Deer Caliber now!

[monstermoose78]

How much is a membership? This is something I would like to try if I can get my wife to ok it and it doesnt cost to much.

[cavalierowner]

You would have to wait until this fall to apply for next year membership, as we just finished the membership stuff for this year. After the first year the membership is pretty reasonable if you do your 8 hours of work at the club.

[Borch]

Nothing wrong with any of the calibers suggested, but if I was buying a new Tikka, I would get it in .260 Remington, and stock up on shells and never look back...

Here's an old post from 2005 on a shooters forum:

Last year, I purchased a Ruger M77, Mark 2 chambered for the .260 Remington (for $100 less than a Remington). I did a lot of research on the cartridge and posted several boards about this round. I was looking to purchase a .243 at the time and had never heard of the .260 Rem cartridge before that time. During my research, I found that the ballistics very closely matched the .243 (6mm) and the 7mm-08......out to 300 yds. After that mark, the .260, ballistically was superior to both other rounds in fps and ft/lbs of energy. The sectional density of the .260 (6.5mm) round is very comparable to the .30 caliber (7.62mm) round. In fact it is almost the same.

After further investigating, I found that the .260 can be loaded with bullets ranging from 85 gns to 160 gns. The heaviest bullet for the .243 was 100 gns. You can load larger bullets for the 7mm-08, however, from what I found, the choice of bullets is limited to varmint type bullets below 130gns. The ballistics for the .260 Rem are very comparable to the long-lived .308, but with more gusto and speed. Now, this cartridge mostly lends itself to the reloader (as does the 7mm-08) because most factory ammo is loaded in either 120 or 140 gns, but their is a large selection of bullet weights for this round. (To recount my findings, you can get 85, 100, 120, 129, 140, and 160 gn bullets in many styles and components). The .308 round is available in a multitude of bullet weights as well, but at a loss of speed due to the larger bullet.

According the the Remington Ballistic Comparison Calculator (.243@100 grn, .260@140 grn, .308@150grn, 7mm@140 grn); At 300 yds:

.260 Rem = 2158 fps and 1448 ft/lbs energy and drops 11.7 inches (Zeroed at 150 yds)

.308 Win = 2009 fps and 1344 ft/lbs energy and drops 14.7 inches (Zeroed at 100 yds)

.243 Win = 2215 fps and 1089 ft/lbs energy and drops 10.4 inches (Zeroed at 150 yds)

7mm-08 = 2189 fps and 1490 ft/lbs energy and drops 11 inches (Zeroed at 150 yds)

This comparison shows that, according to the calculator, at 300yds the .243 is almost 100 fps faster (with a 40 grn smaler bullet), but has almost 400 ft/lbs less energy. It also shows that the .260 is over 100fps faster and 100 ft/lbs energy more than the .308. Now, the .260 is shooting a bullet 10 grns less in weight than the .308, however, in my testing between 120 and 129 grn (6.5mm) bullets, I found no real dicernable difference in fps on the average, (maybe 35 fps). The closest comparison is the 7mm-08, but the .243 out sells this cartridge as well, and their is little real difference between the two (0.5mm).

Ok, I have given a lot of data to digest. I have done this for a reason. Granted, I am slighted towards the .260 Rem cartridge when compared to the above cartridges. But I am because of the information I reviewed and the data I have received by multiple loads and variations I have tested with my rifle.

Why do you think, that the .243 still outsells the .260 Remington day in and day out. Why would Remington stop chambering this cartridge when it was the one who introduced it? They are still chambering the outdated .35 Rem (which I like in my Marlin). I am not knocking the .243 in its effectiveness or reliablility in downing deer sized and smaller animals. I have taken several deer very cleanly with a .243. However, why would one limit themselves to a round that can be loaded with such a limited variations of bullets/weights?

Am I alone in this fight? Am I a lone voice in the myriad of available cartridges? I won't even get into all the new WSSM cartridges available. I already have most of the long action cartridges that have been made almost obsolete with the new shorter, fatter cartridges.........yeah right. I would like to hear from any members who have an opinion on this thread.

Thanks for your responses.

Well all I can say is that this gun writer didn't look very hard for 7mm-08 ammo options at that time. For instance the 7mm-08 came in several bullets appropriate for deer, elk and moose in bullet weight exceeding 150 gr including a few "high energy" and partition options. I know this from experience as my girls have been shooting this round for more than 13 years. While not a mainstream elk gun it has a following for those who value shoot placement over the big bang. Lots of great options and everyone has their favorite. Nothing wrong with that at all.

[Archerysniper]

Harris also has a ranger that stretches too a 1000 meter but memberships are hard to get.

[JBar]

Borch the article states nothing about the 7mm-08 not having larger grain bullet choices. Only says that he found most bullets being varmint specific under 130 gr.

[swamptiger]

Where the .260 (6.5) has a little edge over the 7mm is in sectional density. In other words, you can use a lighter bullet in the 6.5, and get higher velocity and the same penetration with the same load.

I've actually shot a 30-06 most of my life, but the 6.5 is a very interesting round if you get to studying on it. For all practical purposes, not a lot of difference between any of the popular rounds, but there is a difference.

http://www.chuckhawks.com/sd.htm

[Rost]

.243,25-06, 260, .270, 7mm, .280, 308, 30-06, .300..

They'll all kill a deer. I shoot a 25-06 and love it, but each time I sort through the brass bucket when I work at the range, I find that apparently, the .270 and .243 are by far the most popular deer calibers, at least where I live.

[Spike76]

In our hunting camp the majority of us use the 06. If you lose or foget ammo there is always some around. I shoot a 338 now and love it. I bring plenty of ammo but have an 06 for backup. The first year hunting with the 338, I had to go to Grandrapids to get ammo. The 338 was given to me as a gift on the way up to deer camp. Awesome friend was very giving.