.243 Winchester History and General Information:
 The extremely popular .243 Winchester center-fire rifle cartridge originated as a wildcat based on the .308 Winchester brass necked down to .243 caliber, Warren Page developed the first prototype of this cartridge. Warren Page, then shooting columnist for Field & Stream magazine, was an avid wildcatter as well, had convinced many American hunters through his writings that his .243 caliber wildcats would effectively harvest varmints and deer as a combination cartridge. Winchester agreed and the .243 Winchester was made available as a factory cartridge to the public by Winchester in 1955. Winchester chambered the .243 in their new Model 70 Featherweight rifle using a 22 inch, 1 in 10 inch twist barrel, offering 80 and 100 grain bullet loads. The .243 Winchester is the first true dual purpose class of hunting rifle cartridges and it is now among the top five most popular and widely available of all center-fire rifle cartridges in the world. Part of the extreme popularity of the .243 is the fact that it recoils very little to the shooters shoulder which adds to its over-all accuracy potential of which this cartridge is well known for. The greatest virtue of the .243 is that it offers a flat bullet trajectory for varmint hunting, predator hunting and adequate killing power for thin skinned big game animals at a low recoil level that will help any hunter to shoot more accurately at greater distances. .243 Winchester Cartridge Specifications:
  Bullet Diameter: .243 Inch.
Neck Diameter: .276 Inch.
Shoulder Diameter: .454 Inch.
Shoulder Angle: 20 Degrees.
Base Diameter: .470 Inch.
Rim Diameter: .473 Inch.
Case Body Length: 1.560 Inches.
Case Shoulder Length: .244 Inch.
Case Neck Length: .231 Inch.
Case Overall Length: 2.045 Inches.
Cartridge Overall Length: 2.710 Inches.
.243 Winchester Rifles:
The popular .243 Winchesters in most rifle configurations are well known for their accuracy, this is partially due to the fact that little recoil is felt by the shooter therefore reducing recoil flinch when shooting. Bolt action 243 Winchester rifles are very popular for hunting and target shooting. Compared to most other manually-operated firearm actions, they offer an excellent balance of strength, simplicity, and potential accuracy. The major disadvantage is a slightly lower practical rate of fire than other alternatives, but this is not a critical factor in many types of hunting and target shooting. The Bolt Action is the most popular rifle action type used in North America chambered in the .243 Winchester cartridge, of which the Remington Model 700, Ruger M77 and Winchester Model 70 brands and models are the most popular. To achieve the maximum accuracy from your .243 Winchester rifle there are several things you need to do correctly and this applies to new and used rifles.
 1. Properly mount your rifle scope.
2. Properly break-in your rifle barrel.
3. Properly sight-in your rifle with this free accurate sight-in target. .243 Winchester rifles are light recoiling and comfortable enough for anyone to shoot accurately. For a beginning rifle hunter just getting into the high power rifle hunting sports, the .243 Winchester is highly recommended. Also for anyone that is recoil sensitive this is a great rifle and cartridge combination. Rifle Barrel Specifications:
Bore Groove Diameter - .243".
Common Barrel Lengths - 20" to 26".
Common Barrel Twist Rate - 1 in 10" & 1 in 9" (uncommon) 1 in 12" & 1 in 8".
1 in 9" twist rate: Remington 660, 700 & 788 (old).
1 in 9.125" twist rate: Remington 700, 7400, 7600 & 7.
1 in 9.250" twist rate: Savage (current production models).
1 in 10" twist rate: Browning.1 in 10" twist rate: FN.
1 in 10" twist rate: H and R models 300, 308 & 360.
1 in 10" twist rate: Husqvarna.
1 in 10" twist rate: J.C. Higgins 51-L.
1 in 10" twist rate: Mannlicher Schoenauer.
1 in 10" twist rate: Mossberg 800.
1 in 10" twist rate: Musketeer.
1 in 10" twist rate: Remington 700, 40-XB.
