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tomharveyb

.243 for elk?

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What are you guys' thoughts on using a .243 for cow elk. We have 2 youth tags this year. One of my grandsons has shot a .243 up till now .

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I know it is not ideal, but a .243 can take one down. My 11 yr old got his first cow with a .243. We just went into the hunt knowing we would limit his shots to about 150 yards or less. Ended up shooting one from about 75 yards. Spine shot. Dropped instantly. I wanted my son to be comfortable shooting it which led to him being more accurate which is important. Just my 2 cents.

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I would think atleast a 270. With a well placed shot a 243 would work but a kid and moving through the trees thats not easy.

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My 10 year old will be shooting a 243 this year for elk. That's the starter rifle for the house. I have no reservations about it. I think high quality ammo is key, and of course shot placement.

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Yeah.

I .243 will work great.

Two yrs ago my son shot a spike bull at 135 yds through the lungs, the went 4 steps and dropped.

He was using a 100 grain partition at 2900 +/- FPS

The bullet blew all the through the bull.

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Weve shot quite a few with 243. No problems , just set them up & teach them placement , not just filling the scope with hair, but actually places it were they want it , double lung & they dont go far . You find the kids have more patience waiting for a good shot ( if youve taught them ) then most adults :)

post-2728-0-53683500-1520607248_thumb.jpeg

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I had a friend back in Montana who got his 243 as a young man when the cartridge first appeared on the market. He lived on his family ranch down by Lima and he worked for his family guide/outfitting business.

He filled his elk tag every year for 30 years until he quit hunting (He hates ATVs and some of the lousy hunting practices/hunters that he saw manifest after sorry lazy pukes now can get into back country on an ATV, but I digress.)

Anyways. the point is, he said a good hunter can get close enough to make a 243 effective. He claims every elk killed was killed with the exact same neck shot and every shot was under 70 yards. Alot of folk question the ethics of neck shots, but he never wounded one, never lost one and never failed to fill his tag. By the way, all those elk were larger than average bulls.

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A well placed shot will do the job with any caliber . Practice and knowing your limits makes it all better . Make it a memorable hunt for them juniors .

Best of luck to your hunters !

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Better he hunt with what is familiar comfortable. Also good lesson on shot placement, energy limitations and bullet construction. Good hunting !!!!

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You're welcome to use my 257wby with either 110 accubond or 100 TTSX if you like.

Thanks for the generous offer, but I have a 6.5 creedmoor that he can use if he proves he can shoot it well.
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You're welcome to use my 257wby with either 110 accubond or 100 TTSX if you like.

Thanks for the generous offer, but I have a 6.5 creedmoor that he can use if he proves he can shoot it well.
Shouldnt be much diffence between the creed or 243 when it comes to recoil.
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This is an age old question. Pretty much comes up every year. As others have already said, and proven, the .243 Win. is more than big enough. Some guys are always going to stick to the "bigger is better" motto, especially the guys that like to get beat up by the .300+ magnums. Personally, I don't like to get punished, or flinch. The .243 has been the starter rifle in my house as well. One of my sons also shot a cow with a .257 Roberts with a 100 gr. Sierra. Shot her in the neck and she dropped where she stood. Elk really aren't that hard to kill if you hit them in the right spot. And they have a BIG kill zone compared to most of the other animals we hunt. I also agree the Creedmoor is a good choice. I won one in an AES raffle and am currently working up a load of 120 gr. Ballistic Tips for my wife to use as a deer/antelope gun. Wouldn't hesitate to use them on elk either, although I would probably opt for the Partition if that was the case. Good luck to the kids, and post pics of the kids holding that .243 over another downed elk. Enjoy. Nothing better than sharing the experience of a kid being successful.

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Creedmoor kicks a little harder than .243 with 100 gr. .243 vs 140gr creed, but I think at this point it's mostly a mental thing .... If they think it will kick more, they think about it and it affects their shooting. We'll work on it this summer and decide which one he shoots better. Thanks to all who responded. Kind of reinforced my thinking that a .243 would be adequate, if not ideal. Either way, it's exciting to be taking the kids out. No tags for me, but I'm just as excited to take them. First elk tags after trying for 3 years.

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I run 130s in my creedmoor. I can notice less recoil from my 143 load. I bet 130 accubonds would be pretty neat coming out of a creedmoor. Either one would do the job. Always neat watching kids prepare. They handle the pressure better than us usually haha

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