I been testing loads in my 243 rifle for the past few weeks. I know pin point accuracy is not needed for predator hunting, but I like the tightest groups I can get. Of all my loads, 55gr Combined Technologies ballistic tips shot AWESOME with BLC-2. I was wondering if anyone had first hand experience or thoughts on 55gr moving 3900 fps out past 500 yards on coyotes. Another load that shot the same was with 70gr sierra blitz kings, but was a slow load showing 3350fps. According to my ballistic program, the energy between those two loads are nearly identical. So what would be the point of shooting that load. If both loads have nearly identical energy, it rather shoot the faster load. Any comments on the 55gr bullet around 500 yards. Its really fustrating!
Hunting with 243 55gr bullets
- Thread starter beavis
- Start date
nightcaller
Active member
the energy is the same for a 55 and 70 grain at 500yds?
i'm not going to run it in a program but i would expect the 70s to have more energy.
i'm not going to run it in a program but i would expect the 70s to have more energy.
TonyTebbe
New member
I shot a 55gr Ballistic Tips in front of 43 grains of Varget for many years. I have no idea what it does beyond 500 yards, but I have shot a red fox at 439 with it once. It tore it up, just as it did with every coyote and fox that I used it on. It's a brutal round...but very effective.
Tony
Tony
Originally Posted By: AWOLFGo with a bigger bullet. You'll be glad you did. More BC Kind of like throwing a piece of paper versus throwing a rock.
Exactly! I was shooting this load combination 15 years ago and killed tons of groundhogs with this load...I was loaading H380 at about 4100fps with Nosler ballistic tips (caution-very hot load) and I shot a ground hog about 50 yards from his hole one time at 529 lasered yards and he got back in his hole...All I found was a little blood, it just didnt have enough behind it to do the job or either I just nicked him but it makes you wonder...Like Tony said, its not fur friendly by no means.....Go with bigger bullets...Surely you can get coyotes in closer than that....
I will add this also...
Years ago I used to be all about speed but now I will take a big bullet going 2900fps over a small bullet going 4000fps anyday....Just my opinion...Happy hunting....
Chad
Exactly! I was shooting this load combination 15 years ago and killed tons of groundhogs with this load...I was loaading H380 at about 4100fps with Nosler ballistic tips (caution-very hot load) and I shot a ground hog about 50 yards from his hole one time at 529 lasered yards and he got back in his hole...All I found was a little blood, it just didnt have enough behind it to do the job or either I just nicked him but it makes you wonder...Like Tony said, its not fur friendly by no means.....Go with bigger bullets...Surely you can get coyotes in closer than that....
I will add this also...
Years ago I used to be all about speed but now I will take a big bullet going 2900fps over a small bullet going 4000fps anyday....Just my opinion...Happy hunting....
Chad
Coyotejunki
Well-known member
Beavis,
I used to use the 55gr BT's in my 6x45, very accurate, but not fur friendly in that cartridge. That was important to me. Reguardless, I think I would go with a 75 gr bullet in the 243 with all the extra powder of that cartridge. Better BC to handle the wind also.
BTW, Nosler shows the 6mm 55gr BT with a BC of .276, and the .224 55gr BT with a BC of .267, and I don't see how that is possible since the .224 cal is a longer bullet of the same weight. So your/there numbers may be flawed.
Have you actually shot the two at 500 yards, or other long distance to see what the real drop is? What kind of groups were you getting, Might surprise you.
I used to use the 55gr BT's in my 6x45, very accurate, but not fur friendly in that cartridge. That was important to me. Reguardless, I think I would go with a 75 gr bullet in the 243 with all the extra powder of that cartridge. Better BC to handle the wind also.
BTW, Nosler shows the 6mm 55gr BT with a BC of .276, and the .224 55gr BT with a BC of .267, and I don't see how that is possible since the .224 cal is a longer bullet of the same weight. So your/there numbers may be flawed.