1 in 10" twist rate: Ruger 1 & 77.
1 in 10" twist rate: Sako Bolt & Lever Actions.
1 in 10" twist rate: Savage 99, 110, 111, 112-V & 116 (old).
1 in 10" twist rate: Schultz and Larsen.
1 in 10" twist rate: Stevens 110.
1 in 10" twist rate: Thompson/Center Rifles.
1 in 10" twist rate: Weatherby Vanguard.
1 in 10" twist rate: Winchester 70, 88, 100, 670 & 770.
1 in 12" twist rate: Steyr SSG-PII.
Note: How To Measure Rifling Twist Rate.
Also See: Winchester Model 70 Rifles, Rifles & Accuracy, Rifles & Problems.
.243 Winchester Performance:
 In part, the .243 Winchester cartridge is very popular due to its dual purpose use as a hunting cartridge, using lighter weight bullets from 55 grains to 85 grains, the .243 has an effective bullet energy range of 500 yards for varmint and predator size animals, such as: Bobcat, Cougar & Coyote..243 Winchester 55 Grain Ballistic Silvertip Ammunition Description.
The solid base boat tail design and special jacket contours of Winchester Supreme Ballistic Silvertip ammunition deliver long-range accuracy with reduced cross-wind drift. The 55 grain Lubalox coated Ballistic Silvertip bullet is designed to deliver rapid expansion and fragmentation in varmint-size game.
Bullet Diameter: .243 Inch.
Bullet Weight: 55 Grains.
Bullet Style: Ballistic Silvertip.
Case Type: Nickel Plated Brass (Reloadable).
Muzzle Velocity: 3,910 Feet Per Second.
Muzzle Energy: 1,867 Foot Pounds. | | Short Range Ballistics Table: Rifle Zero 100 Yards. | Manufacturers
Recommended
Cartridge Usage: |
Bullet
Wght.
Grains | Bullet
Bal.
Coef. | Muzzle
Vel.
Fps. |
Muzzle
Energy
Ft. lbs. |
Rifle
Zero
100 Yds. |
Traj.
200 Yds.
Inches | Traj.
250 Yds.
Inches | | Predator & Varmint | 55 | .276 | 3,910 | 1,867 | 0 | - 1.4 | - 3.3 |
| Long Range Ballistics Table: Rifle Zero 200 Yards. | | Range | Muzzle | 100 yds. | 200 yds. | 300 yds. | 400 yds. | 500 yds. | Yards |
| Bullet Velocity: |
3,910 |
3,493 |
3,114 |
2,768 | 2,447 | 2,148 |
F.P.S. |
| Bullet Energy: |
1,867 |
1,490 |
1,185 |
936 |
731 | 563 |
FT. LBS. |
| Bullet Trajectory: |
- 1.5" |
+ 0.7" |
0" |
- 4.3" | - 13.1" | - 27.8" |
IN. |
| Effective Range For Varmint & Predators: 500 Yards. |
.243 Winchester 80 Grain Pointed Soft Point Ammunition Description.
Winchester SuperX 243 Winchester Pointed Soft Point Ammunition Features: proven accuracy, high velocity, maximum impact & rapid controlled expansion.
Bullet Diameter: .243 Inch.
Bullet Weight: 80 Grains.
Bullet Style: Pointed Soft Point.
Case Type: Brass (Reloadable).
Muzzle Velocity: 3,350 Feet Per Second.
Muzzle Energy: 1,993 Foot Pounds. | | Short Range Ballistics Table: Rifle Zero 100 Yards. | Manufacturers
Recommended
Cartridge Usage: |
Bullet
Wght.
Grains | Bullet
Bal.
Coef. | Muzzle
Vel.
Fps. |
Muzzle
Energy
Ft. lbs. |
Rifle
Zero
100 Yds. |
Traj.
200 Yds.
Inches | Traj.
