.243 losing popularity?

[mike britton]

So I'm pipe dreaming my next left handed rifle and I'm looking at everything I can find to fill my feeble brain with information.
I'm looking at GB, and all the magazines I can to see what is out there and I'm seeing that a lot of the new offerings from the manufactures seem to be replacing the .243 with 6.5 Creedmore.
It got me wondering, is the .243 losing popularity? I cannot imagine in what is left of my life time that the venerable .243 would go away, and if it did ammo and brass will be available into the next century. Won't it!?

[reloader28]

The Creedmore is gaining popularity around these parts, but I dont think it will ever replace the 243. As far as I'm concerned its one of those "fads".
It is an accurate cartridge but too slow for me with much better options available

[richhodg66]

I don't own one an never really wanted one, but I doubt the .243 is going anywhere any time soon. Maybe not as popular as it was at one time, but it's going to be a strong seller for the foreseeable future.

[Pete44mag]

Don't worry about .243 brass going away anytime soon. If you can't find .243 brass just neck down .308 to .243 and your done. The .308 is the parent cartridge to the .243. Besides the U.S. Military and NATO use the .308 so it's here for a long, Long time.

[white eagle]

never really saw the use of a 243 but I doubt it will fade away
lots of folks let their kids and women use it for beginning deer hunting
pretty popular for a coyote rifle as well
I would and do,rather have a 6.5 Creedmoor over a 243 win just more versatile

[richhodg66]

"I would and do,rather have a 6.5 Creedmoor over a 243 win just more versatile"

Agreed and same here.

[txbirdman]

Also 6.5 CM has better barrel life than .243.

[farmbif]

the 243 is a inherently flat shooting caliber if 100 grain bullets at 3000fps isn't enough for what your wanting to do the 6.5 you can get a 120 grain bullet to 3000 fps with the right powder. but the long range standard seems to be right around 140 grain bullets from what I understand and shoot in the creed moor, but I'm no long range marksman, just like to shoot at stuff across the field out back. they are both super flat shooting rounds. 243 brass and bullets might be easier to find but lots of great long range hunting bullets have been developed for the creedmoor in recent years. its 6 of 1 half dozen of the other. my b14 bergara 6.5 shoots right about 1/2" groups at 100 yards right out of the box but the old savage 111 in 243 is no slouch.

[sparky45]

6CM is gaining in popularity as well.

[Gtrubicon]

I wanted and still want a 243, I ended up with a 6.5 tika ctr instead, then I bought my son a 6.5 tikka ultra light, don’t get me wrong, they are fabulous rifles. But I still want a 243, from varmint to deer, it is a proven caliber. My dad has one I grew up shooting with. Light recoil, one of the flattest trajectory out there. I feel it’s not going anywhere. It’s a shame that most of the rifles offered in this caliber are sized for youth. It’s a top notch round.

[Three44s]

When I began handloading my coyote hunting mentor convinced me that 243 was a better night hunting cartridge than the 22-250 or 220 Swift. That was 1975 and I was 19 years old.

I ended up buying a Ruger 77V in 1976 in 243 Win, a Liberty model after a brief stint with a Winchester 670 in the same cartridge.

I still have that Liberty Ruger with the same barrel and it is still a tack driving death ray on coyotes! Is it harder on barrels than say the 6.5 Creedmore? Perhaps.

But I have always refrained from shooting at lesser varmints with it. And if I ever manage to burn that barrel out, I figure it will deserve a well earned rebarrel because the coyotes killed will be darned well worth it.

That said, I kill coyotes with just about everything from 204 Ruger, 22 Hornet, 22k, 222, 223, 22-250, 243, 6 mm Rem, 25-06, 357 Mag, 44 mag and even a Keltec PF-9 ...... yes a belly gun in 9mm Luger!

So after 45 years what do I think of the 243 Win? Well, if I had never strayed around and played the field of varmint cartridges and stuck exclusively with the cartridge, I would have not missed much where killing coyotes is concerned.

