super_hunt54

Tucked into the right spot, that round is perfectly capable of killing at 400 yards+ but THAT is the main thing, TUCKED INTO THE RIGHT SPOT! Even with the 100gr Interlock I wouldn't trust it to penetrate well on a shoulder hit past 250 yards. Just not enough meat in the missile. So you now have about a 5 inch target verses a 10 inch target. So with you being new to rifles I wouldn't go past 250 max.

Nomercy448

With the 243win and the right bullet, pick your range you can put up FIELD SHOTS reliably at 3-4", put the crosshairs on the pumphouse 2-2.5" away from anything hard to ensure you hit something tender, and deliver the shot. For some folks, applying the above might mean 50yrds, for others, it might be 400yrds - at either range, it'll kill deer.

I tend to agree the the other philosophy, however - despite knowing I'll damage a lot of good meat, if I'm holding something strong enough to crush bone with a smile on its face, I'll take the off-side shoulder shot when available. Any deer with a hole in their heart and lungs will die. Any deer with a hole in their heart and lungs AND a crushed shoulder will die near the point of impact.

It's almost become cliche' for me by now, but I've really grown to consider the .243win the most efficient whitetail cartridge available. Plenty of power for practical hunting ranges (~0-400yrds), minimal meat loss, and no compromises. Other smaller cartridges can work just fine, but all have some compromises which don't apply for the .243win.