New rifle suggestions - .22-250, .223 Rem or .243 Win

[Nickunt]

Hi guys. First post here.
Just wondering on opinions for a new rifle?? Thinking of getting a nice .22 250, .223 or a .243.
I just cant decide.
Cheers guys.

[Baronvonrort]

If you tell us what you want to shoot and maximum range it would make it easier,will this be your first rifle or do you have others?

[aaronjo]

From what I've heard if you just want one rifle to do a wide range then the .243 is the way to go.

[bigtone]

I have a Verney Carron 300winmag pump action which is probably the most fun you could have on cat A/B. I highly recommend it. If your budget won't stretch that far go to the Remington 7600 and get some 10 round mags for it. They will take a bit of tuning and lubrication but once you get the mags working they are a blast too!

[aaronjo]

From what I've heard if you just want one rifle to do a wide range then the .243 is the way to go.

If you just want one rifle to do a whole lot of things make it a shotgun

Let's compromise, a combination gun in .243 and 12ga.

[Die Judicii]

Apart from what you will be using it for and at whatever range all put aside for the moment.
If your going to be buying factory ammo, (out of the calibers you put forward) the .223 is most likely the cheapest.

[Nickunt]

I have a henry .22 lever action, a stirling .22wmr and a .22 250 that is a bit ordinary hence the "nice .22 250".
A mate wants to buy my old one to do it up.
And as for what i want to shoot, pretty much everything, bunnies, foxes, pigs, goats, etc.
I have had my rifles for a couple of years but am only just really getting into hunting

[aaronjo]

.243 for the win!

If I could go back in time instead of getting my 223 I would have got a .243....or maybe not...

[sandgroperbill]

Something 7mm or .30cal? Gets you deer legal for both nsw and vic, also fine for pigs, goats, etc

[Gwion]

So many considerations.

Do you just want one centerfire? If so, you can get something like a 308 or 7mm-08 but then your bunnies and foxes wont have much left of them. A 243 is versatile but you limit your game size if you are chasing deer at all and you also need to consider that they are known to burn through barrels in less than half the rounds a 308 will handle. So, if you shoot a lot and use it for everything, you might need a new barrel every few years if you want to maintain top accuracy.

For cheap to run, you can't really go past a 223rem. Rabbits, foxes, the odd goat with good placement, maybe even smaller pigs. Then, if you start getting into the heavier pigs and goats and want to hunt deer, step up to a 7mm-08 or anything above that for caliber and velocity/energy.

You can certainly shoot rabbits and foxes with a bigger cartridge but it sort of is a waste of powder, power and the noise factor is considerable.

My personal solution is a 223rem and 7mm-08rem plus a 22lr for close in pest control. Will handle any shooting i will need or want to do in Australia.

[Nickunt]

Cheers for all of the suggestions guys. I think im going to go with a .223 first then go a .243 for my next one. I dont really have any where to hunt goats as yet but the place i go has a few small pigs and plenty of cats and rabbits so ill get the .223 for my next one

[Die Judicii]

Cats, you say ???

Go for it.
The more of them you can remove from the gene pool the better.

[Title_II]

Aren't you mates supposed to be working? What a bunch of goof offs I say

So glad it is still Sunday here

[pomemax]

your in nsw get one of each

[Gwion]

Aren't you mates supposed to be working? What a bunch of goof offs I say

So glad it is still Sunday here

Off on holiday. Leaving tomorrow. Fishing in far North Queensland for two weeks.....

[David Brown]

My 20c worth

You should always have a .22LR for practise (cheap) and cheap fun plinking and for rabbits.

A 223 is great for foxes and fallow deer, and roos. Really great on rabbits, but it can be a bit heavy handed….hehehehe

And anything more a .308.

Now in the 223 and 308 range you can go down the road of many variables, 243 is a great all rounder, 270, 6.5x55 is a great round…….you should have one of everything in my opinion….even a 30-06, or maybe a 300…..ohhh ok here we go again.

It is like kitchen knives, you need more than one but a few staple varieties will always work.

If you want just a minimal et up a .22 and .243 is a good compromise.

[Baronvonrort]

I have a henry .22 lever action, a stirling .22wmr and a .22 250 that is a bit ordinary hence the "nice .22 250".
A mate wants to buy my old one to do it up.
And as for what i want to shoot, pretty much everything, bunnies, foxes, pigs, goats, etc.
I have had my rifles for a couple of years but am only just really getting into hunting

What is there to do up on the 22-250,new barrel,stock,cosmetics,etc?