Three44s

[dverna]

I owned one and it was ok. But there is no place for it in my needs. I have a few .223’s for fun shooting and varmints. No need to burn more powder in the .243. I hunt with a .308...so what would a .243 do?

The 6.5 CM is the latest fad, but no better than what I have for what I need killing. If I get so crippled up I cannot shoot a .308, I will add a muzzle brake or get a .260. At least brass for the .260 will never be a problem.

But the .243 is going to be around for a long time.

[Texas by God]

In my family, the .243 has been used for decades for deer on down and my grand nieces in Colorado kill elk with theirs. The secret? Bullet placement. Don't take chancy shots. Ive always liked the 6mm Remington better because I am a gun nut, but my third largest buck here and many does, coyotes, a few pigs and High Plains Poodles have been twofourtythreed by me. Its a classic, its staying.

Sent from my SM-A716U using Tapatalk

[1hole]

... I still want a 243, from varmint to deer, it is a proven caliber. My dad has one I grew up shooting with. Light recoil, one of the flattest trajectory out there. I feel it’s not going anywhere. It’s a shame that most of the rifles offered in this caliber are sized for youth. It’s a top notch round.

Absolutely true. It was about '71 when W'by started their Vanguard line and one of their first non-magnum cartridges was .243; I was young then and lusted for one. After a few months of agony, I got it. Still have it and am still glad; it has never let me down. It's deadly on crows and groundhogs to maybe 300 yards, southern white tail and, with 85gr cast, squirrel. Of course I could have done the same things with my Rem 700 in .30-06 but it's not as much fun to shoot. And I've not found my -06 to kill deer a bit faster or more reliably.

Will my barrel last as long as a 6.5? Dunno, don't care; it's not a range toy to burn ammo with so it's still good as new. Is it as versatile as a 6.5? I don't know, don't care; my .243 still does what I need every time it's fired. But, if I wanted maximum versatility I'd still have my .458 Win; THAT BEAST will kill anything on the face of the earth.

My poor right shoulder got destroyed in a T-bone auto accident in '80; it's nylon and titanium now so the big gun went away without firing it again. And I don't fire many heavy 30-06 loads either, 'cause I don't need 'em. But my .243 (and .22-250) still get used fairly often because they still do what I need done.

No offense meant to anyone but we gunners do tend to be trendy. We often follow after the latest and supposedly "best" new cartridges (and guns and scopes, etc.) ever produced.

I'm thinking of all the new cartridges that have been marketed since I got my .243 and sold like crazy for a short time but are no longer produced while the old rounds still keep trucking tells me something useful. I think. ??

[SweetMk]

The only way .243 will be popular in 20 years,, is if someone figures out how to chamber it in an AR15 ,,,,,,,,,,,

[DDriller]

The only way .243 will be popular in 20 years,, is if someone figures out how to chamber it in an AR15 ,,,,,,,,,,,

They do them in AR10 now. Will never work in an AR15 due to length.

[M-Tecs]

The .243 has been extremely popular since it's introduction and it will remain so for a very long time.

https://www.chuckhawks.com/prolific_...dges_2019.html

[richhodg66]

The only way .243 will be popular in 20 years,, is if someone figures out how to chamber it in an AR15 ,,,,,,,,,,,

If Ar-15s are even still legal in a year or two.

I think it'll remain popular for a long time. I own a 6mm and like it, inherently better cartridge, but still seems too light for deer and too much for varmints.

[Silvercreek Farmer]

Do you fellows that deer hunt with a 243 get exit wounds and decent blood trails?

[dverna]

If Ar-15s are even still legal in a year or two.

I think it'll remain popular for a long time. I own a 6mm and like it, inherently better cartridge, but still seems too light for deer and too much for varmints.

Agree. Biggest varmint here is a coyote and .223 is plenty. And if I am going to hunt deer the .308 is a better choice.