7mm-08, .243, or the good ole .308?

[Big country]

I have been asking lots of questions lately but I have noticed something to. A lot of people are asking about caliber. Now I have narrowed my next rifle purchase down to the three calibers listed in the title. So here is the criteria, It has to be accurate enough for shooting out to 300-400 yds. It has to be able to kill something deer sized out to 300-400 yds. I'm thinking I'm going to buy this rifle and a Nikon pro staff 3x9x40 to set on top of it. http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firear...on/default.asp

I don't plan on shooting out past 200 or 300 but I personally would like to know that my set up is capable of preforming at that range.

[Big country]

Correction it is this rifle I'm looking into. http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firear...Action/XS7.asp

[Bullseye Shooter]

I shot an antelope with my .243 at just over 400 yards which is a stretch for it's 100 grain bullet. If you really think you might take a shot out to 600, I would go with the .308 or the 7mm-08.

[dee]

I agree with bullseye, if you are wanting to be able to bring an animal down from farther out I'd go with the .308 or 7mm-08. Although not considered as much the .243 is a tack driver and is a great hunting round for open area's. Another thing to consider is that if you are to go out of state to hunt some places have bullet restrictions. Colorado's used to be .244 and larger some states are .30 and larger.

[M. Sage]

For hunting at 600, .308 is going to lose a lot of energy. Forget .243 IMO. For that kind of range, I'd seriously consider a .300 Win Mag.

Don't forget that with hunting you want to hit that animal as hard as you can to make sure it dies as quickly as possible. It's not like a war zone, where you hit a guy with .308 at 800 yards and you don't care if he flops around for an hour or so as long as he can't shoot back.

[Big country]

I already have a 30-06 that has me covered for Colorado if I ever make it to hunt elk. I would like to have something capable of mule deer as I can hunt those in Texas hogs are also a thing I hunt whenever I get a chance. I've always wanted a 243 but I'm thinking it might be a little light for pigs at even at only 200 yds. The 7-08 however would be good out to 500 at least.

[Texas1911]

Um, mule deer and pigs at 600 yards I wouldn't even consider a .308, I would think more along the lines of .300 Win Mag and bigger. At 600 yards, the .300 Win Mag will retain about 40% more energy than the .308 (1000 vs. 1400).

The bullet is going to be nosed down at that kind of range, and the heavier .300 Win Mag bullet is going to carry more inertia, which is more important at the low velocity.

At 600 yards, a 1 MOA rifle is going to carry a 6" spread without factoring in your windage and elevation errors. Honestly, unless you regularly shoot at that kind of range, I wouldn't consider it an ethical shot.

[Big country]

The farthest I'll ever take a shot is four on a good day. I just want to know if these rounds will hold there accuracy out that far. As I said in my OP I don't plan on shooting out past 200 or 300. But if a shot on say a mule deer appeared at at 568 yards. And I have a 243 in my hands I'm not going to take the shot. If I have a 308 or a 7mm-08 I could make the shot. If I has a place to shoot that far I would love to give it a shot or two. But I will not take a shot on an animal at anything over 200 right now. If I get a better scope I might consider 4 but that is a stretch for me. I'd like to try a few shots out to 600 and I have a friend with some land that is why I'm asking about the whole 600 yd thing. I think I've got it down to either the 243 or the 7mm-08. I have a 30-06 that I'm going to start working on soon so the 30's are covered. I'm thinking 243 for anything deer sized out to 300. I don't know about pigs tho. The 7mm-08 would for sure be better suited for that.

[ZX9RCAM]

For what you are wanting to "possibly" do, why would you even consider the .243?
I have one & love it, but for those size/type of animals at the ranges you are considering shooting, use the 30-06 you already have, at the least.

[navyguy]

Originally Posted by Big country

The farthest I'll ever take a shot is four on a good day. I just want to know if these rounds will hold there accuracy out that far. As I said in my OP I don't plan on shooting out past 200 or 300. But if a shot on say a mule deer appeared at at 568 yards. And I have a 243 in my hands I'm not going to take the shot. If I have a 308 or a 7mm-08 I could make the shot. If I has a place to shoot that far I would love to give it a shot or two. But I will not take a shot on an animal at anything over 200 right now. If I get a better scope I might consider 4 but that is a stretch for me. I'd like to try a few shots out to 600 and I have a friend with some land that is why I'm asking about the whole 600 yd thing. I think I've got it down to either the 243 or the 7mm-08. I have a 30-06 that I'm going to start working on soon so the 30's are covered. I'm thinking 243 for anything deer sized out to 300. I don't know about pigs tho. The 7mm-08 would for sure be better suited for that.

I got to agree with Texas1911. You won't see very many knowledgeable hunters taking 600, or even 500 yard shots on "game" animals. Maybe varmints and the like. Hogs would fall into that, but I don't know how often they would present such a shot. I'm no up on my hog hunting. Other varmints like prairie dogs ar commonly shot a great distances and is a lot of fun, though I've not done that in many years. But that's a good enough reason to own an accurate long distance rifle.

My suggestion, if you want to stay with the short action is the .308. That will take care of most all lower 48 game, except bear moose, and maybe elk, out to reasonable ranges like 300. And 300 yards, shooting in the field, rather than the pristine
wind sheltered conditions of the bench rest at the range is is quite a feat. If you didn't have a 30.06, another good long range round is the .270.