Use is largely benchrest punching paper at 100 to 600 yards. Mostly at 200 yards. Same rifle platform (Lithgow LA 102). Not a fan of recoil. Probably install a muzzle brake. Any suggestions and why are most welcome. Not concerned about the cost of brass or bullets, etc.
I would go with the 6.5 caliber. Could be Swedish 6.5x55, 260 Remington, 6.5x06, 6.5x284, or 6.5 Creedmore. The 6.5 bullet is more efficient than the 243.
Or if you are stuck on a .243/6mm bullet size, go 6mm Creedmoor.
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I’d go with the 243.
I guess it just depends on what you want. Out to 300 yd I like my little .223, but, a 6mm would handle wind a little better so I'd suggest staying with the 6mm for lower recoil. No need to go to 6.5 or 7 if you are not going to shoot the larger bullets.
.243, 6CM, 6PPC, 6Rem, 6mm-06, etc is just preference unless you are in competition. Me? I'd go with .243, but, my other rifle is a .308 so I may be biased
Alright. Started this post 3 times now. Just looked up a Lithgow LA 102.
Their .243 has a 1:10" twist. The 6.5 Creed has a 1:8 twist. The .243 will likely not stabilize high BC (above .4 or so) bullets, but should be fine to 600 yards. The 6.5 Creed should stabilize most anything.
The .243 will push a 100 grainer to around 3,000fps, the 6.5 will fling 140's to about 2700 or so, so I suspect recoil will be a wash.
6.5 will have an adavantage past 600 yards.
.243 brass is plentiful. I am also reading some good results using Cast in it. I haven't tried it yet but cast is a cast is a project waiting on cooler weather.
If you are just punching paper for fun .243
The best competition shooters use 6XC with a BC around .585 plus.
David Tubb has written extensively about this.
The .243 is widely available both in firearms and ammunition.
Unless you are entering competitions, KISS
My opinion
Commercial barrel twists are the issue. I buy 6mm barrels with a 1in 7 twist.
260Rem
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Negative...
".243 Win--Multi-Purpose Precision
If you could have just one rifle to slay varmints, hunt white-tails, shoot paper at long range, and duel in tactical matches, it would be hard to beat the .243 Winchester. This versatile "little brother" of the .308 Winchester is a true triple-threat as a match cartridge, varmint cartridge, and game cartridge. With 115gr DTAC bullets, a .243 rivals a 6.5-284 ballistically out to 1000 yards. Shooting 80-100 grain hunting bullets, a .243 will anchor a buck with authority. Driving the light 55-75 grain pills, the .243 provides the flat trajectory and high impact energy varminters love. As a tactical round, the .243 is one of the best, offering excellent ballistics, moderate recoil, and stone-reliable feeding from a detachable magazine."
http://www.6mmbr.com/index.html
The .243 also has the horsepower to push the heavy bullets.
Are you looking to shoot cast in it? Seems the 6.5 would have the advantage there.
I shot a 243 win in nra high power matches. It is a pre 64 model 70 action jewel trigger tubs stock hart 1-7 26" over the course contour barrel. Sights are warner rear and Tompkins globe front. It also has a 10" bloop tube fitted if desired. This rifle was used in matches from 200-1000yds. For 200 and 300 yds I used a lighter load and 95 grn vld berger bullets, but any good bullet from 85-100grns worked at these ranges. For 600-1000yds 105-115 grn were used. The best in my rifle was the 105 grn JLKs ( these were when Jim Knox still made them) the 105 and 115 bergers were very good also, but the 107 grn sierra was no slouch either. I Shot a few Starks 105 grn flat based that also performed very well at 1000 yds.
The 243 does very well at extended ranges but does require a faster twist barrel than most factory rifles have. With the vlds my come up from 200 to 600 is 9 minutes with the 308 and 168s 13 minutes. The 243 shoots very flat with the vld bullets and does very well in wind with them. It is easy to load for and on a well built rifle the difference between best load and worst load is very little
The draw back to the 243 is the shorter barrel life of around 2500 rds compared to other calibers.
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Thank you to all for helping my thinking move along. The .243 is most likely because a wider choice of bullet weights offering more flexibility. The 1 in 10 twist will have to suffice and should not be a problem as the longest range reasonably available to me is 600 yards. If a cast boolit load can be found providing suitable performance at 100 yards the barrel life should not be an issue for me. If not then guns are made to be shot, enjoyed and eventually worn out.
A muzzle break should leave this very comfortable to use.
.243 cases and dies are already had which helps stretch the budget until the scope breaks the bank.
One of my friends has not had any luck at all with cast boolits in his 6.5 Creedmore but my wife has a Mossberg 243 that absolutely loves 87 gr Loverin style boolits from an old Lyman mold shooting sub MOA regularly at 100 yards. I wish my old 6mm Rem would shoot as well. Her load is 11.2 gr of Unique. A muzzle brake certainly isn't necessary with this load and my wife is recoil shy.
If cast bullet shooting is going to be in the cards, why not a good muzzle brake attached to a .308? Went this route for my Mom when she retired & took an interest in shooting again - she had good memories of a light-kicking .243 from way back, but since Pop & I have since shifted to mostly poured bullets, the larger bore diameter with a Surefire brake on the nose made more sense.
The ballistic advantages of the Creedmoor are probably moot for the ranges you intend to shoot, though bore life might be better. At shorter ranges, the .243 is probably flatter shooting, which really only matters if you aren't shooting on a K.D. range.
WWJMBD?
In the Land of Oz, we cast with wheel weight and 2% Tin, Man.
Just curious, does one or the other have better barrel life?
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