hunter numerous options for medium size big game. In fact, the .243 Winchester is consistently named among the top five in rankings for “Best Whitetail Deer Hunting Cartridges” on an annual basis. Personally, I have taken pronghorn, mule deer, and whitetail deer with the .243 Winchester.
Varmint Hunting
In today’s world of modern cartridge offerings, the .243 Win also provides ample choices for those wishing to utilize the cartridge for varmint hunting. Hornady offers the Custom V-Max 87 Grain, and the Superformance V-Max in 58 grain. Then there is the Nosler Varmageddon in 55 grains to mention but a few choices in the varmint hunting category. For many years I often hunted coyotes using my Winchester Model 70 in .243 Win and found it to be an excellent choice.
The following charts give an example of just a few of the more popular .243 Win offerings that would be ideal for varmint sized game. These range in from 87 to 58 to 55 wight grains, and are again from 24-inch test barrels according to the manufactures.
Hornady Custom .243 Winchester V-MAX 87 Grain
Distance | Velocity (fps) | Energy (ft/lb.) | Trajectory (inches) |
Muzzle | 3240 | 2028 | -2 |
100 yds | 2990 | 1727 | 1 |
200 yds | 2754 | 1465 | |
300 yds | 2530 | 1236 | 6 |
400 yds | 2317 | 1037 | -17 |
500 yds | 2114 | 863 | -35 |
Nosler Varmageddon .243 Winchester PT Flat Base 55 Grain
Distance | Velocity (fps) | Energy (ft/lb.) | Trajectory (inches) |
Muzzle | 3800 | 1763 | -2 |
100 yds | 3355 | 1375 | 1 |
200 yds | 2954 | 1066 | |
300 yds | 2587 | 817 | -5 |
400 yds | 2248 | 617 | -15 |
500 yds | 1936 | 457 | -32 |
.243 Is Great For Young Hunters
We consider .243 Winchester an ideal first rifle for young hunters in part due to the varied action choices and milder recoil. Bolt actions lead the offerings, however selections in semi auto, lever, and single shot break open models give the young hunter a broad spectrum to choose from. Henry Repeating Arms offers excellent rifles chambered in .243 of both the lever and break open actions.
Aside from Henry, a wide selection of .243 Winchester caliber rifles is available today from companies such as Savage, Winchester, Browning, Ruger, Mossberg, Remington, and Christensen Arms to mention but a few.
Final Thoughts
The .243 has been around for 70 years now and I have no doubt it will be around for decades to come. It is a pleasure to shoot and provides excellent accuracy when you find the right ammo for your particular rifle. I still enjoy shooting this caliber today and if you have never owned a rifle in .243 Winchester you owe it to yourself, kids, and grandkids to give it a try!