Coyote sniper 243 or 25-06?
 

Looking for a new coyote / occasional deer rifle in the near future.

Currently shoot 30-06(s),338 win mag , 223 in AR, 450 Bushmaster upper, and 50 cal inline muzzleloaders.*

Considering 25-06 or 243. I'm more of a coyote eliminator vs hide saver type .*

Nothing against saving hide just haven't done it.*

So far only coyote I put down was when I was bear hunting. The 338 with 160 ttsx took care of him.Stealing my donuts on the last day of the hunt put him on the list...;)

Based on the above what do you guys recommend
243 or 25-06?

I use both and the only thing that gives the 25-06 a little bit of an edge over the .243 is longer range and better in the wind. Both are mild recoil calibers and I love them both.

I'd stick with your .338 WM - LOL :woot:

I like my .243 if expecting long shots or if there is a stiff wind.

Although I use my AR-15 mostly for coyotes now-a -days.

243 here also. I hand load a 85gr.HPBT to about 2800 FBS. Same load for every thing crows to whitetail deadly on coyotes. It works fine for most areas of Michigan where you can hunt coyotes or deer.

:D Al

Flip a coin...
 

My personal preference would be the .243win, but either will treat you just fine. If I were picking based on maximum performance, the .25-06 would be the pick, same velocity with ~20% higher bullet weights, or higher velocity with equivalent weights. But the advantage isn't huge in the field, as most fellas aren't able to capitalize on that advantage in hunting fields. If you can field shoot 1,000yrds, then the 25-06 pulls away, but at the normal 600yrds or less MAXIMUM ranges guys hunt, either will knock coyotes down clean.

EDIT: You could save yourself some money and just use that AR. The 223rem is my go-to, almost always in an AR-15. For super long coyote poking, the 243WSSM or Win are great. For shooting dogs farther than I really should, a 284win has been my go to lately (was formerly a 6.5-284).

If it will be used on large body deer very much I would go with a .25-06. I know there are many 243 Win fans that will disagree but I have shot a lot of game with both cartridges and would pick the 243 only if it was mostly a groundhog/varmit rifle with only occasional use as a small body deer rifle.

I'd go with the .243 and a lighter bullet for shooting further out and bucking the wind!

Personally I would consider other Smaller,Faster Calibers also....the .204 is a fast,flat shooting and very accurate,the .17 Calibers seem to be well liked also as in .17 Remington,.17 Fireball and the newer .17 Hornet if and when ammo is available for it?

***He's looking for something that he can use for deer once in a while and the calibers you mentioned certainly aren't for that and aren't even legal in many jurisdictions. By the way, lighter bullets do not buck the wind better.

Oh......I thought Bucklesyooper was wanting a Predator Only Rifle in a heavier Caliber?

As far as the .243 it would still do better in the wind than any .204 or .17 Caliber.....and just how light of a Factory Loaded Bullet can You go in a .243.....I didn't think they went very low in weight/grain?

I use to use my Browning A-bolt Hunter .243 for Deer and occasional Coyote Hunting,I used 100 grain Hornady Custom bullets and didn't care if I saved the hides or not until I bought the CZ .204 and gave my Predators to a local Trapper and plan on having a few mounted and I also Hunt for Foxes and Bobcats so a lighter Caliber was needed.

.243 dia. (6mm) 55 gr. BlitzKing BlitzKing

.243 dia. (6mm) 60 gr. HP .243 dia. (6mm) 60 gr. HP Varminter

.243 dia. (6mm) 70 gr. HPBT MatchKing
.243 dia. (6mm) 70 gr. HPBT MatchKing MatchKing, Not real;ly a hunting bullet.