250 Yds.
Inches | | Predator & Varmint | 80 | .255 | 3,350 | 1,993 | 0 | - 2.5 | - 5.6 |
| Long Range Ballistics Table: Rifle Zero 200 Yards. | | Range | Muzzle | 100 yds. | 200 yds. | 300 yds. | 400 yds. | 500 yds. | Yards |
| Bullet Velocity: |
3,350 |
2,955 |
2,594 |
2,260 | 1,952 | 1,672 |
F.P.S. |
| Bullet Energy: |
1,993 |
1,551 |
1,195 |
908 |
677 | 496 |
FT. LBS. |
| Bullet Trajectory: |
- 1.5" |
+ 1.3" |
0" |
- 6.4" | - 19.8" | - 42.3" |
IN. |
| Effective Range For Varmint & Predators: 500 Yards. |
 Using slightly heavier bullets from 87 grains to 100 grains the .243 Winchester also has an effective bullet energy range of 300 yards for thin skinned big game animals, such as: Antelope, Black-tail Deer, Mule Deer & White-tail Deer. The .243 is very effective on Hogs & Javelina as well.
.243 Winchester 95 Grain Ballistic Silvertip Ammunition Description.
The solid base boat tail design and special jacket contours of Winchester Supreme Ballistic Silvertip ammunition deliver excellent long-range accuracy with reduced cross-wind drift. The 95 grain Lubalox coated Ballistic Silvertip bullet is designed to deliver rapid controlled expansion with deep penetration over long ranges in thin skinned big game such as deer-size game animals.
Bullet Diameter: .243 Inch.
Bullet Weight: 95 Grains.
Bullet Style: Ballistic Silvertip.
Case Type: Nickel Plated Brass (Reloadable).
Muzzle Velocity: 3,100 Feet Per Second.
Muzzle Energy: 2,021 Foot Pounds. | | Short Range Ballistics Table: Rifle Zero 100 Yards. | Manufacturers
Recommended
Cartridge Usage: |
Bullet
Wght.
Grains | Bullet
Bal.
Coef. | Muzzle
Vel.
Fps. |
Muzzle
Energy
Ft. lbs. |
Rifle
Zero
100 Yds. |
Traj.
200 Yds.
Inches | Traj.
250 Yds.
Inches | | Thin Skinned Big Game & Predator | 95 | .400 | 3,100 | 2,027 | 0 | - 2.8 | - 6.0 | | Long Range Ballistics Table: Rifle Zero 200 Yards. | | Range | Muzzle | 100 yds. | 200 yds. | 300 yds. | 400 yds. | 500 yds. | Yards |
| Bullet Velocity: |
3,100 |
2,858 |
2,630 |
2,413 | 2,205 | 2,009 |
F.P.S. |
| Bullet Energy: |
2,027 |
1,723 |
1,459 |
1,228 |
1,026 | 851 |
FT. LBS. |
| Bullet Trajectory: |
- 1.5" |
+ 1.4" |
0" |
- 6.4" | - 18.8" | - 38.4" |
IN. |
| Effective Range For Thin Skinned Big Game: 300 Yards. |
.243 Winchester Maximum Range:
Maximum range is measured by firing a bullet at a 30 degree angle over a horizontal plane and then measured at point of departure from the rifle barrel to where the bullet first impacts the ground or target area down-range.
60 Grain Bullets - 3,000 Yards.
80 Grain Bullets - 3,500 Yards.
100 Grain Bullets - 4,000 Yards. .243 Winchester Maximum Effective Range:
Hornady Ballistics, Remington Ballistics, Winchester Ballistics.
.243 Winchester Reloading:
Loading a .243 Winchester cartridge for accuracy is not all that difficult. I have written a guide for rifle cartridge reloading that will solve any issues you may have reloading your empty .243 Winchester brass into fully loaded accurate rifle cartridges. One of the most important issues when reloading for the .243 is case capacity as this is a variable in reloading not a constant. Just using brass from different manufacturers will show considerable variance in case capacity and when done wrong extreme jumps in chamber pressure will occur, so read well the part on case capacity and load density of powder.