Have you actually shot the two at 500 yards, or other long distance to see what the real drop is? What kind of groups were you getting, Might surprise you.
Webopper
New member
Some guys will tell you that if you can load the 55bt's hot and get over 4100 they become very fur friendly because the bullet expands so effectively. Me, I don't buy into that...
I have had better luck with the medium weighted bullets in the 75 to 85 gr range as some others have mentioned. Seem to have a good combo of energy and accuracy without being overly destructive.
I have had better luck with the medium weighted bullets in the 75 to 85 gr range as some others have mentioned. Seem to have a good combo of energy and accuracy without being overly destructive.
Tim Neitzke
New member
Burning that much powder I'd run atleast 70 gr bullets.
I am leaning more to a slower high BC bullet than a super fast lower BC.
You can't fight gravity and win,but you can play the wind .
I am leaning more to a slower high BC bullet than a super fast lower BC.
You can't fight gravity and win,but you can play the wind .
Originally Posted By: beavisI been testing loads in my 243 rifle for the past few weeks. I know pin point accuracy is not needed for predator hunting, but I like the tightest groups I can get. Of all my loads, 55gr Combined Technologies ballistic tips shot AWESOME with BLC-2. I was wondering if anyone had first hand experience or thoughts on 55gr moving 3900 fps out past 500 yards on coyotes. Another load that shot the same was with 70gr sierra blitz kings, but was a slow load showing 3350fps. According to my ballistic program, the energy between those two loads are nearly identical. So what would be the point of shooting that load. If both loads have nearly identical energy, it rather shoot the faster load. Any comments on the 55gr bullet around 500 yards. Its really fustrating!
3350 fps seems slow for a 70gr bullet out of a .243. What is your barrel length? I get about 3700 fps with 70gr BKs from my Cooper M22 with a 26 inch barrel. The terminal effects of that load are awesome. It's a 6mm Remington, but that's not much different than a .243. Try H4350 and see what happens.
3350 fps seems slow for a 70gr bullet out of a .243. What is your barrel length? I get about 3700 fps with 70gr BKs from my Cooper M22 with a 26 inch barrel. The terminal effects of that load are awesome. It's a 6mm Remington, but that's not much different than a .243. Try H4350 and see what happens.
kyotekiller25
Well-known member
The advantage of using a 70g over a 55g is easy at that range and thats wind, energy, and remaining impact velocity to make the bullet reliably open up.
Now if your pushing the 55g hard, and the 70g easy, then it will probly wash out, like you have noticed, but if you were to get that 70g up to where it should be shooting, 3500-3600, then you will easily see why you would go with the 70g at longer ranges then the 55. It is less effected by wind, and it hits harder, and I'll bet its going faster then the 55 by the time it gets to 400-500 yards, from there on out, the 70 will perform better in every aspect.
The other advantage to using a 70g bullet is close range shots if you hit bone. The 55s are going to fast and the bullet is to light to hold up when they hit virtually anything, they are like a bomb and they just implode, they dont penetrate for chit. The 70g will give a bit more insurance incase you hit a shoulder, that way the coyote will at least have 1, probly 2 broken shoulders with an exit hole, whereas the 55g splashes on the shoulders at times and then you see them running off on 3 legs and wonder what happened or blame the bullet your using, which is typically the case.
I use the 55s from my 243 as a truck gun because they shoot so fast and flat out to 400 yards. Dont have a lot of time to range them, and most the time there already running mach 10, so I choose to use the fastest/flattest for a truck rifle. I've shot plenty with the 55g NBT at around 3800-4000fps, depending on loads. I've experienced splashes on shoulders out to 200 yards or so, on the other hand, if you slip the little 55g behind the shoulder inside 200 yards, you will get great results, but rarely an exit. SOmetimes you get a gaping entry wound, sometimes you get a gaping exit hole. It all just really depends on where you hit them, and how fast the impact velocity of the bullet is when it does hit them.