.243 dia. (6mm) 70 gr. BlitzKing .243 dia. (6mm) 70 gr. BlitzKing

.243 dia. (6mm) 75 gr. HP .243 dia. (6mm) 75 gr. HP Varminter

.243 dia. (6mm) 80 gr. SBT Blitz .243 dia. (6mm) 80 gr. SBT Blitz Varminter

.243 dia. (6mm) 85 gr. SPT .243 dia. (6mm) 85 gr. SPT Varminter

.243 dia. (6mm) 85 gr. HPBT .243 dia. (6mm) 85 gr. HPBT GameKing

.243 dia. (6mm) 90 gr. FMJBT .243 dia. (6mm) 90 gr. FMJBT GameKing

.243 dia. (6mm) 95 gr. HPBT MatchKing

.243 dia. (6mm) 100 gr. SPT .243 dia. (6mm) 100 gr. SPT Pro-Hunter

.243 dia. (6mm) 100 gr. SBT .243 dia. (6mm) 100 gr. SBT GameKing

.243 dia. (6mm) 107 gr. HPBT MatchKing not really a hunting bullet

.243 dia. (6mm) 107 gr. HPBT MatchKing not really a hunting bullet

:D Al

Thanks Alleyyooper.....I never realized (or could find) that many choices of grain bullets for my .243,plus I didn't want to keep changing back and forth from Deer to Coyotes with it and have to re-sight it in each time so I have just saved up and bought several different Caliber Rifles for just Coyote/Predator Hunting.I bet that 55 grain Sierra Blitz King round would be a good choice and fast thru a .243!

I can choose from my CZ .204 using 39 grain Sierra Blitz Kings,a Savage Axis XP Camo .223 with 55 grain Hornady V-max down to the smaller .17 WSM 25 grain Winchester Bullets or .22 Magnum 35-40 grain CCI's!

I like the 25/06. It's a death ray for coyote, and whitetail.

Mine really likes the Federal 117 gr Sierra Gameking BTSP.

ATB

Great info guys.


For those shooting the 243 or 25-06 ans expecting longer shots (300+ yds) how do you sight them in?

Don't recall exact velocitys but think the 25-06 with 75 grain Vmax looked pretty flat at 300 + yards. Think the ballistic calculator for the vmax showed 12" low at 400 yards with a 250 yd zero.

I have simplified shooting the .25-06 by using 110 gr Accubonds sighted in at 300 yards. I know the trajectory and POI at different ranges of this one load very well by now. I used to shoot the lighter bullets but don't think it was really a benefit at longer ranges with the wind blowing.

My .243 loads do use frangible light bullets that are great for varmits but just barely adequate for larger game.

2506 wins hands down. 120 grain Speer hot cores flatten deer. Buddy uses his for moose and elk, after I turned him onto it. Prefers to be loaded warm, and will reach a long way. Blows the doors off of the 243 on the larger deer. Mega components available for it. Owned a 243 and shot a couple deer with it. Didn't impress me at all. I have had so many bangflops with the 06 that I quit counting. Much better in windy conditions and will totally ruin the day of whatever you are shooting at.

My personsal choice would have to be the 243.
Reasoning:
I would be doing more 'yote shooting than deer, necessates the more rounds shot for varmint, faster 55-85grn loads. Means more money spent, but cheaper than buying rounds for the bigger weapons.
2nd. You can play with various loads, if you reload or know someone who does, to find 2 loads that will print very close to the same sight in characteristics, less scope adjustments when the time comes to use the same rifle. May find a load in the upper weight range that will double duty.
I would personally stay to neck shots with the 243 just for the fact of you will be shooting larger bodied deer and no need to ask a lighter weight/design bullet to do what something twice its weight could be doing.

I've saw what a properly tuned 243 can do at ranges beyond what most people hunt, make it an accurate rifle with a fast twist and shoot heavy high BC bullets and it will surprise you at a grand. The 25/06 is no slouch either but there is a better selection of good bullets in .243
RR

I like my .243 pared with the hornady superformace I believe its a 58 grain bullet. Hits hard and is flat shooting. If you haven't checked out there superformace line check it out....