AccuracyBrassPrimersPowderBulletsLoad TestingRun-OutFor the Fox & Groundhog hunter hand-loading his or her own .243 Winchester ammunition Hodgdons H4895 rifle powder works very well with very light weight .243" diameter bullets. Hodgdons online reloading data shows that a 55 grain Nosler Ballistic-Tip bullet using 40 grains of H4895 can be driven to a velocity of 3,638 feet per second at a chamber pressure of only 35,100 C.U.P. loaded at a maximum length of 2.650". This load does not top out until the 55 grain bullet is above 4,000 feet per second in the 243 at a chamber pressure of 49,300 C.U.P. and that is impressive.
For the 55 grain bullet reload if you sighted your .243 Winchester varmint rifle in dead on at 225 yards it would only be 1.1 inches high at 150 yards and only 1.8 inches low at 275 yards which would be an excellent varmint load, this load still produces enough bullet energy at 500 yards to take varmint and predators with a remaining bullet energy of 615 foot pounds. | 243 Winchester Reload Ballistics & Usage: Nosler Bullet, Hodgdon Powder. | Recommended
Cartridge
Usage: |
Bullet
Wght.
Grains | Bullet
Bal.
Coef. | Muzzle
Vel.
Fps. |
Muzzle
Energy
Ft. lbs. |
Rifle
Zero
100 Yds. |
Traj.
200 Yds.
Inches | Traj.
250 Yds.
Inches | | Predator & Varmint | 55 | .276 | 4,058 | 2,011 | 0 | - 1.2 | - 2.9 |
| Long Range Ballistics Chart: | | Range | Muzzle | 100 yds. | 200 yds. | 300 yds. | 400 yds. | 500 yds. | Yards |
| Bullet Velocity: |
4,058 |
3,626 |
3,236 |
2,880 | 2,551 | 2,245 |
F.P.S. |
| Bullet Energy: |
2,011 |
1,606 |
1,279 |
1,013 |
795 | 615 |
FT. LBS. |
| Bullet Trajectory: |
- 1.5" |
+ 0.6" |
0" |
- 3.9" | - 12.1" | - 25.6" |
IN. |
| Effective Range For Varmint & Predators: 500 Yards |
For the Bobcat & Coyote hunter hand-loading his or her own .243 Winchester ammunition wanting to shoot a slightly heavier bullet, Hodgdons Superformance rifle powder works very well with the 80 grain Sierra varminter .243" diameter bullets. Hodgdons online reloading data shows that the 80 grain Sierra bullet using 44 grains of Hodgdon Superformance powder can be driven to a velocity of 3,236 feet per second at a chamber pressure of only 49,300 PSI loaded at a maximum length of 2.635". This load does not top out until the Sierra 80 grain varminter bullet is above 3,450 feet per second in the .243 at a chamber pressure of 58,400 PSI and that is impressive for the .243 when used for predator hunting.
For the 80 grain Sierra varminter bullet reload if you sighted your .243 Winchester predator rifle in dead on at 200 yards it would only be 1.1 inches high at 125 yards and only 2.1 inches low at 250 yards which would be an excellent predator load, this load still produces enough bullet energy at 500 yards to take predators with a remaining bullet energy of 733 foot pounds.
| 243 Winchester Reload Ballistics & Usage: Sierra Bullet, Hodgdon Powder. | Recommended
Cartridge
Usage: |
Bullet
Wght.
Grains | Bullet
Bal.
Coef. | Muzzle
Vel.
Fps. |
Muzzle
Energy
Ft. lbs. |
Rifle
Zero
100 Yds. |
Traj.
200 Yds.
Inches | Traj.