For a longer range coyote bullet in the 243, I would shoot at least a 70g bullet at the bare minimum, and the 80-87's would be even better yet, or the 95g NBT. The 87g vmax with a BC of .400 shooting 3200-3300fps is about as good as one can get for a LR yote/varmint round in the 243. Less wind deflection and more energy. They dont shoot as flat, but thats the last of your worries at long range. Drop is easy to calculate, wind not so much..
If you really wanna reach out and touch em, try some 105 amax's with a BC of .500 at around 2900-3000fps. That will lay em out to as far as you can hit them. I worked up a good load with these in my stevens and its shooting 1/2-3/4 MOA at 100 yards. Ran out of bullets before I could do any LR shooting with them or shoot any coyotes though.
Now if your pushing the 55g hard, and the 70g easy, then it will probly wash out, like you have noticed, but if you were to get that 70g up to where it should be shooting, 3500-3600, then you will easily see why you would go with the 70g at longer ranges then the 55. It is less effected by wind, and it hits harder, and I'll bet its going faster then the 55 by the time it gets to 400-500 yards, from there on out, the 70 will perform better in every aspect.
The other advantage to using a 70g bullet is close range shots if you hit bone. The 55s are going to fast and the bullet is to light to hold up when they hit virtually anything, they are like a bomb and they just implode, they dont penetrate for chit. The 70g will give a bit more insurance incase you hit a shoulder, that way the coyote will at least have 1, probly 2 broken shoulders with an exit hole, whereas the 55g splashes on the shoulders at times and then you see them running off on 3 legs and wonder what happened or blame the bullet your using, which is typically the case.
I use the 55s from my 243 as a truck gun because they shoot so fast and flat out to 400 yards. Dont have a lot of time to range them, and most the time there already running mach 10, so I choose to use the fastest/flattest for a truck rifle. I've shot plenty with the 55g NBT at around 3800-4000fps, depending on loads. I've experienced splashes on shoulders out to 200 yards or so, on the other hand, if you slip the little 55g behind the shoulder inside 200 yards, you will get great results, but rarely an exit. SOmetimes you get a gaping entry wound, sometimes you get a gaping exit hole. It all just really depends on where you hit them, and how fast the impact velocity of the bullet is when it does hit them.
For a longer range coyote bullet in the 243, I would shoot at least a 70g bullet at the bare minimum, and the 80-87's would be even better yet, or the 95g NBT. The 87g vmax with a BC of .400 shooting 3200-3300fps is about as good as one can get for a LR yote/varmint round in the 243. Less wind deflection and more energy. They dont shoot as flat, but thats the last of your worries at long range. Drop is easy to calculate, wind not so much..
If you really wanna reach out and touch em, try some 105 amax's with a BC of .500 at around 2900-3000fps. That will lay em out to as far as you can hit them. I worked up a good load with these in my stevens and its shooting 1/2-3/4 MOA at 100 yards. Ran out of bullets before I could do any LR shooting with them or shoot any coyotes though.
If you are serious about long range shooting, and your barrel has a twist rate of 1:10 or faster, try Berger 95gr VLD hunting bullets. I get about 3300 fps out of these with sub 1/2 moa accuracy. Run that trough your balistics calculator and I think you will see that it smokes a 55gr bullet in every performance category.
possumal
New member
The 70 grain Blitz King from Sierra is a superior bullet and is pure poison on coyotes. I have shot coyotes as far as 425 yds in the shoulder and they are DRT, no exploding on impact but no exit out the other shoulder, total devastation inside. I started shooting this bullet upon recommendation from Paul Box, Chief Ballistician for Sierra when they first came out. The Blitz King series in all calibers shoot well with great killing power.
OKBrent
New member
I shot some 53 grs and I was getting terrible "splash wounds". One coyote I shot with the Nosler 53gr dropped and when I went to it it tried to run, I went to get the truck and left it to die, took it home and skinned it. The sholder was trashed and little copper fragments everywhere. Nothing passed into ribcage. The bullet was to thinned skinned to stay together. Brent