From all the great stuff I have read, Federal Fusion's .243 load didn't used to be coated. Well, the current production run is. I didn't see what type of coating when I checked the website, and I only assume it is some type of moly. I still haven't had a chance to get to the range and test it. I have never fired lubricated or coated ammo. Apparently firing a group of unlubed ammo after shooting the lubed stuff without a good cleaning, will result in bad accuracy? I figured I would just pass the boresnake through once or twice between groups for testing, but now I am not sure. I have half a mind to just pick one, zero it, and as long as the accuracy is satisfsctory then just leave it be for now.

First ammo I shot through my savage 243 was the 95 grain Federal Fusion. Accuracy was horrible, 3+/- inch groups at 100 yards. I shot 40 of them sized cleaned and prepped the brass and loaded with sierra prohunters and imr4350 and it was night and day difference.

You know, I had similar accuracy from my Ruger .243 with those Fed Fusion loads. I thought my scope was off and I was all over the paper. I will probably be changing ammo. I like the bullet because of its kill factor, but if I cant hit anything the WTH.

It probably shoots great in someones rifle, just not ours.

Coated bullets are more slick running down the barrel. You will get higher speeds, but the consistency of the load will not be there. The extreme spreads (ES- difference between the high and low velocity) will often triple (or more) compared to a naked (non-coated) bullets. This much higher ES can cause inconsistency with the load. These bullets will coat the inside of the barrel when shooting them. When you shoot the coated bullets and they don't shoot well, and you go back to the naked bullets, you still have the coating on the inside of the barrel. This will effect the consistency (i.e.-groups) of the naked bullets now. You WILL need a heavy cleaning and some fouling rounds to season the barrel back in when changing back to the naked bullets. As you shoot, it will decrease the amount of coating left inside, and will produce inconsistent results. The key to good accuracy is having a consistent round from shot to shot. The consistency is not there when trying coated ammo, and also when going back to naked bullet ammo. It WILL effect your groups.

For a period, there were many shooters that ran the 243 Win with the coated 115 DTAC bullets. They were very fast and flat shooting, but at distance, you would get vertical stringing. This was due to the excessive high ES numbers the coated bullets produced. I'd recommend either going to them full time if they shoot well, or not trying them at all. IMO, it's not worth the gain for shooting the coated bullets. It was kind of a fad that went away.

Word. Same experience with the same components here.

Thanks for the information. Everything you guys are telling me reinforces everything else I've been reading- I don't even want to deal with the coated bullets right now. I just wanted to hear it from ya'll. I'll zero with the winchester super x, in whichever weight my gun likes. Every store I've been to keeps them in stock, no point in zeroing with ammo that I can only find in one store.
I have always believed it's best to leave some fouling in the bore of your rifle. I use two or three passes of a boresnake with a couple drops of clp or something, and do not strip it completely unless accuracy fades. I would think that the coated ammo would shoot well out of a gun if it were stripped and seasoned with the given load- as long as it's a load the gun likes. But i don't have the time to hit the range that often, so once my gun is dialed in with something I'm keeping it that way. I will test with the Fusion after deer season.

Federal Fusion .243 95 grain coated soft points were a bust in my rifle. 8 shots spread across 4 inches.

The 95gr Fusion bullet is not moly coated. It was in the past. I believe it is currently coated with boron nitride.

Whatever that stuff is, my gun doesn't like it.