ORIGINAL: USAF_hunter
Depends on where your hunting. A .243 is pretty good if you want to practice tracking deer. .257 Roberts or a .260 will work to perfection.
You're joking, right? A .257 Roberts is "perfect", but a .243 is "pretty good if you want to practice tracking"? Really?
The .243, with a 100 grain bullet, at 100 yards has over 1600 ft. lbs. of energy. The Roberts, with a 117 grain bullet, at 100 yards has 1363 ft. lbs. The .243 has almost as much energy at 200 yards as the Roberts does at 100.
But.. Yeah... that extra 17 grains of weight and 14 thousandths of an inch of diameter turn the Roberts into the Hammer of Thor.[/sarcasm]
BigDawgWill: If anyone tells you that the .243 is no good for whitetails, it's because (a) they've never shot a deer with a .243, (b) they're a lousy shot or are so afflicted with ADHD that they don't want to wait for a good shot, or (c) they simply don't have a clue what they're talking about and are just making crap up as they go along. I used to hunt with a .30-06. I switched to a .243 a couple years ago, and the deer I've shot have actually gone less distance after the shot with my .243 than they did with the 06. Just pick your shot.