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.243 WSSM oomans: what is it good for and does it have any useful advantage over standard .243 for a stalking rifle?

They're cheap, but by all accounts, burn barrels. My local RFD won't take them or any other WSM or WSSM in part-ex because of this.

It's a cartridge I really can't see much point of - it's a real barrel burner. Suggest doing some serious research. There are quite a few of them in Kiwiland and once you've got one you're stuck with it, barrel lives are extremely low, ca. 500 rds at best I've seen mentioned on Kiwi forum posts.

Other than the fact that you can fit them into an AR-15 action, coz they're short, I see nothing of benefit in them at all. You don't need it to hunt deer, unless you have REALLY big and mean deer over there.

Hmmm, looks like this isn't for us then. We think we're better of sticking with a common or cooking .243

Best idea Mr Brock, .243 WSSM is too fast/too hot/too destructive.

meles meles wrote:Hmmm, looks like this isn't for us then. We think we're better of sticking with a common or cooking .243

Better still a 7mm-08 - ideal deer calibre.

The 270 win is another fine deer round as is the ordinary 7x57 yet again none of my reds have ever complained about being shot with my 303.

If you are a stalker then most calibres are just fine, the answer is in the word describing the activity, stalking, which implies getting with in range and then good shot placement, I won't shoot a beast unless I can get within 150 yrds or less.

Good stalking and shooting skills are what really kills game, fancy calibres and rounds will never compensate for a lack of those skills. Almost all new shooting products are driven by peoples desire for fashion, to shop and buy new geegaws and as such they are usually reinventing the wheel.

meles meles wrote:Hmmm, looks like this isn't for us then. We think we're better of sticking with a common or cooking .243

.243 Winchester is an outstanding cartridge. It's been a long time favourite of mine. A plethora of 6mm target bullets are available as well. A nice tight twist on the barrel and 117gn bullets will do some serious work at longer ranges. And just about every gunshop in the country will carry factory ammo.

6mm Remington is another great, but not often encountered cartridge, today. Gives a couple of hundred fps more than the Winchester. A passed up a 6mm Rem Parker Hale Varmint that another club member picked up for a measly £250.

But as Roger said, 7mm/08 is a current cartridge of mine that is fantastic on deer and brilliant on paper targets, if you're looking for a double duty cartridge that is generally only regarded for hunting.

And, let us not forget that the .243's Daddy is the OUTSTANDING .308, without a doubt the finest and most effective deer, bear and moose cartridge ever put onto God's green Earth.......