If I had a 22-250 I wouldn't be looking at a .223 or .243 ,the .223 has a little less power and the .243 a little more compared to 22-250,since you already have 2x .22's you need something bigger,Sambar require 150gr .270 minimum,the smaller deer need at least 120-130gr so that puts you in 7mm-08- .308w size.

[Oldbloke]

Cheers for all of the suggestions guys. I think im going to go with a .223 first then go a .243 for my next one. I dont really have any where to hunt goats as yet but the place i go has a few small pigs and plenty of cats and rabbits so ill get the .223 for my next one

Good first choice (223) but I would not bother with a 243, just jump to 308, 270 or 3006. If you get into reloading you can load heavier proj in the 223 or lighter ones in a 308.

[David Brown]

Just make sure the small pigs are well hit with a 223. If we had real guns, I mean semi's then a 223 on a pig is OK, but the reload time with a pissed off porker could be a problem.

Our (my wife's) Tikka T3 in 6.5x55 is a nice all round calibre and will do pigs and larger dear nicely and is not like a 30-06 for kick.

[Title_II]

I don't understand all the .30-06 hate. Don't you guys have recoil pads on your but stocks? My buddy's .30-06 is light as a feather and hardly seems to kick at all. And I am somewhat recoil sensitive.

[David Brown]

30-06 is an awesome calibre…….but the laws of physics are mass x velocity.

You can get a smaller diameter better BC projectile (often but not always) with a lesser charge to do the same job.

Heck we have one of them too

[Nickunt]

I was also thinking a 30-30 as i am a big fan of lever action rifles but thats later down the track. The ammo for that is a bit pricey last time i checked.

[Rakk]

Cheers for all of the suggestions guys. I think im going to go with a .223 first then go a .243 for my next one. I dont really have any where to hunt goats as yet but the place i go has a few small pigs and plenty of cats and rabbits so ill get the .223 for my next one

It's the right tool for the job

.223 will do any cat or rabbit out to a couple of hundred metres, should keep you busy

[zobster]

Men and their guns is the equivalent of women and their shoes etc

If the budget allows, buy both I say, one can never have too many guns!

[David Brown]

Amen!

[<<Genesis93>>]

A true connoisseur will have one of everything..... so therefore the question should be more along the lines of 'in which order' 224, 243, 25,26, 30, 338, 358, 366, 375, 416, 423, 458........to start off, then double up on your faves

you've got the smaller stuff (bunnies/foxes) covered with the rf/cf 22s....

What you need is a 30cal - 308win/30-06 good, 300winmag better

[Title_II]

Men and their guns is the equivalent of women and their shoes etc

If the budget allows, buy both I say, one can never have too many guns!

Blue lights flashing in my rear view
The sheriff said, "Boy I should've known it was you
You got fourteen guns in the back of this truck
I warned you twice and now I'm writing you up"
I said "Officer, what have I done?"
He smiled and said, "Boy you're having too much gun"

Too much gun, what's that mean?
It's like too much money, there's no such thing
It's like a girl too pretty with too much class
Being too lucky, a car too fast
No matter what they say, I've done
But I ain't never had too much gun

There was a fight Friday night at the stumble inn
Me and 'ole Harley just had to join in
Next thing you know we were both seeing stars
They threw us out, closed down the bar
I said, "The Long Branch is open the night's still young
And we ain't never had too much gun"

Too much gun, what's that mean?
It's like too much money, there's no such thing
It's like a girl too pretty with too much class
Being too lucky, a car too fast
No matter what they say, I've done
But I ain't never had too much gun

I'm a holly terror, a tornado
Wind me up, turn me loose and let me go

Too much gun, what's that mean?
It's like too much money, there's no such thing
It's like a girl too pretty with too much class
Being too lucky, a car too fast
No matter what they say, I've done
But I ain't never had too much gun

No matter what they say, I've done
Well, we ain't never had to much gun
Give me the scope and let me run
'Cause I ain't never had to much gun

[Kipper]

A true connoisseur will have one of everything..... so therefore the question should be more along the lines of 'in which order' 224, 243, 25,26, 30, 338, 358, 366, 375, 416, 423, 458........to start off

I think you mean lottery winner.

[Wheelbarrow]

"some"

Yeah doesn't count without at least two