I live in North Georgia, and don't have much money in the rifle budget. I want a rifle big enough to kill deer cleanly, but not so big that it will destroy the pelts on coyotes that I hunt. I don't live far from a rifle range, so practice is not a problem. I want to get it before summer so I can get accurate with it before the season starts in the fall.
2007-03-17 05:28:57 · 11 answers · asked by sdenison1983 3 in Sports ➔ Outdoor Recreation ➔ Hunting
Should do........243 is about the smallest you want to use for whitetail though, and even then sometimes can be questionable.
2007-03-17 05:38:14 · answer #1 · answered by Scotty 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, the .243 is great for deer, about the smallest you can go. It is decent on coyotes but can be overkill. I have a 100 ATR that i just bought for coyotes, but havent had a chance to shoot one yet. If you ask me this is a great choice for both. If you dont want to tear up the pelts on coyotes, get ballistic tip bullets because it makes no exits hole and you get a drop dead kill. I have a friend that lives in Georgia, and i live in illinois and he says the deer down there dont get to a big size, so you shouldnt have any problems with the deer only getting wounded. the gun is a great choice and the caliber is a good choice for coyote and deer. Good luck and happy huntin.
2007-03-17 10:08:53 · answer #2 · answered by Aaron 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You may want to go to a .308 Winchester. Shoot 150 softpoints for deer and 150 FMJ for coyotes if you are not wanting pelt damage. Or you can shoot the 125 Ballistic Tips from Nosler for the coyotes if you find you don't care so much about fur damage. You may also look at the Savage line of firearms if you are on a tight budget. Savage also makes a Stevens model which is nothing more than the Savage model before the advent of the Accu-trigger.
.243 would be a fine choice, but you would have to be absolutely sure of a good shot angle on whitetails to ensure one shot kills.
2007-03-17 06:37:05 · answer #3 · answered by .40 Glock 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The Mossberg ATR is a great rifle. It has been rated as the best rifle under $300. It is capable of shooting 1inch groups. The .243 round is a highly underrated round. The ATR does come in larger cal. so look into it. My recommendation is go for that .243 its very versatile and not that expensive. Go for it.
2007-03-17 06:47:13 · answer #4 · answered by mhheartsnh 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The Mossberg ATR 100 is a good budget choice. The .243 is super popular around here for younger hunters, men of small stature and women hunters because of the reduced recoil.
I personally bought the ATR 100 in .308 because I like to hunt bigger game as well.
Miketyson26
2007-03-17 11:59:29 · answer #5 · answered by miketyson26 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
243 will be fine. I would only suggest that you not use too lite a bulllet and a hot load. Tried it once. Going for speed. It was going so darn fast that then it hit the deer it just exploded and made no penetration. It took loosing three different deer before I made the connection. Duh.
Shoot straight and good luck.
2007-03-17 06:51:57 · answer #6 · answered by ragbagz 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
.243 good for Coyote but a little underpowered for Deer size game you should move up to a .270 or better
2007-03-18 07:03:55 · answer #7 · answered by L J 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
depends on what you call north ga if you`re coming up in the mnts 243 won`t handle the thickets like a 30 cal
2007-03-18 01:15:16 · answer #8 · answered by DAVE K 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Plenty enough power to take care of the coyotes and just enough to take a deer down cleanly.Good choice :o)
2007-03-17 06:50:44 · answer #9 · answered by sweetsherryann 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Scotty beat me me to it 243 would be borderline but would do it its bullet placement, a 22 in the head vs.44 mag in the foot type of deal dont give me best answer he got ot first
2007-03-17 06:37:57 · answer #10 · answered by havenjohnny 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