250 Yds.
Inches | | Predator & Varmint | 80 | .319 | 3,460 | 2,126 | 0 | - 2.1 | - 4.7 |
| Long Range Ballistics Chart: | | Range | Muzzle | 100 yds. | 200 yds. | 300 yds. | 400 yds. | 500 yds. | Yards |
| Bullet Velocity: |
3,460 |
3,133 |
2,830 |
2,547 | 2,281 | 2,031 |
F.P.S. |
| Bullet Energy: |
2,126 |
1,743 |
1,423 |
1,153 |
924 | 733 |
FT. LBS. |
| Bullet Trajectory: |
- 1.5" |
+ 1.0" |
0" |
- 5.4" | - 16.1" | - 33.6" |
IN. |
| Effective Range For Predators: 500 Yards |
For the Blacktail, Whitetail & Mule Deer hunter hand-loading his or her own .243 Winchester ammunition Hodgdons Hybrid 100V rifle powder does an equally impressive job of launching 100 grain .243" diameter bullets at high velocity. Hodgdons online reloading data shows that a 100 grain .243 diameter Speer Boat-Tail bullet using 40 grains of Hybrid 100V can be driven to a velocity of 2,868 feet per second at a chamber pressure of only 45,400 C.U.P. loaded at a maximum length of 2.650". This load does not top out until the 100 grain bullet is at 3,100 feet per second in the .243 at a chamber pressure of 51,700 C.U.P..
For the 100 grain bullet reload if you sighted your .243 Winchester deer rifle in dead on at 225 yards it would only be 2 inches high at 150 yards and only 2.9 inches low at 275 yards which would be an excellent deer load, this load still produces enough bullet energy at 350 yards to take deer with a remaining bullet energy of 1,235 foot pounds. | 243 Winchester Reload Ballistics & Usage: Speer Bullet, Hodgdon Powder. | Recommended
Cartridge
Usage: |
Bullet
Wght.
Grains | Bullet
Bal.
Coef. | Muzzle
Vel.
Fps. |
Muzzle
Energy
Ft. lbs. |
Rifle
Zero
100 Yds. |
Traj.
200 Yds.
Inches | Traj.
250 Yds.
Inches | Thin Skinned
Big Game | 100 | .430 | 3,100 | 2,134 | 0 | - 2.7 | - 5.9 |
| Long Range Ballistics Chart: | | Range | Muzzle | 100 yds. | 200 yds. | 300 yds. | 400 yds. | 500 yds. | Yards |
| Bullet Velocity: |
3,100 |
2,875 |
2,661 |
2,457 | 2,262 | 2,076 |
F.P.S. |
| Bullet Energy: |
2,134 |
1,835 |
1,572 |
1,341 |
1,136 | 957 |
FT. LBS. |
| Bullet Trajectory: |
- 1.5" |
+ 1.4" |
0" |
- 6.3" | - 18.3" | - 37.2" |
IN. |
| Effective Range For Thin Skinned Big Game: 350 Yards |
Reloading Specifications:
Bullet Diameter - .243"
Maximum Case Length - 2.045"
Trimmed Case Length - 2.035"
Primer Size - Large Rifle.
Also See: Reloading, Data & Accuracy Loads.
Sponsors .243 Winchester Merchandise For Sale:
Also See: For Sale.
.243" Ballistics:
| Centerfire Rifle Cartridges: .243 Caliber Ballistics Comparison. | Cartridge
Click Links For
More Ballistics. |
Bullet
Wght.
Grains | Bullet
Bal.
Coef. | Muzzle
Vel.
Fps. |
Muzzle
Energy
Ft. lbs. |
Rifle
Zero
100 Yds. |
Traj.
200 Yds.
Inches | Traj.
250 Yds.
Inches | | 243 Winchester | 95 | .411 | 3,100 | 2,027 | 0 | - 2.7 | - 5.9 |
| 243 WSSM | 95 | .411 | 3,150 | 2,093 | 0 | - 2.6 | - 5.7 | | 6mm Remington | 100 | .356 | 3,100 | 2,133 | 0 | - 2.9 | - 6.2 |
| 240 Wby. Mag. | 100 | .381 | 3,406 | 2,576 | 0 | - 2.1 | - 4.6 |
|
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