Hey Swampdog.how are ya?.i am not saying there isnt a better .243 bullet for killing deer out there..there may well be..as a general rule i would agree with you and advise to go with the heaviest bullets, considering that most 85 grain .243 bullets are designed for varmints....for example..i would have like to have tried some 100 grain nosler partitions on deer...a neighbor had very good results with them in his .243 but the noslers wouldnt shoot well in my gun ,so i gave up on them...also, i have heard a lot of people praise barnes bullets....i keep an open mind....i thought about going to a heavier sierra bullet since the 85 grainers shot well in my gun but the people at sierra advised not to go up to 100 grainers in their bullet in .243, as they didnt expand well on deer sized game.....all i am saying is that bullet weight is only one factor in how well a bullet holds together....i shot deer in the past with a 6.5 swede using 140 grain horaday interlocks ,and they blew up like dynamite..ruined a lot of meat...not due to a fault of the bullet so much as i had a fast twist military rifle and with my maximum loads the bullet tore apart on impact due to the great centifical force......all i am saying is that i found one good bullet for my rifle..i may try those barnes bullets next.....happy swampin!