Newbie-advice on .243 Win and H414

45romeo · December 26, 2007, 12:57 AM

Hello All! Been lurking around here for a week or so and picking up lots of real good information! I just got my reloading bench set up and have loaded up about 60 rounds with my new Lee Anniversary Kit. I started with 43.0 gr H414 behind a Sierra 60 gr HP. I chose the H414 cause in the Lee book it was listed for nearly every bullet weight. I am shooting a Savage 99A. Any advice on using the H414 with the 60 HP or Speer 70 gr HP TNT is appreciated. Want to blast jack rabbits and coyotes and other vermin!

T. O'Heir · December 26, 2007, 04:33 AM

Hi. Nice rifle in a great cartridge. However, the rifling twist matters. Light bullets like those you're looking at prefer a slow twist. 1 in 10 or slower. No matter what powder you use.
To get that(I can't find it on-line), put a solvented patch on your cleanng rod, mark the top near the handle with a felt marker and run the patch in until the mark makes one full turn and mark the rod again. Measure the distance between the marks. That gives you your rifling twist. I'm guessing that it'll be 1 in 10 or faster. Most hunting rifles are. It means that your rifle will prefer heavier bullets.
Most light weight .243/6mm bullets(under 80 grains) are varmint bullets. Designed to rapidly expand upon impact. This isn't a bad thing. There's no reason why you can't use heavier bullets for jack rabbits and coyotes. For coyotes and assuming you may want to have the winter hides tanned, a 90 grain FMJ makes a puncture wound and doesn't excessively damage the hide. Kills the coyote deader than spit. A 105 grain SP( a deer sized game bullet) practically turns a ground hog inside out.
Using the same rifle you may think about using to hunt deer with on varmints is fabulous practice. They guy with one rifle for everything is the most deadly shot.
After all that, buy a Lyman manual. It's far more versatile than the Lee book. Not that the Lee book is bad. Look into IMR4064 too.

December 26, 2007, 12:57 AM	#1
45romeo Member Join Date: December 26, 2007 Location: Idaho Posts: 26	Newbie-advice on .243 Win and H414 Hello All! Been lurking around here for a week or so and picking up lots of real good information! I just got my reloading bench set up and have loaded up about 60 rounds with my new Lee Anniversary Kit. I started with 43.0 gr H414 behind a Sierra 60 gr HP. I chose the H414 cause in the Lee book it was listed for nearly every bullet weight. I am shooting a Savage 99A. Any advice on using the H414 with the 60 HP or Speer 70 gr HP TNT is appreciated. Want to blast jack rabbits and coyotes and other vermin!

December 26, 2007, 04:33 AM	#2
T. O'Heir Senior Member Join Date: February 13, 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 12,453	Hi. Nice rifle in a great cartridge. However, the rifling twist matters. Light bullets like those you're looking at prefer a slow twist. 1 in 10 or slower. No matter what powder you use. To get that(I can't find it on-line), put a solvented patch on your cleanng rod, mark the top near the handle with a felt marker and run the patch in until the mark makes one full turn and mark the rod again. Measure the distance between the marks. That gives you your rifling twist. I'm guessing that it'll be 1 in 10 or faster. Most hunting rifles are. It means that your rifle will prefer heavier bullets. Most light weight .243/6mm bullets(under 80 grains) are varmint bullets. Designed to rapidly expand upon impact. This isn't a bad thing. There's no reason why you can't use heavier bullets for jack rabbits and coyotes. For coyotes and assuming you may want to have the winter hides tanned, a 90 grain FMJ makes a puncture wound and doesn't excessively damage the hide. Kills the coyote deader than spit. A 105 grain SP( a deer sized game bullet) practically turns a ground hog inside out. Using the same rifle you may think about using to hunt deer with on varmints is fabulous practice. They guy with one rifle for everything is the most deadly shot. After all that, buy a Lyman manual. It's far more versatile than the Lee book. Not that the Lee book is bad. Look into IMR4064 too. __________________ Spelling and grammar count!