Bigger than 243 but a bit different?

[75]

I've been shooting more fallow of late and and contemplating something with a bit more punch than the 243 - mine loves 90gn bullets, so it's probably a bit on the small side for a large fallow buck - perfectly capably when I put the bullet in the right place I know, but nice to have a bit in reserve if the shot isn't quite perfect! I reload, so don't mind something that is not readily available, in fact I really fancy something a bit different.

Trouble is, I don't know what!! 6.5x47, 260 etc are all just a bit similar ballistically to the 243 to really make it worthwhile running a second calibre. I'm not going to be firing thousands of rounds, so something a bit "hot" doesn't worry me and if I want something that shoots a bigger bullet as flat as my 243 then it's going to need to be quick...

 

[SussexFallow]

270

 

[tjwaines]

7mm08 ?

 

[saddler]

6.5x55

 

[tusker]

+ 1 270
Tusker

 

[sinbad]

any of the above

sinbad

 

[Tackleberry270]

270

+1

 

[375win]

6,5x68

 

[Offroad Gary]

the 47lap or 260 would compliment your .243 quite well, then you'd have a fox rifle and a deer rifle. plenty big enough for the deer around here, dont need flatter/faster just need the right setup in a well balanced rifle with a quality scope. i chose the 47lap because of its superior ballistics at extended ranges. you could go 6.5x284 if you want a barrell burner. kevinf uses 30-06ai on the fallow here, 125btip at 3400 fps, that sorts em.

 

[wikedwickedmotox]

7 08!

 

[andymarsh]

+1 270

 

[www.yorkshireroestalking.]

the 6.5x68 woud be an unusual choice and very good.
+1 .270 if you want more I love my 7mm rem mag.
or 7x64

 

[Hibrion]

I'd say you are best off sticking with the 243 if it's mainly for Fallow. If you were after Sika I'd go with a 270 or a 30-06, but for Fallow is it really worth running an extra rifle?

 

[brenneke]

6.5mm is THE calibre for deer up to the biggest three (and i have taken elk and sambar with 6.5, and probably more moose in Scandinavia have been taken with the Swede than any other calibre - so it is clearly adequate on the biggest three, too). 7mm is larger than what you need on fallows, though 7mm08 was my fallow gun for a long time and is certainly a very good choice especially if you will hunt reds with the rifle as well. But the 6.5 is just a better choice and the longrange capabilies and high sectional densities and penetration properties of the 140gr 6.5mm bullets make it more versatile.

I would recommend the 6.5x.284. The "barrel burning" consideration is beside the point in a stalking rifle. Out of a stalking rifle with a hammer-forged barrel expect about 1500-2000 rounds. That is decades of deer stalking - very few stalking rifles will do that many rounds in their entire life. The 6.5x.284 is no more a barrel burner than the 243. The 6.5x.284 just has a reputation as a barrel burner do to its target usage, where guys may regularly put more than a 1000 rounds down the barrel in a year.

 

[steveford1]

308 good for anything 125g fast & flat / 150 g good for any species in the uk

 

[6mmHOT]

6.5x55
Nothing In uk it cannot deal with

 

[big cat]

+ 270 mate as all ma mate keep telling me to get one instead of ma 243

 

[User00003]

I think all of the above posts do NOT help your decision making AT ALL!

decide:
a. are you going to buy a new rifle?
b. are you going to / willing to re-barrel at around £500+?

if:
a. the world is your oyster, anything above .243 will do! ...that's the hard part...
b. this is the easy part... 6.5 hornady creedmoor, 260 rem...but 260 rem prefers a long action, 6.5 creedmoor does not. 6.5x47 prefers a custom action due to small primers, as do a lot of other 'wildcats'...if you reload...then to 6.5 creedmoor (and make me jealous!), if you do NOT reload, then you can can always up-chamber to a .308 from a .243, same cartridge after all

 

[375win]

To be adventurous you do not want to go for anything american or wildcat. Everyone so has one of those down at the range. Try european. They do build the best cars there. And lots of the american stuff is just copied from european originals. Go for a 6x62 freres or a 6.5x68 or a 6.5x63 Messner Magnum. There is so much excellent exotic stuff over there. Either that or go british historic 244 H&H Mag or some such.

 

[Milligan]

I think all of the above posts do NOT help your decision making AT ALL!

decide:
a. are you going to buy a new rifle?
b. are you going to / willing to re-barrel at around £500+?

if:
a. the world is your oyster, anything above .243 will do! ...that's the hard part...
b. this is the easy part... 6.5 hornady creedmoor, 260 rem...but 260 rem prefers a long action, 6.5 creedmoor does not. 6.5x47 prefers a custom action due to small primers, as do a lot of other 'wildcats'...if you reload...then to 6.5 creedmoor (and make me jealous!), if you do NOT reload, then you can can always up-chamber to a .308 from a .243, same cartridge after all

Do the .243, 7mm-08 and .308 also a prefer a long action?
Same case so curious what makes you think the .260 prefers the long action.

To be adventurous you do not want to go for anything american or wildcat. Everyone so has one of those down at the range. Try european. They do build the best cars there. And lots of the american stuff is just copied from european originals. Go for a 6x62 freres or a 6.5x68 or a 6.5x63 Messner Magnum. There is so much excellent exotic stuff over there. Either that or go british historic 244 H&H Mag or some such.

Good god man, I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or have lost your senses but the last American car I had was akin to a V8 wheelie bin in build quality, fit and handling.